Day 82: Kaohsiung, Taiwan

Wednesday, 29 March 2017
At Sea — South China Sea

Stats @ Ship’s Time 9:15p (MST) … UTC 1:15p (29 March)
Temp: 75.6F (24.2C)
Position: 22.23.38N / 118.51.97E

The use of travel is to regulate imagination by reality,
and instead of thinking how things may be, to see them as they are.
~ Samuel Johnson ~

I’m afraid this is going to have to be a quickie post.  If I don’t get this written and uploaded now, it won’t happen until the calendar page is turned to April as we have two more days of sightseeing ahead of us before we get a day at sea.  I will apologize now that I have been unable to process any photos from our day … except for the two included in this post.

Today’s port of call was Kaohsiung, Taiwan … or as some prefer, the People’s Republic of China.  Some accept Taiwan as a country, others don’t.  Politics, don’t you know?!  Anyway, once a polluted industrial center with a population of 2 million, Kaohsiung is now a modern city with parks, art galleries, and museums.  The many temples add color and interest to the streetscape and stand as symbols of the culture of the people.

The second largest city of the country, and one of the largest container ports in the world, Kaohsiung boasts a new transport system.  We didn’t test it, however.  With few of the Chinese people speaking English, and the tourist infrastructure still in its infancy, I opted to book a private tour with one of the tourism taxis.  This is a government program that certifies certain taxi drivers to provide transportation and guide services.  I booked directly with Andy Peng, who came highly recommended on TripAdvisor … USD $65/couple.  We were joined by the Zs and the Adlers.  Six was a tight fit in the car, though; so I’d suggest others who might book with the tourism taxis limit the number of participants to four unless the driver has access to a van.

Our first stop was at the Lotus Pond, a popular tourist attraction in the Zuoying District of the city.  Rimmed with numerous temples around a man-made lake, the waters of which are dotted with beds of floating lotus plants, this popular attraction was opened in 1951.  We first visited the Dragon and Tiger Pagodas, so named for the giant sculptures of the same … which serve as the entry to the seven-story buildings.  The two buildings are connected to the shore by a bridge with nine bends.  As is traditional — and considered auspicious — we went in through the mouth of the dragon and came out through the mouth of the tiger.  Inside, we saw the “sculpture stories” lining both sides of the narrow passage, and a few of us climbed the Dragon Pagoda to see things from a higher vantage point … worth the effort.

From here we walked a short distance to the Spring and Autumn Pavilions for a quick look-see from the outside before crossing the street to visit Chi-Ming-Tang.  Rebuilt in 1973, this three-story temple is referred to as a palace because of its architectural style.  It is mainly for the worship of Confucius and Lord Guan.  Inside it was all red lacquer and gold decorations, and the air was redolent with the scent of incense burning at the various altars.

After stopping to see the towering statue of a Taoist god that Andy referred to as a representation of a general with his foot on a turtle and a dragon, we got in the car to head to Fo Guang Shan, which translates as “Buddha’s Light Mountain.”  Founded in 1967, the order promotes humanistic Buddhism.  The monastery, the largest in Taiwan, is in the city’s Dashu District — approximately 17 miles (28 km) away.  I should mention at this point that traffic in Kaohsiung was non-existent.  Yes, there were plenty of vehicles on the road, but after the traffic mayhem in some of our previous ports, it was a pleasure to be in a vehicle here.

Though the “mountain” has reopened to the public, we didn’t go up to visit the monastery as we had a limited time here.  Instead, we focused on the Buddha Memorial Center — a sprawling complex adjacent to it.  Even then we were quite rushed as 1½ hours is nowhere near enough to wander through the grounds.   Passing through the Welcoming Hall — visitor center with restaurants and gift shops — we found ourselves facing a 350+ feet (108 m) tall sitting Buddha at the top of a long path leading to Bodhi Square.  Eight Chinese-style pagodas line the path.  These pagodas I took to represent the eight schools of Chinese Buddhism that form the amalgam that is Fo Guang Shan.

We walked up the path to Bodhi Square, which fronts the Memorial Hall.  The square is rimmed with statues of the disciples and founders of the principal schools of Chinese Buddhism.  Behind the statues is a covered walkway, the walls of which have bas relief painted murals, each telling a story from Buddha’s life.  The exterior wall also had many murals of a similar nature.

The Memorial Hall has various shrines … no photography allowed.  Above the hall are four stupas, each symbolizing one of the four noble truths … the four central beliefs containing the essence of Buddhist teaching.  The giant Amitabha Buddha, made of gold-painted metal, sits behind it all, towering high for all to see … whether near or far.

One could easily spend an entire day here, exploring both this complex and the “Mountain.”  We really, really didn’t do it justice.  But this was just a taster — a highlights tour — and since Kaohsiung is also a port of call on a future cruise we booked that takes in China and Japan, we now know where we will spend our day when we return.

At 12:30p, we returned to where Andy had parked the car and drove back to the city.  Taking the tunnel that connects the mainland portion of Taiwan to Cijin Island — home to the oldest parts of the city — we continued our tour at Chiou Fort … once the guardian of the northern entrance to Kaohsiung Harbor.  The first fortifications here were built in 1720.  These were replaced sometime after 1874 by a modern fort.  The Japanese seized the fort in 1895 in the aftermath of the Sino-Japanese War, but never used it.

Andy first took us through a tunnel that he referred to as the “Starry Tunnel,” explaining that it had been constructed as an escape-hatch of sorts — never used.  Then, we climbed up a short flight of stairs to wander around parts of the battery on top of the hill, and see views of Chiou Village and the Taiwan Strait.

From here we returned to the ship.  The day that had started overcast and comfortable had become hot and humid quickly when the sun came out as we were leaving Fo Guang Shan.  Thus we were happy to be back in the air conditioned comfort of our home away from home.  By the time we had a quick bite to eat at the Waves Grill, the ship was throwing off its lines in preparation for the sailaway.  We stayed on our veranda to watch as Insignia exited the narrow opening to the harbor and the city became enveloped by the thick smog.

We really enjoyed ourselves and look forward to a return visit in a year or two.

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