New Taipei City Travel

One day in 1820, fishermen of Yehliu found a Fujian-style sailboat drifting alone on the open waters, so they boarded the sailboat to check, and found no one on it. However, they found a statue of Kai Zhang Sheng Wang and Chinese fir and limestone, building materials, in the cabin. After having a discussion, people resolved to welcome the god to their fishing village. They used building materials found on the boat to build a temple called Baoan Temple to bless fishermen in Yehliu a safe journey when they went fishing on the sea.Several decades later, a boat from Fujian struck a reef and sank. After the tragedy, Kai Zhang Sheng Wang entered the body of a spirit medium to indicate fishermen to offer sacrifices to pray for peace, not allowing the remains of victims to be brought to the fishing port. Kai Zhang Sheng Wang further indicated that He would go on an inspection tour around the port at Lantern Festival in person. Following the instructions of the God, young and strong residents in Yehliu carried the God’s sedan chair on January 15 of the lunar calendar, jumping into the cold sea water to expel ghosts and monsters at the port. This was the origin of jumping into the sea with gods in Yehliu.Come in Water and Go in FireThe tradition of jumping into the sea with gods in Yehliu has over one hundred years of history, and it is a unique activity at Lantern Festival at Taiwan’s Northern Coast. The tradition enjoys the fame with Sky Lantern Festival in Pingxi and beehive fireworks in Yanshui as they are all intangible cultural heritage. The four rituals of jumping into the sea with gods in Yehliu include “going on an inspection tour with gods on the sea,” “bringing back a whole cabin of catches,” “jumping into the sea with gods,” and “stepping on the bonfire with gods to expel evils and adversities.” Participating followers have to jump into the water with a god’s sedan chair first, and run toward the bonfire after they go ashore. Therefore, we say “come in the water, and go in the fire.” It is the most distinctive cultural festival in Wanli District.Jumping into the sea with gods is an annual occasion in Yehliu. Residents and fishermen in Yehliu support the event by donating money and contributing their labor to plan it. It is an important activity that enables local people to work together as a team. The event of jumping into the sea with gods starts early in the morning, and followers and sacrificial service chiefs carry out the blessing ceremony successively in Baoan Temple. In front of the temple, you can see the spectacular performances of the lion dance of Yehliu Elementary School, beiguan music club, and god’s generals. It is difficult to take your eyes off the performances, and you can hear the sounds of camera shutters one after another as well. The temple workers carry the eight gods’ sedan chairs to the front of Baoan Temple. After they carefully place gods’ statues in the sedan chairs, they hang firecrackers on the sedan chairs. Strong and brave men carrying the sedan chairs move forward while firecrackers are being set off. For a moment, the sounds of firecrackers resound across the sky, going through the cloudy and rainy sky to the Heavenly Palace.Going on an Inspection Tour with Gods on SeaThe lead boat sets sail with people’s blessings, kicking off the event of going on an inspection tour with gods on the sea. Over ten fishing boats follow the lead boat in order and dash out Yehliu Fishing Port amid the loud noise of firecrackers. During the one hour of the inspection tour, all fishing boats circle around Yehliu Fishing Port three times to pray for plentiful catches and safety.Bringing back a Full Cabin of CatchesAfter an inspection tour on the sea, fishermen will open their cabin and crane up a full load of catches to the truck before they return to Baoan Temple. This means that fishermen will get a full load of catches on their each voyage this year. Next, the city mayor will host a charity auction for catches, where competitive bidding can be seen at the scene.Jumping into the Sea with Gods The highly anticipated event of “Jumping into the Sea with Gods” starts in front of Baoan Temple as people shout “get into the sedan chair” and “let’s go” loudly. Strong and brave men in Yehliu carry the eight gods’ sedan chairs for Kai Zhang Sheng Wang, Mazu, General Zhou Cang, the Lord of Land and so on, and they brave the cold and dash into the fishing port amid the loud cheers of people. The scene is exactly the same as the one when Kai Zhang Sheng Wang went on an inspection tour at the fishing port over one hundred years ago. The ceremony