2022
MAY & JUN
No.
111
GOOD FOOD
TAIPEI PASTRIES AND DESSERTS
LOCAL STAY
UNIQUE ACCOMMODATION OPTIONS IN LUKANG
EXPERT TALK
OUTDOORS LOVER AND ADVENTURIST EDGAR CHANG
The Old Town of Lukang Trees and Flowers in Tianwei Oyster Harvesting in Fangyuan
issuu
Website
Relaxed and Energizing Travel Light Hostel is located in Chiayi, a city well known for its cuisine, scenery, and culture. It’s a wonderful destination for travelers to explore. Chiayi is not just known for the Alishan National Scenic Area and its delicious chicken rice. The people here are warm and friendly and the varied landscape will make you want to go out and go on adventurous explorations of this blooming county. You definitely want to pay Chiayi a visit! For those who arrive early, Light Hostel allows you to store your luggage first. This way you don't have to carry your bags around when going sightseeing! This backpacker hostel is also quite close to the well-known Smart Fish fish head restaurant on Wenhua Road. Just 10 minutes away, there you can enjoy delicious food and enjoy a leisurely moment! LIGHT HOSTEL ( 仲青行旅 ) (05) 224-0555 No. 622, Guangcai St., West District, Chiayi City/5-min. walk from railway station) ( 嘉義市西區光彩街 622 號 / 離火車站走路 5 分鐘 )
Official website
Welcome to
Taiwan!
Publisher's Note Dear Traveler, The freshness of spring remains in the air, while the warm breezes of summer waft in ever more forcefully. As always, this duo brings on the strong urge to get out on the road to discovery. In this issue we serve as your guide to trips around Taiwan with widely varying cultural foci: old-town culture, the local oyster-cultivation life, a dense plant nursery cluster, Taiwan-flavor Western dessert creation, and mountaineering tourism. Each issue we choose a highlight destination and present a number of articles looking at it from different tourism angles. This time round we’re featuring Changhua County, a (primarily) flatlands area in the main island’s central-west region. Our main feature article loads you up with the information needed for a multi-day visit to the pleasant old town of Lukang, located just off the coast, which was one of Taiwan’s three major urban centers in the Qing Dynasty era and today is perhaps Taiwan’s best imperial-days living museum.
ON THE COVER
Not far from Lukang are Tianwei and Fangyuan townships. Tianwei is home to a great garden of decorative flower, plant, and tree nurseries, its tourism allure heightened with bike-rental touring, cafés, specialty shops, and healthy-fare eateries, some on nursery grounds. Over in coastal Fangyuan, key tourist draws include the vast intertidal-zone oyster farming, “iron ox” eco-tours, “sea ox” rides, tidal-flats oyster/clam barbecues, a long mangrove forest skywalk trail, and radiant littoral sunsets. In our regular Local Stay file we profile two popular Lukang places of accommodation you might use as base for your Changhua peregrinations, one a big nostalgia-theme inn, the other a cozy heritage-residence homestay. In this file we also point out some of Lukang’s most in-demand traditional snack delicacies and recommend high-rating eateries you may want to try out. Elsewhere, in Expert Talk you’ll meet a true Taiwan “man of the mountains” who has professional mountaineering accreditation from the esteemed Association of Canadian Mountain Guides and runs Adventure Taiwan, which takes small groups out on highlypraised hiking, river tracing, rock climbing, and canyoneering experiences. Reward yourself for your indefatigable traveling about with palate joys in Good Food, exploring how Taipei patisseries are creating unique Western desserts with distinct Taiwan flavors. I’ll end by quoting our Tourism Bureau promotion motto: “Time For TAIWAN! We are waiting for you!”
TAIWAN TOURISM BUREAU MOTC, R.O.C.
Tenway Garden in Tianwei Township (photo by Ray Chang)
FOLLOW US @tourtaiwan @taiwan @taiwanbesttrip
台 灣 觀 光 雙 月刊 Travel in Taiwan The Official Bimonthly English Magazine of the Taiwan Tourism Bureau (Advertisement) MAY/JUNE, 2022 Tourism Bureau, MOTC First published Jan./Feb. 2004 ISSN: 18177964 GPN: 2009305475 Price: NT$200
中華郵政台北雜字第1286號執照登記為雜誌交寄
Copyright @ 2022 Tourism Bureau. All rights reserved. Reproduction in any form without written permission is prohibited.
PUBLISHER EDITING CONSULTANT PUBLISHING ORGANIZATION
CONTACT
PRODUCER
ADDRESS
E-MAIL GENERAL MANAGER
Taiwan Tourism Bureau T. C. Chou TAIWAN TOURISM BUREAU, MINISTRY OF TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATIONS International Division, Taiwan Tourism Bureau Add: 9F, 290 Zhongxiao E. Rd., Sec. 4, Taipei City, 10694, TAIWAN Tel: 886-2-2349-1500 Fax: 886-2-2771-7036 E-mail: tbroc@tbroc.gov.tw Website: http://taiwan.net.tw Vision Creative Marketing & Media Co.
1F, No. 5, Aly. 20, Ln. 265, Sec. 4, Xinyi Rd., Taipei City 10681, Taiwan Tel: 886-2-2325-2323 Fax: 886-2-2701-5531 editor@v-media.com.tw David Hu
EDITOR IN CHIEF
Johannes Twellmann
ENGLISH EDITOR
Rick Charette
DIRECTOR OF PLANNING & EDITING DEPT
Joe Lee
MANAGING EDITOR
Anna Li
EDITORS CONTRIBUTORS PHOTOGRAPHERS DESIGNERS ADMINISTRATIVE DEPT
Masako Takada, Sophia Su Rick Charette, Ami Barnes, Owain Mckimm Chen Cheng-kuo, Ray Chang
MAGAZINE IS SOLD AT: 1. Wu-Nan Culture Plaza, No. 6, Zhongshan Rd., Central Dist., Taichung City 40043 886-4-2226-0330 http://www.wunanbooks.com.tw/ 2. National Bookstore, 1F., No. 209, Songjiang Rd., Zhongshan Dist., Taipei City 10485 886-2-2518-0207 http://www.govbooks.com.tw/
WHERE YOU CAN PICK UP A COPY OF TRAVEL IN TAIWAN ABROAD Offices of the Taiwan Tourism Bureau in Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, Kuala Lumpur, Seoul, San Francisco, New York, Los Angeles, Frankfurt, and London. Taiwan Representative Offices; Overseas Offices of the Ministry of Economic Affairs; Overseas Offices of the Central News Agency; EVA Air, and other selected international airways; selected travel agencies in Asia, North America, and Europe; and other organizations.
IN TAIWAN Tourism Bureau Visitor Center; Tourism Bureau; Taiwan Visitors Association; foreign representative offices in Taiwan; Tourism Bureau service counters at Taiwan Taoyuan Int’l Airport and Kaohsiung Int’l Airport; major tourist hotels; Taipei World Trade Center; VIP lounges of international airlines; major tourist spots in Taipei; visitor centers of cities and counties around Taiwan; offices of national scenic area administrations; public libraries
Ian Tsai , Hsieh Yun-jhen Lily Wan, Hui-chun Tsai, Xiou Mieng Jiang, Sophie Chen ONLINE Read Travel in Taiwan online at www.travelintaiwan.net. Find back issues (PDF version) on the publication platform issuu at issuu.com/travelintaiwan.
This magazine is printed on FSC TM COC certified paper. Any product with the FSC TM logo on it comes from a forest that has been responsibly maintained and harvested in a sustainable manner.
This magazine was printed with soy ink. Soy ink is said to be more environmentally friendly than petroleum-based ink and to make it easier to recycle paper. issuu (PDF)
Website
C O N T E N T S
2022
MAY/JUN
10 01
FEATURE
PUBLISHER'S NOTE
04 TAIWAN TOURISM EVENTS
06 TRAVEL NEWS
10
CULTURE & ART
– CONCERTS, THEATER, EXHIBITIONS, FESTIVALS, SHOWS
44
CHANGHUA / FANGYUAN
LITTLE THINGS / NIGHT MARKETS
RIDING THE IRON OX
DEEP FRIED & VERY SWEET
Oyster Harvesting and Other Tidal Zone Fun in Fangyuan Township
Night Markets in Taiwan
32
46
CHANGHUA / LUKANG
CHANGHUA / LOCAL STAY
OLD-TIMEY LUKANG TOWN
LUKANG GOOD SLEEPS, GOOD EATS
Traveling in the Good Ole Taiwan Days Today
Some of Its Best Accommodations & Traditional Hot-Snack Eateries
22
38
CHANGHUA / TIANWEI
GOOD FOOD / PASTRIES & DESSERTS
PRETTY TIANWEI TOWNSHIP
SWEET FUSION
Nursery Promised Land for Flower, Plant, and Tree Lovers
Taipei Patisseries Creating Western Desserts with Distinct Taiwan Flavors
– HAPPENING IN TAIWAN NOW
08
28
EXPERT TALK / OUTDOORS MAN OF THE MOUNTAINS Meet Edgar Chang, Outdoors Lover and Adventurist
TAIWAN TOURISM EVENTS
May-July
Photo courtesy of Miaoli County Govt.
EARLY SUMMER Exciting Events and Happenings 1 MIAOLI COUNTY MAY 15 ~ JUNE 7
2 TAITUNG COUNTY JULY 2 ~ AUG. 15
MIAOLI TONGXIAO BAISHATUN GONGTIAN TEMPLE MAZU FESTIVAL
TAIWAN INTERNATIONAL BALLOON FESTIVAL
Mazu, the Goddess of the Sea, is worshipped in countless temples around Taiwan, and processions are held and pilgrimages made in her honor by tens of thousands of the faithful each year. While the Dajia Mazu Pilgrimage in central Taiwan is better known, the Baishatun Mazu Pilgrimage from Baishatun Gongtian Temple on the Miaoli County coast to Beigang Chaotian Temple in Yunlin County (total route 400km) is equally impressive and vibrant, albeit on a somewhat smaller scale. The pilgrimage takes 8 days to complete, with stops at many Mazu temples along the way where visitors can witness traditional rituals and street performances.
This is one of the biggest and best tourism events during the summer months in Taiwan, and one of the top hot-air balloon festivals worldwide. The venue is the Luye Highland in Taitung County, about 20km north of Taitung City, a site with perfect conditions for air sports such as paragliding. The festival not only attracts tourists in large number, but also hotair balloon pilots from abroad, who bring balloons of intriguing shapes and colors with them. For those who want to experience the sensation of slowly rising up into the sky, there are both tethered flights and free flights available, the first taking you about 20 meters off ground, the latter allowing you to fly, in much longer sessions, over the beautiful East Rift Valley countryside.
苗栗通霄白沙屯拱天宮媽祖民俗文化系列活動
www.baishatun.com.tw (Baishatun Gongtian Temple)
4 TAIPEI CITY
JULY 2 ~ 7
臺灣國際熱氣球嘉年華
5 PINGTUNG COUNTY MAY ~ JUNE
PINGTUNG BLUEFIN CULTURAL TUNA FESTIVAL
The Taipei International Book Exhibition (TIBE) is an important annual event for publishing professionals and book lovers in Taiwan and throughout East Asia. Thousands of visitors come to explore the latest in the world of publishing. Each time one country is featured as the “Guest of Honor,” and this time France is the center of attention. After being realized as an online exhibition over the last two years because of the pandemic, the show is reverting back to its physical form in 2022, to the delight of book lovers looking forward to participation in the many events taking place at the Taipei World Trade Center.
For lovers of fresh seafood, the fishing-harbor town of Donggang in Pingtung County is a place not to be missed. The season for bluefin tuna is April to June, and during this time of the year you can not only sample the best and freshest of melt-inyour-mouth sashimi, but also enjoy a wide variety of cultural activities. Apart from tuna, Donggang is also famed for sakura prawns and oil fish roe. From the harbor, the mainland area of Dapeng Bay National Scenic Area can be reached by vehicle with a quick drive, and you can take a ferry to Little Liuqiu (Xiaoliuqiu) island, also part of the scenic area, which is known for its coral rock formations and sea turtles.
www.tibe.org.tw (official website)
屏東黑鮪魚文化觀光季
www.dbnsa.gov.tw (Dapeng Bay NSA)
4
TR AVEL IN TAIWAN
MAY/JUN 2022
JUNE 3
LUKANG DRAGON BOAT FESTIVAL 鹿港慶端陽系列活動
One of the big three annual traditional festivals in Taiwan, the Dragon Boat Festival is best known for dragon-boat races. These are staged on rivers and lakes in more than a dozen locations around the island, including Taipei’s Keelung River and Kaohsiung’s Love River. In recent years the competition at Lukang, which takes place on the Fulu River, has emerged as perhaps the most attractive dragon-boat race event. Making it special is the fact that the races take place in the late afternoon and evening with boats, bridges, and riverbanks colorfully illuminated. Many of the town’s streets are also lavishly decorated for the occasion. Lukang is a history-rich old settlement, once a thriving saltwater port, that is great for nostalgia trips for those who want to experience the Taiwan of yesteryear. tourism.chcg.gov.tw (Changhua Travel)
balloontaiwan.taitung.gov.tw (official website)
TAIPEI INTERNATIONAL BOOK EXHIBITION 台北國際書展
3 CHANGHUA COUNTY
6 NANTOU COUNTY
JULY ~ AUG.
