taiwan day 4: anping, laundry, and socializing
hello?
hi and welcome back. apologies in advance, this was not the most eventful day lol BUT prepare yourself for the incoming flood of travel blog content; big things have been brewing. don’t forget to read to the end for a fun surprise :3
today i was heading west to the anping district of tainan. on my way to catch the bus, i stopped at a window selling buns and soymilk. i ordered a taro bun and a warm soymilk:
the main site to see in the anping district is the anping fort, built in the early 17th century by the dutch east india company. ming-loyalist koxinga (remember the ancestral shrine from yesterday?) laid seige to the fort in 1661, and the dutch finally surrendered in 1662.
i got there at 8:20 before it opened at 8:30 and it was so quiet and peaceful. however, at 8:29, multiple tour groups of seniors emerged from the alleys and started to get in line. i quickly ran to the booth, got a ticket, and got inside before getting stuck behind the tour groups.
the from the watchtower, i could see parts of the taijiang national park.
statue of koxinga:
one of the tour groups and a nice, big tree:
more big tree:
ok, next i went across the street to the anping kaitai tianhou temple. this was a bit of a wild ride: there was a full ceremony happening in the temple with loud horn music and chanting while at the same time there were tourists just walking through as if nothing was going on and taking pictures. it was very chaotic lol
the ceiling was craaaazy:
after the anping district, i headed back towards the hotel to relax, grab a coffee, and do some laundry. there was a laundromat super close to the hotel. the machines are actually really cool: they wash, dispense detergent, and dry all in one go. my load was finished in 45 minutes!! anyways here is a picture of me doing laundry and drinking a guava juice from 7-11:
after laundry, i walked through the mall, and then popped across the street to the blueprint cultural and creative park. it was a bunch of restored buildings that housed little local shops, cafes, and restaurants. it was a little quiet when i was there but a nice way to spend the early afternoon.
first, i got lunch at a pizza restaurant. curiosity got the best of me. not bad! you know i gotta try the local pizza.
there was a weird canadian man who was the only other customer and talked with me while i ate. he was super excited to chat, and it was really difficult to figure out his story lol he had taught english in japan for 18 years?? and then has permanent residency in taiwan??? but has been living in thailand for the last 2 years???? and he cant go back to japan or canada?????? idk man
pizza:
and for a little dessert, i went to the basque cheesecake cafe where a kind man sat next to me with his dog:
earlier, i was able to make friends with a local and we agreed to hang out at the wusheng night market in the west central district of tainan. the night market was craaaazy but the food was really good. here is an egg and vegetable omelette and takoyaki:
after walking around the night market, my new friend offered me a ride back to the hotel on her scooter (everyone rides scooters everywhere in taiwan; i will get into this in a later post). this was a major mistake because now i want a scooter, so so so fun 🛵💨
anyways, that's a wrap for day 4!! stay tuned
BONUS!!!
they really just don't stop
