Our Travel from Shizhuo to Kaohsiung and lunch at the Hanshin Arena

30 March 2024

After 3 days in Shizhuo, our next destination is Kaohsiung city, located in the southern part of Taiwan. I had booked three nights at the H2O Kaohsiung Hotel because it is highly rated and located close to the Zuoying HSR Station and Xin Zuoying TRA Station. The hotel also provides free shuttle service to and from the HSR Station.

When planning the itinerary, I had considered 3 options to travel from the Siang Ting B&B in Shizhuo to our hotel in Kaohsiung.

Option 1: Travel by public bus from Shizhuo to Chiayi HSR Station, cost 260 TWD. The earliest bus from Shizhuo to Chiayi HSR Station (#7329) is at 11.22 AM. ETA 12.56 hr. Thereafter take the 30 minutes ride by high speed train (cost 410 TWD) to Kaohsiung where our hotel provides free pickup and transfer.  Arrival in Kaohsiung at about 13.30 hr.

 
Option 2: Travel by public bus from Shizhuo to the Chiayi TRA Station. Earliest Bus is #7302 at 9.10 AM. ETA 10.45 AM. Take the next local train to Xin ZuoYing Station with approximately 1hr 30 mins travel time. Then take a short taxi ride to our hotel located in the Zuoying area. Arrival in Kaohsiung at about 12.30 hr.

Option 3: Book a taxi to pick us up from our B&B in Shizhuo to the Chiayi HSR Station. We could specify the pickup time. Estimated travel time is between 70 to 90 minutes and cost 2200 TWD. Thereafter, take the 30 minutes ride by high speed train (cost 410 TWD) to Kaohsiung where our hotel provides free pickup and transfer.  

After our experience with the crowded public bus from Shizhuo to Alishan and back to Shizhuo on Day 2, we decided on Option 3. Although it is the most expensive option, I think the cost is reasonable since the driver must come all the way to Shizhuo from Chiayi to pick us. With this option, we need not worry about travelling with suitcases on public buses or worry about the risk of not able to board the crowded bus during the peak cherry blossom season in Alishan. We also do not need to trouble our B&B host to drive us to the bus stop in Shizhuo although they are happy to do that. With option 3, we also get to arrive at our hotel in Kaohsiung much earlier.

The taxi came promptly at 9.30 AM and we arrived at the HSR Station in 70 minutes. Because the hotel provides free pickup service from the HSR Station and requires the timing for the pickup one day in advance, I also decided to pre-book our HSR tickets on Klook. In addition, we get the 20% discount tickets from Klook. 

We had ample time to collect our train tickets and took the 30 minutes ride into Kaohsiung’s Zuoying HSR Station as planned.

We took the HSR train from Chiayi to Zuoying HSR Station in Kaohsiung.

We arrived at Kaohsiung slightly after noon. The representative from the H2O Hotel was on the HSR train platform to meet us.      

He was dressed in a silver suit with long coat-tails and took care of our suitcases.

He led us to the car park where we were driven to the H2O hotel.

We followed him to the HSR Station’s car park where we were driven to the hotel in a spacious, air-conditioned SUV. Cold towels were provided after we boarded the SUV. The journey took about 15 minutes.

We stayed in the H2O Hotel Kaohsiung for the next 3 days.

At the hotel, another staff with similar silvery dress carefully placed a floor board next to the car for us to alight comfortably. We left our luggage in their good hands and proceeded to the hotel lobby.

View from the hotel’s lobby.

Arty decoration at the lobby.

The hotel lobby was at the 20th floor. As our room was not ready, we left our luggage with the hotel and took a short 10 minutes walk to the Hanshin Arena for lunch. Hanshin Arena is a large shopping mall located in the Zuoying district of Kaohsiung.

There is a Lego fair at the Hanshin Arena and we bought a Lego Monster Truck set for our grandson who loves toy cars.

Awesome car model made from Lego bricks.

There are many restaurants in the Hanshin Arena and it was quite crowded on weekends. Most restaurants had long queues. We picked a Korean BBQ restaurant (可瑞安) that served quite good food and with seats available.

  Korean BBQ with delicious side dishes for 318 TWD.

  The food is cooked on a hot copper plate similar to the Thai style mookata.

Our plan after lunch as to explore the Lotus Pond Scenic Area that is located nearby. We took a short taxi ride to our next destination, the Confucius Temple located in the northern part of the Lotus Pond Scenic Area.

Next post: Exploring the Lotus Pond Scenic Area.

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Exploring the scenic Lotus Pond (蓮池潭) in the Zuoying district, Kaohsiung

30 March 2024

       

The scenic Lotus Pond (蓮池潭) in the Zuoying district (situated in the northern part of the Kaohsiung) is worth a visit. The pond is a popular tourist destination and is well known for the pagodas, pavilions, and temples dotting the shoreline and nearby alleys.  

We had an afternoon for sightseeing at the Lotus Pond scenic area. The whole area is quite large but we are focusing on seeing only the following: the Confucius Temple, Tiger and Dragon Pagodas, Zuoying Yuandi Temple and the Spring and Summer Pavilions. Unfortunately, the Tiger and Dragon Pagodas were undergoing renovations and temporarily closed during our visit.

Tourist map of the Lotus Pond Scenic Area.

We took a taxi to the Confucius Temple which is situated on the northern bank of Lianchihtan (Lotus Pond). The plan was to walk southwards along the shores, visiting the various attractions along the way till the Tiger and Dragon Pagodas.

 

Confucius Temple

The Confucius Temple is dedicated to the memory of Confucius, China's most influential philosopher. The Confucius Temple is really impressive and I go wow at first sight of the main building.

It really looks like an imperial palace.