NANTOU STARRY NIGHT FESTIVAL 南投星空季
Each year from late July to late August a meteor shower known as Perseids can be seen in the clear night sky of central Taiwan’s Nantou County. It is one of three major meteor showers each year. The most spectular display can be seen around August 13, with up to 100 shooting stars per hour lighting up the night sky canvas. The best spots for watching this spectacle are conveniently reached locations with low light pollution such as Hehuanshan (Mt. Hehuan; cer tified as an International Dark Sky Space by the International Dark-Sky Association), Sun Moon Lake, and the forest areas of Xitou and Sanlinxi. travel.nantou.gov.tw (Nantou Travel)
1
Photo courtesy of Changhua County Govt.
Photo courtesy of Pingtung County Govt.
2
Photo courtesy of Taitung County Govt.
3
5
Photo courtesy of Taipei City Govt.
4
Photo courtesy of Nantou County Govt.
6 TR AVEL IN TAIWAN
Taiwan Tourism Events Calendar Website
MAY/JUN 2022
5
TRAVEL NEWS
HAPPENING in TAIWAN Now It doesn’t take long in Taiwan for the short and pleasantly cool winter to disappear and the summer’s sweltering heat to arrive. So here we are again, in the hot and humid days of the year, a time to enjoy the sun and the great outdoors. Let’s find out what is going on these days in Taiwan’s world of travel.
BLOOMING IN MAY AND JUNE
Golden Shower Trees in Tainan – In May and June the bright-yellow blossoms of the Golden Shower Tree add vibrant color to parks and scenic areas in Tainan City, including the Hutoupi Scenic Area in Xinhua District.
htp.tainan.gov.tw (Chinese)
Photo courtesy of Tourism Bureau of Tainan City Govt.
Mt . Hehuan High-Mountain Rhododendron – The easiest-to-access 3,000m mountaintop area in Taiwan, the high slopes of Mt. Hehuan are especially beautiful in June thanks to the blooming high-mountain rhododendron bushes. bit.ly/3throP7 (Forestry Bureau)
Modern Architecture
“Yong’an Sea Snail Cultural Experience Park” About 20km west of downtown Taoyuan City is Yong’an Fishing Harbor. Like many fishing harbors, it’s known for seafood restaurants, but also attracts visitors with a scenic footbridge and the chance of catching eye-pleasing sunsets. One new reason to pay the harbor a visit is the recently opened “Yong’an Sea Snail Cultural Experience Park” on the opposite side of the harbor from the seafood restaurant area. Apart from its unique architectural design (the building was constructed to resemble a sea snail), this new sight also features fun AR and VR experiences for visitors, there is an observation deck with wind chimes, and inside you can sit down for a cup of coffee in the “Sea Snail Café.”
travel.tycg.gov.tw (Taoyuan City)
Helpful Signs
Photos courtesy of Keelung City Govt.
Keelung City
Photo courtesy of Taoyuan City Govt.
Getting around the harbor city of Keelung, on Taiwan’s North Coast, has now become a little bit easier and more fun with new signposts pointing you to sites of interest. The signposts come in different sizes but with the same blue-and-orange color scheme. The larger ones provide multilingual information, including area maps; smaller ones show you the direction and distance to nearby attractions. On top of each of the smallest posts you will see a different cute figurine wearing a raincoat, reference to the frequent rain in the city. Tourists are encouraged to go “figurine hunting,” capturing them in memorable pictures.
tour.klcg.gov.tw (Keelung Travel)
6
TR AVEL IN TAIWAN
MAY/JUN 2022
Glamping
Aowanda Just 20km from the geographic center of Taiwan as the crow flies, the Aowanda Forest Recreation Area is a popular summer retreat destination surrounded by the towering mountains of the Central Mountain Range. This is an area of tranquility and natural scenic beauty where you’ll want to stay at least a day or two. Until recently you could opt to sleep in one of the two main accommodation buildings (Red/Green Resort Village) or in a cabin. Now you have a new option, glamping! There are eight comfortable yurt-like tents on wooden platforms, each sleeping four. Available packages include complimentary meals and guided tours.
awdonline.forest.gov.tw (Aowanda National Forest Recreation Area)
Photo courtesy of Nantou County Govt.
Bicycling
Hsinchu-Miaoli Connection 1
2
Photos courtesy of hotels
New Hotels
More good news for cyclists. It is now possible to ride on dedicated bikeways along the western coast of Taiwan all the way from the northern border of Hsinchu City to the southern border of Miaoli County. This was recently made possible by linking two bike paths, the Hsinchu City 17km Bikeway and the Miaoli Green Light See Breeze Bicycle Path (68.5km).
tourism.hccg.gov.tw (Hsinchu City) miaolitravel.net (Miaoli County)
1. Hotel Indigo Alishan | 阿里山英迪格酒店
international-standard hotel in Alishan; grand opening later this year; www.facebook.com/hotelindigoalishan
2. Humble Boutique Hotel | 寒居酒店
new hotel of the My Humble House Group in central Taipei; grand opening second quarter of 2022; www.humbleboutique.com
3. OLAH Poshtel Taichung | 台中悅樂旅店
Second Poshtel in Taiwan (first in Hualien); close to Taichung Railway Station; grand opening earlier this year; www.olah.com.tw
Photo courtesy of Hsinchu City Govt.
Scenery
Moonworld Reopened Closed to the public for two years to carry out a major dredging operation, the Moonworld Dream Lake Scenic Area in Tainan City’s Longqi District is now open again. The area features a small lake surrounded by gray-colored hills that somewhat resemble the barren sur face of the moon. A photogenic highlight is a round pavilion that appears to be floating on the lake’s waters. Photos courtesy of Lion Travel
twtainan.net (Tainan City)
Transportation
Fine-Cuisine Train Combining fine cuisine with fine scenery, the Taiwan Railways Administration now offers luxury train rides on its eastern Taiwan route with 5-star cuisine served in cozy dining cars. The food, a 5-course meal prepared by Formosa Int’l Hotels Corp., comes as part of two services provided by Lion Travel: a one-day trip from Taipei to Hualien or a two-day trip from Taipei to Taitung with an overnight stay at a local hotel. A first for Taiwan, these culinary rides, on the “Future” tourist train, come with a 5-star price tag of NT$15,800 and NT$37,900, respectively.
event.liontravel.com/zh-tw/railtour/future/index (Chinese)
Photo courtesy of Tainan City Govt.
TR AVEL IN TAIWAN
MAY/JUN 2022
7
CULTURE & ART
Culture Concerts, Theater, Exhibitions, Festivals, Shows
Exhibition Island-Tracing Journeys: 30 Years Retrospective Exhibition of the Taiwan Project 島嶼溯遊：『台灣計劃』三十年回顧展
This exhibition is a retrospective of the Taiwan Project, which was conceived in 1991 by three local artists, Chen Shui-Tsai, Ni TsaiChin, and Lee Jiun-Shyan, and was joined the following year by another artist, Su Chih-Che. The four held 13 participatory exhibitions over a 10-year span, their inspiration coming from extensive journeys around Taiwan which were passages of self-return and self-seeking for each of the artists.
Until June 26 National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts ( Taichung City )
www.ntmofa.gov.tw
Exhibition Lee Yih-hong: A Retrospective 李義弘：回顧展
EDITOR'S
CHOICE
April 2~July 3 Taipei Fine Arts Museum ( Taipei City ) Lee Yih-hong, born in Tainan in 1941, started his career with traditional Chinese landscape painting. Later, he added realistic scenes from nature, seeking out the distinctive terrains of Taiwan and also traveling overseas. While painting with traditional brush and ink, he was also aided by photography, capturing scenes from the real world as inspiration for his art. In his later years Lee developed vistas of mountains and seas exhibiting a sense of three-dimensionality and spatial structure, establishing a one-of-a-kind style of modern ink art. This exhibition explores two main themes, “Imagined Scenes” and “Real Scenes” presenting fine examples of Lee Yih-hong’s landscape paintings.
www.tfam.museum
Exhibition Out of Sight, Out of Mold: Special Exhibition of Microfungi 眼不見「微菌」—微真菌特展
The fact that you can’t see it doesn’t mean it is not there. This is certainly the case with microfungi, such as molds and mildews, which are too tiny to see with one’s bare eye s. In addition to introducing the characteristics of fungi and microfungi, this exhibition also uses e ndophy te fungi, myco r r hiz a l fungi, phy topathogenic fungi, lichens, and entomogenous fungi to illustrate the relationship between microfungi and plants, animals, and other organisms in the ecosystem. Furthermore, visitors will gain a deeper understanding of the relationship between microfungi and human life, and how microfungi are being used in a wide variety of products, many of which are common in daily life.
web3.nmns.edu.tw
8
TR AVEL IN TAIWAN
MAY/JUN 2022
Until November 27 National Museum of Natural Science ( Taichung City )
Theater One Step to Heaven?! by Golden Bough Theatre 金枝演社《再一步，天堂？！》
June 10~12 Cloud Gate Theater (New Taipei City) Golden Bough Theatre, founded in 1993 by Wang Rong-yu, is known for combining traditional forms of performing arts such as Taiwanese Opera with elements of modern theater, music, and dance. Cooperating with the Cloud Gate Theater, the troupe has been very active in performing in New Taipei City’s Tamsui District, including memorable outdoor shows at Hobe Fort, a historic site right next door to the theater. In the past Golden Bough has also gone out of its way to bring shows to the people, performing in over 120 small towns around Taiwan over a 5-year stretch. One Step to Heaven?! tells the story of three people, a man going through a midlife crisis, a successful female executive, and a young man seeking attention, all of them approaching the gate of heaven. The question that is answered in this play: “What prevents them from taking the last step?”
www.cloudgate.org.tw
Dance Exhibition Imaging Indigene, Han Taiwanese, and Royalty in Collection: A NPM, NTM, and NMTH Joint Exhibition 看見藏品裡的原、民、官：故宮、臺博、臺史博三館聯合特展
Until May 29 National Taiwan Museum (Taipei City) Three of Taiwan’s top museums have joined forces for this exhibition focused on three key protagonists in the island’s histor y: the indigenous people, the Han Taiwanese (Han Chinese immigrants from mainland China), and the Chinese imperial court and its officials. Each museum selected relevant collection items for inclusion in each of ten theme sections, making this exhibition a synthesis of thirty distinct curatorial units. The exhibition shows visitors how three of Taiwan’s primary historical influencers adopted similar-yet-different ways to relate with, manage, interpret, and communicate common cultural themes and human experiences in Taiwan.
www.ntm.gov.tw
2022 NTT-TIFA Emerging Artists Project – Pure White Dance Lab: See
2022 NTT-TIFA 新藝計畫 純白舍 Dance Lab《平行視探》
May 21~May 29 National Taichung Theater ( Taichung City ) Pure White Dance Lab, founded by Chen Wei-sheng in 2013, is a dance troupe that heavily incorporates photography and videography in its performances. Over the years, the troupe has collaborated with various theater artists and companies to develop multidisciplinary works combining new media art and space. In See, video artist Chen and choreographer Chang Chien-hao “deconstruct and reconstruct their past and fragmented memories for a diverse audience with the language of images and videos.” The dancer seems to travel between past and present, physical movements changing along with shifting light and shadows. The use of such visual fluidity enables the audience to perceive the space from multiple perspectives possible for the audience – dance presented in a fresh and stimulating visual style.
www.npac-ntt.org
TR AVEL IN TAIWAN
MAY/JUN 2022
9
CHANGHUA
Lukang
Old-Timey
Lukang Town Traveling in the Good Ole Taiwan Days Today
TE X T R I C K C H A R E T T E
P H OTOS R AY C H A N G, V I S I O N
The core of Lukang (Hanyu Pinyin spelling: Lugang), located just off Taiwan’s central-west coast, is perhaps Taiwan’s best imperialdays living museum, a repository of heritage architecture even more concentrated than that found in the acclaimed core of Tainan City to the south, which was Taiwan’s Qing dynasty capital for over two centuries.
10
TR AVEL IN TAIWAN
MAY/JUN 2022
CHANGHUA
Lukang
I
f you have a passion for discoveries of historical sites, as I do, commit two days or more to the Lukang core. I’ve visited an uncountable number of times – for personal fun, on writing-research trips, and as part of regional religious pilgrimages undertaken annually by local citizens honoring Mazu, Goddess of the Sea (my father-in-law built/manages my neighborhood Mazu temple). Following are my favorite repeat-visit destinations in various categories: heritage temples, mansions and shophouses, cultural-creative enterprises, food and drink ventures, and more. In Chinese imperial times Lukang was west-central Taiwan’s key harbor town. “Lukang” means “deer harbor.” Both deer and harbor are long gone. The western plains once teemed with deer, and Lukang flourished as the primary exit-point for dried venison and deerskin, Japan the main recipient. The central-west littoral experiences heavy silting, and the coastline is now kilometers west of the town; its heyday as a powerful shipping-trade entrepot was choked out around the turn of the 20th century.
