Taiwan Day 3: Zhongshe Flower Market + Rainbow Village!

by - May 13, 2018

I think out of all the places that Ana and I visited in Taiwan, these two are the most asked about and I don't doubt why! It's absolutely gorgeous and I'm glad despite the booboos, we succeeded in finding and enjoying both locations. :) 

I just want to clarify that we got lost and had difficulty in finding these places, so I will really try my very best to enumerate how to get there. Bear with me! 

Without further ado! Taiwan Day 3: Zhong She Flower Market and Rainbow Village!


Like our usual everyday routine, we took the bus from our house going to the train station. Every place we go to involved the MRT, so I'm glad that it's only a bus stop away from us. :) This time though, instead of it just being Ana and I, we had my Mom with us! ^_^ She hasn't been to Zhong She Flower Market and Rainbow Village yet cos when I was little, it wasn't a popular tourist thing, so it was never in our "must-visit!" Now, it's the perfect time!

My first tip on going to far places in Taiwan is leave EARLY! As early as 8:00AM would be good, so you will be able to accomplish every thing on your itinerary and have allowance incase you get lost. :)

If you're also planning to do our itinerary of Zhongshe Flower Market and Rainbow Village, go to Zhongshe Flower Market FIRST! :)




Both Zhong She Flower Market and Rainbow Village is located in the city of Taichung. It's really far, so I don't recommend any taxi rides on this adventure, unless you really did hire a van or maybe a tourist bus. For us who don't have that option, you take the train. :)

HOW TO GET THERE:


If you're in Taipei City, you go down >> TAIPEI MAIN STATION. From there, you find the >> TRA TICKETING booth and buy a ticket going to >> FENGYUAN Station. The tickets costed us NT$ 375 or Php 660 ONEWAY each. The TRA train is different from the regular MRT, so your EASY CARD will not be honored on this trip. :)

So, this is the part, where I tell you to be EXTREMELY CAUTIOUS cos this is where we made our mistake! Once you get up, find your platform and take note of your TRAIN NO. and be attentive with the departure time on the monitors or digital screens. You can also check the trains for the TRAIN NO. cos they have digital screens outside as well. :)

For us, our train number was 121 (as seen on the ticket), and departure time was 11:00AM. We thought arrival was 11:00AM - first mistake! Your train can arrive at 10:50AM and it will leave at exactly 11:00AM. So, be ATTENTIVE. We got so caught up in thinking that the train will arrive at 11:00AM, that we actually got left behind. :((( It won't hurt to also ask train staffs!


Smiling and not realizing naiwan na kami ng train, bes! Haha! Kaloka!


Finally our train!! Huhuhu!

Fortunately for us, even if we did get left behind by our original train, we didn't need to pay an additional fee anymore. Upon talking to the train staff,  we just had to go on the next train bound for Taichung as chance passengers. By that, I mean, we didn't have reserved seats anymore. So, every time we stopped at a certain station before Taichung, there was a chance that someone already owned the seat that I was sitting on, so parang musical chairs haha! Move on to the next empty on and so on! >_< Another downside of getting left behind by the train, we got delayed by one hour huhu! 

Travel time from Taipei Main Station to Taichung via TRA Train is 2 hours. If you only want it to be 1 hour, you can take the HSR/High Speed Rail, but that would cost you NT$ 700 or Php 1,200+ double the price of TRA. 

ZHONGSHE FLOWER MARKET

Like I said, we had booboos and this is mistake no. 2! Yes, Zhongshe Flower Market is located in Taichung, but Taichung in general is BIG! Do not go down Taichung station cos it is FAR away from the Flower Market cos it's located in Houli district. Best bet is to go down FENGYUAN Station.

Since we made a mistake and went down Taichung Station, the train staff there told us to take the normal train (also located within the station) to HOULI Station cos it was closest to Zhongshe Flower Market. 

For you, guys who would go down at FENGYUAN Station, you can already take a taxi from there going to Zhong She Flower Market. :)


By this time, we were already exhausted from getting lost over and over haha! But laban!! This was our final train ride in the quest of the Flower market! >_<

Once we got off HOULI Station, we realized that Zhongshe Flower Market is not in anyway walking distance. It was still a good 12-13 minute drive away. Good thing, there are usually taxis waiting outside train stations and so we got one to drive us to the flower market. :)

Thankfully, we had my Mom with us who speaks fluent Mandarin and helped us haggle with taxi drivers. I only know super minimal Chinese, so having her was heaven sent!

