The North Coast of Taiwan, Wanli & Jianshan Old Street 萬里、金山老街

It was precisely a year ago when I went back to Taiwan. I started writing this post, but never finished it and decided to leave it that way. It was just too painful for me to replay it all (my father's illness, my husband's work difficulties, having to restart a brand new blog...), but now I feel ready to share - yes, I know it's very late, please forgive me! I realize that I can't let go of these memories, so you'll probably be seeing more posts about my trip to Taiwan in the coming months.

It had been more than 8 years since the last time I returned to Taiwan! It was a bit strange at first. As I was growing up, my father loved taking us to the northern shore, and I had so many memories of the coast: its rock formations jutting out along the edge of the sea; the fresh and colorful varieties of seafood; the salty, wet breeze kissing my face. And yet, these memories became vague over time. I was especially grateful this trip gave me the opportunity to refresh my memories and make them, once again, real, so I could take them back with me to my new home. It occurred to me that my country is becoming less and less familiar each time I go back. In fact, I often felt like a foreigner as I walked on the streets where I grew up!

Just as when we were younger, my father drove us to the northern coast, to Wanli. The Wanli district is famous for its tourism and seafood. Much of our ride there was next to the coast, so you could really enjoy the scenic view. I realized how much I missed those coastal drives and how beautiful Taiwan is. It's a different kind of beauty than in the West: watching the endless horizon, reconnecting with my childhood memories, letting the wind carry away my worries, just enjoying the moment and letting myself soak in the sensations, the smells, the sounds, and the tastes of my childhood…

前方的島是基隆嶼，因為屬火山地質，所以也是無人島嶼
The island you see in the distance is Keelung islet

這篇遊記，其實早在去年就應該寫的，當時寫了一半之後就一直擱在一旁。它使我回想起去年回台灣的原因以及一些不想留在記憶裡的雜事 - 從老爸生重病、到老公工作上遭受不平等對待、與重新成立新的部落格等。而如今，一年的時光已過，雖然令人感傷的事還是不斷的在發生中，但我已經學會去接納那些殘酷的事實，並與"它們"平和的共存。最近決定重新打開這篇未完成的文章，並將它分享給大家。是的，我知道等了這麼久真的很不應該，還有一些其它舊的文章，我也會在以下幾個月中碌碌續續將它們分享出來，先在這裡請求大家的原諒！(´；ω；`)

事實上，在去年的這趟回程中，我一直不敢相信自己已經有八年多的時間沒有回台灣了！生長於台北的我，自從老爸有車之後，就喜歡帶著全家往北海岸跑，光是野柳就不知去過n次了說。所以在我的腦海裡，載著有許許多多台灣北海岸的回憶，但奇怪的是那些記憶卻又那麼的糢糊不清(是老了吧?!)，很慶幸這次回去可以和爸媽一起到萬里，剛好可以讓從前的那些記憶再度重現眼前。說實在的，在台灣的那段期間，我發現我對台灣越來越漠生，在自己的國家，連走在台北的街道上，都感覺自己彷彿是"外國人"似的，實在有點不自在。

萬里的觀光業與漁業是知名的！延著抵達萬里的路上，不時都有眺望點可以觀賞那一望無際的海景及俯瞰壯觀的萬里岩，這讓我一時感覺到原來我是多麼的想念台灣這美麗的寶島風光！它的美與我在國外所常見的美是完全不同的。望著那廣闊無際的海岸，任隨海風徐徐的吹來，驅走一切的煩惱，它依舊如同昔日一樣。站在那裡，完完全全的讓自己與享受那一刻、並回憶小時與家人相處的快樂時光…

A fishing jetty
釣魚台

The rocks in Wanli are famously unique! Since the seaweed season runs from March to July, you can see that a lot of the rocks are adorned in their green garments.
來這裡一定要觀賞萬里的奇岩異石，由於3月至7月是海藻生長的季節，所以可以看到許多岩石被覆蓋上一層綠綠的衣裝

 

If you're not in the mood to cook, you can simply select your seafood and have them cook it for you on the spot.
這裡有不少餐廳，但巷子內也有這種室外代客料理餐廳。可以選擇買回去自己煮，也可以挑選完之後請他們代你料理

We were going to just stroll around, but when we saw all this fresh seafood, we couldn't resist and had to stop (and eat!). There are many varieties of seafood, including sea urchins...
本來只是想在龜吼魚港附近走一走的，但看到了這麼多新鮮的海產，不得不停下腳步。選擇的種類很多，包括海膽

