Dragons, Temples, and Lights: Kaohsiung Part 2 : Battered Suitcase

Our second day in Kaohsiung started with another Taiwanese buffet breakfast. Having nourished our bodies the best we could, we were ready for the activities of the day. First we planned to go to Lotus Lake which is a place with a number of religious temples. Later in the day the plan was to go to a night market.

To get to Lotus Lake we first took the light rail which was near out hotel. This was our first time using this system. Unfortunately it did not go near enough to Lotus Lake so we had to transfer to a bus. That's when we got into trouble. After a short ride we determined that the bus we were on was going in the opposite direction from where we wanted to go so we had to get off and cross to the other side to get the bus going in the opposite direction. This did get us to our destination.

Our first visit was to the Dragon and Tiger Pagodas which are probably the most well known of the monuments. The pagodas stand side by side with one having a dragon theme, and one having a tiger theme. After walking along a zigzag path surrounded by the lotus leaves, we entered the mouth of the dragon. There is someone who will ask for a small donation to go into the pagodas once you are inside. The entrance starts in the Dragon Pavilion, and then it takes you to the Tiger side. The pagodas have a number of levels which we climbed up and had a pretty nice view of the lake and the other nearby temples on the lake. One interesting thing is the windows have granite around them which creates interesting reflections. It was fun to use that in creating photographs. It added to the uniqueness of the images.

Across from the Pagodas is the Qi Ming Tang Temple. This is a large temple and extremely ornate. There is a lot of gold used here. This is not so much a tourist destination as the pagodas are. It is an active temple as people were praying there.

We decided to continue on around the lake thinking we would catch a bus as when we got off the bus, it had continued around the lake. We passed the Spring and Autumn pavilion which didn't look too interesting. We eventually came to a huge statue called Beniji Xuantian Shangdi or the Pei Chi Pavilion. It represents a Taoist deity. At 72 meters tall it is said to be the tallest statue in a lake in Southeast Asia .

Pei Chi Pavilion

Continuing on around the lake we began to be concerned because we had not yet seen a bus. We finally talked to a friendly gentleman who first asked me a question about English and then directed us to the train station which he indicated was still a bit of a hike away. It was a hot and humid day, and when we finally got to the train station, we just wanted to relax for a while in the coolness of the station.

We finally decided to go to the Dream Shopping Mall as a way to just stay cool and find something to eat. We ended up eating at that oh so Chinese restaurant TGI Fridays. Yes, I know, that's not very adventurous, but it was good, and we enjoyed it.

Later that evening we went to the Liuhe Night Market. However, before we got there, we had to see one of the most well known sites of Kaohsiung. It happens to be in the central transit station named Formosa Boulevard Metro Station where the red and orange lines intersect. There you will find the Dome of Light. This beautiful and colorful glass installation was created by an Italian artist, Narcissus Quagliata, and is the largest public installation made of glass pieces. It is 30 meters in diameter and has four sections dealing with human life: water, earth, light, and fire. It has bright bold colors, and one can look at it for quite a while trying to catch all the images.

After checking out the Dome of Light, we left to go to the Liuhe Night Market which is just outside the station entrance. The week before we had been in Hong Kong at the Night Market, and we weren't impressed. It seemed pretty much like the day markets. However, the night markets here in Taiwan are different. The main difference is that there are a lot of food street vendors. They are all up and down the street. Much of what they sell is seafood, and they often sell it on a stick for easy eating. Not being seafood lovers, we only had some ice cream at the market, but it was definitely an interesting experience. I have read that for many younger people it is easier to just buy food from the street vendors for their dinners rather than cook at home.

Our short visit to Kaohsiung was coming to a close. The following morning we would travel on the train to Taipei and see what the north end of the island had to offer us.

If you would like to see more photos, check out the original post at Batteredsuitcase.net. Be sure to sign up for a weekly update.