is held to expel ghosts and spirits, praying for favorable weather and safety.In recent years, the event has changed with the times: people are welcome to join the activity of jumping into the sea with gods, and a design competition is held. After gods’ sedan chairs arrive at the fishing port, 100 people are welcome to participate in the event of jumping into the sea. The year 2024 is the year of the dragon, so quite a few participants wear clothing with the style of the dragon to celebrate the year of the dragon and pray for safety in the coming year.Stepping on Bonfire with Gods to Expel Evils and Adversities After strong and brave men carrying gods’ sedan chairs jump into the port, they have to swim across Yehliu Port with the sedan chairs. After they come ashore, they are ready to step on the bonfire. When it is time, the shouts of “get into the sedan chair” and “let’s go” echo throughout Yehliu, and strong and brave men carry gods’ sedan chairs and step on the bonfire that has been sprinkled with salt and rice barefooted to purify calamities on their bodies. After doing this for three rounds, they complete the ritual of “coming in the water, and going in the fire.”Being led by the beiguan music club, gods make a pilgrimage procession around the fishing port to protect Yehliu. The cultural festival of jumping into the sea with gods originated from a mysterious unmanned boat drifting on the sea over one hundred years ago. After Kai Zhang Sheng Wang was brought ashore by local fishermen, He entered the body of a spirit medium to go on an inspection tour at the port to protect the safety of Yehliu Fishing Port. Residents in Yehliu, in return, pass down the tradition. The event of jumping into the sea with gods is not only a special activity at Lantern Festival, but also a shared memory of residents of different generations in Yehliu.

Do you feel like your children have endless energy? And time seems to become slower when staying at home? There are lots of inclusive parks in New Taipei City that have new facilities different from the all similar facilities at traditional parks. You can enjoy facilities in different ways! The most popular "New Taipei Metropolitan Park" has the natural riverside view. A giant grassland is here for people to run, jog and jump. Besides, romantic installation art and interesting amusement facilities for kids can be found here. Mommy and Daddy, let's move! Bring your kids here to exert energy!The New Taipei Metropolitan Park has an area of 424 hectares, which is 1.25 times bigger than the Central Park in New York City.The New Taipei Metropolitan Park extends from the Wugu District, Luzhou District to Sanchong District with a length of 7.7 kilometers and a total area of 424 hectares. It is the biggest riverside sports park in New Taipei City. The area of the New Taipei Metropolitan Park equals to 16 Daan Parks in Taipei City and is 1.25 times bigger than the Central Park in New York City!You will find 14 themed areas in the Park. Xingfu Shuiyang Park inside is an inclusive park and one of parents' favorites when it comes to taking children out. The transportation here is quite convenient. Take the MRT to "Sanchong Station" and you can walk to the Park. Besides, you can see the riverside view from height on the Chenguang Bridge next to the MRT Station. When at night, the romantic lighting will shine on the Bridge.The Erchong Floodway used to be a flooding area. After treatment and organization, it has become a great park in the city. At the Park you will find a giant grassland where people can run to their hearts' content or have a picnic. What's more, the flower field that changes with seasons are right next to the riverside view. Large installation art that is great to take photos with will be established on a constant basis. The most incredible thing of the Park is the amusement facilities set up along the embankment. You can always see cute children playing on the facilities. The facilities make the Park an ideal place for kids.The Super Exciting Slide of 7 Meter Height! Children Might Get Crazy When Just Entering the Park!Let's take a look at the Park area that might get children crazy. When walking out of MRT Sanchong Station, you will first see slides on a grassland. With the combination with the slope landscape, 6 slides were built in colorful shades! If you look closely, you will see the slides can be separated into 2 layers. On the upper layer is the tube slides over 1-floor height. And you will find lots of people lining up for the slides since it's rare to have a chance for using slides this long for free. Follow the instruction on