Two Days in Tainan

Wednesday, December 27, 2017
Compared to the rest of the larger cities in Taiwan, Tainan seems more dirty and polluted. You'll feel it in the air straight away and the streets are floating in trash in this ancient capital of Taiwan. Unfortunate, as the oldest city in Taiwan has a lot of history to offer its visitors.

Anping Old Fort in Tainan, Taiwan
The Anping District is for sure the place to be, when it comes to sightseeing in Tainan. This old city district houses many landmarks and exhibitions. You can even buy a tour pass which covers some of the most prominent ones for a discount price. The most famous and recognizable landmark is undoubtedly Anping Old Fort.

Tait & Co. Old Residency House in Tainan, Taiwan
Not far from the old fort you'll find the Former Tait & Co. Merchant House. An old merchant house of the British trading company founded in 1867. The house itself has undergone several changes over the years, but now it only functions as an exhibition.

Anping Tree House in Tainan, Taiwan
Right behind the Former Merchant House you can visit Anping Tree House. A building formerly used by the trading company as a warehouse, but over 60 years of being abandoned the house was taken back by nature. A giant banyan tree has taken over and the scenery is quite extraordinary. It's almost like a discount version of the famous Ta Prohm temple near Angkor Wat in Cambodia. Walking the tree house was one of the more interesting things Tainan had to offer.

Anping Kaitai Tianhou Temple in Tainan, Taiwan
Kaitai Tianhou Temple in Anping District is a temple built to honor the Chinese sea goddeess; Mazu. Erected in 1668 and believe to be the oldest Mazu temple on the Taiwan island.

Anping Old Street in Tainan, Taiwan
After visiting the many historical sites take a stroll down Anping Old Street for a souvenir and a snack. Fully packed with local stalls and old buildings it gives you a feeling of being in an ancient market street.

Eternal Golden Castle in Tainan, Taiwan
We decided to walk quite far to visit Eternal Golden Castle. Sounds awesome, right? The "castle" however, wasn't anything like a fairy tale castle. Neither was it eternal, nor golden. Basically just a field of unmaintained grass, which wouldn't even make the cut for a rugby match. We found some shade on a bench, which was the highlight of our visit to the castle.

Chihkan Tower in Tainan, Taiwan
Before leaving Tainan we paid a visit to Fort Provintia, more commonly referred to as; Chihkan Tower. Located in downtown the small fort and park with the skyscraper-free background made it a picture perfect spot.

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