Sunyard, which resembles a
ship, is a landmark building in
the Shui Jing area of Shinshe
district.

The Kelp Hot Pot's broth is both
mild and delicious, allowing you
to enjoy the original flavors of
the ingredients without
worrying about too many
calories.

Springtime, playtime: Spend a night at an exotic, stylish bed & breakfast

Words and photos by Taichung City Government
Translated by Angel Pu

Spring is a season for travel. During this time, excursions through fields of flowers, mountains and forests, and other spring scenery reveals the glories of nature in all its beauty.

This is also a perfect opportunity to enjoy a spring visit to one of Taichung's uniquely-attractive bed & breakfasts, which offer both beautiful scenery and warm friendliness. This means you don't have to get up early or feel like you're being rushed on your way. Rather, everything you need to enjoy on a trip is concentrated within one of these special little rooms, awaiting your discovery.

Sunyard Bed & Breakfast: Reveling in a sea-inspired setting
This bed & breakfast is located in the Shui Jing area of Taichung's Shinshe district. With its white walls and blue latticed windows and railings, it resembles a sailboat facing the morning sun, awaiting the call of the sea, when viewed from certain angles. If that's the kind of inspiration you're seeking, Sunyard's owner welcomes you as a guest.

Changing sunrise vistas
Sunyard uses its boat-shaped bed & breakfast to pay homage to the beauty and ever-changing nature of the mighty ocean. Its 10 clean and simple guest rooms are almost identical with warm wooden floors and white sheets, the only differences being the different-colored painted walls of each room.

Rooms have French windows offering great views and big bathtubs. You can also watch sunrises from the second-floor Capri Restaurant or the open-air cafe at the top of the bed & breakfast. Travelers who love taking photos are advised to get up before sunrise and take advantage of the 270-degree views that offer great opportunities to show off photography skills. Weather permitting, you might get a beautiful sunrise photo that is perfect for your next Facebook posting.

The morning call of sunshine
If you're one who has difficulty getting up on your own, try opening your curtains just before you sleep. As the morning sunshine wakes you up, you can wrap yourself in a comforter and watch the sunrise. I personally recommend taking a bath as the sun rises. In the bathroom, where the blue and black tiles resemble waves, you can soak in the hot water and watch the sky brighten from darkness to grey and then blue, interlaced with gold and silver threads. When the sun rises through the clouds, you will feel so refreshed and relaxed after bathing in a combination of hot water and warm sunshine.

Although the restaurant's name is Capri, one of its must-try dishes is Kelp and Kimchi Hot Pot, a Japanese/Korean cuisine fusion. The soup includes kelp and vegetables, making it savory and fresh. It's also hard to find outside kimchi that compares with the spicy, invigorating Korean pickles here, made with a secret recipe.

Sitting on the porch, you can
take in different views from the
yard during all four seasons.

Brightmoon's afternoon tea
time consists of homemade
cookies and Japanese
desserts.

Brightmoon Bed & Breakfast: A natural, tranquil Japanese-style getaway
If you ask me what the most important element for a bed & breakfast is, my answer is definitely "the story". And Brightmoon happens to be a bed & breakfast with plenty of stories.

Elegant rooms like homes from a Japanese tale
At the beginning of this particular story is a couple who lived in Taipei for years and then bought a 3,305-square-meter mountain property in their hometown of Dongshi to settle down on. Another part of the story is a brother and a sister who became the owners of a bed & breakfast in this vast mountainous area. For the rest of this story, it's best if you find out for yourself, as it's more fun that way.

One element I'd like to call attention to is the special atmosphere of Brightmoon's Japanese-style rooms. This allows you to enjoy a number of things around your room: sitting on the Japanese porch watching the blossoms in the yard; picking up the chinchilla cat after it slowly strolls over to you; wearing sleepers and walking on the soft grass, surrounding by the woods, flowers, singing birds and buzzing insects; and enjoying a good night's sleep without being woken up by the loud noises of passing motor vehicles.

Relaxation and daydreams
There are four rooms in this bed & breakfast--the Western-style "Spring" room, side-by-side with the Japanese-style "Summer", "Fall" and "Winter" rooms. When you stay here, you can take a walk along the Ruan Bi Keng Hiking Trail or one of the wooded paths nearby. While doing so, you can choose to challenge some steep stairs, or enjoy the coolness of a creek. Or you can try some crafts like fabric-dyeing or visit the Glutinous Rice Bridge. What about me? I just love sitting in a chair on the front porch and doing nothing but passing the time daydreaming.

With stars scattered across the night sky and fireflies dancing around you, who needs things like TVs or computers? If you have extra time and energy, you can visit Shinshe Castle and Mushroom Street just across the Dajia River. Dongshi Forest Farm and Guguan Hot Springs are also good nearby places to visit, only a half-hour drive away.