One Day Tour A

 

Contact Person:        Ivy Huang
Contact Email:          
ivyhuang@eztravel.com.tw
Contact Telephone: +886-2-25010888*6912
Fax Number:              +886-2-66183588

 

 

 

Itinerary:

Gold Waterfall - Shuinandong Pier -lunch- Chiufen Old StreetShengping Theater - Gold Museum

 

0830  The Grand Hotel Lobby  

0930  Gold Waterfall

The Gold Waterfall is located on Jinshui Highway (county highway North 34), while heading in the direction of the Changren Community at Shuinandong. Ziqiang Bridge passes above the waterfall, perpendicular to the Changren Bridge that connects the Jinshui Highway to (Langman) Romantic Clearway (Shanjian Rd.). After expansion and refurbishment in 2009, Ziqiang Bridge now includes a large parking lot where tourists may stop for photos. It is a well-known scenic spot in the Shuinandong, Jinguashi, and Jiufen region.

The upper reaches are short for this waterfall, with no obvious riverbed present, making it seem as if the water simply emerges from the ground. In actuality, it is where the mine drainage from the 6th Tunnel and Changren's WuFan Tunnel (5th Tunnel) converges. This waterfall was mainly formed because of human mining activity. From a chemistry standpoint, this is an acid mine drainage (AMD) phenomenon. The origin of the Gold Waterfall lies in a mountain composed of discarded ore. After the plentiful rains of Jinguashi's mountains seep through the soil and cracks in rock facs, the iron sulfide present in the ore is exposed to air or water, causing it to decompose and form acidic mine drainage that is high in iron and sulfate concentrations. As the abundance of water overflows, it falls downwards because of the different in height. The high concentration of heavy metal ions and strong acidic nature of the water (pH=2.6) makes plant growth practically impossible, so the waterfall and riverbed remain bare.

Visitors should savor the beauty of this sight from afar and be sure to refrain from drinking or playing in the river in order to avoid possible toxicity. The acidic water from the Gold Waterfall is also a main source of the flow which forms the Yinyan Sea. The rust color found in the Yinyan Sea is a natural phenomenon caused by the acidic water flowing from the Gold Waterfall and Liandong Creek.

1100  Shuinandong Pier

Shuinandong Pier is located beside the Provincial Highway No. 2, nearby Shuinandong Car Park. Visitors can look up and see the scenery of Remains of the thirteen levels and ChangRen Community. There is a board at the entrance that tells the pier is not opened to public. If tourists come to pier area, the pier police will come and ask questions. Tourists shall not stay long here.

Shuinandong Pier was built in 1958. It covers an area of 1300 square meters. For local small fishing boats lie at the pier. There are approximately 10 boats that lie at the pier. There is also a lighthouse in the pier. The elevation of the lighthouse is approximately 20 meters. People seldom come to this area. Shuinandong Pier is surrounded by Yinyan Sea. It is part of the scenery of Yinyan Sea.

The sea color is the unique yellow brown color. It is totally different from the regular sea color. The formation of the "Yinyan Sea" has many versions. Some said that it was created by the waste water from the Mine Selection Plant, while others suggested that it was created by the rich minerals under the Jinguashi area. It was initially believed that the sea color was the result of pollution from Taiwan Metal Mining Company's smelting activities. But over 10 years after the company stopped its activities, Yinyan Sea still exists. Scholars say that the Jinguashi geology has a large amount of pyrite that, after millions of years has formed Fe3+ which does no dissolve easily in water. This forms iron ion floating particles when it flows into the sea, resulting in the strange sight of the Yinyan Sea.

To enjoy the great view of Shuinandong Pier, the best location is ChangRen Community. There is a "ChangRen Pavilion" on the hilltop that next to the activity center in ChangRen Community. On the peak, visitors can overlook the Shuinandong Pier, Shuinandong village, northeast coast seascape, Remains of the thirteen levels, and Jilong Mountain.

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1200  Lunch

1400  Chiufen Old Street

It is said that long time ago there were only nine families in Jiufen (Jioufen). Before

the roads on land were built, all materials were transported via ships. Thus a habit

was formed that nine pieces of same object were purchased at one time for

reservation. Hence, the place was called Jiufen (Jioufen).

Jiufen (Jioufen) used to the center of gold mining. It is located within the hills in

northeast of Taiwan. The village is next to the mountain and facing the sea. In 1890,

someone struck gold near Jiufen (Jioufen). The poor village with only nine families

soon attracted prospectors of 4,000 families. The village once was gold city of Asia

and called little Shanghai or little Hong Kong. However, with the decline of gold mining

activities, Jiufen (Jioufen) fades. Later, several movies chose to shoot here and the movies won international acknowledgement. For example, the film the Sad City has won first prize in Venice Film Festival and awakened people's memory of Jiufen (Jioufen). It seems that the prosperous old streets, buildings, mines and the glamorous gold digging days are flashing before our eyes. The place is whispering its golden past. Now, there are many unique teahouses in Jiufen (Jioufen). These teahouses are best stops during visit to this mountain village. Also, there is the beautiful ocean view of Keelung outer sea.The most prosperous shopping district is Jiufen (Jioufen) Old Street. It goes through most of the village. There are many visitors on the street. Along the street there are shops vending the most famous country snack of Jiufen (Jioufen), yam dish and various local dishes. There are some historical items well reserved. The trip to Jiufen (Jioufen) is full of fun and delights. Jiufen (Jioufen) has many accommodation places provided by local residents. If you were not in a hurry, you may want to pick a nice inn and stay for the starlight and fishing lights at night.

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Shengping Theater

The history of Shengping Theater started in 1916. Yan, Yun-Nian provided the land and Taipei City Government raised funds. A simple theater was built beside the market of Jishan Street. Taiwanese Opera was mostly performed on the stage. This theater can accommodate around 400 people. It is the predecessor of Shengping Theater.

After it collapsed in 1927, the theater was built at the present site in 1934, and construction was completed in 1937. It has an area of 200 pings. It was renamed to Shengping Theater after Taiwan Restoration. Shengping Theater was the first theater in northern Taiwan, was also the biggest theater during the Japanese Colonial Era.

The square in front of the theater is located near the intersection of Shuqi Road and Qingbian Road, nearby "Qingbian Station". 1930s was the golden age of Jiufen. A lot of people came to Jiufen for the gold mine. Shengping Theater became the most important entertainment spot for the gold diggers. In 1951, the theater was converted to reinforced concrete construction. It was a major transportation hub, recreation center, and food market in the past. However, with the decline of gold mine, people moved to other place. The theater was alomst destroyed by typhoon and was closed in 1986. Afterward, it was transferred to "C.Y.Lee & Partners Architects".

clip_image003[4]Because some famous movies were filmed there, it became a famous landmark in Jiufen. Although it is not a transportation hub now, there are always lots of tourists that come to visit and take photo here. "C.Y.Lee & Partners Architects" donated the theater to city government in 2010. The current building renovation will keep the spirit of the building. The traditional black asphalt roof and wood beam will be constructed here. Theater renovated will be completed and open to the public in 2011. clip_image004[4]

      

Gold Museum

Gold Museum, New Taipei City Government is located in the hill town of Jinguashi in Ruifang District, New Taipei City. It has rich historical, cultural and natural resources. The design of the museum logo features a hazy freehand ink-and-wash Teapot Mountain to symbolize that it is a great place to get close-to-nature and engage in leisure activities. The rhythmic "G" written in calligraphy has two meanings: one is "Gold", Gold Museum; and the second is "Green", representing the museum's integration of cultural resources and development into a museum with life that will go on.

 

1700 The Grand Hotel