Chung Hsing New Village: Nantou's poetic retreat

--- By Niang Chen Translated by Cara Steenstra

As you look down onto Chung Hsing New Village from the top of Hu Shan, you will not see any tall urban buildings, only red-tiled roofs dotted among the trees and greenery. Constructed under British supervision, this model village just southeast of Taichung once was home to the Taiwan Provincial Government and, over the years, also became a popular tourist destination.
Today, Chung Hsing New Village remains sparsely populated; the average per capita park space and public facilities ratio is the highest in Taiwan. The village is not only filled with British-style architecture, but also features a pace of life that is entirely different from the rest of Taiwan. During holidays, you will find households gathered in the family park, playground and children's park area, flying kites, throwing Frisbees and playing with balloons. At the lotus pond and green pastures near the village entrance, you will often see people posing for their wedding photos. At exactly noontime during weekdays, almost all businesses will close for lunch and even restaurants are only open till 2 p.m. After 2 p.m., the entire village falls under a spell of peace and quiet, as miles of green pastures connect to blue skies. Even the three noisy traditional markets all pack up and disappear.

While the architecture might be British, the cultural spirit in this fully self-sufficient village is a condensed version of Taiwan's historical background. Zhong Zheng Road is lined with Bodhi trees, peacefully coexisting with the churches and Buddhist temples. The hospitals, funeral homes and columbarium form a world of their own along Huan Shan Road at the foot of the mountain. Chung Hsing Market has historical food stalls selling beef noodles and sour plum soup. These stalls stand proudly next to European-style healthy, vegetarian garden restaurants. Traditional market vendors also pick and clean each leaf of their vegetables so that elderly customers can take their purchases home and cook them directly.

Chung Hsing Hall is red-tiled, white-walled building standing as a witness to history. One can also enjoy occasional free old-movie viewings here. With the changes in time, the playground is no longer a venue for fireworks on Taiwan's Retrocession Day. Busloads of tourists are taken directly to the Taiwan Historical Culture Park Area on Guang Ming Road where there are two buildings--one Chinese and one Western style--at the entrance. The Renaissance-style structure is the Cultural Building, whereas the palatial, northern Chinese-style building is the Historical Building. Along with the Arena situated along the Nei Lu River, each of these buildings reflects its own unique style. Stumbling about the village, you will find yourself submerged in the green tunnel of vegetation. Even after stepping out of this tunnel, you may not return to reality yet but, instead, discover yourself in a place that the world seems to have forgotten about. Like a Chinese man exploring a strange, quaint European town, a trip to Chung Hsing New Village is like falling back in time.

LOTUS TEA HOUSE
140, Sheng Fu Road; (049) 233-2029
Hours: 10 am-11 pm
No service charge. Credit cards not accepted.
Lotus Tea House is on the right-hand side of Sheng Fu Road and features an entrance archway covered with golden trumpets. The wooden building itself is very unique and eye-catching. The tea house has been in business for over 12 years now and provides a choice of simple meals priced between NT$200 and NT$250, as well as herbal teas, coffees, health drinks and others priced between NT$100 and NT$150. Also available are delicious light snacks such as toast and pastries.
Ri Ching Potted Plants Garden
Sheng Fu Road (next to the lotus pond)
Hours: 9 am-6 pm
Walk through the waist-high wooden fence and the humble Mr. Tao, who calls himself the gardener here, will greet you. Whenever visitors enter his garden, Mr. Tao is there ready to offer them cups of tea. There are a variety of seedlings, perennials and fruit trees in the garden, in addition to Japanese Persimmons, Aceraceae trees and much more. These different-sized plants are priced between NT$100 and NT$10,000.
Song Tao Yuan
78, Sheng Fu Road; (049) 237-2688
Hours: 11:30 am-10 pm
10% service charge. Credit cards not accepted.
With garden-style coffee and European-style dining with a buffet salad bar, the average bill here is between NT$540 and NT$650. Like a dream castle from a fairy tale, there are green pastures, manmade hills, strange stones and seasonal blossoms all around. Many couples come here for their wedding photos and teachers often bring kindergarteners here for their graduation photos. This area is always filled with people's laughter and happiness.
Wang Pin Sweet Osamanthus Sour Plum Soup
88, Guang Hua Road; (049) 233-5888
Hours: 9 am-9 pm
Established in 1966, this business once won a Gold Medal from the Consumers' Association and is situated opposite the Chung Hsing Police Station. The Wang Pin Sweet Osamanthus Sour Plum Soup is a famous national drink and all visitors here are sure to try it. Sour Plum Soup is very refreshing and has quite a kick to it. Apart from the soup, there are also fresh fruit juices, shaved ice and the children's all-time favorite, ice cream. Prices range between NT$20 and NT$45.

Guo Xing Spare Ribs
96, Guang Hua Road; (049) 231-2183
Hours: 11 am-2 pm, 5-8 pm (closed Saturday/Sunday evenings)
For a tasty meal in Chung Hsing New Village, the best option is to ask the locals. Everyone in the neighborhood recommends Guo Xing Spare Ribs, where you can enjoy crispy spare ribs that have been deep-fried and go well with steamed rice. Local residents queue up for this tasty treat before lunchtime on weekdays. Apart from their house special Spare Ribs with Rice, there are also Egg Fried Rice with Pork, Sweet and Sour Fish with Rice, and Seafood Stewed Rice (NT$60-NT$70), plus various noodles and appetizers.

