Culture, Art and Food!

Started off the morning with breakfast by the lake. Morning fog blanketed the mountains, but you could still see the sun peeking from behind them. After breakfast, which wasn't as good as the buffet I am now used to at Howard Plaza Taipei, we left Sun Moon Lake for the Cultural City of Taiwan - Tainan. On the way, we found Taipei's very own leaning tower which is actually an electrical tower that become slanted after the earthquake.

View of the sunrise during breakfast

Leaning tower of Taiwan?

We arrived in Tainan rather early and did a quick city tour. The Chihkan Lou was actually a fort that the Dutch built back in the 1600s. Here we found that they had transformed it into a museum of some sort that features some boats and various statues etc. The most interesting part was there was a God of Literature where you could come and pray to for good results in exams. No wonder there were quite a few students who were at Chihkan Lou. Next, we went to the Koxinga Shrine which dedicated to Koxinga. He is a famous general whom the Dutch surrendered to during the Cheng-Dutch wars. Unfortunately, the shrine was under renovation, so we couldn't see much.

Chihkan Lou or Fort Provintia

Surrender of the Dutch

Various Chinese scriptures

The losers (Dutch) vs the winners (Chinese)

Battle ship replicas that are very detailed

Si Hai Long Wang reminds me of bad period TV serials I watched when I was a kid

Urban Legend Unveiled...

The actual Dutch well

Rickity stairs that lead to...

The God of Literature

Notice all the charms hung by students who have come to pray for help

Me and Dad at the entrance of Chihkan Lou

Introduction to Koxinga Shrine

Shrine under renovation, so entrance fee was half price.

Lunch was at a famous Tainan restaurant where they have Dan Zai noodles which apparently were served in the office of the President. The food was generally ok, but I have to say the Dan Zai noodles tasted really good. We also had soya beancurd that was definitely different from the ones we find in Singapore. The general feel of the restaurant is that of old school chinese and I get the feeling its a bit commercialised.

After we had filled our stomachs, we went to the Chi Mei Museum where I was amazed by the collection that was found there. Unfortunately, we were not allowed to take pictures in the museum, so I can't share what I saw except for one tinny picture that I couldn't resist taking with my phone. The Chi Mei Museum is opened by the Chi Mei Corporation which is owned by Mr Shi Wen-Long. It is his attempt to return to society what it has given to him and I must say, the collection that is on display is fairly impressive. The collections include masterpieces from most of the art eras, sculptures, musical instruments, arms and armour and even fossils! I'm quite pleased with myself as I could still pick out the really good art pieces and I know this because I later found those pieces to be highlighted in the museum pamphlet. One hour was not enough to fully appreciate the fine art that was on display, but since we had to go to Kao Hsiung, we had to leave on time.

Entrance signage of the museum

Naked statues! Even lots more in the museum!

Sitting in front of the Four Seasons sculpture

The one tinny picture I couldn't resist taking... Don't think I need to explain why...

First stop at Kao Hsiung was one of the biggest temples in Kao Hsiung and I must say I was quite impressed by it. Shi Ming Temple is one of the grandest temples I have seen and it is so advanced it even has a running LED board on the front. The decoration inside is so detailed and refined that I find it difficult to imagine how long it take to built this place. Opposite of the temple is the Spring Autumn Pavilions that are set on Lotus Lake. In order to get to the pavilions, you have to walk through the mouth of a dragon and apparently that will help to keep all the bad luck away.

Shi Ming Temple... So damn high-tech

The ceiling all painted in gold... so dazzling!

The Autumn & Spring Pavilions

Theo entering the Dragon's mouth

Dad at top of the pavilion

Since I was all templed out, I was glad to discover that our next stop was the famous Love River of Kao Hsiung. Apparently, how it got the name Love River was somewhat of an accident. Some fifty years ago, when it was call the Kao Hsiung River, a pair of lovers commited suicide in the river. A Japanese reporter was sent to cover the story, but for some reason couldn't find the name of the river. Instead, he saw a shop sign along the river that said "Love River" and so when he went back to write his article, he refered to the river as "Love River" Personally, I wasn't all that impressed by the river as it looked somewhat like the Singapore River, although it was nice to see the cute little cafes along it. Apparently they are attempting to make it the River Thames of Taiwan, but I think there is still a way to go.

River cruise anyone?

Mini cafes ala Thames style

Harbour in the background

Love cruise in the background

After such a long day, we finally arrived at the Howard Plaza Hotel in Kao Shiung where we would be staying the night. The hotel room wasn't as nice as the Del Lago, although they get brownie points for having Neutrogena toiletries. Once we were settled in and had a bit of a rest, we set off for the Night Market. After having been in Taiwan for 7 days, this was the first Night Market I was at and oh boy, was the food great! From Ji Pai to Stinky Tofu to Oyster Omelette to Dan Zai Noodles. Everything tasted so good! Even the strawberries I had for dessert seemed to be uber yummy. I can't wait to go to Shihlin Market on Saturday night!

Once again, the Howard chain of hotels

One of the few places I've seen Chinese New Year decorations in Taiwan

Decent beds

Tea anyone?

Flat screen TV

Neutrogena Toiletries!

Seperate Shower...

...and bath

Finally got to try the Taiwanese Ji Pai and I must say its damn good.

Yummy Smelly Tofu

Family business where this little girl was helping to clear plates after we were down eating our smelly tofu

Uber good fish cake soup

Oyster omelette which was just so-so

Yummy deep fried octopuss

BBQ grill fishcakes and fishballs

More Dan Zai Noodles from this bustling stall

Colourful Fresh Fruits

Three more days to go before my time in Taiwan comes to an end. Although I had my reservations in the beginning, I am glad that I decided to come on the trip. Its been great and the bonding with Dad has been interesting. I feel like I've gotten to know him alot better and I really do appreciate it. 28 years old and only now do I finally get to bond with him. I am just glad we didn't wait until it was too late. It's been two decades since I've been on vacation with Dad and this trip has been really special.

Thanks Dad!