...and sea cucumbers!
甚至還有海參

If you have the chance to come here, the famous Wanli crab is a must!!! The varieties include flower crabs, three-spotted crabs, and stone crabs. You can enjoy the flower crabs (pictured above) pretty much all year round, even though the crab season officially begins in autumn.
萬里蟹是來這裡必吃的！它的種類包含花蟹、三點蟹及石蟳等三種品種。雖然一般來說，吃蟹的季節是在秋季，但一年四季也都可以吃的到這個花蟹

The flower crabs have a bright red color. The arms and legs seem thin and long, but they're actually very meaty and delicious! 

花蟹顏色鮮豔，雙螯與八足皆細長，肉質甜美

The shrimp tasted so good! Fresh and sweet!

好久好久沒吃到蝦子有那麼鮮美的蝦子了！ Ｏ(≧▽≦)Ｏ

We went to Jinshan Old Street later on after snacking on the fresh seafood, and the first thing we saw when we got out of the car was a full truck of pineapples. The pineapples in Taiwan taste very different than the ones you typically get in the West. Their flesh is a deeper yellow, and they're very, very sweet--and forget about the amazingly sweet pineapple scent!!

吃完點心之後我們去金山老街，一下車就看到裝滿了鳳梨的卡車。台灣的鳳梨跟一般國外買到的鳳梨差很多，果肉的顏色不但較深，吃起來也非常的甜，一點酸味都沒有，就更不用說它的味道了，不用靠很近，就可以聞到那甜甜的鳳梨香味!!

I didn't remember seeing so many cherry tomatoes in Taiwan

我不知道台灣也有那麼多的小蕃茄，有紅也有黃，而價錢跟國外比起來也非常的親和喔~

The wax apple season had not yet ended, and these looked great! They're one of my favourite fruits from Taiwan!

還沒過季的蓮霧，又大又漂亮

Sweet potatoes
地瓜

Candied sweet potatoes
糖漬地瓜

Different varieties of yam chips and fries

各種蕃薯片與蕃薯條

 

You can find some rare wild vegetables here, at unbeatable prices: 1 bunch for NT$20 (70 cents U.S.) or 3 bunches for NT$50. My mom simply had to bring some home.

這裡有一般市區的市場很少見的野生山菜，如過貓（左）、紅菜（右）等。看到這麼好的價格，老媽禁不住買了幾把！

Just love the colors of these wild vegetables!

這些山菜不但長的特別，顏色也很美

Freshly sautéed Taiwanese river snails
現炒螺肉

Taiwanese dried red sakura shrimp - I love them with simple fried rice!

櫻花蝦

 

 

Fresh, handmade mochi - the texture was so perfect and not too sweet. I will really miss this!!

金包許麻糬 - 在這裡的麻糬好Q、衛生、也不會太甜

Different varieties of sweet potato starch cakes. They're the best ones I've had so far! Since they're all made fresh and without any preservatives, they only last for 1-2 days, so I wasn't able to buy a large quantity to bring back.
也有各種不同的涼糕，和麻糬一樣，超Q的，是我吃過最好吃的一家！因為全部都是手工新鮮製成，只能放置1-2天，所以一次無法買太多回去 (′︿‵｡)

After walking around Jinshan Old Street district, we went back to the outdoor fish market at Wanli. My mom ended up getting several different kind of seafood to take home for dinner, including the flower crabs and cuttle fish (above). They were glowing in the water!

逛完金山老街，再度回到萬里的，老媽挑了一些廉價又很新鮮的海鮮回去煮晚餐

Since all the seafood we bought was so fresh, my mom decided to use either steaming or blanching methods to cook them. This way, we got to appreciate their freshness!
由於所買的海鮮非常的新鮮，老媽以蒸煮法來料理，以享用最鮮美的味道~

Mom is an amazing cook. She prepared us a meal with all of the fresh seafood we had bought! It was indeed the best tasting seafood I've had in a very long time!
老媽的手藝真的不是蓋的，三兩下就把今天買的海鮮一手全部煮出來！

金包許麻糬
台北縣金山鄉金包里街51號對面

Tel: 0938-585-966

*由於已經過一年的時間，請先電話查詢確認

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新北市萬里區漁澳路16-3號 (金翡翠活海鮮對面停車廠)