Zhongshe Flower Market is a great place for flower lovers. The flowers may vary depending on the season, but always you'll see beautiful blooms. :) Entrance fee is NT$ 120 or Php 211.




You ain't got nothing on my Instagram Momma! Team avail! Haha! :) I love her for that! She's always game to take photos! :)

After all the traveling we did, we were so relieved to finally see this stunning view! Hay! The things we did to get here! Haha! >_< What a journey! Worth it though!

Like any tourist place, this was also packed with people. But not as much as we expected since it was  a weekday. :)







As usual, we tried our best to find the perfect photo spots without much people and I have to say that I'm really happy with all our photos! :) It shows how beautiful the garden is. :)


Address: No. 469-13, Sanfeng Rd., Houli District, Taichung City

We finished touring the Flower Market around 4:30PM. After we headed outside not knowing how we'll get to Rainbow Village. Fortunately, we were spotted by a kind-hearted Taxi driver.♥

In case you, guys wanna get him! :) We had a really pleasant experience with him!
We realized that this trip will be about Taxi rides, so my Mom had the smart idea of already arranging a ride with him going to >> Rainbow Village and from Rainbow Village >> back to >> FENGYUAN Station. For those two rides, he charged us NT$ 1,500 or Php 2,600. :) Not actually bad anymore since a metered ride would have costed us slightly more. Cos, these locations are really far. :)

But for you, guys who are planning to contract taxi drivers or vans, he told us that they charged NT$ 4,000 or Php 7000 for 12 hours. So, if you want to tour Taichung with family or friends, that is the possible rate. :)

RAINBOW VILLAGE

From Zhongshe Flower Market to Rainbow Market, it took us 30 minutes via Taxi. :)

Entrance is FREE for this place!




This place has always been a bucket list of mine ever since I saw it on Instagram. Why wouldn't it be?? Colors! Rainbow! Very me! Haha! Can't resist places like this. Little did I know that it actually had a deeper history! :)

The Rainbow Village was painted by Huang Yung-Fu a.k.a. Rainbow Grandfather! These were the homes of former veterans and dates back to the 1940s. Eventually developers started buying the lands and residents were offered new housing. But Rainbow Grandfather didn't want to move. He was the only one left behind and from his boredom, he painted a bird inside his home and the artwork grew bigger from there! :) This even saved the houses from demolition cos it's now preserved as a cultural area.♥ Today, Huang Yung-Fu is around 90+ years old! ^_^

If ever you get the chance to visit this place, I hope you'll be able to encounter Rainbow Grandfather in person! I wish we did, but we arrived late, so I guess he went home! :(









Open: 8:30AM to 6:00PM

Address: No. 56, Chunan Road, Nantun District, Taichung City

We ended here close to 6:00PM and all we felt was happiness. The place was as I expected and more. :) Plus, everything worked out in the end, even if we did get lost. It was an insane experience, but what matters is, we had fun in the end and found both places! :)

From here, our Angkong driver took us to FENGYUAN Station since it was closest. :) The drive only took us less than 20 minutes, if I remember correctly?

Our driver was so nice that my Mom told him, we were gonna give him a NT$ 100 tip. He was even politely declining it! :((( He also wanted to treat us to a noodle place! Hay grabe! Faith in humanity! He reminded me of my own Lolo! But of course, we had to decline nicely cos we had a train to catch!

 BTW, he really does drive tourists around! He even has a photo album in his car showing us the different places he drove them too! hehe!
His TAXI: BYE, Angkong from Taichung! You made this trip memorable! 


Going back to Taipei Main Station! Finally, we aren't chance passengers anymore! haha! Pro na kami! =P

After our survivor series, we were already starving! As usual, mom and auntie to the rescue! Haha!



But our night didn't end there! We also made a short stop at Shih-lin Night market since we had a little time left and it's just a few stations away from our place. :)









Just had to have one of my favorite street food! Peppered string beans! :) 


This was my favorite shopping place growing up. But after seeing Ximending on this trip, I now have a new favorite! :) I get why people love it more there now. It reminds me of Myeongdong in Korea! :)

That ends our Day 3! It was so packed, but a good day! Day 4 next up!

