Pingxi Mini Trip Essay / Once Popularized by a Movie, the Relaxed Charm of Pingxi Is Now Gone

Text & Photos by Mia Ba

Pingxi, this beautiful place, has been visited twice by me. The first time, I went with my girlfriend, watching the little train slowly pass by the houses on both sides and walking along the crisscrossing railway tracks—it was just like a scene from “You Are the Apple of My Eye.” The second time I went, my then-girlfriend had become my wife, and we were joined by my past love as well. The first time she stepped on the railway tracks, her smile was especially radiant.

The first time we took the Pingxi small train, although it was a holiday, there weren’t many people. We strolled along the tracks, freely weaving past ordinary homes, casually stopping at a snack stall to fill our stomachs—everything felt so relaxed and carefree.

The second time we took the Pingxi small train, perhaps due to the movie drawing in crowds and coupled with the 228 holiday, the carriages were packed with people, and the air was thick with stuffiness. After getting off at Shifen Station, the small old street was bustling with people everywhere, and on the railway tracks, foreign travelers could often be seen releasing sky lanterns. Thanks to the movie and government promotion, the Pingxi area has become a popular tourist destination, attracting visitors from Japan, Korea, and China who come to pay homage—releasing a sky lantern and making a wish. But with the increase in crowds, Pingxi is no longer just a small town, and that relaxed, carefree feeling is gone.