Maolin was one of the places on the "must see" list of Taiwan. Known for it's scenery: mountain ranges covered in green forest that reach for the sky, hugged a wide river that meandered through the valley. Aboriginal villages appear out of nowhere with their art and craft stalls, and statues that tell the story of their journey.At the end of the road, deep in the mountains, and almost at their foot is the little village of Duona - famous for its Hot Springs - or it used to be! Today the springs are buried beneath what looks like half a mountain. And yet miraculously, no one died in this place, the village still stands and the school still stands proudly, even today, at the top of the village.
On the days following the typhoon over 2.5 meters of rain fell in two days in this area. Roads that hugged the mountains just disappeared revealing what looks like a mountain of solid rock. Bridges that closed the gaps over the rivers were swept away, roads (like the one above) just finish in mid air.
It's hard to describe the scene, and photos just don't do it justice. At one stage we drove on a new 'road' alongside where the old was, its obvious remnants 2 meters above our head. Huge concrete support structures have been swept into the valley hundreds of feet below, and houses that were in the way ended up half buried in the mud and silt that settled in the river beds.
On the way in we asked for directions - a man who we think was serious told us just to follow the yellow line down the middle of the road. We did, and normally it would have ended in Duona. But now it's the road that ends in mid air (just as well we didn't follow it).
Almost two months after the event the villages themselves have been cleaned up and people are back to normal. But so much has been lost - for the people of Maolin and Duona their livelihood was tourism - there are few tourists heading this way at the moment. Life has a long way to go before normal can describe it here.