 If you want to read my other Taiwan posts, click here: https://www.artsyfartsyava.com/search/label/taiwan.♥

Artsy Ava
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22 comments♥

  1. UnknownJuly 27, 2018 at 2:34 PM

    Hi! What camera and lens are you using? Thank you

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    Replies
    1. AVA TE-ZABAT♥August 22, 2018 at 9:45 PM

      My apologies for the late reply! I used a Canon M3 here + kit lens that comes with it. :)

      Delete
    2. UnknownOctober 11, 2018 at 7:06 AM

      Hi Ava, thank you for this blog! We're going to Taiwan next week and I'm still arranging our ITI. I'm so glad I visited your page. Finally, a reliable directions going to Flower farm. Thank youuuuuuuuuu!

      Delete
    3. AVA TE-ZABAT♥November 26, 2018 at 4:50 PM

      Hope your family had a great time!! :)

      Delete
  2. rannemawanhafNovember 19, 2018 at 10:10 AM

    hi! what month did you go?

    ReplyDelete
  3. LouieFebruary 12, 2019 at 10:07 AM

    These infos are what I am looking for. I always wonder if I can use the Easy card on TRA. Good thing I read it here. By the way, we will be visiting Taiwan on the first week of April. I am more than excited! I am currently doing some research for our Taichung itinery.

    ReplyDelete
  4. UnknownFebruary 22, 2019 at 4:01 AM

    Thank you for this blog. Can't wait to go back to Taiwan next week 😊 this made it easier for me to make our itinerary in taichung.

    ReplyDelete
  5. UnknownMarch 5, 2019 at 11:06 PM

    Hi Ms. Ava, thank u so much for such an informative blog! My mom and I are also planning to go on a day trip to Taichung following your itinerary. just wanna ask does the taxi driver speaks english? if he does then we will consider contacting him when we reach Taichung

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. AVA TE-ZABAT♥March 7, 2019 at 11:50 PM

      He only speaks minimal, I believe. :) My mom speaks mandarin kc so the whole time they were speaking in chinese. But he has a photo album filled with tourist photos. So, maybe I think he is capable of taking you naman to your chosen places in Taichung. :) He was super nice!

      Delete
  6. kaedot2793March 6, 2019 at 11:53 PM

    Hi Ava! Was it raining nung nagpunta kayo? I’ll be going on March 31st to April 4 kasi.

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    Replies
    1. AVA TE-ZABAT♥March 7, 2019 at 11:49 PM

      When we went, thankfully it wasn't. :) But taiwan is known to have fickle weather, so I suggest that you always come prepared with even just a foldable umbrella. :)

      Delete
  7. UnknownMarch 22, 2019 at 11:35 PM

    What tra ticket did you purchase? The express one? I think there 3 trains: high speed train, express and local(ntd241), am i right?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. AVA TE-ZABAT♥March 24, 2019 at 9:18 PM

      HSR - high speed rail is different cos it's twice the price but it can get you there in one hour. :) TRA is more on the cheaper side and 2 hours is the waiting time to destination. :) We paid NT$ 375 for oneway TRA. :)

      Delete
  8. AbbyBTApril 3, 2019 at 9:01 PM

    Hi! In going to the Zhongshe Flower Market, we're you not advised to go down in Tai'an Station instead as it is a 12 minute walk from there? I saw Tai'an Station on the Google Maps while searching on how to get there.

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    Replies
    1. AVA TE-ZABAT♥April 3, 2019 at 11:34 PM

      Hi Abby!

      I think there are better ways to get there. This was the best one for us since we got lost. We went down a different station by mistake, so the closest one recommended to us was what i placed. :) But if Google Maps mentions that Tai'an station is best, I guess you can try that too! ^_^

      Delete
    2. AbbyBTApril 4, 2019 at 6:28 PM

      Thank you so much! Your blogs are helping me with setting my itinerary. Will check back again and again when I'm there! <3

      Delete
  9. superyanxMay 7, 2019 at 4:08 PM

    Are the flowers in full bloom in September?

    ReplyDelete
  10. AVA TE-ZABAT♥May 14, 2019 at 8:37 PM

    I'm not entirely sure if it's full bloom. But I believe there should be a lot of flowers. :)

    ReplyDelete
  11. UnknownFebruary 6, 2020 at 7:39 AM

    Hi! Your blog was so helpful! BTW, just wanna know.. from Taichung Station, do you remember how much did it cost you going to Zhongshe Flower Market riding on a normal train? And how long did it take to get you guys there? :)

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    Replies
    1. AVA TE-ZABAT♥February 14, 2020 at 9:05 PM

      Hi! Thank you so much! Glad it was of help! ^_^ Unfortunately the one from Taichung I already forgot. :( That was the time kc na we were frantic na cos we went down the wrong station. Sorry :( But it didn't take us long naman cos just a few stops away. :)

      Delete

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