Hu Sheng Glass Temple
TR AVEL IN TAIWAN
MAY/JUN 2022 11
CHANGHUA
Lukang Heqi Mansion
Heqi Mansion
Lukang Folk Arts Museum
This article is set up as an easy walking tour centered on a hub right in the old core; just one location, the Hu Sheng Glass Temple, requires a short drive outside. This hub has been carefully chosen – the intersection of Daming Road a nd M i n z u Road. T he bu s y paving-stone plaza here and st reet s e c t io n s a r ou nd it a r e t h ic k w it h food sellers serving up the legion of inexpensive, high-quality traditional s n a c k s t h at i s a not he r r e a s o n for Lukang’s great tourist popularity. The streetside stands set up outside the plaza’s bricks-and-mortar operations, and the queues, give this foodie oasis a night-market vibe. Just nor th of the plaza, along a narrow lane, is the Heqi Mansion, one of Lukang’s f inest examples of the upscale private residences of the
12
TR AVEL IN TAIWAN
MAY/JUN 2022
imperial-era wealthy. It was constructed in the late 1800s by a family that had prospered as trading merchants and financiers. Many members were at the same time scholars with high academic deg rees. T he fam i ly enter tai ned f reque nt ly, a nd of t had t heat r ic a l dramas staged in the cour tyard for guests. The mansion’s design is in classical Minnan/South Fujian style, with Greek and Romanesque architectural elements added to the façade during Taiwan’s 1895 -19 4 5 Japa ne s e c olo n i a l e r a , copying the confident experimentation undertaken by Japanese architects in Taiwan during this period. The onetime residence today houses a museum (free entry) celebrating Lukang’s rich and still f lourishing craft traditions, with displays of the type of intricately
detailed religious icons seen in the town’s dense forest of heritage temples and shrines. There’s also a valuable mural map showing where the shops of Lukang’s best-known craftsmen are, plus their specialties. A shor t walk east/southeast of our hub plaza is the spacious, handsome Lu k a ng Fol k A r t s Mu se u m. T h is Baroque-inspired building was or ig i n a l ly a re side nce of t he Koo family, one of Taiwan’s most prominent through the late 19th century and much of the 20th. Completed in 1919, it was designed by the same Japanese architect responsible for the grand Presidential Office Building in Taipei. The museum opened way back in 1973. Visitors are regaled with a wondrous assortment of artifacts common to the
Old House of the Ding's, Lukang
lives of the Taiwan wealthy from the late 19th/ early 20th century, in two f loors of faithful recreations in bedrooms, the kitchen and parlor areas, etc. Among the most striking objects are consummate craftworks created by Lukang’s own gifted artisans, such as meticulously handfabricated hand puppets and shadow puppets and intricately carved wooden stages for their performances, elaborately decorated sedan chairs, and wheat-flour figurines in auspicious fish, turtle, and shrimp shapes presented as offerings to Chinese-pantheon deities. A point of clarification – note the “1919” date for the Koo mansion; when I earlier stated that old-core Lukang was “perhaps Taiwan’s best imperial-days living museum,” I meant this expansively, encompassing the Chinese i mp e r i a l p e r iod a nd Ta iwa n’s p e r iod of imperial Japanese rule. The Old House of the Ding’s, Lukang (sic), Lukang Folk Arts Museum, and Huo-Xing Youth Start-up Hub (introduced later) are all within sight of each other, all looking out (rear entrance for the Ding’s attraction) onto a neighborhood park featuring neat European continental-style landscaping. The Ding family was initially engaged in general merchandise, then added shipping and trade to their repertoire. Their Minnandesign complex is a rare specimen, featuring three buildings and two courtyards, running 70m deep. It was completed around 1880. The front building, which housed their mercantile o p e r a t io n , i s now u s e d fo r a r t d i s pl ay s showcasing regional artists, their works usually focused on Lukang themes.
HISTORY WALK Heritage sites in central Lukang are best explored on foot by following the many narrow lanes and alleys
Old House of the Ding's, Lukang
HEQI MANSION ( 鶴棲別墅 ) No. 8, Houche Lane, Lukang Township, Changhua County ( 彰化縣鹿港鎮後車巷 8 號 ) 9am~12noon, 1pm~5pm; closed on Mon. & Tue. www.facebook.com/hecivilla LUKANG FOLK ARTS MUSEUM ( 鹿港民俗文物館 ) (04) 777-2019 No. 88, Guanqian St., Lukang Township, Changhua County ( 彰化縣鹿港鎮館前街 88 號 ) 9am~5pm; closed on Mon. NT$130 www.facebook.com/lukangarts OLD HOUSE OF THE DING'S, LUKANG ( 鹿港丁家古厝 ) No. 132, Zhongshan Rd., Lukang Township, Changhua County ( 彰化縣鹿港鎮中山路 132 號 ) 9am~4:30pm; closed on Mon.
TR AVEL IN TAIWAN
MAY/JUN 2022 13
Lukang Longshan Temple, about 10 minutes on foot almost directly south of our hub plaza, is Lukang’s largest temple, the walled compound m e a s u r i n g o ve r 10 , 0 0 0 s q u a r e meters. It was built by early Han Chinese settlers to thank Guanyin, t he Goddess of Merc y, for t hei r safe passage across the treacherous Taiwan Strait. T his is one of Taiwan’s most a r t i st ic a l ly sig n i f ic a nt te mples, du bb ed t he “Fo r b id d e n Cit y of
Ta iw a n .” T he Ta i w a n To u r i s m Bureau declares it to be Taiwan’s best-preserved and most aesthetically alluring Qing dynasty architectural work . Bu i lt i n t he sout h C h i n a st yle, it d ates to t he late 170 0 s. While touring, here are some design elements to specially seek out: There are four aligned cour t yards, each more elaborate a s o n e move s i n s id e . No t e t h e five portals leading into the third courtyard; this is an indication of Lukang Wenwu Temple
14
TR AVEL IN TAIWAN
MAY/JUN 2022
CHANGHUA
Lukang
Hu Sheng Glass Temple
the temple’s elite status, as large temples are generally limited to three. Inside these doorways, look up to admire what is perhaps this temple’s most acclaimed feature, a spiderweb caisson ceiling created with a massive jigsaw of carved and painted wooden pieces, fitted together with no nails. The effect is to fool the fire gods into thinking the temple is under water, causing them to give up on fire attacks.
Lukang Longshan Temple
MUST VISIT If you have time for just one sight in town, make it the Lukang Longshan Temple, one of Taiwan's most artistically significant temples
T h e L u k a n g We nw u Te m p l e c o m ple x , southeast of Longshan Temple, is an elegant suite of buildings set amidst neatly tended g rou nd s ador ned w it h at t rac t ive shade providing f icus trees. The words wen and wu mean “civil” and “martial,” respectively. There are three main sections. Looking into the complex, the Wu/Martial Temple is on the right, the Wen/Civil Shrine in the middle, the Wenkai Academy on the left. Work on the complex began with the Wen Shrine in 1806 (Wu Temple 1811, Wenkai Academy 1824). Wenchang Dijun, the God of Literature, is worshipped in the Wen Shrine; Guan Di, the God of War, in the Wu Temple. Each of these features two halls with a courtyard in between. Students, teachers, and civil servants come to pray to the God of Literature, while soldiers, policemen, and businessmen pray to the God of War because of his renowned prowess at strategy when a general in the mortal realm. Before the Wen Shrine is a large crescentshaped pond. Such m i r ror-li ke bodies of water are believed to frighten off otherworldly evildoers, who are frightened when seeing their own ref lections. Locals attest that Lukang’s most pristine water comes from the centuriesold well located between shrine and temple, and makes the best tea. The magically transparent Hu Sheng Glass Temple, the world’s first such temple, is on an island just off the coast, connected to the mainland by two bridges. Opened in 2012, this is a celebration of Taiwan’s centuries-old
glass industry, concentrated on its west coast, which has recovered strongly in the past two decades after being seriously undermined by cheap mainland Chinese competition. It accompanies another tourist attraction beside it, the Taiwan Glass Gallery, which showcases the works of around 150 glass artists and industry enterprises from around the island. The temple is a copy of Lukang’s Tianhou Temple, dedicated to Mazu, which along with the two above-introduced places of worship form Lukang’s triumvirate of famed must-visit large temples. Hu Sheng Glass Temple features 70,000 pieces of glass, sourced from around the island. Almost all furnishings and ornaments, including deity statues, are also of glass. Advanced eco-protection principles have been incorporated as well. For example, the roof is made of heat-insulation solar glass, which def lects UV rays and transforms heat into electricity, powering all temple lighting. LED lights light up glass incense and spirit money used in deity offerings. Note that many tourists will visit during the day and also in the evening, when the temple emits an ethereal pastel-hue glow of manifold colors.
LUKANG LONGSHAN TEMPLE ( 鹿港龍山寺 ) (04) 777-2472 No. 81, Jinmen Lane, Lukang Township, Changhua County ( 彰化縣鹿港鎮金門巷 81號 ) 5am~9:30pm www.lungshan-temple.org.tw (Chinese) WENWU TEMPLE ( 文武廟 ) (04) 777-2148 No. 2, Qingyun Rd., Lukang Township, Changhua County ( 彰化縣鹿港鎮青雲路 2 號 ) 5am~5pm HU SHENG GLASS TEMPLE (GLASS MAZU TEMPLE) ( 護聖宮 [ 玻璃媽祖廟 ]) (04) 781-1209 No. 28, Lugong South 4th Rd., Lukang Township, Changhua County ( 彰化縣鹿港鎮鹿工南四路 28 號 ) 8am~5pm tw.glasstemple.org www.facebook.com/glassmazu
TR AVEL IN TAIWAN
MAY/JUN 2022 15
CHANGHUA
Lukang
What is called Lukang Old Street con si s t s of t h ree shor t a nd ve r y narrow old streets that run southnor t h , co njoi ned , i n t h i s ord e r : Dayou, Yaolin, and Putou streets. This is the nexus for the old core, which encompasses a number of other arteries you will also see referred to as “old streets.” Two of these have espec ia l ly tea si ng na mes – Ni ne Turns Lane and Breast Rubbing Lane. In this tour we meander Lukang Old Street and Nine Turns Lane. The south entrance to pedestrianfriendly Lukang Old Street is found just west of our hub plaza. On the Yaolin Street section is the Half-sided Well. Half of the well here was left exposed outside the perimeter wall of the rich family that built the residence on the other side, sharing the water with lesser-off neighbors.
O n Houche La ne (remembe r t he Heqi Mansion intro above), east of and parallel to Putou Street, is the Ai Gate, also called the Lukang Gate. In imperial days many such gates were built in Lukang as protection against attackers such as bandits and pirates. T h is is Lu k a ng’s sole rema i n i ng example. The north entrance to Jiuqu (Nine Turns) Lane is immediately south of our hub plaza. This exceedingly narrow artery, in places just barely wide enough for two people to pass each other, zigs and zags while headed in a general southerly direction. The “nine” is not literal, instead meaning “many.” The zigzagging had a dual pu r pose: to prevent st raig ht-l i ne attacks by bandits and pirates, and to deter the cold sand-laden winds that swooshed in from the coast in winter.
Half-sided Well Ai Gate
16
TR AVEL IN TAIWAN
MAY/JUN 2022
Yi Lou
Shi-Yih Hall
Lukang Old Street Area
Ai Gate
Half-sided Well
Heqi Mansion
About halfway along the lane you’ll pass under a short corridor-like bridge that connects the second levels of the buildings on either side. These were once common in Lukang, created both for convenience and safety. The building on the east side is Shih-Yih Hall. This was a place for the Lukang literati to gather. Shi yi (in Hanyu Pinyin) refers to the literati’s “ten amusements,” which included playing musical instruments and chess, reciting poetry, tea tasting, drinking, and smoking. In Chinese imperial days there was a gate under the bridge, which would be closed and guarded at night. And notice how the east-side wall under the bridge is rounded; this is an old gun tower, conjoined with Shih-Yih Hall, which has one of the original narrow shooting apertures still in place. Toward the lane’s south end is Yi Lou/Remembrance Hall, a mansion in the classical red brick of the Minnan style. This residence is best known for its windows in the shape of calabash gourds and ancient Chinese coins, symbols of good fortune and wealth. Watch for, and try to interpret, the unusual window designs seen throughout old Lukang. Elsewhere, the Wine Jar Wall is found along the old lane leading to the east side of the Huo-Xing Youth Start-up Hub complex (see below). In times past, architects employed the large empty jars used to transport Shaohsing rice wine from the China mainland to build ornamental yet practical and comparatively inexpensive wall sections. The wall section here is said to be the largest such remaining in Lukang.
Wine Jar Wall
Jiuqu Lane
Shih-Yih Hall Wine Jar Wall Yi Lou
ZIGZAGGING The narrow lanes and alleys are perfect for getting lost in old-time Lukang TR AVEL IN TAIWAN
MAY/JUN 2022 17
CHANGHUA
Lukang
The Huo Xing Youth Start-up Hub is less than 10 minutes on foot southeast of our hub plaza. It was opened in 2020 in a small complex of one- and two-story buildings originally used as a Japanese police precinct and dorm facilities. Two small single-story structures are wood-built and traditional Japanese in style. The others are two-story structures built of red brick, much covered with a concrete veneer, much brick left exposed for artistic effect. The complex has become a popular photo-taking spot. Complementing the attractive dual studios/shops, where you’ll browse a f ine array of cultural-creative for-sale inventiveness ranging from jewelry to ceramics to essential oils to Chinese culture-themed purses, money pouches, handbags, etc., are a café and an eatery selling shaved-ice treats. Among the exterior artistic adornments is the aforementioned Wine Jar Wall, a glasswall skywalk taking you around at treetop level, and artworks such as traditional rich-red hanging decorative lanterns, a wind-chime-style hanging collection of painted traditional Chinese bakery hand-carved wooden seals, and a plastic figure sitting atop a wall, in contemplative The Thinker-style pose, with a human body and large bulb for a head. The last, of course, symbolizes the incubation of bright start-up inspirations at the hub. In the Chinese imperial era, the space occupied by today’s lively Osmanthus Alley Art Village was used for osmanthus flower cultivation. In the Japanese era a small community of dormitory residences was built for Japanese workers, the buildings aligned facing each other. Today the renovated Japanese-style buildings house studios, the artists in residence practicing many different art forms, including the crafting of lion heads, ceramics, calligraphy, leather carving, gourd sculpture, and deity statuary decoration art. Visitors are invited in gratis, and attractive and affordable items are invariably for sale. DIY activities are also offered on weekends/holidays. The art-village enclave is located about 10 minutes on foot northwest of our hub plaza. The exterior of the southernmost building, which has a comfy café inside, is festooned with children’s picture-book-style paintings – a laughing cat emerges from an antique ceramic jar, a rickshaw driver moves past a wine jar wall, a line of small windows is cleverly used as the windows in a yesteryear-model public bus. The lane running through is often brightly decorated, at the time of Travel in Taiwan’s most recent visit with a herd of cutesy paper-art
Huo Xing Youth Start-up Hub
MEETINGS OF OLD AND YOUNG There are numerous examples in Lukang of young and creative minds giving heritage sites new life and purpose
18
TR AVEL IN TAIWAN
MAY/JUN 2022
CHANGHUA
Lukang
deer with auspicious red as their “fur” color, and auspicious paper-art Chinese carp strung out on long lines overhead.
