The Full Video on Youtube
I first went to Taiwan in September of 2024 while serving in Peace Corps. I fell in love with the country. In addition to falling in love, I learned that there is a rite of passage amongst Taiwanese to go around the island at least once; usually it is with a bicycle with friends, though some walk alone with a cart. Nearly all Taiwanese I’ve met have eithe done it or have plans to do it soon. Cycle touring and bikepacking are things that I had wanted to do for years, but never mustered the courage to get done. I swore that after I finished my Peace Corps service, I would return to Taiwan and ride a bicycle around the island any way I could.
Nine months later I kept true to my promise. After finishing two years in Peace Corps, I kept traveling Southeast Asia for six months. This cycle tour would be the adventure to cap the previous nearly three years of adventure (I lasted two weeks in the US before traveling Latin America for six more months). The cycle tour takes between one to three weeks, depending on fitness and interest in doing tourism outside of one’s pedals. I chose two weeks. I found a shop in Taipei to rent a bike from then left without much of a plan of where I would go or where I would sleep.
In the end it much easier than I expected and made for one of the coolest experiences I had ever had in my life. I was previously in China for two weeks and studied Mandarin for the prior two months, so I was capable of chatting up locals and making some friends; this helped the experience so much. From big cities to small towns to nature and parks, this was amazing and I hope you enjoy watching it nearly as much as I enjoyed recording it (and inversely as much as I enjoyed editing it). Godspeed and enjoy the ride
The Full Video on Youtube
