Green Green Grassland (青青草原) and Small Swiss Garden (瑞士小花园), Cing Jing

 When we did our research on Cing Jing, two of the must go tourist attractions were Green Green Grassland (青青草原) and Small Swiss Garden (瑞士小花园). Initially we were in two minds about visiting Green Green Grassland which was part of Cing Jing Farm as we just came from a 1D1N farm stay at the Flying Cow Ranch in Miaoli.

But we later realised that Green Green Grassland turned out to be more of a sheep pasture than an actual farm, where you can find sheep roam freely on the green grassy plains.

Green Green Grassland (青青草原)

We purchased our tickets for Green Green Grassland from our minsu at a discounted rate and they provided free transport up to the entrance.

Mandatory photo at the entrance.

Can you see how misty it was? The temperature was cool at around 16 degrees that morning.

Sophie and her awkward smile

I heard that they have sheep shearing shows happening at the amphitheater and rushed Alexis and Sophie  for it bypassing the castle and hungry sheep that were awaiting tourists to feed them. But it turned out they only had the sheep shearing shows between June to August.

 

We saw people buying sheep feed to get a more up close encounter with the sheep and photo opportunity. But I was not keen for the sheep to pounce on me.

In fact, when I tried to take photos beside the sheep, I was terrified that they would come too close for comfort. A slight bleat was all it took from them to send me squealing off in the opposite direction.

Sophie was also scared of being too close to the sheep and preferred to view them from a distance. And up on daddy’s shoulders was where she felt the safest.

It drizzled on and off the whole morning but the sheep look undisturbed and continued grazing away while the tourists continued to snap pictures of them.

If you plan to go in the months of May and June, it’s a good idea to pack a poncho or rain coat and come comfortably attired with sport shoes as the slopes may be slippery.

We tried to feed the sheep behind the fences but these guys knew that that ain’t food and snubbed us.

According to some friends, Green Green Grassland is described as Taiwan’s version of Switzerland as you get to see an amazing view an altitude of 1,750 metres above sea level. With a picturesque view like that, you definitely don’t want to miss a family photo.

We proceeded to the mountain view pastures for the horse show at Cing Jing farm. The performance change on a regular basis and the troupe performing today are from Mongolia where they learnt to ride horses from as young as five years old.

Although the performers were impressive with their skillful balancing on their horses, riding backwards and all, the act got repetitive after a while and was bordering on getting a little boring.

Nevertheless, it was a good place to take a break from all the walking we did and we were content to rest our legs so we stayed till the end of the show where we bought carrots to feed the horses.

Now if you don’t want to get your fingers munched off by these fellas, you better learn the correct method to hold the carrots. What you want is to place the carrots in the palm of your hand and lift them up to the horse’s mouth.

The feeling of their slobbery tongues was very icky but it doesn’t smell as horses are herbivores.

We continued with more walking and finally reached the 499 step trail which took us to the foot of the lower entrance. Just a word of caution, if you’re bringing kids, be prepared to carry them or have them in a carrier as a pram will be quite a killer. We were so exhausted that we didn’t even bother taking any photos along the way..

Later in the afternoon, Sophie decided that a nap was not on her agenda, so after a quick rest at the minsu we decided to brave the rain (again!), put on our raincoats, and armed ourselves with umbrellas before heading to the nearby Little Swiss Garden which was about 5-8 minutes away from the minsu.

Small Swiss Garden (瑞士小花园)

The Small Swiss Garden is popularly known as “Taiwan’s Little Switzerland”  because the garden gives a Northern European vibe. It is located just next to the Carton King restaurant. As we dined at Carton King the day before, we had complimentary tickets saving us 240NT.

Upon entering the garden, you’ll see cardboard like structures of animals and buildings.

And boy it was some torrent downpour that afternoon.

Despite the wet weather, we decided that the rain will not dampen our holiday spirits although admittedly we did look like silly tourist in the rain. I’m sure the walk around the garden would be more enjoyable without having to carry umbrellas and avoiding puddles, but we brought our own sunshine along.

We spent sometime stuck in the shade when the rain got heavier and heavier with no sign of letting up. But on the other hand, it just leaves you with no choice but to just slow down and enjoy the moment.

The potted garden guardian

 

Sensory spots. Though I accidentally plucked the leaves of instead of just rubbing them. I blame my lousy Chinese for that 😛

 Ducks who pretended they were flamingos!

Here’s a tip if you’re planning to visit both Carton King and Little Swiss Garden, do the former earlier so that you can save on your entrance tickets to Small Swiss Garden.

We probably spent a good whole morning in Green Green Grassland and maybe just under an hour at the Little Swiss Garden. If you’re going there in May or during the rainy seasons, do bring along poncho and umbrellas as it tends to rain a lot more then..

Next stop, we’re going to Hua Lian for Taroko National Park and whale watching.

 

Heading to Taiwan soon? Don’t miss the rest of our Taiwan adventures:

• Miao Li (Day 1 and 2)- Farm stay on Flying Cow Ranch
• Cing Jing (Day 3) – Carton King and review of Accomodation at Misty Villa
• Hua Lien (Day 5) – Hualien 花莲, Taroko Gorge 太鲁阁
• Hua Lien (Day 6) – Whale Watching in Hua Lien

 

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Tagged: family holiday, Holiday, Taiwan, travel