[RD] Discovering Taiwan

[warpus]

Sky Balcony (鐵道園區天空雲台)

The decomissioning of the Hamasen freight rail line and Takao Station in 2008 meant that a major vehicular overpass could also be decomissioned. Fright now enters and leaves the city via ports 3-5 km south of here, while this part of the city has been repurposed to be more residential and commercial friendly.

The only part of the vehicular overpass that remains is the bridge. There are elevators at both ends that take you up to the Sky Balcony, which offers an elevated view of Hamasen Railway Cultural Park and the surrounding area. There's also a restaurant up there named Homie Bistro & Coffee that serves pretty good risotto.

While at first glance it might appear that a number of rail lines run under the Sky Balcony, only the two central lines are in use (by the Kaohsiung Circular LRT). The rest are decorative reminders of the past.

 

[warpus]

Shoushan LOVE Lookout

Kaohsiung has a number of love themed landmarks in the area, such as the Love river, which adds greater context to the sign you're about to see. This lookout point is something I missed out on during my initial stay in Kaohsiung, so I was happy to make my way up here during my return. There's great views of the city on offer, especially after dark.

The direction google maps took me in to get up to the LOVE sign lead to a blocked set of staircases. Typhoon Leon downed trees were in the way and there was no way around them. Believe me, I tried going up there! It quickly got dark and impregnable. I tried looking for another way up, but eventually gave up and walked down the road, all the way around to another staircase, a bit closer to the lookout point. Along the way I ran into a confused couple also looking for a way to the top.. and another couple being helped by a local Taiwanese guy who was leading them to the site. In the end we all arrived at the top at about the same time

 

[warpus]

Here's the best photo I was able to take of the nighttime Kaohsiung skyline. If you look to the right you can see a bit of the harbour as well.

 

[warpus]

Taiwan No. 1

The descent from the lookout point and the walk to the Kaohsiung Music Center took about an hour. I decided to do this because I wanted to see what the music center building looks like at night. I could have jumped on the LRT to speed the journey up a bit, but this being my favourite part of Kaohsiung, I did not mind walking through the Pier2 area again at all.

As I walked around the music center I noticed that there was a set of green lasers projecting something onto the building from across the Love River Bay...

I had no idea what this was about until I got back to my hotel room and did some research. Two days beforehand Taiwan had won the WBSC Premier12 International Baseball Tournament, beating Japan in the final. Baseball is by far the most popular sport in Taiwan, so this was a big deal here.

 

[warpus]

A Garbage Truck Jingle?

In the previous video you might have heard a faint jingle playing in the background. It's tempting to think that this might indicate the presence of an ice cream truck.

This is a jingle I heard over and over, at times multiple times a day, usually in the late afternoons or evenings, in almost every single larger Taiwanese city I visited.

Imagine my surprise when I finally tracked down one of these mystery jingles and located the source..

Garbage trucks! Or rather a garbage truck, a compost truck, and a recycling truck. These trucks drive around the city every single weekday and make stops at key locations, which is when they blast the jingle to alert residents of their presence. After the residents have had a chance to drop off their rubbish, the trucks move on to the next destination.

When Taiwan imported trash compactor trucks from Japan in the 1960s, they came preprogrammed with certain jingles. Taiwanese authorities decided to keep these tunes and to play them during each stop, because they're quite distinct and will not be confused for anything else.. unless you are a tourist like me, in which case you might wonder if it's an ice cream truck making a stop.

My research tells me that the two most common garbage jingles used in Taiwan are A Maiden’s Prayer (Modlitwa dziewicy) by Polish composer Tekla Bądarzewska‑Baranowska and Für Elise by Ludwig van Beethoven. The one you hear in the video I posted is A Maiden's Prayer.

Walking through a city like Kaohsiung on a weekday, you hear this jingle all the time. Sometimes it's nearby, sometimes it's far away. It's basically a part of the aural cityscape. It blends into the other sounds of the city and you get used to it popping up occasionally rather quickly.

To this day, when I hear this jingle, I am reminded of my time in Taiwan.. it takes me right back!

 

[bene_legionary]

My research tells me that the two most common garbage jingles used in Taiwan are A Maiden’s Prayer (Modlitwa dziewicy) by Polish composer Tekla Bądarzewska‑Baranowska and Für Elise by Ludwig van Beethoven. The one you hear in the video I posted is A Maiden's Prayer.