Huo Xing Youth Start-up Hub
For a bit of fun time travel into the joys of the world of the Taiwan child in the 1970s~1980s, dive into the extremely goods-crowded Lukang Childhood Store on Lukang Old Street, a mockup yesteryear corner store in an old single-story red-brick shophouse. A vivid taste of what’s “in store” for you are the colorful piled-up goodies outside the doorway, such as retro games and toys and decals, along with the vintage signs on the storefront wall for soft drinks, sweetened condensed milk, dry-noodle snack packs, and toys. This is among the Old Street’s most popular stops, always bubbling with smiling mesmerized kids and smiling reminiscing adults.
Osmanthus Alley Art Village
Lukang Childhood Store
HUO XING YOUTH START-UP HUB ( 和興青創基地 ) (04) 777-0908 No. 108-8, Zhongshan Rd., Lukang Township, Changhua County ( 彰化縣鹿港鎮中山路108-8 號 ) 10am~8pm bit.ly/3oQ6aoz
LUKANG CHILDHOOD STORE ( 鹿港童年の店 ) 0933-445-959 No. 70, Putou St., Lukang Township, Changhua County ( 彰化縣鹿港鎮埔頭街 70 號 ) 11am~6pm bit.ly/3rPQZ0M
OSMANTHUS ALLEY ART VILLAGE ( 桂花巷藝術村 ) (04) 777-2006 Guihua Lane, Luojin Borough, Lukang Township, Changhua County ( 彰化縣鹿港鎮洛津里桂花巷 ) 10am~8pm www.facebook.com/lukangartistvillage Lukang Childhood Store TR AVEL IN TAIWAN
MAY/JUN 2022 19
CHANGHUA
Lukang
LEELI'S (04) 777-1822 No. 40-1, Xinghua St., Lukang Township, Changhua County ( 彰化縣鹿港鎮興化街 40 之 1 號 ) Brunch 11:30am~3:30pm (weekends and holidays from 10am) Drinks and Desserts 3:30am~5:30pm Dinner 5:30am~8:30pm (last order 7:30) www.facebook.com/leelistw LeeLi's
LeeLi's
LeeLi's 20
TR AVEL IN TAIWAN
MAY/JUN 2022
LeeLi’s, a popular chic combo restaurant/café/bar, is just a minute or so on foot northeast of Longshan Temple. Its wide façade is an eye-fetching statement of sleek modernity, especially set amidst the surrounding context of traditionalface buildings – a ground-to-ceiling glass wall that enables a painting-like layered view of the deep soft-lit interior, which stretches back 30-plus meters, in a glance escorting you past the front-area bar and mid-area seating and then past the brightly-lit open kitchen toward the rear. This enterprise, opened five years ago, is in what was originally a wood factory. Look upward in the front-section bar area to admire the old high sloping ceiling, thick wood beams and planks left exposed. The sloping ceiling over the middle/back areas, made of steel and aluminum, was added later. LeeLi’s serves modern cuisine, primarily Western, with tasty Lukang-ingredient theme twists. Among the bestselling entrée selections is a three-burger slider set. The main Lukang-icon feature of one is a mantou (steamed bun) bun, of another mayouji (sesame oil chicken) meat and soupflavoring, and of the third mashed yuyuan (taro ball) as bun. The “Paris-Lukang” is a localized version of the famous Paris-Brest pastry, with the shape changed from a bicycle wheel to a temple censer, and the filling made with fragrant house-crafted peanut cream and peanut butter.
CHANGHUA
Lukang
Men Men Cha Cha 2, menu heavy with modern-style newfangled drinks and desserts, is in a narrow-front old shophouse building. The façade and interior are bright and modern, with the original red wall brick left exposed in some interior sections. The English/ Chinese name means “f lour f lour tea tea” – referring to the signature beverage, thick and hearty old-time miancha, roasted wheat f lour heated with small helpings of sugar, white sesame, peanut, and onion (no tea!), served to you in powder form for attable self-mixing. Ingredients featured in the more modern-style drinks concocted here include diced mango, adzuki beans, boba, and pudding. There’s coffee too.
Yu Zhen Zhai Wan Café
Miancha
Miancha smoothie ENGLISH AND CHINESE Ai Gate 隘門 Breast Touching Lane 摸乳巷 Daming Road 大明路 Dayou Street 大有街 "Forbidden City of Taiwan" 台灣紫禁城 Guan Di 關帝 Guanyin 觀音 Half-sided Well 半邊井 Jiuqu (Nine-Turn) Lane 九曲巷 Koo 辜 Lukang 鹿港 Lukang Tianhou Temple 鹿港天后宮 mantou 饅頭 mayouji 麻油雞 Mazu 媽祖 miancha 麵茶 Minnan/South Fujian 閩南 Minzu Road 民族路 "Paris-Lukang" 巴黎 - 鹿港 "peace and safety" charms 平安符
OLD AND NEW FLAVORS While you'll want to try the traditional foods of old Lukang town, there is no shortage of innovative creations as well
The beautiful Yu Zhen Zhai Wan Café, located just before the north end of Lukang Old Street, is a project of Lukang architecture-restoration love u nder ta ken by t h e f i f t h - g e n e r a t io n proprietor of the town’s famed Yu Zhen Zhai bakery (just steps east of our hub plaza), opened in 1877. The clan that owned the café’s two now-conjoined side-by-side shophouses were engaged in rice wholesale, fabrics, and maritime trade. A range of educational DIY experiences is offered, such as building your own miniature traditional red-brick residence and hand-stitching leather “peace and safety” charms. Menu highlights include such unique old-new fusion creations as miancha smoothies, soy-braised fried-shallot popsicles, and hot-pressed toast with taro pastry filling.
Putou Street 埔頭街 Shih-Yih Hall 十宜樓 Taiwan Glass Gallery 台灣玻璃館 Wenchang Dijun 文昌帝君 Wine Jar Wall 甕牆 Yaolin Street 瑤林街 Yi Lou/Remembrance Hall 意樓 yuyuan 芋圓
MEN MEN CHA CHA 2 ( 麵麵茶茶 2) 0916-017-504 No. 7, Minsheng Rd., Lukang Township, Changhua County ( 彰化縣鹿港鎮民生路 7 號 ) 12 noon ~ 7pm (holidays and weekends from 10am) www.facebook.com/menchax2/ YU ZHEN ZHAI WAN CAFÉ ( 玉珍齋翫書房 ) 0980-192-522 No. 92/94, Putou St., Lukang Township, Changhua County ( 彰化縣鹿港鎮埔頭街 92/94 號 ) 11:30am~6:30pm; closed Mon.~Wed. www.facebook.com/leelistw
TR AVEL IN TAIWAN
MAY/JUN 2022 21
Nursery Promised Land for Flower, Plant, and Tree Lovers
TE X T R I C K C H A R E T T E
P H OTOS R AY C H A N G
A great 1,000-hectare swath of f lat, quiet Tianwei Township in Changhua County is a vast country garden, home to a dense bloom of decorative flower, plant, and tree nurseries. What is called the Tianwei Highway Garden has become a prominent tourist destination in recent decades, the beauty of the cultivated artworks complemented with bike-rental touring, cafés, specialty shops, and eateries (some on nursery grounds).
T
he Tianwei Highway Garden is stretched out along both sides of a long section of Provincial Highway No. 1, Taiwan’s original full-length north-south thoroughfare. This was the island’s first commercial horticulture district, established about a century ago, and remains its largest, supplying domestic needs and in recent decades establishing a strong presence in international markets. Key to Tianwei’s rise to horticultural eminence has been Mother Nature’s special kindness. The area averages about 11 hours of sunlight per day, enjoys mild temperatures throughout the year, and suffers less from typhoon visits because of its centralplains location. Supplementing these blessings are the mineral-rich waters brought down from the mountains by the Zhuoshui River, distributed by the Babao Irrigation Canal system built in the early 1700s, along with the nutrient-enriched soil brought down with the waters, a boundless replacement supply for the ear th hauled away with the sold flowers, plants, and trees. The breeziest and most enjoyable way to tour the Highway Garden area is by rental bicycle. A little initial time at the Tianwei Township Visitor Center is time very well spent. You’ll come away wit h a wel l- desig ned map indicating hig h lig ht attractions and providing background info. Then hit one of the two main local bike-rental stations, both within easy walking distance. These provide everything from standard bikes to e-bikes for four, renting by the day. Then perambulate on your iron steed over to the 7.2km Tianwei Bikeway, an easygrade circumnavigation through the district. Riders jump on and off the many intersecting quiet country roads going to and returning from the myriad touristfriendly destinations.
22
TR AVEL IN TAIWAN
MAY/JUN 2022
CHANGHUA
Tianwei
FLOWER CENTRAL Tianwei Township in central Taiwan is a veritable horticultural hotspot on the island, with countless nurseries cultivating flowers, plants, and trees
Tenway Garden This is a large inward-looking hideaway oasis, with views of adjoining plots of land almost completely blocked by trees, bushes, and fences. It’s a horticultural haven designed for you to spend a full half-day. Set amidst the exquisitely landscaped grounds is a profusely fecund nursery/food garden area, a number of separate retail facilities, restaurant, café, and DIY hall. Both around the grounds and in the interior spaces, displays of orchids are conspicuous; the Tenway Garden founder started off as an orchid-cultivation specialist. Taiwan’s pride and joy, the white moth orchid (called “Taiwan Grandma” in Chinese), is given pride of place. You’re led into the grounds on a short curving “country road” shaded by tall bald cypress trees, also called swamp cypress, their distinctive cypress knees
TENWAY GARDEN ( 菁芳園 ) 0912-243-535 No. 73-1, Zhangcuo Lane, Dalian Village, Tianwei Township, Changhua County ( 彰化縣田尾鄉打簾村張厝巷 73 � 1 號 ) www.green.com.tw (Chinese) www.facebook.com/chingfangyuan 10:30am~5pm (daily)
protruding in groups amidst the specially created roadside “fauxswamp” environment. The road leads past a large lagoon-like pond with fountain water spraying high, and right behind this is the capacious restaurant, its pond-facing glass wall extending from the ground to a high glass ceiling. This building is actually a climatecontrolled greenhouse in which diners are surrounded by plants bursting with color. Though a tad humid, temps are kept comfy, and the air seems especially fresh, the plants serving as natural purifiers. The most-in-demand choices from the hot-food menu are the Italian spaghetti with wild mushroom and the Indian-style chicken fried rice; from the dessert menu the lemon cheesecake and walnut brownies; and from the bakery menu the fresh-baked pumpkin bread and kanelbulle. Many of the ingredients featured in Tenway Garden’s culinary treats are organically grown in its spacious landscaped garden area; while strolling its paths you’ll be entertained with a lavish presentation of vegetables, herbs, and fruits. At the DIY facility, in a separate building also housing the café, the focus is on enhancing people’s knowledge and appreciation of the horticultural arts. TR AVEL IN TAIWAN
MAY/JUN 2022 23
CHANGHUA
Tianwei
Taiwan Mingyuan Art of Gardening The name Taiwan Mingyuan Art of Gardening applies both to a landscape design firm and a place. The place is the firm’s extensive nursery (entry fee), designed as a pleasant Zen garden featuring broad pathways, sculptures, and comfortable seating set amidst the constantly changing landscapes. The enterprise is engaged in professional garden planning and the trading of bonsai and garden trees. The nursery-cumpark was established eight years ago. The proprietor, from a multi-generation family of horticulturalists, designed every aspect with his brother. He wanted to avoid the usual nursery layout with all specimens lined in rows for inspection, and instead fashion a serene park-like space where visitors could linger for hours, bringing peace to busy hearts and providing an opport unity to feel the positive power of landscape horticulture. The family’s business is based in far-south Kaohsiung City. It also has operations in south China. The family wanted to expand into bonsai, and Taiwan Mingyuan Art of Gardening was opened in Tianwei because the township
24
BONSAIS AND BUDDHAS Park-like Taiwan Mingyuan Art of Gardening is filled with beautifully sculpted trees and Buddhist sculptures TR AVEL IN TAIWAN
MAY/JUN 2022
offered both the optimal cultivation conditions and most extensive support network of professional knowledge and relevant supplies. T h roug hout t he pa rk a re bonsai specimens on display, small through large. The source materials for these, cuttings, seedlings, and suitable small trees, are all imported from Japan. The bulk of the specimens, bonsai and garden trees, are Japanese crape myrtle, Buddhist pine, and Sargent juniper. Everything is for sale – fall in love with one of the trees and it will be dug up and trucked to you (within Taiwan proper, of course). Vendor-stand-style food and beverage ser vice is available weekdays in a courtyard with umbrella-shade seating just inside the entrance. The signature beverage
is fresh-squeezed lemonade with cane sugar and mint sprigs. Most requested from the food menu are the handmade vanilla and chocolate ice cream puffs and beef/ chicken and cheese rolls, and curry lunchboxes.
