Shifen: Taiwan's Most Beautiful Waterfall

There are a series of “old streets” in Taipei and on the outskirts in the suburbs. As the train rolled out of the city, I could see street markets full of food stands and souvenir shops. The bright awnings and colorful signs stood out against the backdrop of green hills. I’m so used to seeing busy, commercial areas in urban settings that this combination of the scenic landscape and the bustling lanes and alleyways was unexpected.

The Shifen Old Street runs along both sides of the train tracks. People shop, eat, and release lanterns into the sky in the middle of the tracks, then rush onto the sidewalks when the train whistles through. As soon as I entered the crowd, aromas of fried chicken, grilled sweet sausages, and sizzling dumplings filled my nose and my mouth began watering. But the heat was oppressive and I couldn’t stop eyeing the fresh fruit juice stands; cups of sliced watermelon, guava, papaya, and dragonfruit sat in ice, just waiting to be blended. Another stall that caught my attention was the ice cream burrito. Wrapped in a spring roll crepe, two or three scoops of taro, red bean, milk, matcha, or peanut ice cream are dusted with peanut brittle shavings. Further down there are tanghulu and aiyu jelly booths. Tanghulu can be tomato or plum and strawberry skewers covered in crystalized syrup, and the aiyu jelly is mixed with lime juice and liquid sugar to make a drink.

Walking down the street guarantees that you will be approached by people offering to sell you a lantern. Many tourists from mainland China, Thailand, and Japan bought the deal and were in the middle of the tracks painting their wishes onto the four sides of the lanterns. Once they were done, the hawker would take pictures for the tourists, then light the lantern and video it going into the sky for them.

Right next to the train tracks and in front of the old street is a bridge that leads across the river. From the middle, one can see clear blue water flowing between the dense green vegetation of the hills. But when you look closely, you can see deflated lanterns littering the shoreline and in the treetops. Although beautiful, the lanterns become garbage after being released into the air, and no one cleans it up.

Shifen is not unique in its old street and sky lanterns. The nearby town Pingxi is famous for the annual sky lantern festival it holds, and Jiufen has a similar old street. However, Shifen stands out from these other towns because it is home to the most beautiful waterfall in Taiwan. Down the road takes you to a series of suspension bridges and short hiking trails, which leads to an observatory deck overlooking the steep drop of the river. The aquamarine water falls in sheets into the mists below, a natural wonder of the stunning landscape.