Bread delivery tuk-tuks in Sri Lanka also play those two songs on repeat, so much so that their 2000s cell-phone ring tone sounding timbre has been engraved in my head forever...

 

[warpus]

Bread delivery tuk-tuks in Sri Lanka also play those two songs on repeat, so much so that their 2000s cell-phone ring tone sounding timbre has been engraved in my head forever...

What's interesting is that out of all the Polish people I asked about the composer (Tekla Bądarzewska‑Baranowska), nobody knew who she was or has ever heard her name. But about 50% said that they recognized the jingle.

I bet it can get annoying if you live there and you hear it every day, but for me it's that sort of nostalgic melody that brings me right back to Taiwan whenever I hear it.

 

[Theov]

What's interesting is that out of all the Polish people I asked about the composer (Tekla Bądarzewska‑Baranowska), nobody knew who she was or has ever heard her name. But about 50% said that they recognized the jingle.

I bet it can get annoying if you live there and you hear it every day, but for me it's that sort of nostalgic melody that brings me right back to Taiwan whenever I hear it.

The truck never stays for long, so it doesn't become annoying.
And after a while you're so used to it that you barely register it.

 

[warpus]

Kaohsiung Lights

After a long day out exploring the city, the views of central Kaohsiung after dark from my hotel room window were always a treat.

 

[warpus]

Day Twenty One Reflections
Tuesday, November 26, 2024

Total Distance Walked This Day - 11.8 km

This was a good first day back in Kaohsiung. I now had under a week to get back to Taipei for the flight home, but I wasn't really sure how that would play out. For now I would stay in Kaohsiung for at least one more day.

 

[warpus]

Day 22

Dome of Light revisited
Wednesday, November 27, 2024

The Dome of Light is definitely worth showing off again, especially since I was able to take some time to take better pictures of it. This is where I met up with my new friend Lisa again, in order to rent some bikes together and explore a landmark I missed out on the last time around.

 

[warpus]

Zuoying Lotus Pond (蓮池潭)

We rented two bikes and began to cycle around this popular man-made pond. It was originally constructed by the Qing in the early 1800s for irrigation and flood control. Over time it became a hotspot for ceremonial activities and festivals, leading to the construction of a variety of temples in the area.

These days over a million people visit this pond every year, although it wasn't busy at all on this particular day. It's very close to Kaohsiung's high speed rail station (300m?), which is connected to a subway stop, so Zuoying Lotus Pond is very accessible to tourists and locals alike. A lot of people come here for the iconic photo ops, although in this case the most sought after photo op was undergoing renovations.. which was a bit disappointing, but in the grand scheme of things this ended up being a wonderfully enjoyable casual bicycle ride around a picturesque pond.

 

[warpus]

Chingshui Temple (洲仔清水宮)

Local worshippers originally built this temple in the 1880s, although the main structure was completely rebuilt in the 1990s. The statue represents Qingshui Patriarch (Chen Zhaoying), a historical Buddhist monk from the 11th century, the principal deity of Chingshui Temple. This is very much a regional deity, mainly revered in Fujian province, mainland China and northern Taiwan. (in this case also southern Taiwan)

The official temple website has cool drone flybys that load up when you visit the page. They give you a much better visual overview of the temple and pond

 

[warpus]

Kaohsiung City Temple of Confucius (左營孔子廟)

This is the largest Confucius temple in Taiwan and is considered to be one of the most faithful reconstructions of Song-dynasty Confucian architecture on the island.

What's interesting is that it was built only a year after Koxinga's rule on the island was ended by the Qing in 1683. Work on the temple began almost immediately after the downfall of the Kingdom of Tungning and its annexation into the Qing Empire.

That wasn't a coincidence - Confucian teaching was seen as an extension of Qing state authority and the temple as a symbol of imperial legitimacy. By building this temple the Qing were signaling to the locals that they were here to stay.

 

[warpus]

Statue of Xuantian God (北極亭玄天上帝神像)

Construction of this 72m tall statue of Xuantian Shangdi was completed in 1995. It is a relatively recent addition to the area, compared to the other man-made landmarks that can be found around the Lotus Pond coastline.

Xuantian Shangdi is a major Taoist deity, also known as the Dark or Mysterious Heavenly Emperor. He is a warrior-protector deity associated with the water, snakes, and turtles.

