60-year old volunteer cycles around Taiwan

60-year old Lu Yung-chuan has cycled around Taiwan for the second time in an effort to promote the work of a local foundation.

During the trip, Lu visited seniors and raised awareness about the services provided by the Huashan Social Welfare Foundation for the elderly.

‘The “growing old locally” concept promoted by the foundation needs more volunteers,’ said Lu. ‘I am happy to be a travelling goodwill ambassador to encourage more people to join the cause.’

This time the Taipei resident, who made a similar trip a decade ago for another foundation, circled the island following Taiwan’s railway network on a 25-day cycling tour.

Lu, a volunteer in a senior care program for over a decade, travelled to 222 train stations nationwide starting from Taipei

Lu spent an average of five to six hours daily cycling, but said that he spent more time talking to people about caring for their senior neighbours.

He was also able to visit an elderly person in Fengyuan, Greater Taichung, who he has been in contact with by telephone for more than 10 years.

The Huashan Foundation aims to assist the elderly to live in a place that is most familiar to them. In particular, it helps seniors who are disabled, live alone or suffer from Alzheimer’s disease.

During the tour, Lu visited the statue of the goddess Matsu at the Beigang Chaotian Temple in Yulin County to pray for health and happiness for all elderly people.

‘It seemed as if Matsu was nodding at me,’ he said. ‘That was the most special experience during the trip.’

A decade ago when Lu made his first round-trip of Taiwan by bike, cycling was not a common activity on the island. The last decade, however, has seen a sharp increase in the number of people opting for bike travel in Taiwan.

Thousands of kilometres of bike paths have been built throughout Taipei and the rest of the island, making cycling more accessible and improving the road traffic situation for cyclists.

Many travelers to Taiwan are choosing to cycle the round-island trip as Lu has now done twice. The trip totals about 1,000km and can take up to ten days to complete.

With a surge in accommodation and tour agencies catering to cycling tourists, Taiwan is gaining a reputation of being a bike-friendly destination.