Taiwan: Kaohsiung

 Saturday, June 10, 2023, Kohsiung, Taiwan

We arrived in Kohsiung, Taiwan about 10:30 am. This city has one of the largest ports in the world. 

Kohsiung, Taiwan from our ship

We took advantage of the ship’s shuttle bus running between the passenger port and the Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) Formosa Boulevard Station. Probably for this reason we decided against a tour and decided to tackle public transportation, always a gamble in a foreign country. True to form, this day had its share of confusing moments. 

Kohsiung from the shuttle bus

Our goal to see the Zuoying District with its Lotus Pond, one of the top tourist attractions of Southern Taiwan. The Tiger and Dragon pagodas and the Confucius Temple dot the shoreline of this man-made lake.

The subway station entrances are identified with glass pyramids. The bus dropped us off at the Formosa Boulevard Station #1 glass pyramid. We found our way into the pyramid and down to the subway station, then to the information booth. We got someone who spoke English! We learned they don’t take Visa cards or US dollars, and we had no local currency. The banks were closed. We’d made it a long way around the world since my debit card was eaten in Namibia without a problem. Now we had one. 

Subway station entrance

Interesting sculpture inside the subway

We went outside to find a currency exchange. Our shuttle chaperone was still outside. We explained to her our predicament. She said the currency exchanges were not open today either—our first time encountering this in our travels around the world. Fortunately, she had local currency and was willing to take US dollars for it—at a good rate for her, which was fine with us. Working as a shuttle bus chaperone for cruise ships, she was prepared. 

Local currency in hand, we retraced our steps, got our tickets, found our boarding platform and were off. We sat next to a couple on the train with suitcases, traveling to Taipei to visit a sister. They spoke English and we chatted with them. As we arrived at our station—a gigantic hub of subways, trains, and buses—we said goodbye and exited the train.

Our next challenge was finding where to catch a city bus to the Zuoying District. We got conflicting directions, but finally found the correct bus stop.

Giant transportation hub

It was a short ride to the end of the line—the Lotus Pond. Exiting the bus, we spotted other independent-minded shipmates who had arrived by taxi. A lot easier but less “interesting” (and a lot more expensive but possibly saner) than our method of transportation.

 The Lotus Pond lived up to its name: there were gorgeous lotus blossoms throughout the lake. It was lovely. 

Tiger and Dragon Pavilions—note the pink lotus flowers in the pond

We came to the Tiger pagoda first and entered through the Tiger’s mouth. The route through the tiger had many amazing fantastical depictions  lining the walls.

Ready to enter the tiger’s mouth!

About the time we were finished with the Tiger pavilion, our cell phones began to vibrate. We were receiving texts—an earthquake alert, warning us to seek shelter. We hadn’t felt a thing. We looked dubiously at the ancient buildings around us and decided to take our chances in the open. The locals seemed unconcerned and went about their business. We decided to do the same. My first thought when I read the message was “how did they know my cell phone number?” I still don’t know the answer to that question. Later I spoke to shipmates who were on a tour in the mountains having lunch when their table started shaking, and their phones went off with the same message. They were closer to the epicenter.

We continued on to the Dragon Pavilion, entering again through the dragon’s mouth. There were many fantastical paintings on the walls inside the dragon. Eventually we exited through the dragon’s tail and began thinking about lunch. 

The pond itself was home to giant koi, some turtles and water birds. We found plenty of wildlife to observe. I also got a good look at the lotus plants. Lotus was one of my favorite breakfast items in China.

Turtle in the Lotus Pond

Ibis among the lotus plants

We found a modest outdoor kitchen with an indoor dining area. We sat down and appreciated the cool breeze created by a large fan. Ordering was another matter. Charlie went outside and talked to the hostess. There were a lot of interesting barbecued meats on display. Our request for a plant-based lunch was met with skepticism. Charlie asked to speak to the chef,  started pointing to vegetables, asking if they could sauté a few and serve them with noodles? The chef agreed. Lunch was very good.

Eating noodles for lunch.

After lunch we walked to the northwest corner of the Lotus Pond and approached the Confucious Temple. Like all the temples around the Lotus Pond, it was free. We signed in and looked through the tiny museum dedicated to Confucious. 

I was glad I had my umbrella for shade.

Confucious Temple in the background.

Closer…

Inside—more Confucius.

Our next plan was to find our way to the nearest subway station. We were very hot and out of water. We were also having trouble finding somewhere to get water (probably because we were so dehydrated). We started to squabble. :(

Using Google maps, we walked through a neighborhood hoping we were getting closer to a subway station when we asked a man who was unloading his car if he knew where we could get water. We must have looked pretty bad because he immediately called to a boy in the doorway, who disappeared into the house and returned with TWO cold bottles of water. That helped a lot. Walking a little further up the street, we realized we were looking at the giant transportation hub where we had caught the bus. 

We caught the subway back to the Formosa Boulevard Station and caught the shuttle bus back to the ship. When we arrived, there was a market set up for shopping!