Around Kaohsiung

Asia » Taiwan
December 21st 2010

Published: December 27th 2010

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Marlese

Walking to Pier 2 and Fishermans' Wharf

Tuesday, December 21st through Thursday, December 23rd

Around Kaohsiung

Alexa had our schedule prepared so that when she went to work in the afternoons, we would have plenty to do and see. Ha! - little did she know, we are world travelers. We know when it’s time to take a nap, and boy did we need one every afternoon. I’ve carried a pedometer for the past year with a goal to walk 10,000 steps or 5 miles everyday. Well, with Alexa we have been walking 20,000 to 25,000 steps daily (that’s 9 to 11 miles). The kid has had us going (and now you know why we need a nap)!

First thing Tuesday morning, Alexa took us to Pier 2 and Fisherman’s Wharf. These areas on the Love River are beautiful art walks, parks and shops (part of the recent beautification of the city). From here we climbed up the mountain above Lianhai Road, taking a short cut through the students’ tunnel leading into Sun Yat-sen University. Our destination was the Former British Consulate building at Takao. This red brick colonial mansion, built on top of the hill in 1866, served as a base for the British to

Interactive art at Pier 2

Alexa was cycling to cool herself off

administer customs and receive dignataries. The building was seriously damaged in World War II, but restored in 1986 as a museum.

Later on Tuesday we went the tallest building in Kaohsiung - the 85 Splendor. The observatory is on the 74th floor. Also designed by C.Y Lee, this building looks like a two-legged structure based on the Chinese character “gao” meaning tall. Even though this building lacks the height of Taipei 101, the views were very nice.

On Wednesday, we walked to the Lotus Pond - don’t let the name fool you - it’s a man-made lake in between two mountains. Various Chinese-style structures are located around the lake: The Dragon Tower was built in 1976. Its pagoda is in the shape of a dragon and a tiger. Local beliefs say one should enter the dragon’s stomach and exit the tiger’s mouth so that you have good fortune and remove bad luck. Don’t worry, we walked the correct way - we are only a little bit superstitious. Also built in 1976 is a large Confucius Temple on Lotus Pond.

On Thursday, December 23rd we visited the Hakka Center. The Hakka people are an ethnic group with their

Children on field trip at Pier 2

own language and customs. They are known for hard work. Some notable leaders, scholars and writers are Hakka. Chiang Kai-shek’s wife and Sun Yat-sen were Hakka. They make up about 15% of Taiwan’s population. Once again this evening we visited some different night markets, but it’s true that if you’ve seen one night market you have seen them all. We walked 12 miles today - a good day’s journey.

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