Maokong Gondola; tea and temples

Actually 'trekking' could, and maybe even should, be added to the title of this post. Because the Maokong Gondola and Hill are very inviting to hikers.

However, since I am very much NOT one of them, I left that 'T' out of the alliteration;-).

Going with the Gondola makes a very interesting and relaxing half day, or even day, depending on what you intend to do. 

There are a few stops and the scenery is magnificent.

We took a crystal cabin, aka a cabin with a glass bottom, but that was not really worth the money. It added little to nothing to the experience.
And no, those feet are not ours. They belong to the family that was placed in the cabin with us.

The whole area is incredibly green and forested.

Ofcourse the Taipei 101 rises up above everything else.

As I mentioned, there are a few stops along the way to the top. You can hop on and of as you please. We got of at Zhinan Temple to visit a couple of temples there.

In the extreme heat (up to 39 degrees C !) the strolling up and down the hills was quite exhausting, but as long as you have enough water on you and take enough breaks in the shadow you are fine. We were at least;-).

This is the first of the temples we visited there: Zhinan Temple. 
In fact, I later learned that the three temples we visited at this Gondola Stop were actually three shrines belonging to one and the same temple.

The first shrine you encounter is the Lingshian Shrine.

It is big, and it's richly decorated. Not to mention the A-rated location and vista's!

The other two shrines we visited there were the Chunyang Shrine, a Taoist temple, like the Linghsiao Shrine, and the Buddhist Tahsiung Shrine.

Every one of the three temples is built on a spectacular location and has a beautiful scenery surrounding the temple.

All of these temples have lanterns (for good luck) in abundance and there are religious items for sale.

Fortunately a big part of the paths leading from one temple to the other is covered. Not only does that shield you a bit from the excruciating heat (that we had, but could also be from rain), but the passageway is also beautifully decorated.

You see this more often in Taipei: concrete fences made to look like bamboo.

The second and last stop we got of was Maokong station.

It was lunchtime by then, so we went straight to teahouse Yuan Syu Yuan.

I read they had private rooms there, where the tea is poured and prepared for you. And the views were supposed to be the best.

Well, the views sure are. And tea and lunch is good. It is fun to see how the tea ritual is  done.

From the main hall, you go over a little bridge and over some slippery stepping stones in a koi pond!  to enter the area with all the small private tearooms.

View from our room into some of the others around.

On the blue ceramic bowl the tea ceremony is performed with the pouring over and again of the hot water.

Tea and lunch. It was nice. We had chicken and dim-sum. For the tea we chose Oolong tea.

Too bad that the girl that was serving us looked as if she was having a very bad day. A smile was out of the question; just a moody, quiet face. That DOES take away a bit from the experience, I have to say:-(.

I also read reviews afterwards, that is mainly for the views that you would go to Yuan Syu Yuan. For tea (and food) there are supposed to be far better tea houses in the area. And believe me: there are dozens of them around Maokong station!

But for the rest, all in all, a lovely outing!