When we travel down Taiwan’s eastern frontier, there is never a shortage of opportunities to gaze into the flat ocean horizon. Gazing into such vast distances seems to summon supernatural (“super natural”) feelings, like staring into the night’s sky. We may become entrance as we follow Taiwan’s coastline, but eventually we will reach southern Taiwan. One of the most noticeable differences is that the temperature and humidity will climb as we closer approach the Earth’s equator. 

After having visited Keelung, Jiufen, Pingxi, Yilan, and Hualien, we now turn our sights to the southern destinations: Taitung, Kenting, Kaohsiung, Tainan, as well as some of Taiwan’s neighboring islands.

The majority of foreign visitors that come to Taiwan seem to rarely trek beyond Taipei. Even fewer make it as far as Taiwan’s southern tip. This is your chance to truly join the elite!

Meet the Indigenous Folks (Taitung City, Green Island, Orchid Island)

From Hualien, where we left off in our previous article, the next stop is 3-4 hours south towards Taitung city (pronounced “Thai-dong”). It may be a long voyage from Hualien but the view from the highway is magnificent. When you arrive at your south-eastern spot, you will quickly see why Taitung is most known as the hub as Taiwan’s indigenous population.

Interestingly, the little island of Taiwan is home to over a dozen indigenous groups, speaking over 25 different “Formosan” languages (or “dialects”), though only making up 2% of Taiwan’s population. In Taitung, the most prevalent indigenous groups are the Puyuma, Amis, Rukai, Paiwan, though Taitung is also relatively close to Orchid Island and Green Island, with their own respective cultures. The wide variety of indigenous people in Taiwan has led anthropologists to conclude that Taiwan is the origin of several indigenous peoples found throughout the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia, and even Australia —collectively referred to as “Austronesian” people. Some Taiwanese indigenous people are even related to people in Madagascar —off the coast of Africa!

Nowadays, the majority of Taiwanese indigenous often identify as Christian and a significant number of (Han) Taiwanese individuals also have genetic markers indicating indigenous DNA. As you may suspect, however, the indigenous people in Taiwan experience similar hardships to indigenous people in other countries, which includes cultural assimilation, racism, and economic exploitation. To that end, tourism is an effective way to promote and preserve Taiwanese indigenous cultures.

If Taiwan indigenous cultures interest you, check out the Hollywood-style film called Rainbow Nation.

Kenting National Park

From Taitung city, let’s take another two-hour drive south-westward until we reach the world-renowned Kenting National Park on Taiwan’s southern tip. In addition to various music concerts throughout the year, Kenting National Park also hosts White Sand Bay and the literally translated “Taiwan Southernmost Point” (near the Eluanbi Lighthouse).

Swim with GIANT SEA TURTLES (Kaohsiung)

From the southern peninsula, we will change gears now and steer our direction north towards the city of Kaohsiung (pronounced “Gow-shung” or “Cow-shung” if you ignore the confusing spelling!).

Earlier, we mentioned Orchid Island and Green Island. However, it should be noted that Taiwan, an island about the size of Sweden, is home of 166 islands —though some are strictly for military use, and others are completely uninhabited and inaccessible.

In any case, one of my favorite weekend adventures (of all time!) is a mere half-hour ferry from Kaohsiung to the beautiful island of Xiao Liu Qiu. This highly acclaimed heritage site is home to Taiwan’s massive Leatherback Sea Turtles. Protected by the government and supported by eco-tourism, you can go snorkeling and swim amongst these spectacular creatures. To that end, Xiao Liu Qiu has several local snorkeling companies that offer day-trips, provided it’s the right season.

On one particular outing, our group was visited by an ancient turtle, said to have been three-hundred years old. That was certainly an exaggeration, but the turtle was as big as a Toyota Tercel. Though there are strict rules against physically touching them, after popping its head above the water to peek at us, the little dinosaur swam below us within hand’s reach. Consider this activity a buck-list item.

Kaohsiung City

Let’s address the city of Kaohsiung itself, one of Taiwan’s most charming, relatively quiet cities. It lends itself to bicycle rides and walking on foot, without the overbearing noise of motorcycles or highways. Though the KRTC (“public train”) system isn’t huge, it is convenient enough —while also providing a photogenic rainbow-colored indoor canopy.

My favorite spot in Kaohsiung is the famous Dragon and Tiger Pagodas. It is also one of Taiwan’s most iconic snapshots. By definition, a pagoda is a sacred building and like their counterparts in Japan, these Taiwanese temples can be described as multi-tiered towers that ascend to a single “tip” —called its “sacred jewel”. What makes the Dragon and Tiger Pagodas is their picturesque animal themes (as exemplified by their names), as well as the area in which they are located: the brink of a lotus-flowered sprinkled lake (“Lotus Lake”). While the lake itself is visually stimulating, provoking obvious Buddhist imagery, it is also the center of water sport activities such as canoe polo, water skiing, and a chance to row a Dragon Boat. There is also a cable-operated wakeboarding machine!

When visiting the pagodas, it is generally recommended to enter the “Dragon’s throat” (the left pagoda) and exit the “Tiger’s mouth” (on the right) to maximize one’s good luck.

As an aside, if you’re in Kaohsiung you have the chance to see one of the real Batmobiles (used in one of the Batman movies). Owned by Jay Chou, it is on view outside of his prominent restaurants located at 

801, Kaohsiung City, Qianjin District, 西部濱海公路14號.

Tainan City (A Visit to Hell)

When all of your fun and games are over in Kaohsiung, we then take a forty-five minute excursion north to the city of Tainan. Though Tainan is also not a massive metropolis, there are plenty of sights to see and crannies to explore. 

One of the most interesting attractions, in my opinion, is the Madou Daitian Temple. This attraction is a walking tour, whereby visitors first follow a staircase up the winding antechambers that are designed to make you feel as if visiting Taoist Heaven. Afterward, and more to the fancy of Halloween-lovers, visitors then follow a descending staircase to an underground tour of Taoist Hell. Like a Haunted House ride at an amusement park, visitors tiptoe at their own pace through various rooms depicted in the likeness of torture chambers, believed to exist in Hell. If the darkness and eerie soundtrack weren’t enough, each room also consists of animated life-size dolls convulsing and twitching, in reaction to their specified torture, corresponding to their alleged crimes, ranging from murder to rape, to “not listening to your parents”. Many of the exhibits are haunting. Some are just funny.

On one recent visit, we were fortunate to have witnessed an ancient Taoism ceremony, in which various dancers (at the front of a musical procession), allow themselves to “get possessed”. What that means is that, as an onlooker, you will watch these shamanic “dancers” perform a “dance-walk” ceremony towards an incense altar, situated at the entrance of the temple. It is by no means meant to be a humorous occasion, and I got the impression that the “spirit possession” was deemed a real event. Personally, the eerie way in which the “dancers” would contort their facial features, and emit strange beast-like hisses and grunts, it satisfied my Hollywood-inspired conception of spirit possession (or “mediumship”).

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