Trip - Taiwan D3 - Hinoki & Nantou Monster Village

Hi Blog,

Next on our itinerary will be another place which I always wanted to go to. In fact, no one will actually mention it due to unpopular options among tourists.

Hmm 🤔 even though Taiwan's world time is the same as Singapore's, on a geographical level, Taiwan is closer to the east side of Earth than Singapore. So what you are looking at is 6+ in the morning, similar to Singapore's 7+ The statement "Time is an illusion" is true.

Or on a personal level, since we were heading to our accommodation, and it was along the way, then we should visit these places as titled. Have you heard of these places before?

OOTD - just meh

Worried that we might get hungry or have no vegetarian food at our next destination, we decided to pack our meal here 天一素食館.

A simple economical restaurant for people to pack and go.

On our way to Puli, the driver suggested we visit a place since we were passing by.

Hinoki Village 檜意森活村

It was built during the Japanese Occupation of Taiwan.

The vibe here was so different and really made me feel like I was in Japan again.

Well-preserved building structure

Can I have a house like this?

Or a garden like this? Am I in Taiwan?

I guess the cleanliness of this place is well-maintained.

Even the pond looked clean and healthy.

(Credit SJ) I wanted to photoshop these pictures with a pond reflection but nah, I will keep it as it is.

An overview of the pretty pond without having me get into the scenery.

I wondered what material they used to build this or more like how they built this.

Great to feel like I am back in Japan, hope I can save up and travel there again.

Not sure whether this is a logo of this place or store.

Selling Japanese stuff. I wanted to go in there but I knew that I was a poor person to enter such a place.

So snapping pictures is the only way to feed me fully mentally.

We thought something happened to this dog, but luckily there was a note on the dog's body informing the concerned passerby that it was safe.

Next destination to the unpopular tourist area

The weather seemed gloomy.

So where are we heading to?

I doubt anyone is reading but it was titled...

We were heading to Yaoguai Village 妖怪村

Yes, in other words, it means Monster Village.

This Monster Village is a Japanese monsters-themed village...

Which was unique in the past and best to visit at night, it will give a different vibe.

(credit SJ) Here, you will see many Japanese monster-related sculptures. If you don't know the Japanese monster tales, you might not be able to understand why these monsters are used or what they represent.

The concept of Japanese monsters is inspired by the belief, held by Japanese folk, that humans coexist with the spiritual world. Thus, the monsters represent a fusion between the material and the spiritual realms.

Monster hotel stay

I'm curious if these stores sell any special items?

Cosplaying as monsters with masks could be interesting. If they host events regularly, would certainly excite this venue.

Too Cute! :3

Special magnet products are available exclusively in Yaoguai Village. 

The area was densely populated with visitors.

Tori gate :)

(Credit SJ) I am in Japan! Yippee! Hmm... I wondered what they sell here.

We just discovered there's vegetarian food available here! So, it turns out we didn't need to pack our meal this morning.

Oh well... I will just focus on Catching Monsters here!

Melted ice cream monster?

Ice Cream Monster - It seemed somewhat worn off...

Mailbox Monster

This one isn't a monster, just a random bridge.

I can imagine the nighttime scenery of this street being quite beautiful.

Discover something unique! It's named "Hun Dan 混蛋 / Mixed Egg," - a blend of three distinct eggs: salted, century, and regular.

The ambience of Japan's old streets is captivating.

I wanted to snap a picture here but don't know... I just don't feel like it.

OMG! I really want these fish hand towels! They're so adorable, but I resisted buying them because I don't want to see them get dirty and become undesirable over time... So, I've just stored the image in my memory bank.

They certainly sell a lot of nice items, but I am not purchasing any because I need to stick to my budget.

Let's continue to catch the monsters here

Cute frog monsters

I love it when there are fewer crowds, which doesn't interfere with the perfect shot I hope to capture, and yet... it speaks a lot about this place... it's fading away...

This stage, I imagine, was once filled with loud excitement and vibrant performances.

Just like this scene... it used to be lively and a lot of laughs.

There might be some games going on here.

Wheel of fortunate!

OOO! Found one more monster! Caught!

Next, the yellow monster!

and this white monster! Three in a row!

Upon opening the Mixed Egg, it bore no resemblance to the advertisement, appearing instead to be a Salted Egg. I chose not to confront the seller, consoling myself with the thought that my receipt of this defective product might spare other buyers a similar issue.

I wondered, is there any more monster to catch?

Rentals in this area are likely to be expensive.

Performing stage

Caught a fire monster!

Oooo! Tori gate to the stage.

That should be in front of the village.

(Credit a pretty stranger) Let's have a picture here :)

OOO! There is a resort here!

Cute painting of monsters which I have yet to find.

Wishing you well and I hope this place can improve.

Caught one more violent monster!

Captured a spider!

Hmm... My radar was going off strongly behind the alley of the village hotel.

OOOO! I found the boss in the Monster Village!

The Eyeball!

It was rather challenging to capture it.

As there are many eyeballs around! Which one is real?!

It felt as though I was imprisoned by their enchantment, yet I found a way to escape.

And found the real Monster King!

Alright, let's set aside the fanciful imagination and return to reality.

I found a map of the monster's distribution in Taiwan.

Alright, time to go back! I had caught most of the monsters here.

Visiting two Japanese vibe villages, the overall feeling was that it was nice to have a theme for a place which attracts tourists, but it requires maintenance or newer replacement for existing displays or events to boost popularity.

Just like one of the themed parks which we passed by - Pirate Village, it was rundown and nothing new. Whoever is an owner of such a themed place must invest money to change it rather than letting it remain untouched for more than 30 years. Oh well... I am not owning anything, so it might be easier to comment, but it is rather sad to see a theme go to waste.

As we head to Puli (here), we'll explore different train stations and discover what makes each one special.

Jeff