TAIWAN MINGYUAN ART OF GARDENING ( 台灣銘園庭園美術館 ) 0900-338-668 No. 102, Sanfeng Rd., Zhengyi Village, Tianwei Township, Changhua County ( 彰化縣田尾鄉正義村三豐路 102 號 ) www.instagram.com/taiwanmingyuan www.facebook.com/taiwanmingyuan 8am~5pm (weekends and holidays until 6pm)
TR AVEL IN TAIWAN
MAY/JUN 2022 25
CHANGHUA
Tianwei
GreenLife Garden At GreenLife Garden, a smaller operation than the first two we’ve visited, it’s all about succulents. The operation, entered through a sliding steel gate in a stained-wood fence, is about 50m wide and 70m deep. There is a courtyard-style layout, with most specimens laid out in more traditional style, in long rows. Most of the potted beauties are on tables and racks for easiest browsing, with larger potted selections spread out in attractive ground clusters here and there. In the forecourt area are a number of glass-front cargo containers. On the roofs of two conjoined containers (interiors used as office and work spaces, respectively) is a breezy wooden deck, which fronts a third container that’s been raised high. The interior and deck are used for horticulturetheme workshops. The container area and plant display area behind are covered by a high canopy sporting a translucent/ solid-square checkerboard pat ter n. This protects patrons from rain and, on sunny days, from direct sunlight. A line of small greenhouses stands beside the canopied section.
SMALL SUCCULENTS Perfect as gifts for family, friends, or self, the many cute cacti sold at GreenLife Garden come in all imaginable shapes
GreenLife is run as a “healing garden” by an eco-conscious husband-andwife team, he a local, she a transplant from Tainan City who since moving here has learned the ways of the horticultural life through spouse, classes, and diligent self-studies. She is the instructor for GreenLife’s succulentseducation workshops, emphasizing their eco-protecting benefits. Wabisabi artsy settings are found throughout the nursery, crafted using recycled materials such as old wood-frame windows and variegated wood materials. Playing on how Taiwanese pronounce “WiFi,” an English sign advises visitors: “Free WiFi, no free wife.” GREENLIFE GARDEN ( 綠果庭院 ) 0988-968-265 No. 121, Zhangcuo Lane, Tianwei Township, Changhua County ( 彰化縣田尾鄉張厝巷 121 號 ) www.facebook.com/GreenLife1945/ 9am~5:30pm
26
TR AVEL IN TAIWAN
MAY/JUN 2022
CHANGHUA
Tianwei
MMM – Little House This is a camping café operation in Tianzhong Township, southeast of Tianwei Township. Its bosom is the town of Tianzhong, lit. “amidst the fields,” a reference to the sea of surrounding rice paddies. The camping café is on a long, rectangular one-time rice paddy plot, now solid ground of course. The original water-retention walls are still in place, and the ground is covered in a carpet of grass that’s comfy to sit on, and smooth as a putting green. A line of shade trees runs down one side, with a field of corn rather than rice grown in the field next. Gurgling irrigation-channel waters run through in between. The camping café phenomenon has taken root in Taiwan over the past few years, and ventures continue sprouting up around the island. At this iteration, a “little house” of concrete walls stands at the entrance by the quiet country road that passes by, home to the café-service facility. Beside it are a number of large white-canvas shade umbrellas with wood-chair seating. Further in are numerous large white-canvas “tents” – i.e., shade canopies, with grass underneath left bare. There is no actual camping here. Entry is free and use of umbrellas and shade canopies is first come, first serve. The “MMM” in the name means “yummy.” Hot foods include such tasties as Thai-style lemon chicken nuggets and French fries with honey mustard. Two especiallycoveted sweet edibles are the cinnamon buns and lemon & honey cheesecake. Drinks include a range of hot/iced coffees, lattes, milk teas, and fruity carbonated drinks. MMM – LITTLE HOUSE ( 小田生活 ) (04) 875-3586 No. 258, Lane 395, Sec. 1, Minguang Rd., Tianzhong Township, Changhua County ( 彰化縣田中鎮民光路一段 395 巷 258 號 ) www.facebook.com/smplelife.picnic.store 1pm~7pm
Nearby Attraction
Yongjing Township, which adjoins Tianwei Township on the north, is another center for horticulture production. Chengmei Cultural Park is an expansive landscaped space with three themes: history, cultural traditions, and recreation. At its heart is a renovated heritage-site residential complex, started in 1885 and completed in 1917, that showcases traditional Taiwan construction techniques and cultural treasures. The surrounding grounds, done in classical Japanese garden style, were created by the wealthy family that built the residential complex. These present an outstanding exhibition of ancient hor ticultural techniques. Most visually impressive are the many stately old trees, with all decorative species commonly seen throughout Taiwan represented.
Photo courtesy of Chengmei Cultural Park
CHENGMEI CULTURAL PARK ( 成美文化園 ) (04) 822-1166 No. 60, Sec. 2, Zhongshan Rd., Yongjing Township, Changhua City ( 彰化縣永靖鄉中山路 2 段 60 號 ) www.cmcp1885.com 9am~5pm
ENGLISH AND CHINESE Jianan Plain 嘉南平原 "Taiwan Grandma" 台灣阿嬤 Tianwei Bikeway 田尾自行車道 Tianwei Highway Garden 田尾公路花園 Tianwei Township 田尾鄉 Tianwei Township Visitor Center 田尾鄉遊客服務中心 Tianzhong Township 田中鎮 Yongjing Township 永靖鄉 Zhuoshui River 濁水溪
TR AVEL IN TAIWAN
MAY/JUN 2022 27
CHANGHUA
Fangyuan
The keywords that define the coastal-bucolic world of slow-change Fangyuan Township and your upcoming tourism experience there: intertidal-zone oyster harvesting, “iron ox” eco-tours, “sea ox” rides, fresh harborside seafood and tidal-flats oyster/clam barbecues, Seaside Skywalk mangrove forest exploring, fiddler crabs, mudskippers, black-crowned night herons, blue herons, cattle egrets, glowing littoral sunsets ….
"Sea ox"
Riding the Iron Ox Oyster Harvesting and Other Tidal Zone Fun in Fangyuan Township TE X T R I C K C H A R E T T E
28
TR AVEL IN TAIWAN
MAY/JUN 2022
P H OTOS R AY C H A N G, V I S I O N, C H A N G H UA CO U N T Y G OV T.
CHANGHUA
O
ur main feature article was a deep dive into “oldtimey” Taiwan life in the historic town of Lukang, in west-central Taiwan’s Changhua County, which is primarily rural with areas of light industry. We now head a short ways southwest to Fangyuan Township, another place where the “ways of the old days” are still very much part of the local lives lived. Long key to the Fangyuan economy is the vast intertidal zone along the Taiwan Strait coast. Each day when the tide goes out, oyster farmers fan out over
Fangyuan
the exposed muddy f lats visiting their individual oystercultivation plots. Tourists can take guided eco-tours out into these zones. Other tourist-drawing eco-showcase facilities have also been built, such as the Seaside Skywalk through mangrove forest and a path behind the township’s fishing harbor to its lovely lighthouse. Other destinations include a fetching arched pedestrian bridge across the Wanggong Fishing Harbor entrance, the striking harborside lighthouse, and a uniquely attractive wind-power turbine “forest.”
Oyster Harvesting Experience Oyster cultivation is big business along the coast from west-central to southwest Taiwan, carried on for centuries without deep change. Silting is significant along this region adjoining the western plains, fed by the mineral-rich earth washed down from Taiwan’s fast-growing central mountains. In Fangyuan Township, with each tidal rotation the Taiwan Strait waters recede almost as far as the eye can see, exposing nutrient-rich black mud that produces exceptional food bounty. Also exposed is what seems a boundless legion of oyster racks, oysters clinging to thick long strings. Each plot is the property of an individual farmer-family, which pays an annual fee to the government. Highly edu-tational eco-tours into this zone are provided by the “Little Whale Fleet,” a travel-service enterprise run by local oyster farmers, with a farmer as your personal guide and driver. You’re picked up for your excursion at the Wanggong Fishing Harbor parking lot (see next section for other harbor tourist attractions/amenities). Your ride – an “iron ox.” These are large, sturdy three-wheel vehicles with a driver’s seat and a bed behind for equipment, harvested treasure – and tourists, with plank seating for three people along both sides. The diesel engine’s loud “tuk-tuk” sound, and the vehicle’s general look, evokes the famed tuk-tuks of Thailand. The cost is NT$200 per adult, NT$100 for elementary students, free for kids 6 and under. Outings last about three hours. The more people in your group, the more iron oxen and oyster farmer guides you get. Once past the harbor area, the paved road you’re on crosses the sea dike and dips down to and far out onto the muddy flats. Your guide takes you still much further than this, the mud firm under tires (and, later, running shoes/boots). Racks and strings of dangling oysters in countless number pass by, swaying slightly in the almost constant breezes (and often strong winds in winter). Be sure to bring wind and sun protection. When stopped, first comes a fun session of clam and oyster digging (for the latter, using thin bamboo poles to locate), then your farmer guide teaches you crab catch-and-release. Your main prey are the beautiful tiny pastel-blue/red/white Asian soldier crabs that march around the f lats in small armies. Then you head back to near the shoreline for an oyster/clam barbecue feast on grills set up amidst the racks right on the flats, learning how to cook them. Your guide teaches you all about the different types of local biolife, local farmer-family life, and anything else you might be interested in. Something that all visitors find particularly tickling is the origin of the “iron ox” term. Some local oyster farmers still use the traditional “sea ox” technique – yellow cattle pulling wooden carts. Check with the Changhua County tourism authority (tourism.chcg.gov.tw) about sea ox tours and the annual “International Sea Ox Culture Festival,” held in October.
"Iron ox"
ALL ABOUT OYSTERS During low tide the exposed muddy sand off the coast of Fangyuan teems with crabs, oyster farmers, and tourists who come to dig for clams and eat mollusks grilled on the spot
“LITTLE WHALE FLEET”( 小鯨魚車隊 ) 0917-699-298 No. 900, Yugang Rd., Wanggong Village, Fangyuan Township, Changhua County ( 彰化縣芳苑鄉王功村漁港路 900 號 ) bit.ly/3rSLDSn
TR AVEL IN TAIWAN
MAY/JUN 2022 29
CHANGHUA
Fangyuan
Sights in Fangyuan Wanggong Fishing Harbor is a good place for tummies hungering for fresh seafood. There’s a foodservice area with simple eateries in a night marketstyle set-up. Beside is a visitor center, which posts tide times – crucial info if heading out into the intertidal zone on foot, which many tourists do. A large sea-blue arch bridge leaps the small harbor’s mouth, providing on-high views of the sea of oyster racks and boat traffic. Because the littoral waters are shallow and silting is serious, shallow-draft raftlike pontoon craft are the standard. Behind the foodservice area is a paved eco-trail along a lagoon-like body of water, with mangrove trees and over-water lookouts, to the harbor’s attractive lighthouse. Wanggong Lighthouse stands high and proud 35.7m tall on the harbor’s north side. A black-domed octagonal concrete tower built in 1983, it’s painted Wanggong Lighthouse
"Wanggong Small Wind Power Turbine Park"
in an unmissable bold zebra pattern, thick black and white bars vertical. Its powerful beam, sent out in a 5sec light/5sec dark pattern, is projected 16.6 nautical miles out over the Taiwan Strait. You pass directly in front of it on your Little Whale Fleet tour, just before heading down into the intertidal zone. The on-land coastal area north/northeast of the harbor sports a forest of tall, majestic wind turbines, and within this forest is an especially photogenic concentrated mini-forest of small-scale turbines, the “Wanggong Small Wind Power Turbine Park.” There are about 400, painted in dark sky-blue and silver, each with three curved blades that come together at the top, giving them the look of sleek upside-down egg whisks. Adding to the mise-en-scene is the fact that the turbines stand right in a grid of aquaculture ponds, the bases for some rows right in the water. If it’s your lucky day, fishermen out on their rafts will add even more color to your unique “yes, I was there” shots. South of the fishing harbor is the Seaside Skywalk, a popular boardwalk trail through thick mangrove forest opened in 2021. Park at the massive Putian Temple, on the landward side of the sea dike here, a big draw for local bus-tour travelers that has a fair-like cluster of food-
WIND APLENTY The frequent strong winds blowing through the Taiwan Strait are an important source of renewable energy
Seaside Skywalk
vendor stalls. The Fangyuan Wetland is Taiwan’s largest intertidal wetland zone, stretching 6km. The Seaside Skywalk starts bedside the head of another oyster-farmer-use paved road that shoots out deep into the estuary intertidal zone here, their boats tethered and sitting on the shoreline mud. The skywalk, which took four years to complete, curves along about 2m up. Mudskippers, fiddler crabs, hermit crabs, and sentinel crabs abound, as do such waterfowl as little egrets, cattle egrets, black-crowned night herons, and blue herons. Signboards provide detail (with English) on the natural ecology, oyster cultivation, “sea ox” tradition, etc. A tall two-story viewing platform is specially angled to capture the lovely glowing sunsets. ENGLISH AND CHINESE Fangyuan Wetland 芳苑濕地 Fangyuan Township 芳苑鄉 "International Sea Ox Culture Festival" 國際海牛文化節 "iron ox" 鐵牛 Putian Temple 普天宮 "sea ox" 海牛 Wanggong Fishing Harbor 王功漁港 Wanggong Lighthouse 王功燈塔 "Wanggong Small Wind Power Turbine Park" 王功風力發電小風車
MUD AND MANGROVES The recently built Seaside Skywalk takes you past a large mangrove area teaming with mud dwellers and water birds feeding on them
TR AVEL IN TAIWAN
MAY/JUN 2022 31
CHANGHUA
Local Stay
LUKANG GOOD SLEEPS, GOOD EATS
Though an extremely busy tourist town, Lukang is not a place of big, or many, hotels. We take you on visits to two of its most popular places to overnight, a theme inn and a snug and homey renovated heritage residence. We also recommend some of Lukang’s best-known traditional hot-snack treats and the places to find them.
