2006-10-30 – Day 7 – Taipei – Wu Lai
Wu Lai (乌æ¥)
0900 With all our research done we set off to Wu Lai by first taking MRT to Xi Dian station (about 40 minutes ride) and then taking another local bus just right to Tourist Information centre to Wu Lai (NTD$65 x 2). At about 1030, we were at Wu Lai! The last time I was here, my friends and I actually walked 2 hours+ to reach Nei Dong. This time, with the slight drizzle and all, Yh and myself decided to splurge NTD$600 on a taxi ride that took just 20 minutes.
1050 The cab driver ferried us via the moutain roads to Nei Dong (内洞) and even graciously offered us his multi-coloured umbrella (made a great prop for photos 
). He advised us to take a slow walk in and than call him when we were at the last waterfall. We proceeded to pay for the entrance fee (which didn’t need to be paid 3 years ago!) and strolled into the area. There has been quite a bit of upgrading in form of barriers etc but I honestly can’t say that much has changed other than there seems to be a lot of work going on which kinda spoilt the mood somewhat. The final waterfall was a sight to behold but alas they had erected a barrier preventing people from going near the pool. An adventurous couple had ventured down to have some tea and so we happily took some snaps before going on our merry way back to the entrance.
1230 Only cable car access to Yun Hsien (云仙ä¹å›) made it kinda special at first since it was situated above Wu Lai waterfall. It was pretty interesting to see the hotel built so high up and we were surprised that apparently they hold business functions here. It must be a great place to discuss business and enjoy the view! The place is apparently packed on weekends since we could see games for children. The slight drizzle made it kinda hard to enjoy and take photos but we spent some time having lunch and trying out archery at the range.
1545 We had read from the magazine that Melody Villa (水韵) was a rather nice place to visit. Since we weren’t quite sure where the place actually was except for some vague instructions from the staff, we proceeded to climb up stairs and along the roads and finally reached 30 minutes later. Unfortunately, there was a old folks group having a celebration and taking up the quaint tents. There was also a special feature whereby you could soak your legs in the spring water and a type of fish would nibble on the dead skin from your feet. We didn’t much have time since it was getting dark and so decided to skip this place and proceeded to head down back to Wu Lai town.
1645 We walked along the moutain roads to Wu Lai town. There, the locals were selling mushrooms and local products. This being a weekday, there weren’t a lot of people around which was kinda good since we didn’t have to squeeze with the crowds. We headed towards Full Moon Spa (明月温泉) to enjoy a soak and some hot tea 
(NTD$2000 for 2 hours private bath)
Its been a pretty long day of walking and enjoying nature. Definitely a different experience from my previous visit to this place. Overall seems a bit more touristy but still worth a visit for Nei Dong’s waterfall.