Chapter One
Introduction
Taiwan is an island situated in East Asia in the Western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. Taiwan is called Formosa, which literally meaning a beautiful island. Tainan City, a city in southern Taiwan, is the fourth largest after Taipei, Kaohsiung, and Taichung but the first developed city in Taiwan.
Tainan City was established as the capital of the Taiwan under the Qing Dynasty until 1887, when the Qing Dynasty established Taipei as the new provincial capital. Tainan has been historically regarded as the oldest cities in Taiwan, and its former name, Tayouan (大員), has been claimed to be the source of the name Taiwan. It is also one of Taiwan's cultural capitals, as it houses the first Confucian school–temple, built in 1665, and countless historical monuments. Meanwhile the city is also famous for its local snack foods and night markets. It claims more Buddhist and Taoist temples than any other city in Taiwan.
Tainan City is developed the earliest and has the most historic relics in Taiwan Even though Tainan City does not have lots of department stores or shopping malls like Taipei, or an international airport like Kaohsiung, Tainan City is still prominent for its historic heritage features, which explains why the city has been known as the ancient cultural capital of Taiwan.
Since its long history, rich historic heritages, diverse local foods and traditional culture, Tainan City is very unusual compared with other major cities in Taiwan. Especially, people in Tainan City are friendly, hospitable and kind. Although it has 780,000 in population, which make it the fourth-largest city, Tainan City still has the feel like a sleepy town with to visit.
The world becomes a global village right now. People have more opportunities to learn other countries’ culture and life styles in the world. In recent years, more and more tourists from other countries have come to Tainan City to experience the mystery of the old city. Therefore, the purpose of this project was to give a whole picture of Tainan City to visitors and let them have further understanding about popular historic heritages, prominent culture activities and traditional local foods in Tainan City.
Chapter Two
A Brief Introduction to Tainan City
2.1 History and Location
Tainan City, is located on the rich and fertile Jianan plain in the southwest of Taiwan, with a population of about 750,000 people. The total area of the city is 175.645 km2, which shares 0.49% of the area of all of Taiwan. The Yanshwei River penetrates the North and Annan districts, running from east to west and entering the Taiwan Strait in Anping. After the restoration of Taiwan, Tainan city became a provincial city.
Tainan City has a straight coastline in the west next to the Taiwan Strait. Landscapes along this nearly 20km long coastline are manifold. The northern coastline of the city is adjacent to the Sihcao wetlands in the northwest of Yanshwei River. As the area is covered with a rare mangrove forest, it has become the paradise of birds. Statistics indicated that over one million birds stay in Sihcao every year, including over 20 endangered species of migratory birds from other parts of Asia and Australia and over half of the 400 species or so native wild birds.
The Anping Port in the south of Yanshwei River has developed well to be the Anping International Port and a deep-sea fishing port. Meanwhile, the expansion of Anping Port to the Tainan Canal connect the modern structure with the old times memory.
With the realignment of Tainan Canal, the canal water is clearer, the banks of the canal are more beautiful, and environment protection is more emphasized. In addition to restoring its transportation function, various cultural activities along the canal are organized in order to develop the unique cultural image of the canal. Therefore, Tainan Canal has become a cultural and recreational spot for locals, and it recalled the beautiful memory to local citizens.
Moreover, the fabulous Golden Coast is located in the south of Tainan City. It has a flat and extensive beach of about 2 to 3km long. The blue sky, clear water and golden beach have attracted many visitors playing and listening to the waves there. As the beach is extensive, a compound recreational center was built. It combines swimming, bird watching, fishing, camping and accommodation functions in the area to provide another different option from ancient remains to tourists.
2.2 City Flowers
The flame tree flower is also called the flame tree which is a kind of deciduous tree. It was imported from Madagascar to Taiwan in 1987. Its flowers are so showy like a phoenix spreading its wings as show in Figure 1. Then it was assigned as the city flower of Tainan in correspondence to the city’s name-Phoenix City.
2.3 Climate
Because Tainan City is located in the south of Tropic of Cancer, it is easily influenced by seacoasts and warm currents. It has a sub-tropical maritime climate characterized by year-round high humidity and temperatures, with a rainy season (April to September) and a dry season (October to March). The weather of four seasons in Tainan City is described as follows.
Spring is a good time to visit Tainan City. Temperatures range from warm to hot, 220C - 270C. The spring in Tainan City is comfortable for residents, especially when the gentle breeze blows across a clear spring sky. People often take off coats while walking on the streets of Tainan City during the spring.
However, the summer is not a comfortable season to visit Tainan City. The climate is hot and sultry. July, the hottest month, can bring temperatures to 320C - 370C. In particular, many special festivals celebrating the diverse history and customs of Tainan take place during the summer. The festivals are well worth enduring the hot summers of Tainan City. Just remember to use sunscreen and have an umbrella or hat to shield you from the midday sun.
Winter temperatures in January range from 18.50C to 20.50C, and January is the coldest month of the year. It means that the fall autumn and winter are fine seasons to visit Tainan City. The northeastern trade-winds carry storms that bring windy and wet weather. Even with the cooler and wetter climate, most people find the fall and winter of Tainan City very comfortable. Nearly two-thirds of the world's black-faced spoonbill herons migrate to the lagoons in Chihgu's wetlands during the fall and winter. The black-faced spoonbill herons are protected migrant birds that grace Tainan City. Chihgu is a small suburb within a 20 minute drive of Tainan City renowned by birdwatchers for its migratory birds during the fall and winter.