This part of Kaohsiung (named Zuoying) happens to have a long history of military bases and strategic military installations, which helps add a bit more context. It's a part of the reason why the Confucius Temple was built nearby 340 years ago or so. The area has housed important military and naval bases during Qing & Japanese rule, it's where coastal defense against pirates and foreign powers was centralized, and even today Zuoying hosts a major Taiwanese naval base. In terms of the symbolism, this location for the statue makes perfect sense. It's also yet another interesting landmark to visit on your journey around Lotus Pond.

 

[warpus]

Dragon-Riding Avalokiteśvara Statue (觀音騎龍像)

According to local tradition Avalokiteśvara aka Guanyin aka The Bodhisattva of Compassion appeared above Lotus Pond riding a dragon and instructed followers to build structures in her honour in the area. So that's exactly what they did (in 1982)

While the dragon-riding statue represents Avalokiteśvara's appearance, this adjacent walkway represents a spiritual journey towards enlightenment. In East Asian Buddhism Avalokiteśvara is known for saving people from drowning, guiding travelers, and appearing above water in moments of crisis; this walkway is a symbol of her guidance and protection.

The Wuliting (五里亭) pavillion you see in the distance is meant to be a place of solitude from where you can observe the other temples and structures around the shoreline of the Lotus Pond.

 

[warpus]

Dragon & Tiger Pagodas (龍虎塔)

These pagodas are one of the most iconic landmarks in Kaohsiung, alongside 85 Sky Tower, the Dome of Light, and the Love River Bay. In fact, a photo of these pagodas is on the cover of the Rough Guide to Taiwan that I had brought with me on this trip.

It is a very popular tourist spot and the most sought after Lotus Pond landmark.

Unfortunately, as you can see, the whole site was undergoing extensive renovations at the time. I didn't really mind, as it was nevertheless interesting to visit the site and to walk into the mouth of the dragon (and out of the mouth of the tiger)

The symbolism there is that the dragon represents fortune and power, so as you enter through its mouth you take in good fortune. The tiger represents chaos and danger, and as you exit through the tiger's mouth you leave them behind you. These are Taoist principles, although the site blends Taoist, Buddhist, and folk symbolism.

 

[warpus]

Taiwanese Hot Pot

My very last meal in Kaohsiung ended up being my second ever Taiwanese style hot pot experience. And while I say "Taiwanese style" this was more like a blend between Japanese shabu-shabu style hot pot and Taiwanese style hot pot. This particular restaurant was branded as a shabu-shabu style hot pot restaurant, but the ingredient set and plating are very Taiwanese. The "shabu-shabu" here mainly implies the thinly sliced beef, but in Japan the term would carry with it more implications than that. It's interesting to me that these hot pot naming conventions gradually change across East Asia on a regional basis, and often include fusions of various methods and styles.

The location of this restaurant was right at the top of my hotel, on the 30th floor. No immediate views of the city while we ate, but it was a cool spot nevertheless. A memorable way to experience my last night in the city.

 

[warpus]

Day Twenty Two Reflections
Wednesday, November 27, 2024

Total Distance Walked This Day - 6.2 km

It felt great to be able to spend two more days in Kaohsiung and to meet up with Lisa again. It's a great city, and a great city can be that much better with the right company and local knowledge base.

A wish that I return was noted and hung on this tree, during our bike ride tour around Lotus Pond.

 

[warpus]

Day 23

Taiwanese High-speed Rail
Thursday, November 28, 2024

It was now unfortunately time to return to Taipei for a couple more days, in anticipation of the long flight back home. Having traversed a lot of the TRA rail network heading south, I decided to return back north via the high speed rail line instead. Not only is it obviously a lot faster, it is also very reasonably priced - It costs less than $40 USD for a trip from one end of the line to the other.

The HSR line has 12 stops in total, with plans to expand the line in both directions in the works, and a more conceptual long-term plan to encircle the whole island in a high speed rail link at some point in the future as well. The HSR route was constructed in the early and mid 2000s; the track and system are based on Japanese Shinkansen technology.

Trains on Taiwan's HSR line reach speeds up to 300 km/h, with an average running speed of 243 km/h or so. It's possible to get from one end of the HSR line to the other in 1 hour 38 minutes, if you take an express train that only stops at key stations. HSR trains that stop at every station take about 2 hours 20 minutes to traverse the whole route.

For now I was travelling from Kaohsing's HSR station in Zuoying to the next station over, in Tainan. There I was hoping to visit a museum for a couple hours, before jumping back on the HSR line to make my way to Taipei's Main Station.