KAOHSIUNG, Taiwan - Got 48 hours to explore Kaohsiung,
Taiwan's second largest city and one of the world's busiest ports? Reuter's
correspondents with local knowledge help visitors make the most of the city, a
center of traditional Taiwanese culture.
FRIDAY
5 p.m. - You're going to be doing a lot of shopping, so start
on a high at the new Dream Mall. Large, not crowded and easy to navigate, it
stands out for being the only place in metropolitan Kaohsiung to get your hands
on clothes made by ultra-cool Taiwanese designers Booday.
7 p.m. - Dinner at New Tainan Tan-tzai Noodles in the mall's
basement. The interior is supposed to look like a Taiwanese school from the
1950s or 1960s, with lots of retro cinema posters and adverts from the era
plastered on the walls. The stewed pork on rice, with fish-ball soup and
blanched Taiwanese-style greens topped with minced garlic, are recommended.
SATURDAY
8 a.m. - Begin the day with breakfast on the street,
Taiwanese style. Typical fare includes fried radish cake with a sweetish sauce,
egg pancakes and soybean milk.
9 a.m. - If you only have time to go to one part of Kaohsiung
make sure it is Yancheng. Once salt fields, today Yancheng is full of funky
little shops, cafes and temples. The Kaohsiung Museum of History is a must see,
to trace the city's rise from swamp to metropolis.
11 a.m. - Just round the corner from the museum is Bag,
otherwise known in Chinese as "King of Satchels" (33 Da-ren Rd). This shop is
famous nationwide for the old-style school bags it sells emblazoned on the side
with the names of various schools in large Chinese characters, and which are now
worn as a stylish accessory.
11:30 a.m. - Not far from Bag is Shanghai Wan-long Sauce
Garden (137 Sin-Sing St). Opened in 1948, this family-run business is still
cranking out high quality soy, chilli, sesame sauces and pretty much any other
sauce-like condiment that can accompany Chinese cuisine.
12 a.m. - Lunch at Old Song's Beef Noodles (32 Wu-fu 4th Rd).
Boss Mr. Lin proudly says that he only uses the highest quality Taiwanese beef,
and has a special recipe for the tangy soup base. To get the most out of your
bowl, Lin recommends eating the noodles first, then the beef and finally
drinking the soup.
1 p.m. - Jump in a cab and head to the old British consulate.
Built in 1866 and standing on a headland overlooking the harbor, the building
has been beautifully preserved. There is a lovely little cafe out the back on a
wooden deck where you can enjoy a cold Taiwan Beer and watch the comings and
goings in the port below.
2.30 p.m. - If you time it right, the naval base in the
harbor has open days and all are welcome, including foreigners. You might be
lucky enough to get a tour of one of Taiwan's still fully operational submarines
that date from World War Two.
4 p.m. - Cijin island is a five-minute ferry ride from the
navy base. There is a long beach - far from Taiwan's finest - but the beautiful
fort on the headland is the real reason to come here. The main town is full of
seafood restaurants, should you wish to stay for dinner. Expect high quality,
tasty food and very reasonable prices.
7 p.m. - Taiwanese love their night markets. There are
several in Kaohsiung, and you could do worse than trying the Liou-ho night
market. Must-try food includes oyster pancakes, squid broth and stinky beancurd.
Wash it all down with fresh papaya or mango blended with shaved ice, milk and a
little syrup.
SUNDAY
9 a.m. - Jump on Kaohsiung's wonderful new subway line to the
Ciaotou Sugar Refinery station and the old Chiao Ah Tou Sugar Factory. Set in
the lush Taiwanese countryside, the plant closed over a decade ago, but reopened
as a museum-park-gallery about two years ago. Ride the old sugar train and then
enjoy a TaiSugar ice cream made of unrefined cane sugar and fruit juice. (www.tscleisure.com.tw/museum/index.htm)
12 a.m. - Zip across on the train, a five-minute or so ride,
to Kaohsiung's rather rough-and-ready neighbour Fongshan. Grab a quick lunch of
delicious fried meat buns at Fongshan Old Shop Fried Buns (corner of Wei-sin Rd
and Jhong-shan Rd), and then go to "beating iron street". Here, they have been
handmaking fine steel knives since the start of the last century. Owner Huang
Wen-nan of the Hsin-hsing Iron Store will be happy to help you choose the knife
that best meets your cooking needs. (San-min St, Alley 44, No. 7).
3 p.m. - One of the joys of Taiwan is the Eslite chain of
bookstores. Larger branches have a good selection of English books, but if you
can read Chinese you are in for a treat as the range is massive. Attached to
some outlets, such as the one at the President Department Store, are CD shops.
Recommended buys are albums by alternative Taiwanese groups like Tizzy Bac, Bad
Girl and The Tube.
5 p.m. - The President Department Store's 10th floor is also
home to Chang-Yi-Fang Taiwan Puppet Creations. Don't be fooled by the name, for
they sell funky aprons, bags, purses and table mats with gorgeous traditional
patterns.
7 p.m. - For a final dinner in Kaohsiung, take the ferry back
to Cijian island and La Mambo. It's hard to believe there could be somewhere so
cool in such an otherwise uninspiring part of the city. The interior is
minimalist, the food quasi-fusion and the view over the harbor unbeatable.
Practicalities:
Language - English is not widely spoken, though many young
people do speak enough to help out in a pinch. Many of the older
generation speak little or no Mandarin and only Taiwanese,
which is broadly similar to Hokkien.
Getting around - The new subway is cheap, clean, fast and
efficient. Only the north-south line is open at the moment, which connects to
the airport, and the east-west line will open by the end of the year. Otherwise,
taxis are cheap and plentiful.
Getting there - Either take the recently-opened high speed rail line from
Taipei, or fly into Kaohsiung's modern and unhurried airport. - Reuters
