Wandering Around Tainan

After our visit to the Confucius Temple, we strolled around Tainan and I snapped a few photos along the way. Everything was so lush and green and it was in the high 70's. Perfect day! This is a mango tree! I've never seen one before and I didn't know they grew so tall! It is towering above a very high wall.

Even the fire trucks are dress for the holidays!

We ended up at the first department store in Tainan called Hiyashi Department Store. It was opened in 1932 when Taiwan was still under Japanese occupation. It was the tallest structure for many years and it boasts the first elevator in Taiwan.  It became a government building and then a historic site but several years ago it was renovated and became a department store again. 

Tainan has many temples and you bump into them every few minutes. We walked by several of them on our way around the city.

Many streets in Taiwan look like this. There are signs, banners, boards, neon lights and advertisements everywhere. It's a bit visually overwhelming at times, especially when you are looking for something in particular. As you can see, there is little to no English in site.

Outside many temples you will find stands that sell paper "money" to burn in honor of the dead. This "ghost" money or joss paper is burned to ensure that the dead have many good things in the afterlife. The small bundle is 100 NT, which is about $3 USD.

You can see temples peeking out above buildings.

And there's another one squeezed in between two newer buildings. Amazing!

We made our way to the Anping historical district and visited the old fort there.

These are the walls outside of the old Dutch fort in Anping. This fort was built in the early 1600's by the Dutch when Taiwan was called Formosa (which means beautiful island). It was called Fort Zeelandia. The Dutch built the fort on a sandy peninsula so they would have easy access to the ocean. It was a bad idea because there was no fresh water so it had to be shipped in from the mainland.

These banyan trees, surrounding the grounds of the fort, are some of my favorite plants in Taiwan. They are primordial and dramatic!

Bricks from Java, coral, sugar syrup, oyster shells and glutinous rice were used to make the walls outside of the fort.

The Dutch had this fort until 1662 when Koxinga's army brought an end to the Dutch colonial period. This was the beginning of the Ming dynasty influence in this area.

Another visit to Tainan - Tainan Confucius Temple

On Friday teachers and staff of KAS were invited up to Tainan to attend a holiday party thrown by the parents that live in that area. Many of our students live in Tainan and take a bus or the train to school every day. What a party it was! It was held in a beautiful room at the Shangri-La Far Eastern Plaza Hotel. The food was amazing, parents and students performed and we danced the night away. What a great party; I'll be back next year! Here are a few photos that my friend Lech took during the event.

The women (moms) are stunning. Wow!

A small group of us spent the night at the hotel and went on a tour of Tainan the next day. The hotel was amazing!

The was the view from the 29th floor (where I was staying). On the inside, outside my room there was an open space where you could look up and down to the dining area below. Like I said, I'll be back next year.

I wrote a blog about Tainan a couple of weeks ago but I got to see some new parts this time around. We visited the Confucius Temple, which was built in 1665.  It was the first Confucius Temple and it was the location of the highest official institute of higher learning in Taiwan. Basically it was the first school in Taiwan and it was known for both academics and arts.

 This is the east Dacheng gate

 Visitors rub the Confucius statue's hands for good luck so they remain shiny. 

 I can always use a little luck!

Since the temple was first built, it has undergone more than 30 renovations but it still has much of the integrity of the original design and structures.

This pavilion is dedicated to the deity of literature, Wen Chang. 

 It was quite the climb up.  I had to walk down like I was going down a ladder. My feet are WAY too big to fit on these stairs and I had to crouch down pretty much the whole time I was in this structure.

 I'm not sure who this guy is but I absolutely love this statue. Look at that face!  I was trying to find some information on this pavilion and one story I found was that this deity is believed to aid those taking the imperial civil service exam. Supposedly he failed the examination 3 times because the emperor was repulsed by his hideous looks. He committed suicide and has been venerated ever since. 

 This is the view outside the pavilion window on the third floor.  If those modern buildings weren't in the background, you would think you were back in time.

 This is the Hall of Edification or Ming-Lun Hall. Confucian text in beautiful calligraphy is displayed on the walls and teachers would sit in those chairs. 

 These are the views from inside the building.

 You are just surrounded by history and beauty as you wander around the grounds of the school.

 I find it fascinating when you see the modern buildings in the background while walking back in time.

One part of this exhibit is what has been preserved and discovered while excavating and renovating the structures. Some of the carvings and items found are extraordinary.

I hope people come and visit me because I'd love to share some of the history and culture of Taiwan. I'm learning SO much! What an amazing adventure I am on!