Some of Its Best Accommodations & Traditional Hot-Snack Eateries TE X T R I C K C H A R E T T E P H OTOS R AY C H A N G, TO N G N I A N WA N GSH I H O M ES TAY
Tongnian Wangshi Homestay dining area 32
TR AVEL IN TAIWAN
MAY/JUN 2022
TONGNIAN WANGSHI HOMESTAY This guesthouse is located at the western edge of a small lightindustry zone immediately west of the town’s old core, which can be reached in just 10 minutes on foot. Its Chinese name translates as “Childhood Memories Manor Homestay.” The description is precision-apt, as we’ll see, up to “homestay.” This term is very widely used in Taiwan, and is a misnomer here, with “inn” the more apropos choice. The large purposebuilt building, which sits in a walled compound, is very much in the style of a large manor, and looks out on uncultivated fields to the south, west, and north. The exterior/interior architect ural design is a seamless West/East f usion of Baroque and Minnan (see main feature article) traditional three-sided courtyard residence elements. Opened in 2011, this was the first ever legally certified minsu, or homestay, in the Lukang area. (You’ll find the term minsu covers everything from homestays to B&Bs to inns and small hotels.) It is a theme inn, a labor of love for the owner/ operator, with Taiwan mid~late 20 th-century youth culture the focus. He handled everything from the exterior architectural Backyard area
Room with cute figurine theme
design to the interior design and decoration of every room. An avid collector of memorabilia, his collection fills every interior space, from lobby area to dining area to every guestroom. There are 13 rooms in total, sleeping 2~8 people. Each is a mini-museum with a separate memorabilia theme. A music room, for example, features faux vinyl-record decorations and a wall of old Chinese/Western pop-music albums. A movie theater room has a faux performancestage wall decoration and wall of period film posters. A Mazinger Z room is dedicated to a character from a Japanese super robot manga series. There is ample dedicated parking, and free bicycles for use (the owner also cooperates with an e-scooter service, which will deliver to the homestay; payment to service company only). In the main public area is a reading room and a diner-style dining room. Meal service is currently not provided, but g uests are f ree to br ing outsidepurchased food and drink. There is an array of leisure and recreation facilities in the rear of the walled compound behind the main building, including a lawn area, children’s play area, BBQ area, and basketball court. In the far rear are petting goats and lambs, a big hit with youngster guests. TONGNIAN WANGSHI HOMESTAY ( 童年往事莊園民宿 ) 0932-603-599 No. 62-500, Fuxing Rd., Fuxing Village, Fuxing Township, Changhua County ( 彰化縣福興鄉福興村福興路 62-500 號 ) bit.ly/3By5YzK (Chinese)
Room with vinyl record theme TR AVEL IN TAIWAN
MAY/JUN 2022 33
CHANGHUA
Local Stay
SMALL EYE SECOND GUEST HOUSE Fancy a chance to imagine what it might be like to wake up in the Lukang of the old imperial days? We present to you the Small Eye Second Guest House, a renovated heritage residence located right on one of the old town core’s most famous historical streets, Jiuqu (Nine Turns) Lane, which we explored in our main feature article. Your neighbors will be a collection of the renowned tourist attractions introduced, just steps away – Shih-Yih (“Ten Amusements”) Hall and a corridor bridge/gun tower combination where a defensive gate once stood. This is a project by a local enterprise that specializes in renovating Lukang architectural works and giving them new mission. Book here and you get the full two-f loor residence to yourself. From the lane, you move through a locked gate in a high protective wall into a tiny courtyard, decorated with such embellishments as an old 1960s scooter. The original heavy wooden door and an original latticed window, both within traditional red-brick frames, remain in place. Inside, the t wo long rectang ular f loors have been renovated with an open-concept design, one large main
First-floor area
YOUR HOUSE FOR THE NIGHT The Small Eye Second Guest House in Lukang's Old Street area has just one bedroom, so guests staying there have enjoy the two floors to themselves
Second-floor bedroom
34
TR AVEL IN TAIWAN
MAY/JUN 2022
room per f loor. Visually dominant are the mottled concrete walls and exposed red brick. Original beams and woodwork have been left exposed in the high, recessed ceilings. The first level has a living room/dining area in the front, containing such retro furnishings as a large wooden picnic-type table and wooden benches. There’s also a modern wall-mount TV. The rear area has a suite of modern kitchen facilities (microwave, no oven) and a low table with antique latticework-back chairs, used for tea sessions. At the far back, a tight spiral steel-frame staircase elevates you to the second-level simple sleeping quarters, with four mattresses for two people each laid out side-by-side along one wall, on low wooden stands. A compact bathroom a r e a i s i n t he r e a r, b e sid e t he s t a i rc a se. Traditional Japanese translucent sliding panels provide bathroom privacy.
A cla ssica l-st yle rou nd w i ndow w it h lovely intricate latticework graces the bathroom wall, providing a pretty-as-a-picture view into the area behind the residence; this is the source of the “small eye” in the guesthouse name. At the front on the second floor are three side-by-side heavy woodenlatch doors which open onto a narrow balcony, f rom wh ich v iews up a nd dow n Ni ne-Tu r ns Lane are enjoyed. Directly across is an unusual photogenic oppor t unit y – a direct view into another old residence, this one abandoned and roof collapsed (soon to be rescue-renovated as well). SMALL EYE SECOND GUEST HOUSE ( 小艾謙和人文民宿 ) 0973-365-274 No. 40, Jinsheng Lane, Lukang Township, Changhua County ( 彰化縣鹿港鎮金盛巷 40 號 ) www.lukangsmalltown.com (Chinese) www.facebook.com/smalleyesecond
"Wang Wang Rice Vermicelli Thick Soup"
LUKANG EATERIES
In our main feature article we explained how old Lukang’s great tourism popularity stems from a triumvirate of attractions: its rich trove of heritage architecture, its f lourishing traditional religious culture and forest of venerable temples and shrines, and its almost boundless kitchen of inexpensive, high-quality old-time snack foods sold at modest eateries and street/market stalls. Here, we again use the always-humming plaza at the Daming Road/Minzu Road intersection as our walkingtour hub, the heritage Lukang First Market its anchor. There is a sense-sational concentration of eateries and stalls on the plaza and surrounding pedestrian-friendly streets.
Vermicelli thick soup
“Wang Wang Rice Vermicelli Thick Soup” is located on a street corner four short blocks southwest from our hub plaza, less than 10 minutes on foot. This is an open-faced eatery, the family in this business since 1930, the closelypacked low chairs and tables spilling right out to streetside. The starch-thickened soup’s vermicelli comes with a medley of flavorsome friends: pork, dried shrimp, egg, and shiitake mushroom. On your table is another medley of condiments that you add to taste: soy sauce, black vinegar, chopped cilantro, and the delicious house chili sauce. “Lukang Meat Thick Soup” is right next door. Opened in 1964, it operates as many traditional small Taiwan eateries do, with the simple kitchen facilities out in front, menu posted above, and seating inside. There are two specialties here, meat thick soup (called rougeng) and deep-fried pork. Rougeng is starch-thickened soup stock with boiled flourcoated fatty pork and hand-shaped fish paste, mushroom, Chinese white cabbage, and bamboo sprouts. Best with "Lukang Meat Thick Soup" 36
TR AVEL IN TAIWAN
MAY/JUN 2022
CHANGHUA
Local Stay
black vinegar and white pepper. Here, squid is also added, and various noodle/rice additions offered. The popular house-recommended approach at this eatery is to add your serving of deep-fried flour-coated lean pork chunks to your rougeng. They’re crispy outside, juicy inside. Be sure to do so before they cool off and harden.
Uánn-kué Shijia
Savory rice pudding "WANG WANG RICE NOODLE THICK SOUP" ( 王罔麵線糊 ) 0958-629-960 No. 268, Minzu Rd., Lukang Township, Changhua County ( 彰化縣鹿港鎮民族路 268 號 ) 5:30am~6:30pm bit.ly/3LGg7Pf
“Uánn-kué Shijia” is just a few doors down from our f irst two eateries. Uánn-kué is the transliteration from Taiwanese of what in English is commonly called “savory rice pudding” or “bowl rice pudding.” The restaurant is set up with a vendor stall-type set-up out front at streetside, and snug seating areas beside and inside. Your steamed uánn-kué is made with glutinous rice, and is thick and filling with gooey pudding-like consistency. Treasures that come with it include pork, duck egg yolk, dried shrimp, and shiitake mushroom ragu. A thick, lightly sweet soy-based house garlic sauce is drizzled atop – especially good here – as is the house chili sauce, its “secret” the liberal use of black pepper. Bo Bo Lamb, located immediately south of our hub plaza, has two specialties, mutton and squid rougeng. These are posted prominently in English in the entrance area, as is the eatery’s English name. You can also get mutton/squid in combo, or choose traditional rougeng without either. The mutton is especially tender, recommended by many online as Lukang’s best. The rougeng here also comes with yellow oil noodles. This is the most visually attractive of our four eatery recommendations. The cozy out-front kitchen area is painted in cheery pastel blue, green, yellow, and orange, the cottagey interior in blue and green and warmed with potted plants.
"LUKANG MEAT SOUP RESTAURANT" ( 鹿港肉焿泉 ) (04) 775-5553 No. 41, Gongyuan 1st Rd., Lukang Township, Changhua County ( 彰化縣鹿港鎮公園一路 41 號 ) 6am~6:30pm www.facebook.com/lukangdish
"UÁNN-KUÉ SHIJIA" RESTAURANT ( 碗粿世家 ) 0966-659-027 No. 28, Gongyuan 1st Rd., Lukang Township, Changhua County ( 彰化縣鹿港鎮公園一路 28 號 ) 10am~8pm bit.ly/3LIj0iD BO BO LAMB ( 爆爆羊 ) 0936-206-659 No. 206, Minzu Rd., Lukang Township, Changhua County ( 彰化縣鹿港鎮民族路 206 號 ) bit.ly/33vPuLR
ENGLISH AND CHINESE Lukang First Market 鹿港鎮第一公有零售市場 minnan 閩南 minsu 民宿 yellow oil noodles 油麵
Mutton and squid rougeng
TR AVEL IN TAIWAN
MAY/JUN 2022 37
GOOD FOOD
Pastries & Desserts
Sweet Fusion Taipei Patisseries Creating Western Desserts with Distinct Taiwan Flavors TE X T OWA I N M C K I M M
P H OTOS C H EN C H EN G - K U O
So you've stuffed yourself on some of Taipei’s best braised pork rice or beef noodle soup, but now what to do for dessert? Perhaps you crave something familiar, but also feel like you shouldn’t miss out on trying some more of Taiwan’s unique wonderful dishes. Fortunately, many of Taipei’s patisseries and cafés now offer fusion dessert options designed to intrigue both Eastern and Western palates alike, and for the foreign visitor, it’s a chance to taste signature local flavors in otherwise familiar packages.
L
ook at any list of the “must-eat” Taiwanese desserts, and you’ll be presented with such delicacies as soybean pudding (douhua), adzuki bean wheel pies (hongdou bing), and pineapple cakes ( fengli su) – all of which are undoubtedly delicious and most certainly worth trying. What you won’t find listed, however, are items such as mille crepe, cheesecake, tiramisu, and soufflé. And why would you? After all, these are Western desserts, not traditional Taiwanese ones. Younger Taiwanese are, however, an increasingly well-traveled bunch, many of whom have lived or traveled extensively abroad and brought back with them a taste for “foreign” desserts. Today, it’s perfectly common to find these Western-style desserts in the capital’s many cafés, and going out for coffee and cake is just as common as a post-dinner stop for soybean pudding at the night market. But as well as being more international in their tastes, younger locals are increasingly proud of their Taiwanese identity. As a result, many young patissiers are creating intriguing fusion desserts, using Western dessert styles as a canvas for showcasing Taiwanese flavors and ingredients.
38
TR AVEL IN TAIWAN
MAY/JUN 2022
SOUFFLÉ PANCAKES Served with liquid Iron Goddess Oolongflavored caramel
GOOD FOOD
Pastries & Desserts
Fú Dàu Pastry Studio One of these fusion-focused patissiers is Lin Jiaming, owner of Fú Dàu Pastry Studio. Located in Taipei’s history-rich Dadaocheng neighborhood, the studio specializes in soufflé pancakes made, uniquely, with rice f lour. The “studio” (instead of “café”) in the name is appropriate, as one feels a sense of bustling creativity on entering. To the right of the door is an open kitchen area, where owner Lin whips up his soufflés from scratch and to order. “I decided to use rice f lour because a lot of Asian people are gluten intolerant, and rice is easier on our digestion,” says Lin, who has over a decade’s experience in the dessert-making industry. But there are also other advantages to using this locally sourced ingredient. “For these soufflé pancakes, it’s best not to overcook them. In fact, for the ideal texture, slightly undercooked is best. However, wheat flour, if not fully cooked, possesses a ‘raw’ flavor that many find unpleasant. The rawness of rice flour cooks out much more quickly, so we can get the perfect texture without risking any unpleasant flavor.” The tricky part is that the usual proportions of egg, flour, and butter no longer apply. “Rice flour is more absorptive than wheat flour, and it doesn’t provide the same structural integrity, so we have to rely more heavily on the eggs to provide the signature puff of the soufflé. It took me around three years to get the recipe just right!” Taking a seat next to a large wooden altar cabinet seating several good-fortunebringing gods, I order the studio’s signature dish, a souff lé pancake with an Iron Goddess Oolong whip that is topped with peanut crumble, and a tower of buttercream tarts, filled with a liquid Iron Goddess Oolong-flavored caramel, on the side. The souff lé pancakes are light and f luffy, with a pleasant sweetness which is balanced by the strong fragrance and slight bitterness of the cream, while the buttercream tarts (also made with rice flour) are crumbly, decadent, and inescapably moreish. “We decided to flavor our desserts with tea because of the area that we’re in,” Lin says, referring to Dadaocheng’s history as a hub for Taiwanese tea exports. The area was, from the mid-19th to early 20 th century, home to hundreds of tea merchants. Today Dadaocheng is home to many teahouses and tea retailers/ wholesalers. “Many visitors come to this area to sample Taiwan’s best teas, and we wanted to give them an opportunity to sample it not only as a beverage but also as an ingredient in our cuisine.”