The Confucius Temple is built in imitation of Song Dynasty architecture, in the mold of Qufu Temple in Shandong and it was completed in 1976. This is the largest Confucius Temple in Taiwan and could pass off as an imperial palace. It looks like the Hall of Supreme Harmony of the Forbidden Palace in Beijing.

  We were the only visitors inside the main Dacheng Hall.

Tablet of Confucious in the Dacheng Hall.

Lantern with the character (師). Confucius is known as a teacher or master.

A large fan with 4 Chinese characters that read “The Teacher for Ages”.

  More artifacts on display. This place is like a museum.

  This is a musical instrument called the paixiao with a series of 16 bamboo tubes secured together. This wind instrument is also called the fengxiao or phoenix xiao.

Well decorated pathway leading to buildings on both sides of the main hall.

Tablets of Confucius’s disciplines and Confucian scholars are placed in the side buildings.

Leaving the temple, we headed south towards the pond. We passed through the main gate and an arch bridge over a semi-circular pond.  

  Main gate of the Confucius Temple. We actually entered through a side gate to the Main Hall and exited from this gate.

Entrance to the Confucius Temple facing the Lotus Pond. 

Chingshui Temple

There is a large temple with grey figure of a Buddhist monk perched on the roof across the Lotus Pond. We did not visit this temple as it is located on the eastern shore of the pond.

Chingshui Temple on the eastern shore.

Zuoying Yuandi Temple.

We walked on southwards, along the western shore of the Lotus Pond to a temple with a large colourful figure built over the water. This is the Zuoying Yuandi Temple.

The temple honours one of the higher-ranking Taoist deities called Xuan Wu or Xuantian Shangdi. He is revered as a powerful god, able to control the elements and capable of great magic. 

Zuoying Yuandi Temple on the eastern shore.

Gate of the Zuoying Yuandi Temple

Walkway out to the imposing 24-metre high statue of the deity.

Interesting statues flanked both sides of the walkway. These statues depict scenes from stories related to the deity. 

 

The deity as depicted in this giant statue is seated on a throne with the left foot stepping on a tortoise and a snake. The place of worshiping and office of temple is under the statue.

 

The pavilion next to the temple has turned into a mini amusement park for kids with kiddy rides.

Looking back at  the walkway from the pavilion.

Pamma Coffee

We made a pit stop at Pamma Coffee for some iced coffee and iced tea. The cafe also serves snacks and food. It provides good views of the pond. Most importantly, the cafe seems to be the only place around the area with air-conditioning. After the 3 days in the cool air of Alishan, Kaohsiung felt so warm although in reality, my home country, Singapore, is even warmer.

Spring and Autumn Pavilions

The next temple we visited was the Spring and Autumn Pavilions that also extend out onto the pond. The pavilions are four stories high and octagonal in shape.

  With green tiles and yellow walls, the pavilion looks like antique pagoda.

The two pavilions are connected by a curve bridge with a statue of Quanyin, the Goddess of Mercy, riding a dragon in front of the Spring and Autumn Pavilions.

Quanyin, the Goddess of Mercy

Quanyin, the Goddess of Mercy, riding a dragon

The colourful dragon is very striking but the entrance was shuttered so we could not walk through its mouth and exit from the back to the pagodas.

Nevertheless, we could still access the pavilions from the sides. 

This is a good place for photographers with its vibrant colours.

The only lotus we saw on the Lotus Pond. Not at their best. 

There is a 2 storey pagoda called the Five Mile Pavilion (五里亭) connected by a long pier at the back of the Spring and Summer Pavilion.  

Cute little ducks hunting for food in the Lotus Pond.

There is a half moon shaped pond with lots of tortoise in the front of the Guanyin, the Goddess of Mercy.

Temple of Enlightenment

Standing right across the road from the Spring and Autumn Pavilion is the Temple of Enlightenment or Chi Ming Tang temple. It is the largest temple in the area and looked quite impressive.

Buskers performing in front of the temple.

We made the mistake of not going inside this temple for a look as we were too fixated by the Spring and Summer Pavilions.

Dragon and Tiger Pagodas

On the southern edge of Lotus Pond are the red-and-yellow seven-storey Dragon and Tiger Pagodas. Actually this was the main highlight of Lotus Pond Scenic Area for many years. It was unfortunately undergoing renovations and temporarily closed till further notice.

Dragon & Tiger Pagodas covered with scaffoldings, as viewed from the Spring and Summer Pavilions.

A zigzag bridge provides access to the pagodas with giant statues of a dragon and tiger at the front.

We did not visit this place. If you visit this place when it is re-opened, be sure to enter through the dragon's mouth and exit through the tiger's jaws. To do otherwise would bring bad luck.

 

Sunset and Night Views at Lotus Pond

We lingered at the Spring and Autumn Pavilions till sunset. A good place to watch the sunset is at the upper deck of the Five Mile Pavilion. 

Pagoda at the Spring Summer Pavilions from where we watched the sunset.

  Sun setting behind the Temple of Enlightenment.

 

Zoom in shot of the sun setting behind one of the tower.

View from the upper deck of the pagoda.

We waited for the lights to come on after the sunset. At night the temples are illuminated, creating multi-coloured reflections in the water.

Spring and Autumn Pavilions.

These are the photos we took as we started our walk from the Spring and Summer Pagodas back to the Zuoying Yuandi Temple.

 

The lights on the link bridge would change its colours from time to time, varying from red to blue to purple.

Zuoying Yuandi Temple at night.

After visiting Lotus Pond, we took a taxi to one of Kaohsiung’s very popular night markets, the Ruifeng Night Market for dinner. There are several night markets in Kaohsiung. This is the closest and it is also within walking distance to our hotel.

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