the ground to line up.At the entrance of the slide is a flash notifier that will detect whether there are people at the exit below. Please follow the flash notifier to enjoy slides safely. There are 2 more curve slides on the upper layer, and they are longer and steeper. Therefore, the speed sliding down will be faster and people on slides will feel more excited! But before using the slides, you need to climb up first. Children can choose rock climbing, rope climbing, net climbing or taking stairs. Children seldom have the chance to climb using both hands and feet. It is challenging but a great way to train children's muscle!The Simple, Safe, Barrier Free and Interactive Facilities Realize the Spirit of Inclusion!On the lower layer are facilities for little kids. There are 2 curve slides here that are a lot shorter than the ones on the upper layer, and they are less dangerous. Moreover, at the end of the slide is a chair. Therefore, kids will not directly sit on the ground after sliding down, which is a lot safer. Next to these slides is the appealing terrazzo slide in a bowl shape. 2 slides are in the middle and around the slides are 2 half circle slopes. Children can sit side by side to slide down together. When sliding down, they can roll over at the same time. How fun is that!Below are 2 pieces of other playground equipment: The climbing ball is very challenging. Children have to climb and weave in and out of the ball using their arm strength and balance skills at the same time. The other equipment is the swivel chair. Children can choose to sit inside or push it and run around it outside. They can cooperate with each other. The faster the swivel chair spins, the louder the laughter is. How joyful!＊感謝好景點網站（ https://foncc.com/ ) 提供美照-->The whole playground is covered with colorful Polyurethane paving. The paving not only has a colorful and cute appearance, but is safer for the kids to run and jump in the Park. An instruction sign is set up next to each facility to remind people of safety notices while playing. Besides, the difficulty of how challenging the facilities are is written on the sign. Parents can pick the amusement facility based on children's age and physical strength to challenge your kids.If you continue to walk along the embankment, you will see a giant artificial grass-skating field with the slope of 7 meters. The blue and white color scheme makes the field look like a waterfall. With the blue sky and a large area of green land, the scene is beautiful and comforting. In the middle of this section is the grass-skating area. The ground is covered by artificial turf and you can slide down from the slope with a grass-skating board or cardboard. How exciting it is! On both sides of the field is the climbing area where children can climb up on the bumpy slope. After a few times of climbing up and down, they will definitely be exhausted! A little reminder for parents: The Park is spacious and it can get very hot in summer time, remember to put on sunscreen and stay hydrated. The grass-skating field is suitable for children who are above the age of 5. When sliding down, make sure to keep some distances from the previous person and do not climb up from the grass-skating area in the middle to stay safe.*圖片來源：好景點網站、我的新北市粉絲團-->Holidays Only! FUN Park Train for Parents and Children!Besides slides on the grass land and the grass-skating field like a waterfall, the "Embankment Slope Amusement Park" that was open in June 2020 is the latest highlight of the Park. The amusement park features animals in Taiwan is a must-visit!The New Taipei Metropolitan Park is the largest riverside park in Taiwan. The Erchong Circular Biking Trail of about 20 kilometers is built within the Park. We recommend you to bring your family members to come here cycling on the Trail and feel the natural temperature with wind breezing on your face. Beautiful landscaping is right beside the Trail, so if you feel exhausted for too much cycling, stop the bike, take some photos and take a break. Or you can take New Taipei Metropolitan Park Train at Xinfu Station (across Chongxin Bridge Flea Market) on holidays. The Train circles the Park counter-clockwise and passes by MRT Sanchong Station, the Waterfall Grass-skating Field, Amusement Park and Love-telling Plaza on the way. The trip is about 30 minutes.After seeing the introduction, I believe you feel like visiting the Park now! The New Taipei Metropolitan Park is definitely the best place for children to exert energy. We welcome you to bring your children and have fun here!Nearby Places to Go -->Air Force Sanchong First Military Village Chenguang Bridge