Taiwan’s Urban Wilderness

One thing that amazes me about Taipei and New Taipei City is how closely urban and wilderness coexist with one another. I’ve started calling it Taiwan’s Urban Wilderness. These cities sit in a bowl formation ringed by mountains on the north end of the island. The transition from relatively buildable ground to the steep side of a mountain can be stark and sudden.

Direction Determines Environment

If you turn right on the street where I’m staying in New Taipei City, you descend immediately into the urban landscape. But follow the street left and it ascends to a dead end at a steep staircase.

Climbing out of the urban landscape and into the natural one is a surreal experience for me. I don’t make the transition as quickly as the land around me. At the top of the stairs my inner biology geek goes into overdrive.

Taiwan’s Wilderness

I’m greeted by a golden pothos plant wrapping around a tree, its leaves as big as dinner plates.

In fact, there are all sorts of plants growing up the trail that only exist as house plants in the United States. Birds nest fern, snake plant, dracena, crotons, palms. And then there are the plants I’ve never even seen before.

Wait! I’m trying to keep up!

I can barely keep up with Joseph and Chloe because I’m so busy trying to identify the flora. And then I notice the fauna. The large amount of rain over the last 3 days has brought out the snails. They’re huge compared to snails back in the States. About four to five inches long, they are all over the trail. They look like something out of Alice in Wonderland to me. The whole place has that feel. I half expect the Cheshire Cat to appear out of thin air.

Bird calls in Taiwan are as foreign to my ear as most of the rapid fire Mandarin language that swirls all around me in the city. I can identify most birds by their call back in the United States, but these?! Not even close. Between the plants, snails, birds, and bugs, I’m gonna lose my mind trying to absorb it all. I’ve just discovered Taiwan’s forests are as fascinating and overwhelming as its cities.

Return to the City

The approach of sunset shortens our hike. We turn to leave and I’m dismayed I didn’t get to stay longer. The variety of life I’ve seen is astonishing, intriguing, and very close to home. I’m hoping we head back up those stairs again soon. Taiwan’s Urban Wilderness takes more than one pass to catch it all.