2.4 Transportation
Tainan City Station is a major stop on the Western Line, with direct connections to major in Taiwan Taipei, Kaohsiung, Taichung, Hsinchu and Keelung. There are also local trains to closer destinations. As for the High-Speed Rail (HSR), Tainan City HSR Station is located just outside the city itself, in Gueiren township. Using the High Speed Rail system travellers can reach Taipei in less than ninety minutes.
To improve the communication with HSR station and reduce the outlay for MRT system, a new rail branch line is being built from Gueiren to Tainan City, and some new train stations are also planned to be added in the future.
Regarding the highways in Tainan City, National Highway Nos. 1 and 3 run close by and connect via local highways to the city itself. Tainan City has a total of 142.9km of highways, including national, local and rural highways. Besides that, Tainan Airport is located in the South District of the city. It is a domestic airport, currently operating flights to Kinmen and Makung.
Chapter Three
Historic Sites of Tainan City
Everywhere in Tainan City you can see structures with an air of the past. According to the definition from the Cultural Heritage Preservation Law, historic sites are “ancient building, traditional settlements, old towns and streets, and other historic remains that contain historic and cultural values, but have yet to be designated as ancient monuments”. There are many well known historic sites in Tainan City, such as Anping Fort, Eternal Golden Castle, Temple of the five Concubines, Chihkan Tower, Confucius Temple and so forth. Each of historic sites has different features, be introduced as follows.
3.1 Anping Fort
Anping Fort, is the most ancient fortress in Taiwan. It was built in 17th century when the Dutch occupied Taiwan, and it was alled "Fort Zeelandia" by the Dutch. It had been the administrative center of the Dutch regime, and the heart of trading. The pattern of the building was originally constructed in square inner fortress and rectangle outer walls. The fort was renamed as Anping to commemorate his home town when Koxinga (Cheng Cheng-Kung) had driven the Dutch out of Taiwan in 1661. Consequently, Fort Zeelandia was also known as " Taiwan Fort " or " King's Fort ", nicknamed Anping Fort.
During the Japanese occupation, the Dutch style buildings in inner fortress were completely destroyed. A square red-bricked step platform was constructed with a western style house on the platform. It was being served as dormitory for Customs officials, where the memorial hall is located now. After Restoration of Taiwan, it was named Anping Fort, and was registered to be the first call historic relics. Now, it has become an attraction for tourists.
3.2 Eternal Golden Castle
In order to prevent the coast and the island from Japanese invasions, Eternal Golden Castle, designed by a French architect, was built in 1876 by the famous Qing official Shen Baozhen . It is a first-class cultural heritage, around 3 hectares. This castle was designed into a square platform and was provided cannons at the corners. The outer wall is approximately 2 meters high and is surrounded by a water canal. Arched gates were built with red bricks and are 5-meter high.
Under the fortress, it had granary, kitchen and ammunition depot. The training site is in the center of this castle, the water canal is used to separate from invasions. There was a wooden drawbridge across the water canal and usually it was used for transportation of supplies. When emergency, they lifted up the drawbridge so that the enemies could not enter the castle. Nowadays, Eternal Golden Castle is a beautiful and quiet scenic spot for tourists.
3.3 Chikanlou（The Chamber of Red Hill）
Tainan Chikanlou was built by the Dutch in 1653. Originally it was called Provintia, meaning eternity in Dutch. Now it is called the building "Chikanlou", "Fanzailou" or "Honmaolou". Although Chikanlou had gone through the Ming Dynasty, the Qing Dynasty and the Japanese Colonization Period, it still maintains its original look.
Chikanlou has been an administrative center since the Dutch occupation period. In 1661 when the Ming general, Cheng Chengkung, repelled the Dutch, Provintia was changed to be Cheng's mansion. In the early stage of the Qing Dynasty when Taichiang River was still running, the tides could reach Chikanlou directly. "The sunset in Chikanlou" was one of the eight famous scenes in Taiwan. There are nine sets of stone turtles carrying steles in front of Chikanlou. They were made in the Qing Dynasty and removed from elsewhere to be located here. The legend said that the stone turtle was one of the dragon's nine sons. It shifted into a turtle because it loved to endure heavy objects. There is also a stone horse with broken legs. It was said that the stone horse's legs were broken by residents because it shifted into a monster-shape at night and harassed the residents.
During the Japanese colonization period, Chikanlou was changed to be army hospital. After Taiwan was restored to R.O.C., there were some restoration and repair. The wooden structure was changed into steel and concrete structure. The main entrance was also changed as the look of Chikanlou today.
3.4 Confucius Temple
Tainan Confucius Temple was the oldest Confucius temple in Taiwan. It was the highest government-run school in the days prior to the late Qing Dynasty for feudal princes. Upon arriving at the Tainan Confucius Temple, the Stone Arch inscribed “Higher Learning” is the first thing tourists will see. It was the entrance to the school. The central beam is gracefully decorated with two dragons and picturesque figurines.
The Ta Cheng Gate is the most glamorous gate in the Tainan Confucius Temple. In contrast to other buildings, it bears no couplets on its columns to avoid offending Confucius. All door panels have 54 nails on either side for a total of 108-the highest form of respect reserved for Confucius. The shining sun on the roof, the horses highlighting the 2 roof edges, as well as the pair of hornless-dragon ridge-end ornaments are all worth admiring. Quite a number of historical artifacts are well preserved here, including records carved in stone, tablets presented by different national leaders, and ritual and musical instruments from the early Qing up to the present.