A Day in Town: Zhubei, Qionglin, Hengshan, Zhudong (Hsinchu County)

I just completed my twenty-fourth trip under "A Day in Town," my multi-year backpacking plan of spending a day in each of the approximately 350 townships in Taiwan. My destination this time was Hsinchu County, the county that borders Taoyuan City to the north, Miaoli County to the south, Hsinchu City and the Taiwan Strait to the west, and the Xueshan & Dabajian mountains to the east. Composed mainly of uplands, tablelands, mountains, and the alluvial plains of the Fengshan River and the Touqian River mouth area, Hsinchu County is a Hakka-majority administrative region, with Hakka people constituting nearly 70% of its population, the highest in Taiwan. Hsinchu County administers 13 townships (including a county-administered city, Zhubei). Since I had visited four of the 13 townships during my last trip here a year ago, this time I visited another four: Zhubei, Qionglin, Hengshan, and Zhudong, which collectively form the north-central part of the county. 

I spent my first day in Zhubei City, the seat of Hsinchu County. With its proximity to Hsinchu City and the Hsinchu Science and Technology Park, Zhubei has attracted both migration and investment, and has become one of the fastest-developing areas nationwide.  However, the recent development has been focused on the east side of the city, as showcased by Hsinchu HSR station, while the west side has remained traditional and rural. I began by taking a train to Zhubei Station, which is located in the old city center. From there, I hiked westward to explore the relatively rural half of the township. Two hours later, I stumbled upon Yangliutang, a historical temple dedicated to Avalokiteśvara and the religious center of the neighborhood for centuries. I turned around and returned to the old city center to visit Tsaitienfudi, a Tudigong style temple. Tudigong is a kind of Chinese tutelary deity of a specific location, so Tudigong shrines and temples are ubiquitous in Taiwan. However, what makes Tsaitienfudi special is that it was dedicated to the seven Taocas tribes who contributed significantly during the Qing rule, with the temple's name literally meaning "the rich land of indigenous people". 

Passing the old city center, I continued eastward into the urban, well-developed half of the township. Close to the end of my itinerary, I came across Liujia Elementary School, which was established in 1906 and was the first primary school in Zhubei. The school name was previously known as Luchang, which literally means "deer field", testifying to the lifestyle centuries ago, in which deer-hunting was the main livelihood of Taocas people, the inhabitants of this land. Finally, I reached Liujia Station, a train station adjacent to Hsinchu HSR Station, where I boarded a train to Hsinchu City to check into my hostel. Throughout the day, I visited 19 of the 31 villages administered by Zhubei City.

On the second day, I visited Qionglin, a township bordering Zhubei to the west and the smallest by area in Hsinchu County. Recently considered a satellite city of the ever-growing Zhubei City, Qionglin is also known for its agricultural economy and well preserved Hakka traditions. I started by taking a train to Hengshan Station, which is located in Hengshan Township. From there, I walked across the bridge over the Yoluo River, which is a branch of Touqian River, into Qionglin Township. Nearly two hours later, I arrived at one of the earliest Han Chinese settlements in Qionglin called Luliaoken, with its eye-catching welcome sign featuring a deer, again signifying the historical importance of deer-hunting and deer-skin trade in this area. As I hiked towards the downtown area, I was attracted by another welcome sign featuring a buffalo. The area was traditionally called Daubieniu, which literally means "whipping the buffalo to turn right", symbolizing its deeply-rooted agricultural identity.

Just a five-minute walk from the city center, I visited Deng Yu-hsien Music Memorial Park, a public park dedicated to Deng Yu-hsien, a composer of Hakka descent hailing from Longtan District, Taoyuan City and spending his final years in Qionglin. While teaching at Qionglin Primary School, Deng created many notable works, including both Taiwanese ballads and pop songs, that have remained popular to this day, 82 years after his passing. I continued westward, and reached a well-preserved rice mill half an hour later. The mill was first built in 1930 and recently repurposed as a tourist attraction, again showcasing Qionglin's deep roots in agriculture. I ended my day in Qionglin by riding a Youbike to Liujia Station to catch a train back to Hsinchu. Along the way, I visited nine of the twelve villages administered by Qionglin Township.

