Check out these Wooderful life Marble Labyrinths

I have written before how I enjoyed trying to solve marble mazes as a kid in a previous post:

Marble Mazes - A Great Gift for Kids

Here is one as an example of a marble maze that I found during that post to refresh your memory:

STERLING Games Large Wooden Labyrinth 13.5" x 13"

Available on AMZN and at Walmart. Appears to be the best selling (or possibly most advertised) wooden marble maze in the market. It also looks difficult !

STERLING Games Large Wooden Labyrinth

And that is a standard format for the marble mazes I knew and could never solve. You tilt the maze and try to navigate the pathways without letting the ball fall down into one of the many holes.

Then I lived in Taipei and during a sightseeing excursion to Huashan 1914 Creative Park, which is a mixture of shops featuring local art and some cool restaurants I found something worth sharing here! During my visit corporations/large brands had rented exhibit space in the park to showcase their brands (like a Stranger Things exhibit, a Peanuts one, and some cartoons I did not know from Asia). The park is very industrial looking and a great place to take some photos. Here are 2 photos to give you an idea what it looks like:

And it had this store, Wooderful life, where I found something worth mentioning on this site.

Wooderfull Life Sign

Wooderfull Life Sign

A set of 3 wooden marble labyrinths (easy, medium and hard levels) with similar game play. For these the playing surface is 3D and you must maneuver the marble through the track without it falling off the track. Seems easy, but there are hills (downhill and uphill) and turns and notches from loops and the marble barely fits into the pathway.

(excuse the photo lighting - they were not to be touched)

And the information block showing the prices, how to play, and what it helps kids develop.

Wooden maze explanation

Here is a link to their online shop for the hard version. Very cool version of the marble maze game I’m glad I found.

If you like eco-friendly wooden toys this is a great store. They have licensed product also, with brands like Disney, Winnie the Pooh, Toy Story, Hello Kitty and more to choose from. Overall worth a visit if you are in Taipei !

And if you are in Taipei you should check out:

Visiting a Garden Maze in Taipei

Visiting a Garden Maze in Taipei

I spent over a month living in Taipei recently to learn about the culture and experience what life was like. This followed some time in Singapore and Thailand. During each trip I spent some time visiting labyrinths. Here are the first 2 trips:

Visiting a Labyrinth and some Mazes in Singapore

Visiting Labyrinths in Chiang Mai, Thailand

And so during my stay Taipei trip I took a mini trip to the Zhongshan District of the city to visit a garden maze ! Let’s see what I found.


The Trip - Garden Maze in the Xinsheng Park Area of Taipei Expo Park

Location:

No. 105號, Section 3, Xinsheng N Rd, Zhongshan District, Taipei City, 10491

How to get there: Take the metro, either the red or yellow, but I prefer the red line to the Yuanshan station. (yellow would be the Zhongshan Elementary School station). Both require a 16-18 minute walk but from Yuanshan station you get to walk through the Yuanshan Park next to the Expo Dome and I think that is worth it rather than walking thru the city the whole way from the other stop.

When you arrive at the SW corner of main park you will walk into a large Rose Garden full of places to visit and relax and many wonderful flowers. Here is the map you will see as you enter. Lots of green space and places to sit and relax, or get some exercise.

Xinsheng Park Map

Xinsheng Park Map - Taipei

Make your way to the end of the garden before turning right to visit the Garden Maze. You could cut over earlier and see the side of the maze, but there is no entrance on that side and you’ll miss all the wonderful flowers. You’ll find a series of signs along the way - the first tells you are on the right path, the second gives information about the maze, and the third is of a map of the maze just before you enter.

The informational sign could use but cleaning but reads:

The garden maze is actually comprised of 5 mazes that together form the Chinese Eight Trigrams. The taller outer maze, for adults, has hedges with weeping figs; the shorter inner maze, for children, has hedges or orchid trees. Each maze poses it’s own challenge; make your way to the center and you will find totems of cities, flowers. birds, beasts and ants!

Cool, so what are the Chinese Eight Trigrams you might be asking ? Well, I’ll let you read that on your own.

And now the maze. Entrances/Exits to the outside portions of the maze feature large hedge doors and are easy to spot even while inside the maze. Pathways are made of gravel and the hedges are a medium width apart. There are large stones scattered in dead ends with inscriptions (some very worn and faded) in Chinese. And the destinations of the outside mazes feature a mosaic in the center (2 shown below). Nothing complicated here as far as getting lost. The center kids maze looks great and the low hedges make it very simple.

