Taiwan 2011 - Maokong Gondola (貓空)

Maokong (貓空, literally translated as Cat Empty) Gondola is located in the Wenshan district of Taipei and used to be the largest tea growing area in Taipei. To get there, you can either take a bus or a cable car to the last stop along a string of stations that include Zhinan Temple.

Popular folklore (and my Taiwanese friend) say that unmarried couples are not encouraged to visit Zhinan Temple because they will break up after that. It is said that the temple's main deity, Lu Dong Bing, is jealous of lovers due to his unrequited love for He Xiangu and will break them up if given the opportunity. So if you're going there with your boyfriend or girlfriend, visit the temple at your risk. =)

Married couples should be fine, I guess. Don't ask me why. XD

Zhinan Temple is the stop before Maokong Gondola so don't walk downhill if you want to avoid the temple after you reach the last station.

To get to Maokong Gondola, you must first take
the MRT to the Taipei Zoo Station.

The signs showing the right direction to take the cable car up
Maokong.

A dreary and rainy day, as usual on a day in November. Once
you reach the place, you have to grab a queue number and buy
a ticket but if you have the EasyCard, you can go on right up to
ride on the cable car. People usually take the normal cable cars
though coz they are cheaper.

You can either choose to take a bus up the Maokong mountain
or take cable cars, the normal ones or the crystal cabins which
allow you to see what passes beneath your feet. The crystal
cabins are slightly more expensive, of course but you can pay
for the rides using your EasyCard. =)

The view below: if you take a crystal cabin...do bear in mind
that you're not allowed to take a cabin alone or in a couple
so you have to share cabins with another couple or a few
other people. Guess they don't want any hanky panky to happen.
Hehe...

Maokong Gondola is the last stop at the top of the mountain
and is the perfect spot if you want to have some tea with a
beautiful view. The way downhill is to the left of this picture.

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A nature's paradise, surrounded on all sides by Mother Nature

A food place~! Empty at the moment, probably coz it was still
early in the day...

There were no pavements but strips were designated as
pedestrians' right of way.

Foggy skies, thanks to the incessant drizzle

You will see this town if you walk down the mountain...they
have a lot of tea places for people to chill out.

A tea place where they apparently sell nice Yakitori...

Tea leaves being grown...

One of the roadside cafes where you can sip tea atas-ly

It would have been nice had it not been raining... >.<

One of the temples you can consider visiting...

I walked past this little shop that sells excellent pastries such as
sun biscuits. And they had a doggie that was quite friendly. XD
They wouldn't allow me to take photos of the interior though. =/
This is a recommended place to get your sun biscuits, oh and
hand-made soap that is quite good for the skin as well.

Thanks to my usual blur-ness, I took a mini bus in front of the above little shop and ended up at the bottom of the mountain again. =x But the thing is, if you don't want to take the cable car down, you can always try taking a bus. They have these bus signs where you can wait next to until the bus arrives but no shelter, which could get tricky if it rains.

All in all, lots of walking to be done if you want to explore the place in depth. But if you're just there for the tea, then don't forget to buy a box of pastries before you go there coz it will taste great with your tea. =D