Catholic Sanctuary of Our Lady of WuFong Ci

Day 3 of Cousin Jhay's visit (March 2nd) was an out of town outing as it fell on both Lyn & Shaun's day off and with nothing to do - we all hung out together and they wanted to take us to - SURPRISE: Yilan!!!   Shaun's favorite destination.....  All fine by me as it gave us a chance to get out of the sity without having to take the train and the bus.....

First stop was Jiaosi...  a little hike up the Catholic Sanctuary of Our Lady of WuFongCi....   I remember going to this one a few years back but ti was nighttime - so this is a different kind of experience as it was still light - better to appreciate and really enjoy the surrounding views.....   mountain trails on one side and the other side, a look down into the vast city......

This Sanctuary Retreat place is quite a popular destinations bot just for Catholics but for many other tourists....  Legend has it that it was built on the actual place where Mama Mary appeared to 5 lost hikers and helped them guide them our of the mountain trail, which was not fully developed back then....   Mama Mary's Grotto was built on the exact location where she supposedly appeared... and a beautiful church and retreat homes adjacent to it.....   as an added bonus,  the hike is blessed with beautiful water falls...   we spent quite a time here - giving respects, admiring the design of the place, and taking in the views.....  Relaxing and Peaceful place, indeed....

Afterwards, we took a dip in one of the city's many Hot Springs.....  a nice relaxing break....   after an hour's dip, we drove on a few more minutes into Yilan and went to the famous LuDong Night Market for some Taiwan delicacies for dinner....  and of course, sweet treats!

It was already 11PM by the time we got back home....  just enough time for a shower, a cup of tea and processing photos from this beautiful place.....