Lao Hu Noodle Restaurant
98, Guang Hua Road; (049) 231-2845
Hours: 11 am-2 pm, 5-8 pm (closed Mondays)
This 50-year-old restaurant is guaranteed to addict you with their noodles. The female owner is very friendly and introduces their house specials with great confidence, including Beef Stomach Noodles, Beef Tendons Noodles, and Beef Noodles (NT$60-NT$130). The special soup base has remained the same for over 50 years and has captured the hearts of many diners. There are also various dry noodles, Spare Ribs Soup Dumplings (NT$30-NT$55), marinated foods and much more.
YIE S LYIE FLOWER GARDEN
121, Guang Hua Road (next to the library); (049) 231-2746
Hours: 7am-11 pm
No service charge. Credit cards not accepted.
This abstract-looking piece of architecture is shaped a bit like a huge snail shell and is the work of noted architect Hsiu Tze-lan (whose other representative work is the Zhong Shan Building on Yangmingshan). The building was once the cultural service center for Taiwan Shin Sheng Daily News, and has now been converted into a garden restaurant. There is a good choice of meals here, priced between NT$60 and NT$250. Free guide maps of Chung Hsing New Village are also available.
Mei Yuan Pies and Congee
18, ZhongXue West Road; (049) 231-5902
Hours: 11 am-2 pm, 5-8 pm (closed Mondays)
You can find Spring Onion Pancakes, Dao Xiao Mian (shaved noodles), appetizers, stewed dishes, millet porridge and much more, all priced between NT$15 and NT$70. The premises are separated into the takeaway section and dine-in section. On holidays, you will find people queueing outside before their doors are even open for business. The place is always packed. As one customer gets up to leave, another one takes his place before the table is even cleared. Their Pork Pies are delicious and the Spring Onion Pancakes very fragrant.

MORE cafe
41, Zhong Xue West Road; (049) 235-2181
Hours: 10 am-11 pm
No service charge. Credit cards not accepted.
This blue-and-white building, situated on a quiet street corner, makes everyone take another look. The ceiling-to-floor windows bring in the sunlight that shines on the restaurant's rattan chairs and offer a superb view of street scenes outside. MORE provides coffee, simple meals, afternoon teas, hot pots, vegetarian meals and much more, all priced around NT$250.
Mykonos Coffee
138, Ying Zhong Road; (049) 231-2651
Hours: 11 am-12 pm
No service charge. Credit cards accepted. Convenient parking.
Looking like it landed from the skies, this cafe is right smack in the middle of a green field. There 15 competition-grade, daily-fresh roasted coffee beans here, priced between NT$320 and NT$800 per pot. Earlier this year, the cafe started offering steak meals, including the American-Style Beef Chop, Basil Caucasus Mutton Chop, German-Style Pork Knuckles and much more, all priced between NT$480 and NT$560.
Liu Jia Zhuang Recreational Farm
51, Huan Shan Road; (049) 231-2403
Hours: 10 am-9 pm (closed Mondays)
No service charge. Credit cards not accepted. Parking available.
Situated behind Chung Hsing High School, this peaceful garden restaurant is situated on higher ground with excellent night views. It mainly sells the Acanthopanacis Cortex plant that is grown here. Not only can you visit the plantation, but you can also try teas and chicken soups made with this Chinese herb. The chickens are all free range and fed on rice and grass. The set meals are priced at NT$200; other mountain cuisine and river and sea products are priced between NT$120 and NT$650.

Taiwan Provincial Administration Information Hall
921 Earthquake Information Exhibition Hall
2, Zhong Zheng Road; (049) 235-0530
Exhibition Hours: 9 am-4 pm (closed Sundays and National Holidays)
Website: http://www.tpg.gov.tw/c-life/tpaih/bv/bv04.asp
Provincial Government Library
123, Guang Hua Road; (049) 231-7071
Hours: 8:30 am-9 pm Tuesday to Friday, 8:30 am-5 pm Sat/Sun (closed Mondays and National Holidays)
Website: http://www.tpg.gov.tw/c-life/tpgl/index.htm
Taiwan Historica
252, Guang Ming 1st Road; (049) 231-6881
Hours: 9 am-5 pm (closed Mondays)
Website: http://www.th.gov.tw/

GETTING THERE:
By car:
Zhong Shan Freeway Route 1
1. Taichung Harbor Road interchange-Taichung City WuQuan South Road- Zhong Tou Expressway- Cao Tun- Chung Hsing New Village
2. Wang Tian interchange- Feng Yuan- Cao Tun- Chung Hsing New Village
National Freeway Route 3
Exit at Chung Hsing New Village interchange (224K)- Sheng Fu Road (?14?)- Zhong Zheng Road- Chung Hsing New Village
By public transportation:
Take Chuan Hang Bus or Kuo Kuang Bus direct from Taichung's Gan Cheng Station on the corner of ShuangXi Road and NanJing Road.