I spent my third day in Hengshan, the township situated in the center of the entire Hsinchu County. Both the Yoluo River and the Shanpin River flow westward through Hengshan Township and merge as the iconic Touqian River that divides 11 of the 13 townships in Hsinchu County into two parts: the north and the south (of the Touqian River). Traditionally, the north includes Zhubei, Xinfeng, Hukou, Xinpu, and Guaxi, while the south includes Zhudong, Qionglin, Hengshan, Baoshan, Beipu, and Emei. Hengshan is also known as "the township with the most train stations in Taiwan (five)", thanks to its boom in logging and mining that relied heavily on railway transport. I began by taking a train to Zhudong Station, and hiked westward into Hengshan Township. About two hours into my exploration, I arrived at the entrance of an old trail which porters took to transport tea in the old days. Having hiked through the trail, I reached Lingantang, a temple uniquely dedicated to a midwife for her contribution by caring nearly 300 newborns and their mothers in the neighborhood.

I resumed walking after lunch. About one and a half hours later, I arrived at Hexing Station, an iconic wood-built station that was constructed to support the logging industry during Japanese rule. With the logging industry dying out in the 1980s, the station had once been abandoned, and was later repurposed for tourist attraction, now best known for being frequented by young lovers. Finally, I reached Neiwan, the easternmost village of Hengshan bordering Jianshi, which, alongside Wufeng, are the two mountain townships of Hsinchu County. Once a boom town for logging and mining, Neiwan has remained prosperous throughout the century, thanks to its culturally rich tourist attractions, among them is Liu Hsing-chin Comic Museum, a museum dedicated to Liu Hsing-chin, a nationally renowned comic creator hailing from Hengshan Township. On this day, I visited five of the 12 villages administered by Hengshan Township.

On the fourth day, I visited Zhudong, the township that borders Hsinchu City to the west and the second most populous township in Hsinchu County after Zhubei City. Zhudong houses part of Hsinchu Science Park, as well as the main campus of the Technology Research Institute (ITRI), a technology research and development institution that helped transform Taiwan's industries from labor-intensive ones to innovation-driven ones. I first took a train to Xinzhuang Station, which is located in easternmost Hsinchu City, and walked into Zhudong Township. About an hour later, I arrived at the main gate of the ITRI, whose open lab and incubator have fostered emerging industries and startups including UMC and TSMC. However, its sign at the main gate looked surprisingly modest. Thereafter, I passed by one block after another of quiet, newly developed residential areas, signifying the strong, high-tech-industry-driven growth in the neighborhood. 

About four hours into my exploration, I reached the city center. I resumed walking after a late lunch, and stumbled upon a township-administered institution, which used the name Shuqilin, the old name of Zhudong which literally means Ardisia sieboldii, the shrubs that were abundant when the Han Chinese settlers first arrived in Zhudong in the eighteenth century. Before ending my day in Zhudong, I spotted a local restaurant with an amusing name, which sounded like "no-mistake restaurant." During the day, I visited 14 of the 25 villages administered by Zhudong Township.

Concluding my day in Zhudong Township, I also completed my backpacking trip before the Chinese New Year holidays. As usual, this trip was one of both discovery and nostalgia. It was nostalgic because I lived in Hsinchu City for a total of six years for university study and English language training. While Hsinchu City is separate from Hsinchu County in administration, my hostel was located in a quiet neighborhood of Hsinchu City, only a 10-minute walk to Hsinchu Station, where I took the local train to and from my destinations every day. On the other hand, the local train service that I experienced this time, both the Liujia Line and the Neiwan Line, was totally new to me. It was the best part of my experience this time—no doubt about it.