Taroko cuts a marble canyon so narrow the road tunnels straight through the rock. We walked the Shakadang trail above turquoise water the colour of nothing else, the cliffs streaked grey and white where the river had sawn down through the stone.

Sun Moon Lake gets its name from the two shapes it makes around the islet. A sun on one side, a crescent on the other. We took the morning boat across before the tour buses, the surrounding hills doubled exactly in the flat water.

Tainan was the island's first capital and it wears it. Confucian temple courtyards, the Dutch fort at Anping, and street food that locals will argue about for an hour. The coffin-bread and the danzai noodles were both worth the queues.

Lukang has a lane called the Breast-Touching Alley. So tight two people can't pass without turning. The old town keeps its Qing-era temples and the smell of incense and sesame oil. We bought ox-tongue pastries from a shop that's been at it for generations.