Motorcycling through Taiwan’s East Coast — 2018

As I am growing older and my penchant for solo adventurous trips has reduced, I often reminisce about the interesting parts of those trips. Back in 2018, I rented a 125cc and explored the East Coast of Taiwan on my own. I was only 1 year and a few months into riding, have yet to own a Class 2A license and was still a poor student, so a 125cc scooter was all I could rent.

Taiwan was the last East Asian country for me to visit before I graduated school. I was excited to explore the country’s beauty.

Suspended bridges overlooking rough terrain, Taiwan is indeed a hiker’s dream!

I am not very fluent in Mandarin, and especially in Taiwanese accent. I felt super proud to be able to speak to locals when I meet them.

The Route

I don’t exactly remember the route. As many highways on the west coast of Taiwan were not accessible to two-wheeled vehicles plus the natural sights were on the east side, I chose to explore the East Coast instead. I rented multiple bikes (3 scooters) from Hualien to Kenting, making sure that I can do the round trip in time to catch my train to the next city.

Driving in Taiwan

Taiwan is notorious for being one of the most densely populated… with scooters. I happened to add 1 more to that count, heh. Taiwan drives on the right (same as North America, but opposite Singapore). It’s not particularly difficult to make the switch compared to driving.

One thing that was different was not being able to turn left directly with the cars. I had to go to a box on the right side in front of cars, and then wait for the light to be in my favour. It took a little bit of time to get used to, but it was fine after an hour.

I went to several waterfalls, and rode through Taroko National Park. Beautiful!

In some rural parts of Taiwan, I managed to visit lesser known waterfalls.

The Scooters I rented

These scooters are super light, great maneuverability and petrol saving. They are a little bit light and wobbly sometimes against the South China sea wind.

The Roads

Most of the roads are well paved, save for some local village roads which have a bit of gravel. Luckily, scooters are able to pass through. There are also beautiful winding roads overlooking the sea.

The Locals

Taiwanese are friendly people. There was once I met a student veterinarian, and she pillioned me. We went to an animal farm on the hill, saw a beautiful tree and ate stinky tofu!

I also met a couple who immediately talked about how amazing Singapore is, and how legendary Lee Kuan Yew is in making Singapore’s foothold in the world. Well, imagine talking to them about politics and life with my little Mandarin. Thankfully Google Translate saved the day!