I have a cousin who married to a Taiwanese husband and now living happily with her husband, a daughter and a son in Taipei. I still remember I loved sticking around my cousin when I was a kid. But since she studied in Taiwan, she only came back to Malaysia during college break. I would then cried endlessly whenever seeing her off in the airport. Until today I still don’t understand why I loved crying whenever someone leaving me temporary. It reminded me of my Standard 3 class teacher who was leaving our school to pursue advanced studies. During her last day, I cried like an abandoned child as if my mum was selling me to the circus as a circus clown.

Few years ago when my mum bumped into my Standard 3 class teacher, my mum told me this “I talked to her about your childhood and told her that you cried all the way from the school to home during her last day in school. She was so touched that a glistening tear slid down from her cheek!”. I was like “OMG”, I didn’t love her that much actually, she slapped me on my face before. I just can’t explain why did I cry. Anyway, back to my cousin.

She and her husband recently converted one of their houses in Jin Gua Shi 金瓜石 into a homestay and name it as Golden 101 (金瓜石101). Jinguashi (金瓜石) is located in the Rueifang township of Taipei city, the area became famous for its goldmines.  It is also known as Kinkaseki in Japanese. Although the minerals have since been depleted, the town still attracts many visitors to its Gold Ecological Park, which opened in October 2004. Jin Gua Shi was named a potential World Heritage site in 2002.

My cousin spent about a year to completely revamp their house into a sophisticated homestay that provides a homely ambiance.

Jin Gua Shi 101 ~ they even repaired the road for easy access

The house is located in the middle of the hill facing the sea，a perfect location to build a dream house!

The master bedroom is cutting-edge and spacious enough to accommodate 4 person. An ideal room for family stay.

The master bedroom was designed with French window to offer spectacular view of the town.

5-star hotel washroom.

Homely leisure hall with LCD and books. Hey, saw the photo frame on the leftmost shelf? It’s the wood craft that I bought for my cousin, with Twin Towers, KL Tower, tricycle, and some other Malaysia icons.

Breakfast is provided every morning.

Balcony for unblocked hill view

Jinguashi is just about 20 mins away from Taipei town. Situated between the mountains and the coastline, its exceptionally stunning scenery has attracted more and more tourists every year. I would like to share with you of the photos taken from my cousin.

Yin-yang Sea, one of the iconic attractions in Jinguashi, the bay where the sea is a mix of yellow and blue. This is Yin-yang Sea. It was initially believed that the sea color was the result of pollution from Taiwan Metal Mining Corp’s smelting activities but, over 10 years after the company stopped its activities, Yin-yang Sea still exists. Scholars say that the Jinguashi geology has a large amount of pyrite that, after millions of years has formed Fe3+ which does no dissolve easily in water. This forms iron ion floating particles when it flows into the sea, resulting in the strange sight of the Yin-yang Sea. (excerpted from wikitravel)

Teapot Mountain. Approximately 580 meters high, Teapot Mountain is shaped like a handleless teapot, giving it the name “Handleless Teapot Mountain.” Looking from the Shumei or Cushih mountain direction, it also looks like a crouched lion ready to pounce, which also gives it the name “Lion Rock Mountain.” (excerpted from wikitravel)

Gold Waterfall. The substantial Jinguashi rainfall seeps into the mine shafts through cracks in the surface rock, becoming acidulous water after interacting with the pyrite and energite underground and undergoing oxidation reduction. A natural wonder “Gold Waterfall” has formed where the terrain drops sharply. This is one of the sources of the Yin-yang Sea. (excerpted from wikitravel)

Imagine my cousin and her family are literally staying in this wonderful place with beautiful view and unpolluted air, what a dream place to transport you away from the hustle and bustle of city living. I am looking forward to visit my cousin with my family and hopefully the plan will materialize in year 2011.

Visit Golden101 official website -> http://www.golden101.com.tw/ (let me know if you need interpretation to English)

A heart-warming article from a guest who stayed in Golden 101 -> http://likecoffeeliketea.wordpress.com/2010/12/14/peter-and-meiling/ (yeah… Mei Ling and Peter are my cousin and cousin-in-law)

Visit Wikitravel for the attractions in Jinguashi -> http://wikitravel.org/en/Jinguashi