mao kong

Mao Kong , a very special place in the outskirt of Taipei. It is located in Wenshan District. Mao Kong used to be the biggest tea growing area of Taipei. Now, it's a popular place for tea culture and viewing the night scenery of Taipei.
Mao Kong is on the edge of Taipei basin. The scene of the whole Taipei City can be seen from the mountain. On a cloudless day, you can even see hundreds of stars hanging over your head. Moreover, the view in the night of Taipei is magnificent. People love going to Mao Kong at night, and I am one of those people.
Apart from the night scenery, Mao Kong is also a great choice for mountain biking or hiking. There are many intertwining footpaths which have been used for transportation of tea. Now, the trail has been linked up from Muja to Hsintien, giving it ample length for the bikers or hikers who want to challenge it.
Local culture:
Mao Kong is famous for the tea farms and teahouses. The most special one is Tieguanyin . A lot of restaurants here offer good tea and food. Traditional tea culture, food and the scenery are the main reasons why people want to go here.
The Taipei City Farmers’ Association has founded a tea display center to showcase tea-farming tools and tea sets. Apart from that, they also hold a Tea Drinking festival every year so that people can understand more about Mao Kong’s culture.
Special:
Whenever I pass the Taipei city zoo on a holiday, I can always see people lining up just to get a ride on the Mao Kong Gondola, a gondola lift system which started operations on 4 July 2007. It connects the Taipei Zoo MRT station to the top of Mao Kong. The gondola was designed to make visiting Mao Kong more convenient for local residents and tourists. On the way to the top one can see a lot of interesting scenery, as the gondola goes through the Taipei city zoo on its way. The system is now suspended due to the damage cause by a recent typhoon and is yet to be restarted.
Evaluation:
I love to go to Mao Kong at night. It’s a way to relax. With all the stress I take from daily life, sometimes I just need some time to take a stroll to some place where I can see the stars. Mao Kong is just one of the places I often visit.
While riding my motorcycle to the top, I can feel the mountain wind blowing on my face, and that helps when I am feeling a bit down. It’s like all the worries are gone with the wind and left behind where it can never catch up to me again. When I reach the top, I would always find a place where there are fewer people, then, I would just lay back and watch the stars and relax. I love looking at the stars, because they are ever so beautiful and long lasting.
What can I say? How lucky we are to have this wonderful getaway!