Changhua and Lukang

February 09, 2020

The next day of our travels, we took the train to Changhua. It is still unbelievable to me that I can use my public transit card throughout the whole island without the slightest of difficulties.

The greatest attraction in Changhua, and the only reason for our visit, is the Baguashan Buddha, a massive statue erected in the sixties, that overlooks the city. What surprised me when we got there was that practically all the vendors were selling meat products, or at the very least fish and dried squid. I do not remember anything like this happening at the Buddhist attractions of Yunnan – in fact, many temples had their own vegetarian eateries.

More New Year's lanterns. A taxi driver told me that the festival in Taichung was originally supposed to be held in Changhua but Changhua was too inept and poor to organise anything.

Blooms on the mountain

Statues lining the way to the Baguashan Buddha

A six-armed Buddhist statue

The Changhua Buddha

Phoenix and dragon detail on the roof of one of the temple's buildings

A six-tusked elephant at the entrance of the temple

Dragons at the entrance of the Baguashan Temple

Zach and I parted ways in Changhua, as he wanted to return to Taipei to audition with a local choir. In the meantime, I found a taxi and continued westwards to Lukang. I spent the whole ride in conversation with the taxi driver, who had visited Prague and Vienna, and was flabbergasted by the European custom of charging for the use of public toilets. He also reflected on the current epidemic, saying that it was still nothing in comparison to the SARS epidemic, which had hit Taiwan much, much worse.

Of the admittedly few towns and cities I have visited in Taiwan, Lukang struck me as the most historic and atmospheric. Its name, after all, harkens to the deerskin trade of the Dutch period – it translates to “Deer Port.” During its heyday under the rule of the Qing, Lukang was in fact the second largest town in Taiwan. Nowadays, its main attractions are its numerous temples, as well as its old street, littered with various shops. Though I could not see the sea, the abundance of seafood made it clear that the town still takes its position on the water very seriously.

Getting back to Taipei was a pain, but fortunately the employees at the Lukang Tourist Centre were able to direct me to the shuttle to Changhua, which happened to be readying for the departure as I neared the station. Unsure of where in Changhua the shuttle headed, and disturbed by its continued veering to the north of town instead of the centre, I hopped off and took a taxi to the high-speed railway station. I returned to Taipei by around five o’clock.