The trip to Kenting from Taipei takes about 4 - 5 hours depending on your preferred mode of transportation. I decided on the fastest - a high speed rail express ticket from Taipei to Zuoying (in the city of Kaoshing) and then the Kenting Express that was easily available right outside exit #2 at Zuoying high speed rail station. Cost wise, you're looking at about $120 CDN for a comfortable ride to and from your destination.
I arrived in Hengchun, a sleepy town about a 10 min drive from Kenting, the hotel was new and was about $65 CDN / night, so it fit the bill and well, everything was already booked in Kenting by the time I got there. I hopped into a cab and asked the driver to take me to some of the must see sights of the area. Kenting county is made up of two small peninsulas, identified as east and west. My driver took me to the east side, hitting some great sights that allows for views of both the Pacific Ocean and the Bashi Channel.
Some must see points on the eastern peninsula:
 |
| Longpan Park - Cliffs overlooking the gorgeous Pacific Ocean |
Longpan Park - this park features stunning views of the Pacific from high above. The cliffs of the park overlooks the waves hitting the rocks on the shores below for about 1/2 a kilometer. I didn't walk that far, around the cliffs, just enough to see some incredible rock formations jutting out from the reddish soil with patchy pieces of green grass making the whole area look like some giant Chia Pet. The winds were calm on these cliffs, not like the hurricane force winds I experienced at Maobitou (read on, I'll get to that later).
 |
| Beam me up Scotty. |
Erlanbi Park and Lighthouse - this is the official most southern point of Taiwan. In a short 500m stroll from the parking lot to lookout point, all you see is a horizon of blue while standing on the strange Star Trek like statue that marks the furthest south you can walk on the island. Be sure to wear bug spray and plenty of it, as the path down to the lookout is swarming with hungry mosquitos and my legs found that out the hard way. A short ways away is the white lighthouse that also overlooks the area. Unfortunately, that was closed off when I went as the Spring Scream festival uses the park as a venue for their concert.
 |
| Sandland Beach |
Sandland Beach - just as it sounds, this is all sand, all over the place with incredible light blue waters gently washing up and dropping off all of the debris from the Bashi Channel. The sand is actually fine pieces of shells and give you a prickly foot massage as you walk towards the water. One should be careful as the same jagged rocks you find all around this area are also present and a misstep could cause for some painful foot injuries.
 |
| Youth Activities Park Square |
Kenting Main Street and the Youth Activities Park - I saved this area closer towards the end of the evening as the night market starts around 6pm just in time for dinner. Before filling my stomach, I felt that there was still some more walking left to do and visited the Youth Activities Park which sits at the end of Kenting main street strip. The Park looks like a village out of some old Chinese kung fu movie. The centre is arranged with various buildings which surround a main square. The place was pretty empty, however, it doubles as a Youth Hostel during this busy season and I could hear some random music and chatter which echos through what appeared to be an abandoned town. The main street was where everyone went for good and cheap eats. My dad, before I left, warned me to avoid the street meat as he's somewhat of a germaphobe. But where else can you get Taiwanese sausages for $0.60 CDN and 3 squid skewers for $3 CDN? While Spring Scream is going on, the strip is transformed into some crazy Mardi Gras type atmosphere where skimpy clothes are the norm and police don't bat an eye to the heavy drinking taking place on the street. Friday and Saturdays are when the street is crammed with people, good luck trying to find anyone and you just have to walk with the flow. After the night market, I retired to my room, slightly drunk and full of food - a good way to end a day.
 |
| The strip on Thursday night. Thankfully, not as busy as the Friday clusterfuck I experienced on Day 2. |
Day 2 and I decided with the overcast day, the best thing to do was to go for a hike around the western peninsula. My hotel concierge thought I was nuts when I told her I was going to walk to Maubitou (the southern most point of the Western peninsula) and White Sands Beach. Frankly, I thought I was crazy after I walked the 15/16 kilometers to reach those two points.
 |
| Maubitou Point |
Maubitou Point - This park is named after a famous rock that sticks out of the water and looked like a cat's head (which is what the park is named after). As expected, a breeze flows from the ocean - however, the breeze was almost hurricane force when I got there. However, while it was brisk enough that it could blow someone off their footing, the wind was not cold as I've experienced with other ocean side visits before. I was able to comfortably walk around in tshirt and shorts, however, the wind did a number on my hair. The park looked more like a snapshot out of an Ireland tourist book and it was so interesting to see the difference between the cliffs of the different peninsulas. The reddish sands of Longpan park were not present here - the soil here were beige, making the rock formations look more like a smaller version of Stonehenge. There was also an interesting bamboo tree that jutted out of the rocks near Maubitou rock.
White Sands Beach - My feet were all bruised and blistered thanks to my poor decision to wear flip flops as
 |
| The neon green seaweed at White Sands Beach |
opposed to sensible walking shoes. At least the therapeutic waters of White Sands beach helped soothe my poor soles, the perfect reward for a day's worth of walking around the southern countryside. The beach is flanked by two groups of rocks that are covered with green algae and seaweed. Unlike the name suggests, White Sands beach doesn't really have white sand, which didn't matter as the view of the beach is just as serene regardless of the actual sand colour. Again, the warm ocean breeze makes for a great companion (thankfully not as forceful as the winds at Maubitou) and you can wade in the waters for hours without feeling cold.
I wrapped up my day with another walk around the Kenting main street strip, mostly for the food. It was crazy busy with loud obnoxious drunken youngsters, so I called it an early night.
My final day in Kenting, I decided to wander around the old city of Hengchun. If the US south had a town with all Chinese people, Hengchun would be the perfect match. The people speak Mandarin with a slight drawl, everyone moves at a slow pace and the small hamlet has a neat little history as a staging point for the Japanese military when it had possession of Taiwan pre-1945. There are two main things to check out in Hengchun - the old Hengchun main street and the old city walls. Main street has old stores that haven't changed for decades. At the end of the street, there's an incredible rock garden with a monument that sits on top of a steep pyramid. You can quickly then walk to the south gate entrance which is the only gate that is fully restored out of the four main entrances of the old wall. This walking tour is quick - about 2 hours and ends near the Hengchun bus terminal. Reward yourself with a small pastry from the bakery that's nearby.
 |
| Hengchun South Gate |
All in all, I had a great time. It was great to travel on my own and test my Mandarin abilities without having to rely on my family to help me translate. This was just a taste of the adventure in store for me as I travel the world - and it was fantastic.
No comments:
Post a Comment