FÚ DÀU PASTRY STUDIO A patisserie located in Taipei City's history-rich Dadaocheng neighborhood
BUTTERCREAM TARTS Crumbly, decadent, and inescapably moreish
FÚ DÀU PASTRY STUDIO ( 芙稻菓室 ) (02) 2552-8312 No. 25, Sec. 2, Yanping N. Rd., Datong District, Taipei City ( 台北市大同區延平北路二段 25 號 ) 10am~7pm (closed on Tue.) www.facebook.com/fudau2019
TR AVEL IN TAIWAN
MAY/JUN 2022 39
GOOD FOOD
Pastries & Desserts
Yonshin Tea & Cake Selection Bar A short walk east from Dadaocheng along Nanjing West Road brings you to the trendy Zhongshan District and the high-end Shin Kong Mitsukoshi Taipei Nanxi Store. On the department store’s third f loor, those tired of lugging around their shopping bags can take a leisurely lunch or afternoon tea at the Yonshin Tea & Cake Selection Bar. Originating in the southern Taiwan city of Kaohsiung, Yonshin has recently expanded its chain to Taipei and now operates several successful branches in the capital. Its core focus is on tea and, like Fú Dàu, on the menu are tea-flavored desserts along with a large selection of fine Taiwanese teas. The decor, which melds the parquetwood and checkerboard floor of a Parisian café with the furnishings of a traditional Taiwanese teahouse, hints at the type of desserts on offer – a fusion of European patisserie hosting Taiwanese flavors – while the waistcoat-clad waiting staff and the clientele of lunching ladies laughing over their white wine provide a tangible ambiance of Old-World belle vie. However, one should not be fooled entirely by these decadences. According to a restaurant spokeswoman, the owner’s true passion is tea education, and the fashionable desserts are merely vessels used to introduce a young and Westernlooking generation of Taiwanese to the bounties of their homeland.
YONSHIN TEA & CAKE Parquetwood and checkerboard floor of a Parisian café paired with the furnishings of a traditional Taiwanese teahouse
GOOD FOOD
Pastries & Desserts
TEA-FLAVORED CAKES Surprising and satisfying those with a sweet tooth
Eager for my own edification, I sample three of their delicately prepared desserts: the Red Jade Black Tea Cheesecake, the Assam Chocolate Roll Cake, and the Red Oolong Caramel Crepe Cake. Though these kinds of pastries are commonly seen these days in Taipei’s cafés, the balance and sophistication of the f lavors are of a particularly high standard here. And while any of the three would equally surprise and satisfy those with a sweet tooth, it’s the Red Jade Black Tea Cheesecake that really delivers. The tea in question here is the famous No. 18 “Red Jade” black tea, a specially created hybrid of a Taiwanese wild-growing tea tree and Burmese assamica developed by Taiwan’s Tea Research and Extension Station and grown around Sun Moon Lake in Nantou County. The tea itself is known for its natural notes of honey, cinnamon, and mint, and these are clearly evident with each mouthful, their prominence slowly pervading as the richness of the cream cheese melts away. This paired with a crumbly natural biscuit f lavored with “black sugar” – natural unrefined cane sugar, a common ingredient in Taiwanese sweets – makes this a delicate and elegant dessert with a true sense of place.
YONSHIN TEA & CAKE SELECTION BAR ( 永心鳳茶 ) (02) 2581-9909 3F, No. 15, Nanjing W. Rd., Zhongshan District, Taipei City / Shin Kong Mitsukoshi Taipei Nanxi Store) ( 台北市中山區南京西路 15 號 3 樓 / 新光三越南西店 ) 11am~9:30pm (until 10pm on weekends & holidays) www.facebook.com/yonshintea
TR AVEL IN TAIWAN
MAY/JUN 2022 41
Yang Tai Facing a corner of Jiancheng Park, a quiet area of greenery close to the Shin Kong Mitsukoshi department store, opposite a towering Chinese banyan tree, is a little hole-in-the-wall takeaway dessert store called Yang Tai. It’s owned and operated solely by Yang Xi-ru, a young baking enthusiast who two years ago threw in her living working in coffee shops and restaurants to open her own place. Ref lecting the personality of the softly spoken Yang, the store is elegantly decorated in a wabi-sabi style. Reclaimed and restored antique door leaves containing beautiful latticework, flanked by herbs and wildflowers, greet visitors at the entrance. A w i nd ow t o t he le f t of t he e nt r a nc e provides a look-in onto Yang as she bustles about in her cluttered kitchen, producing a small but carefully thought out selection of takeout desserts: Basque Burnt Cheesecake with Licorice, Osmanthus Oolong Tea Tiramisu, and a Star Anise Roll. As a lover of tiramisu and attracted by the basket full of what appear to be star-anise-crowned cinnamon rolls on the counter inside, I opt for the latter two. For t hos e u n f a m i l i a r w it h t he f l avor, osmant hus is a sh r ub t hat in summer and aut umn produces a covering of pale white or yellow f lowers. On the streets of Taipei one occasionally passes an osmanthus bush,
42
TR AVEL IN TAIWAN
MAY/JUN 2022
YANG TAI A hole-in-the-wall takeaway dessert store decorated in a wabi-sabi style
perhaps in a roadside planter box or peeking through the fencing of somebody’s lower-f loor garden, only to be suddenly engulfed in the most enchanting floral perfume. Commonly consumed as an herbal tea, it is also used as a flavoring for dishes both sweet and savory, and is one of my absolute personal favorites. Unsurprisingly, in the Yang Tai creation it pairs wonderfully with the rich mascarpone cream and chocolate powder of the tiramisu, imbuing the classic Italian dessert with the fragrance of a Taiwanese summer. Charmingly, too, the dessert comes served not in a tub or a cup, but in a red-capped bottle most commonly used to hold traditional Chinese medicine, meaning you can simply screw on the cap, pop your dessert in your bag, and be about your day. YANG TAI ( 陽苔 ) (02) 2784-5677 No. 5, Lane 1, Sec. 2, Chengde Rd., Datong District, Taipei City ( 台北市大同區承德路二段一巷 5 號 ) 1pm~6pm (closed on Mon. & Tue.) bit.ly/3I8xFBo www.instagram.com/yangtai2020/
GOOD FOOD
Hoshing 1947
If you're looking for something that leans a little more traditional, Hoshing 1947, once again in the Dadaocheng neighborhood, offers classic Lunar New Year treats – all year round. There is scant Western influence here. Rather, the primary influence is from Shanghai, from where the grandfather of the now third-generation owner Ren Jia-lun emigrated during the Chinese Civil War. The store offers a seemingly boundless variety of traditional bite-sized Chinese sweets: adzuki bean peach-shaped buns, osmanthus sesame rice cakes, sponge cakes, silver thread rolls, and seaweed puff pastries, to name just a handful. Some tweaks have been made, however, to p l e a s e m o r e m o d e r n p a l a te s . Af te r r e l o c a ti n g from Nanmen Market (where the store was originally established over seven decades ago, and served an increasingly older generation) to the newly fashionable Dadaocheng neighborhood in 2017, Ren decided to tone down the sweetness and pungency of these desserts slightly, both in order to appeal to the tastes of younger Taiwanese and to those of foreign visitors as well.
Pastries & Desserts
CLASSIC TREATS A seemingly boundless variety of traditional bite-sized Chinese sweets
Tea Dessert House
A lover of the Iron Goddess tea grown in the Maokong area of Taipei since his youth, founder Gao Xian-hong established Tea Dessert House in order to introduce as many people as possible to Taiwanese tea via their sweet tooth. Invited in by the bold green exterior that mirrors the green tea terraces of Maokong, here you'll find a good mix of Western-style desserts (cookies, tiramisu, puffs, and several types of tea-flavored ice cream) alongside traditional Taiwanese treats such as pineapple cakes and mochi, all infused with Taiwanese teas such as Sun Moon Lake Assam, Muzha Iron Goddess, Oriental Beauty, and Baozhong. For those wanting to pick up souvenirs, the store offers several gift boxes along with tea leaf so that you can sample the flavors of your favorite desserts in their original form.
HOSHING 1947 ( 合興壹玖肆柒 ) (02) 2557-8060 No. 223, Sec. 1, Dihua St., Datong District, Taipei City ( 台北市大同區迪化街一段 223 號 ) 11am~7pm (closed on Mon.) www.facebook.com/hoshing1947 www.hoshing1947.com.tw (Chinese) TEA DESSERT HOUSE ( 貓茶町 ) (02) 2712-9900 No. 27, Lane 113, Sec. 3, Minsheng E. Rd., Songshan District, Taipei City ( 台北市松山區民生東路三段 113 巷 27 號 ) 12 noon~7pm www.facebook.com/TeaDessertHouse/ www.tdh.com.tw
ENGLISH AND CHINESE Dadaocheng 大稻埕 "black sugar" 黑糖 douhua 豆花 fengli su 鳳梨酥 hongdou bing 紅豆餅 Maokong 貓空 Nanmen Market 南門市場 No. 18 "Red Jade" 十八號紅玉 Sun Moon Lake 日月潭
TR AVEL IN TAIWAN
MAY/JUN 2022 43
LITTLE THINGS
Night Markets
'HHS )ULHG 9HU\ 6ZHHW Night Markets in Taiwan TE X T V I S I O N
I LLU STR ATIO N S I A N T S A I
Easy to locate, lots of choices, everything cheap…. Taiwan’s night markets are uber popular with locals and foreign visitors alike. Most come for the wide variety of yummy snack foods on offer, many also browse for cheap clothes and knick-knacks, some play fun games of chance and skill.
I
f you’re a night market novice, following is a quick overview of what to expect and what to look out for when visiting a night market in Taiwan. First, some numbers. There are about 300 night markets around Taiwan, meaning you’ll easily find one as long as you are in an urban area with a high population density. Among the best known and most popular night markets, according to various surveys conducted in recent years, are Liuhe Night Market in Kaohsiung City, Shilin Night Market in Taipei City, Luodong Night Market in Yilan County, Huayuan Night Market in Tainan City, Fengjia
Night Market in Taichung City, and Miaokou Night Market in Keelung City. The largest by area is Jin-Zuan Night Market in Kaohsiung, covering about 2 hectares (the equivalent of five football fields). While night markets are often known for certain unique specialties sold nowhere else, some snack foods are almost guaranteed to be available no matter which night market you end up visiting. If you’re feeling overwhelmed by the range of choices and don’t know where to start, take it from the locals. Here is a list of top night-market foods according to a recent online survey:
LITTLE THINGS
Night Markets
Top Night Market Foods 1
Teppanyaki Steak ( 鐵板牛排 ) – Thin steak, usually served with noodles and fried egg on a hot iron plate
2
Deep-fried Chicken Steak ( 雞排 ) – Large, flat pieces of chicken marinated in a sweet and salty soy sauce mixture, coated in flour and fried until golden and crispy
3
Ice Treats ( 冰品 ) – Most common is shaved ice with sweetened toppings (adzuki beans, peanuts, tapioca pearls, etc.)
4
Stinky Tofu ( 臭豆腐 ) – Easy to find by its somewhat unpleasant smell; deep-fried and usually served with pickled cabbage
5
Charcoal Grilled Skewers ( 碳烤串燒 ) – Chicken, squid, sausage, etc., barbecued on a grill and served with spicy sauces
6
Small Sausage in Big Sausage ( 大腸包小腸 ) – Sweet and salty meat sausage wrapped in glutinous-rice “sausage”
7
Soybean pudding/Yuyuan Soup ( 豆花、芋圓甜湯 ) – Soft pudding served with adzuki beans, peanuts, etc.; yuyuan are small balls made with taro paste
8
Deep-fried Sweet Potato or Taro Balls ( 地瓜球、芋丸 ) – Fried flour balls filled with sweet paste; very hot inside!
9
Oyster Omelet ( 蚵仔煎 ) – One of the most iconic night market dishes in Taiwan; a mix of egg, oysters, and scallion served with a sweet sauce
10
Luwei (Soy-Braised Delicacies; 滷味 ) – A wide range of food items can be used for luwei, including chicken feet and dried tofu
Night Market Games
Night Market Buys
While most night market visitors come for the food, there are more ways to entertain yourself than by filling your tummy. Many markets have stalls with simple fun fair-style games. Most popular are games where you try to shoot a BB gun or throw darts or rings at targets trying to win prizes. You can also try your luck at playing small pachinko machines or mahjong bingo. Kids love scooping tiny fish using a small circular net covered by thin paper, trying to catch as many fish as possible before the paper breaks.
