礁溪老爺酒店 Hotel Royal Chiao Hsi

This Tuesday through Wednesday, some very generous family friends took me to a hot springs resort in Jiaoxi, about an hour from Taipei.  It is such a sought after escape from the city that it’s nearly impossible to book on the weekends.

First, we waited in a line around the block for the most delicious 蔥油餅 from a street vendor.  Scallion pancakes are a staple snack across Taiwan and China but are famous in Yilan thanks to the locally grown three-foot long scallions.

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The resort was incredibly luxurious, and the staff all knew the family with whom I was traveling.  I stayed in my own hotel suite that was about three times the size of my dorm room (minus a roommate, plus a private bathtub).  The best part was the hot springs pools.  I got to swim laps in an infinity pool fed by water from the natural springs.  Then there were a variety of hot pools at precise temperatures in which to soak or 泡湯.  Some of them were scented for aromatherapy stress relief, like vanilla and blueberry.  One of them had fish that would nibble the dead skin on your feet.  They even had individual pottery baths where you could control your own temperature.  Hot ginger tea was provided poolside.

 

We ate dinner as a family all in the matching pajamas provided by the resort. I had to wear the larger size, so while all the Taiwanese women were wearing the red yukata, vest, and matching slippers, the Taiwanese men and I were walking around in the green set.  It was an incredible high-end organic meal (vegetarian for me) that started with sipping vinegar made from local kumquats to “open the stomach” or whet the appetite.

Dessert was eaten from right to left in order of increasing sweetness.  What I was hoping was chocolate soup was actually sweet bean soup with red beans and peanuts—the only nuts or beans of the entire meal.

The next morning, the matriarch of the family and I ate breakfast together before anyone else woke up (her in her red pajamas, me in my green pajamas).  It was the largest breakfast buffet I can ever remember exploring, featuring Western and Asian breakfast options.  I liked the almond milk, which is common in Yilan, and reminded Mrs. Tsai of her childhood.

After a couple of classes attended virtually from the super king bed, I went for another swim and then joined the family at the lounge where they ordered endless amounts of snacks, hot cocoa, teas, pastries, cookies, and cake.

Mrs. Tsai and I went to the all women’s sauna together, which is in the style of Japanese nude baths (not-pictured).  We chatted, naked, on large rock features under dappled shade in an extremely hot outdoor hot springs pool.  I loved hearing her speak in Chinese about various topics from cross-cultural dating to using Traditional Chinese Medicine to deal with infertility in in the 1980s.  Her family is spread between the United States and Taipei, the Taipei contingent being present at the resort: her husband, her son, his German wife, and their 5-month old baby.  As a family, they speak exclusively Chinglish, because everyone is fluent in both English and Chinese.  There were no other non-Asian foreigners in the entire resort.

After emerging from the naked sauna (Mrs. Tsai assured me the sweating was a healthy activity), we covered ourselves in rose-scented toiletries, drank rose mint tea, and lounged in a full-body massage chair—it even massaged the fingertips!  The very non-American experience reminded me of being with my own grandma at the traditional baths in Istanbul.

We drove back to Taipei through the mountains.