Overall it was a nice trip. The maze is a quick visit, but the surrounding park and rose garden make it worth a visit. Oh, and it is next to the downtown airport so at some point you will have a huge plane flying overhead lower than you expect it !!

I suggest you combine this with a trip to one of the nearby museums/attractions.

Taipei Fine Arts Museum

Lin An Tai Historical House and Museum

Dalongdong Baoan Temple

Visiting Labyrinths in Chiang Mai, Thailand

I had the opportunity to spend a few months in Chiang Mai, Thailand during the Winter months. If you are a digital nomad, it is a wonderful stop in your travels. The city is very walkable, including the ability to walk to the airport from the city (not many cities have that)! During my time in CM I took a mini trip to the edge of town to visit a labyrinth ! And then, a few days later I visited another ! Here is what I saw on those 2 trips:


Trip #1 - Seven Fountains Jesuit Spirituality Centre Labyrinth

 

Location:

97 Huay Kaew Rd, Tambon Chang Phueak, Amphoe Mueang Chiang Mai, Chang Wat Chiang Mai 50300

How to get there:

This is on one of the main roads in Chiang Mai, Huay Kaew Rd. Just grab a songthaew, or it is a 1 km walk west from Maya Lifestyle Center Mall.

The first thing you must know when visiting this labyrinth is it is part of a silent retreat center. You can plan a stay with them on their website if you are interested. So, if you visit, silence your phone, and do not speak on the premises. Here is the unassuming entrance:

Seven Fountains Jesuit Spirituality Centre entrance

Seven Fountains Jesuit Spirituality Centre entrance - Chiang Mai, Thailand

There will be a building in front of you with signs to information. I went there despite getting permission beforehand to walk the labyrinth. Inside feels like a very strict library - whispering is allowed here and I got directions to the labyrinth. It is easy to find. From the entrance, walk the pathway straight back into the complex and you will see a sign for the labyrinth. It is on the back right hand side, surrounded by hedges. When you approach the labyrinth the entrance will be apparent by 2 brick columns.

The labyrinth is an 11 circuit with gravel pathways separated by small bushes in 1 foot wide slightly raised beds lined with bricks. The outside of the labyrinth has large hedges to separate it from the other spaces. The center of the labyrinth features a large stone surrounded by small rocks to create the inner circle. My walk was pleasant and it was easy to reflect in the space. When I reached the center I snapped a photo of the tree kanopy above. The labyrinth is surrounded by many towering trees and it enhances the meditative experience.

Trip #2 - Rama IX Lanna Park Labyrinth

 

Location:

RXCH+773, Chang Phueak, Mueang Chiang Mai District, Chiang Mai 50300

How to get there:

Located 4 km north of Chiang Mai on Chotana Road. It is walkable, but better to take a Grab, songthaew, or similar.

A few days after visiting the Seven Fountains Jesuit Spirituality Centre Labyrinth I made my way to the Rama IX Lanna Park to visit their labyrinth. I decided to walk there, but do not recommend that. Here is the entrance from Chotana Road and some of the gardens. bridges and statues you will see. The park is very peaceful and there are many places to sit and relax in the shade.

In the back part of the park, in the southwest is the “labyrinth”. This is actually a hedge maze shaped very close to a traditional labyrinth. The hedges are about 3 feet high with concrete pathways. If it was a labyrinth it would be a 5 circuit. I took photos of the entrance to the labyrinth, the labyrinth and the center fountain (not on when I visited)

The labyrinth is in an open space, so there is not much shade like most of the park. I would not describe the walk as peaceful or meditative, but I really enjoyed the park!

BONUS VIDEO:

About 90 minute drive outside of the city of Chiang Mai is the Pa Pae Meditation Retreat, in Pa Pae, Mae Taeng District, Chiang Mai 50150. This is a meditation retreat run by monks that focuses on connecting with nature. While this is not a place to visit as a tourist, I did want to share this video showing their building of a labyrinth by the monks at the site because I thought it was so cool:

So if you are a labyrinth enthusiast and you are in Chiang Mai, you have options for a meditative walk.

This wasn’t my only labyrinth visit on this trip !

Visiting a Labyrinth and some Mazes in Singapore