Don’t expect high quality when buying things at a night market. The emphasis is on cheap. Buying clothes is especially popular in many night markets, and foreign visitors will easily find unique Taiwanstyle T-shirts that make great gifts for friends and family back home. Shoes, hats, bags, toys, cellphone accessories, and all sorts of moderate-quality items are sold for low prices. Note: Bargaining is not a common practice in Taiwan, but if you plan to buy a lot of shirts or toys, etc., you might get a discount if you ask.
ENGLISH AND CHINESE Fengjia Night Market 逢甲夜市 Huayuan Night Market 花園夜市 Jin-Zuan Night Market 金鑽夜市 Liuhe Night Market 六合夜市 Luodong Night Market 羅東夜市
pachinko machine 彈珠檯 mahjong bingo 麻將賓果 Miaokou Night Market 廟口夜市 scooping fish 撈魚 Shilin Night Market 士林夜市 TR AVEL IN TAIWAN
MAY/JUN 2022 45
EXPERT TALK
Outdoors
Man of the Mountains Meet Edgar Chang, Outdoors Lover and Adventurist
Much ink has been spilled on the subject of Taiwan’s manifold natural delights, yet the trails and peaks here remain largely unknown in the international adventure community. To get a sense of what’s out there, I spoke to Edgar “Alpinist” Chang, an experienced mountaineer who draws on his love of nature to help others enjoy the great outdoors. TE X T A M I B A R N ES
P H OTOS ED GA R C H A N G, V I SI O N
Taiwan’s Outdoors Despite being pretty compact ( just 35,808 square kilometers), Taiwan boasts more than 260 summits over 3,000m high, and an impressive range of natural landscapes. Spanning both the tropics and the subtropics, over 50% of the land here is cloaked in vegetation, and it is possible – in under 24 hours – to ascend from the coast up through lush forests dominated by figs and laurels, through several distinct ecosystems, to high alpine environs where only the hardiest of shrubs survive. This unique terrain is a gift bestowed on the island’s outdoors enthusiasts by its position on the boundary of the Eurasian and Philippine Sea tectonic plates. The natural forces involved in their collision have formed a steep landmass riddled with rugged rivers, streams, and waterfalls, wild hot springs, and soaring cliffs. For people wishing to immerse themselves in the great outdoors, the options are as diverse as the geography. Long, hot summers lend themselves perfectly to visiting waterways and waterfalls or exploring the beaches and islands, where there is no shortage of activities on offer. The popularity of watersports has surged in recent years, and water lovers can now try their hand at surfing, scuba diving, snorkeling, stand-up paddleboarding, or kayaking. And those who prefer not to get wet can take advantage of the drier, moderate weather in autumn or winter, which is perfect for exploring the hills either on foot or two wheels. Walking and cycling in particular are national pastimes, and as a result there is a seemingly infinite number of hikes to choose from, as well as miles and miles of bikeable roads and dedicated bikeways. Mountaineer Edgar Chang in his element Mt. Aka (Japan)
Central Mountain Range
Outdoors Expert Edgar “Alpinist” Chang There are two types of people in this world: the kind who after climbing their first mountain remember the aching muscles and the tiredness, and pledge to find a more sensible hobby, and those born with the kind of faulty memory which cloaks all of those discomforts under a sheen of awe so that even as the stiffness nips at their heels they’re already planning the next adventure. It doesn’t take long to work out which group Edgar Chang belongs to. “My first baiyue? That was Mount Beidawu, it was beautiful…” – he pauses, a grin spreading across his face – “…and painful!” (Note: The Baiyue is a list of hundred mountain peaks higher than 3,000 meters in Taiwan.) T h is for mat ive ex per ience came when C ha ng joi ned t he mountaineering club as a student at National Pingtung University in southern Taiwan. The way he tells it, it wasn’t too much of a surprise, he was majoring in horticulture (already an outdoorsy subject), and his experiences in the Scouts had long ago sown the seed of his future outdoor passions. After graduation he followed his interests, joining a research team tasked with scouring the remotest regions of Taiwan’s mountain forests for traces of the elusive Formosan clouded leopard: “We saw a black bear, mountain goats, sambar deer, basically every animal you can think of, but no clouded leopard.” (It has since been officially declared extinct, though sightings have been reported in the past few years.) Later, after a brief and failed attempt to assimilate into life as an office worker, he turned once more to the mountains, embarking on a journey to become a professional guide. At the time, Taiwan had no official accreditation system, so Chang picked Canada and the reputable Association of Canadian Mountain Guides for his training. After testing his mettle on various international slopes, Chang returned to Taiwan and now draws on his expertise to facilitate outdoor adventures for others. His company, Adventure Taiwan (www.adventuretaiwan.com; Chinese) provides trained leaders for small groups wishing to hike, river trace, rock climb, or canyoneer, in Taiwan and beyond, and also runs courses for individuals who want to become accredited guides themselves. Asked if he ever suffers from the interest fatigue that people can be susceptible to when they make their passion into a career, he says: “No. If I don’t want to hike, then I can go canyoneering. If I’m tired of Taiwan, I can go abroad.” H i s p r ofe ssion a l l i fe s p e nt i n p u r s u it of helpi n g ot he r s f ulf ill their advent ure goals doesn’t stop Edgar f rom having an overf lowing bucket list of his own. Current dreams include completing an ascent of one of the eight-thousanders (an earlier attempt was thwarted by poor weather), the world’s 14 highest peaks, and meeting the requirements necessary for receiving the prestigious Snow Leopard Award. Rock climbing on the Northeast Coast Snow Mountain
Waterfall abseiling
TR AVEL IN TAIWAN
MAY/JUN 2022 47
EXPERT TALK
Outdoors
Recommendations for Experiencing Taiwan’s Outdoors When it comes to his advice for adventure seekers keen on exploring Taiwan’s wild side, Chang seems almost overwhelmed with the possibilities. For total novices, he says, the trails in the Taipei area (for example around Four Beasts Mountain and within Yangmingshan National Park) are a safe bet. They’re easily accessed using public transport, tend to be well signposted in English, and offer great views for the effort you put in. Outside of Taipei, non-Mandarin-speaking travelers may str uggle a lit tle in ter ms of communication and understanding signage. But such obstacles can be overcome, and visitors with a modicum of trekking experience could try something like the Jiaming Lake trail in Taitung County, or perhaps challenge their first baiyue. He says Mount Hehuan (Hehuanshan) or Snow Mountain (Xueshan) would be good picks as well. Both can be accessed by public transport, and there are plenty of accommodation options close to the
trailheads so that hikers can take a while to acclimatize to the high altitude. (Chang cautions that failing to recognize or act on the early signs of altitude sickness is one of the most common mistakes he sees in the mountains here – Taiwan is so small, that you can go from sea level to over 3,000m high in just a few hours, far too quickly for our bodies to adjust.) Finally, thrill-seekers with a solid mountaineering background might want to look into Nanerduan, a stunning multi-day traverse through Taiwan’s Central Mountain Range that will leave you feeling like you’re on top of the world. And this is just barely scratching the surface. Chang says that Taiwan’s different seasons each have their own appeal, and whether that’s a refreshing summer dip in a mountain stream or scaling the highest peaks in the wintery snow season, you’ll never be short of something to do.
Photo courtesy of Shei-Pa National Park Admin. THE 100 PEAKS Some of Taiwan's baiyue, like Mt. Hehuan and Mt. Snow, can be climbed by hikers with moderate experience and fitness
48
TR AVEL IN TAIWAN
MAY/JUN 2022
ENGLISH AND CHINESE baiyue 百岳 Central Mountain Range 中央山脈 Edgar Chang 張星雯 Formosan clouded leopard 台灣雲豹 Four Beasts Mountain 四獸山 Jiaming Lake 嘉明湖 Mount Beidawu 北大武山 Mount Hehuan 合歡山 Nanerduan 南二段 Snow Mountain 雪山 Yangmingshan National Park 陽明山國家公園
HOT! STAY / EAT / BUY FOOD Taipei
HOTEL Yilan
CHIOU HWA Restaurant
Fusen Satoyama
The signature dish of CHIOU HWA is “Roasted Peking Duck.” The secret to this delicacy is the selection fat ducks with tender meat, mainly raised in Yilan. The preparation begins with filling the duck with spices and seasonings, such as ginger, scallion, and star anise. The duck is then stitched up, blanched to tighten the skin, colored with maltose and red vinegar, and hung to dry for a night. Before it is removed from the oven, the duck is slowly and evenly basted to make it translucent and lustrous. The pancakes complement the crispy duck skin perfectly while the pickled ginger inside makes the taste refreshing.
The hotel promotes the "Return to the Mountain and Listen to Your Heart" accommodation package, including one overnight stay and three meals, plus guided art environment tour and DIY experience activities. Rooms are painted in ocean sky blue, forest grass green, and warm earth, the wooden furniture further allowing you to feel like living in the forest. The hotel has invited famous Austrian chef Franz Huick to co-design a dinner menu for exclusive guests together with Chef Zhang Jia-cheng. The menu features seasonal produce and local ingredients sourced in Yilan. DIY activities include potted plant arrangements and weaving bracelets. Also offered are guided night tours during which you can marvel at a star-studded night sky.
九華樓
No. 369, Linsen N. Rd., Zhongshan Dist., Taipei City ( 台北市林森北路 369 號 ) Tel: +886-2-7721-6619 Fax: +886-2-2581-5811 www.gloriahotel.com
TOUR Yilan
Master Guan’s Leisure Farm 官老爺休閒農場
In addition to farm experience activities such as rice sampling transplanting, rice cutting and threshing, the farm also offers DIY making of scallion pancakes, fermented bean curd, slightly fermented kouji, and pickled cantaloupe. The fried ice experience making use of pure golden jujube juice, a specialty of Yilan, is the most popular among visitors. In addition, the farm also uses Zhuangwei cantaloupe for delicious dishes such as "Cantaloupe Steamed Fish", "Cantaloupe King Oyster Mushroom", "Cantaloupe Chicken Soup", and "Cantaloupe Fresh Meat". Don't forget to buy handmade pickles and take home specialties of Zhuangwei to share with friends and family! Hours: 9am~5pm; all year round; advance reservation required No. 3, Wuhan Bridge Rd., Mao Borough, Zhuangwei Township, Yilan County ( 宜蘭縣壯圍鄉貓里霧罕橋路 3 號 ) Tel: (03) 925-3517 www.facebook.com/kuan0932088300/
TOUR Yilan
馥森里山園區
No. 205, Gengxin Rd., Toucheng Township, Yilan County ( 宜蘭縣頭城鎮更新路 205 號 ) Tel: (03) 9772168 Reservation hotline: (02) 2577-1589 www.volandosatoyama.com
HOTEL Tainan, Chiayi, Hualien
Light Hostel
仲青行旅
Using a light and simple design and following the concept of self-service accommodation, Light Hostel gives international travelers a better experience of sharing and interaction. You’ll find an environment enjoyed by those who love independent travel. Let’s move about freely and lightly, but with great energy. When the morning sun lightly caresses your hair, reflecting perfect and clear patterns, it’s time to start your journey. Be like a summer flower, living proudly, or feel like a true traveler during a cool winter night. The way you want to be is your choice; travel independently in a new way!
Chiayi Hostel ( 嘉義館 ) No. 622, Guangcai St., West District, Chiayi City ( 嘉義市西區光彩街 622 號 ) Tel: (05) 224-0555
TOUR New Taipei
Niutousi – Water Buffalo Farm
Starry X Sky Art Vegan Village
“Plowing Experience” – Lead water buffalos to the field and experience plowing the soil. Niutousi also provides numerous experience activities related to the recycling and utilization of cow dung. The “Cow Dung Fire Popcorn” experience introduces you to drying cow dung cakes for burning. Experience what it’s like to make popcorn on a fire of burning cow dung. During the “Potted Plant DIY” activity you will learn how to use cow dung to make compost for potted plants. A variety of souvenirs are sold at the farm, such as the "Small Farm Mother's Handmade Fermented Bean Curd" and the pineapple-flavored fermented bean curd, which has a fruity aroma and is visitors’ favorite!
The village focuses on DIY activities using recycled material and ocean waste, such as plant dyeing, color painting of buoys, and sea glass mosaic collages. Since 2008, Fulong Beach has been the venue of the Fulong Int’l Sand Sculpture Art Festival and the village’s "Sand for Fun Art Studio" is the only sand art base in Taiwan that teaches the art of creating sand sculptures. The studio was established in 2017 to offer sand sculpture courses, allowing visitors to learn about this art form through a combination of environmental protection and the art of sculpting. Fine-sand Sculpture Course (1.5hrs): NT$980/pers. (half price for second participant) 3D Sand Painting Course (2hrs): NT$1,500/pers. (works can be taken home)
No. 21, Lane 122, Sec. 1, Dafu Rd., Zhuangyuan Township, Yilan County ( 宜蘭縣壯圍鄉大福路一段 122 巷 21 號 ) Tel: (03) 930-7707 www.facebook.com/calfstirk2018
No. 44, Fulong St., Gongliao District, New Taipei City ( 新北市貢寮區福隆街 44 號 ) Tel: 0938-193-735 (Ms Chen Ya-hui, guide) www.skyartvegan.com
牛頭司 - 耕牛小學堂
星空 X 藝素村
TAIWAN EVERYTHING EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT TRAVELING IN TAIWAN!
Find Travel in Taiwan articles published in earlier issues, complemented with colorful images, Google maps, and links to our social media sites, including Youtube, Facebook, and Instagram, and informative sites of other bloggers in Taiwan. Check out TAIWANEVERYTHING before you plan your next trip to Taiwan! taiwaneverything.cc Website
Youtube