Traditional Tainan

I have two full days to spend in Tainan.  That’s one day more than what I think is necessary but I allowed a spare day in case I was disrupted coming in from Kinmen due to the airport being closed during fog season.

This means that I can do “half-days” instead of the full-day explorations that I often find myself doing.  But despite that, I had woke early so I was out the door at 0730 and had McDonald’s for breakfast.

I was a little templed out after Kinmen but thought I’d explore the city’s temples regardless.  I started off with Tian Tan (Temple of Heaven) then the God of War Temple.  The Grand Matsu Temple should have been few metres away but I found it in a roundabout way after missing the alley that led to it.  The nearby Chihkan Tower didn’t appeal so I flagged it.

It’s certainly a reminder for me to plan trips with lesser sights before highlights.  I was just going through the motion of taking cursory looks at these temples after what I had seen in Kinmen.

Having said that, I did pay attention in the temples to the practices that people employ for decision-making.  There’s the set of two “pua pueh” crescent-shaped blocks which are tossed; how they land determines the god’s response to your question.  If they land on the standing skinny side it means that it is somewhat of miraculous response.  There’s also the fortune sticks (numbered sticks held in a jar) which correspond to a slip held separately which tells your fortune.  However, to use this, you must use the pua pueh blocks first to seek the god’s permission to use the fortune sticks.  I reckon every corporate board room need to invest in a set of pua pueh blocks and fortune sticks!

Tainan historically had five canals coming in from the sea, somewhat like five fingers from the palm.  These are located near Shennong Road which still has some of the houses that backed against the canal.  The canals themselves were filled up during the Japanese era.  It’s supposed to be quite a nice area for wandering, snacking etc but perhaps I was a little early and much of it was closed.

Wandering back near Hayashi Department Store, it had just opened at 1030.  I would describe it as a department store made up of small boutiques selling limited edition handmade items like clothing, ceramics and other homeware.  I took the lift to the rooftop and enjoyed a soya bean jelly.  It came with a choice of toppings with red bean being my favourite.  But the lady said that stewed peanut porridge was their local specialty as a topping.  It was nice but I reckon red bean still tops my choice.

The literature museum nearby was closed so I wandered back to my area via the Goxinga Shrine and Lady Linshui Temple.  The Confucius Temple nearby also made it into my list to tick off but as with a few of these temples, it wasn’t conducive to take pictures.  Some were scaffolded or boarded for restoration while others had unsightly awnings on the facade.

Back in room, I rested before attending to admin from home which had been piling up.  It was nice my room came with an office-style desk.

In the evening, I checked out the City God Temple near my B&B before dinner.