Experience releasing sky lanterns with Janet’s Pingxi impressions

Written & reported by Wei Ruyu

The highly anticipated “2012 New Taipei City Pingxi Sky Lantern Festival” will kick off with a lively event at Jing Tong Elementary School on January 26 (Thursday, the fourth day of the Lunar New Year), followed by three more large-scale sky lantern evening events on January 28 (Saturday, the sixth day of the Lunar New Year), February 4 (Saturday, the thirteenth day of the Lunar New Year) and February 6 (Monday, the Lantern Festival), featuring different themes each time and handing out limited-edition wooden sky lantern amulets on-site.

Additionally, this month the New Taipei City Government has also collaborated with the bi-weekly magazine “Next Magazine Entertainment” on its feature “A One-Day Trip Around New Taipei City,” inviting Janet, the host of the show “Crazy Taiwan,” to guide a tour around Pingxi. Janet said, “Not long after I started hosting ‘Crazy Taiwan’ in Taiwan, I went to Pingxi for a location shoot, and I was immediately struck by this small town. I remember interviewing an elderly lady who was really amazing — she kept trying all kinds of sky lanterns, whether they were the biggest, the smallest, or even octagonal.” Janet excitedly described her experiences in Pingxi and also recommended that everyone take the Pingxi Branch Line train to experience the most authentic charm of a mountain town.

Tourism Bureau Director Chen Guojun expressed that he was very pleased to be able to showcase how to enjoy Pingxi in New Taipei City through Janet’s introduction and footsteps, not only for friends in Taiwan but also to attract travelers from all over the world to visit Pingxi. As she said, coming to Pingxi is like stepping into a movie scene, filled with warmth and human touch. Pingxi boasts a mining history, railways, sky lanterns, and small town settlements — a diverse and uniquely fun destination.

To learn more about the scenery of Jing Tong and Pingxi, as well as Janet’s reflections on revisiting Pingxi, you can join the Facebook fan page “New Taipei City Travelers” at www.facebook.com/ntctour. In addition, the Travel & Living Channel (TLC) will rebroadcast “Crazy Taiwan Challenge” on February 9, featuring contestants scaling the heights of Jiufen mountain town and searching for clues via sky lanterns in Pingxi to win a million-dollar prize.

For more details on the “2012 New Taipei City Pingxi Sky Lantern Festival,” please visit the official website at tour.ntpc.gov.tw/2012skylantern.