Cingjing - Of Sheep and Rolling Hills

My recent trip to Taiwan saw me going on a solo trip to Cingjing (清境). Cingjing is popularly called 清境農場 (or Cingjing Veterans Farm) and is located in Renai Township, Nantou, Central Taiwan. It is famous for its rolling hills and loads of sheep. Yup, you heard it right, sheep!

The rolling hills in Cingjing

Calling Cingjing a farm is kind of a misnomer since it's really a huge locality, spanning several acres. It was founded when mainland Chinese soldiers from Yunnan were ordered to retreat in 1961 after spending years fighting against Communists in the Burma border . These soldiers and their dependents were provided with agricultural training by the Taiwan government and were later settled in Cingjing.

And boy, what a retirement place they got! Cingjing is located 1,750 meters above sea level. The weather is cool and mild; the views are spectacular. Flora is abundant and food is fresh and delicious! 

Evergreen Grassland

The most famous attraction is undoubtedly the Evergreen Grasslands (青青草原) where the famous sheep are located.  Here, you feel like you're Julie Andrews in the Sound of Music, singing "The hills are alive..." Rolls and rolls of hills with green pastures spread out before you. On them are herds of sheep, peacefully chewing grass and staring lazily at tourists. They are friendly, woolly creatures who don't mind being petted by total strangers and who don't hesitate to sniff at your bag for some treats.

Cute woolly creatures focused on their meal

Being a tourist area, they have two performances daily -- a sheep shearing show in the morning and a horse riding show in the afternoon to entertain tourists. I caught the horse riding show, which featured Mongolian horsemen (and a young lady!) doing acrobatic stunts while atop a moving horse. The show wasn't mind-blowing if you ask me, but it was a hit with the kids. 

There are several trails that you can walk through to enjoy the place. One trail was called 步步高升, which is also a Chinese idiom meaning continuous promotion. It consists of 499 steps and is supposedly good for appreciating maple colors in the fall. The trail runs from the entrance of Evergreen Grassland to the Shine Little French Town, which is a cluster of small souvenir shops and restaurants. I'm not big on hiking, but I had no choice but to walk this trail as it was the only way to get back to my minsu. Despite that, I found the walk down easy and enjoyable. The steps are easy to navigate going down. There are numbers on the steps every 50th step so you can keep track of where you are. Those who wish to avoid using stairs can take the mountain slope going down.  

Enjoying the afternoon sun and mountain view on the way down.

Little Swiss Garden

For some weird reason, Cingjing seems obsessed with appearing Swiss. There are Swiss windmills in the Evergreen Grassland. There are bed-and-breakfast nooks resembling Swiss chalets. And there's the Little Swiss Garden. 

The Little Swiss Garden is located just across the Tourist Center. It's a small park filled with various flowers and little Swiss windmills to provide the European flavor. The place is nothing spectacular, but if you like flowers and have time to spare, it's a pleasant feeling to stroll among the flowers and just enjoy the serene atmosphere at the small lake inside the Garden. 

Flowers, flowers and some ducks! 

Just outside the Swiss Garden, there's the ubiquitous 7/11 and a little shop called Carton King. Carton King is a place which sells everything made of carton. 

Overall, Cingjing by itself is a place which can be explored in one or two days. I find that its attractions are really more appropriate for families with small children. However, Cingjing is also the jump-off point to scenic places such as the Aowanda Forest and Hehuanshan Mountain. There are short half-day trips to these places which are organized by the local tour agencies. This is the reason which brought me to Cingjing in the first place. (No, it was not the sheep!) More on this in my next post! 

Getting Around

Cingjing occupies such a vast space that it isn't advisable to go around without any transportation, unless you are just walking to nearby attractions or trails. There are hardly any taxis you can call off the streets. Remember that you're still in the mountains, so walking from one place to another actually resembles hiking. 

It's best to stay in an accommodation near the major sites so that it's convenient to walk around. I would recommend any minsu or hotel which is near the 7/11 area. Another alternative for bigger groups is to hire their own car or van to take them around. On weekends, one can wait for the shuttle bus which goes to and from the Evergreen Grassland and the Tourist Center. 

Here's a link to a map of Cingjing - www.cingjing.com.tw/map/map_08_trip.asp.