Check this out!

Mum and Dad have already left. And I'm behind on my blogging.  Because we did a lot together but I haven't sat down to document it. It was a wonderful visit. Here's something we did a couple of weeks back. We went to an Ecological Park outside of I-lan. We stayed in a mountain resort perched up high on a mountain. And the best bit was the tour we took of a sacred Red Cypress Forest. This place was amazing. The first day it took us a while to get up to the mountain. Coz you know how in Taiwan when you are 1600 metres above sea level you've literally started from the bottom and worked your way right to the top. No slow and gradual incline. Just straight up. The ride was a little hairy. But the forest view was absolutely spectacular. The next day we took a small bus tour to this - Ma Kao Ecological Park:

Beautiful, no?

Which meant we had to get into a small bus, ride a quarter of the way back down said hairy mountain road. Then proceed up the very narrow and very steep and very non-barrier protected trail up to said ecological park - 1600 metres above sea level. Insert multiple panic attacks here..... The absolute beauty and splendour of the surroundings was totally outweighed by the extreme fear I was feeling! I did assume that this was indeed my last day on this earth. I will not bore you with the gory details of all the visions I conjured up in my mind of just exactly how we were to die that day. I managed to keep up a facade. Keep it all looking cool and calm. Were it not for Dad's calm gaze appreciating the beauty before him, or Mum's fiddling around with the air conditioning vent to get the a/c just right (Mum hates to be hot), or Steve and Tilly chatting quietly in front of me, or Evie sleeping peacefully in my arms - I might not have made it! It was a sheer drop people.... and the driver was not driving slowly. But let's not let that distract from the fact that this place was unbelievably awesome. (And the ride down was not nearly has hairy as I had conjured the ride up to be). Here's why it was unbelievably awesome.

Can you see that sign? The Red Cypress we are about to see sprouted 551BC!! BC ~ don't you just want to stand in front of a tree that sprouted 551BC and ask it what it has seen? Before Jesus walked the earth people.....  I. love. this. forest. Well, maybe you've seen more impressive things. I've driven through a forest in Luxembourg and that was pretty impressive. But this really had me going. And look, it doesn't even really look like much:

Look at Nan and Pop. And Tilly. Wow. This trail was 2.3 k's long and there was not a complaint from her. And I say 2.3 which isn't so much. But this was either up or down. And it was wet and slippery. You could only walk up steep steps, or walk down them. She was brilliant. (Evie was not so brilliant, but only because she was confined to the sling which she hasn't been confined to in several months and she just wanted to get out and walk, which wasn't happening. So that means confined to me in the sling.......)

Some more pics shall we :

Well, that's just a few pictures. I'll post some more a bit later on as some things need a little explaining and I'm tired and the computer is being silly. Loved this place, some nice photos to come.