[Taipei 台北] Elephant Mountain (Xiangshan) 象山 + Sunshine Cafe 日光珈琲－Lynda's Taiwan-logue

< Visited in Mar 2017 & Jul 2019 >

With the MRT Tamshui-Xinyi line extended in 2013 to cover Taipei 101/World Trade Center (R03) and Xiangshan (R02), hiking at the 183m high Elephant Mountain (or more accurately Hill, given the number of much higher mountains in Taiwan) 象山 has become a very accessible attraction.

From exit 2 of Xiangshan MRT station, the actual foot of the hill is another 15-minutes stroll away.

⇧ ⇩ Opting for the route on the right of this park, in front of the MRT exit

⇩ Cherry blossoms in Mar 2017, within the grounds of an opulent-looking apartment.

⇩ Midway through the 15-minutes stroll and steering left (without entering the park)

⇩ A short uphill walk past the Nth apartment

⇩ Arriving at the foot of the hill to start our walking trail. That Friday morning, we had the company of a steady stream of hikers, including residents from the neighbourhood who probably make this part of their regular exercise.

The hiking trail, consisting of gentle stone steps, looks to be dog-friendly (I can only guess their stamina beat mine).

⇩ The 1st popular photo stop, 1 of the vantage points overlooking Taipei 101 and the cityscape.

⇩ Back in Mar 2017, Breeze Nanshan mall was still being constructed.

Continuing our hike uphill...

Our rest stop for a picnic (the maltese earlier seen was already here!)

⇩ Bagels from Good Cho's 好.丘

The descent, as usual, seemed faster (though also more taxing on the knees).

In Jul 2019, I discovered a newly-opened gem in the neighbourhood at the foot of the hill. A few steps straight ahead after walking down the trail, Sunshine Cafe 象山日光珈琲 was opened in Feb 2019. While I had specially made a trip here for afternoon tea without a hike, this makes a good stop before or after one.

The ambience was cosy and was not crowded on a Monday afternoon, though there was a handful of patrons throughout my stay. I personally feel it's a good idea to have a cosy cafe in the neighbourhood, where you could end up being friends with the cafe owners, come for the occasional caffaine or cake fix without a need to dress up elaborately.

The cafe is pet-friendly, though there is no resident furkid. That late Monday afternoon, there were 2 ladies with a very docile Shiba Inu a table away.

⇩ Parked myself here for almost 2 hours, writing my notes, browsing new magazines and enjoying my afternoon tea. The toilet is well concealed (and maintained) behind the white door.

Though not a fan of lemon/flavours, I took the service personnel's recommendation for a Sicily Iced Lemon Coffee to try something different (after she noted that I preferred it to be less sour). She offered to add sugar if I still found it too sour for my taste, but I went with its original flavour. For that hot summer afternoon and perspiring buckets after walking from the MRT station, the concoction was pretty refreshing.