The fastest way to travel between Taipei and Kaohsiung is to take the fast train on the Taiwan High Speed Rail (THSR) system. It is a 345 km route linking the two most populated cities on the western portion of Taiwan, namely Nangang and Zuoying. Functioning at an operating speed of 300 kph the trains traverse the farthest points in 94 minutes. The line is standard gauge of 4 feet 8 and half inches, electrified with 25 KV overhead catenary wire. There are 12 stations on the THSR network from North to South.
With the intention of taking a train to arrive early at Kaohsiung I checked out of the hotel before 6.30 am with packed breakfast of fruits and bun. The MRT station was almost deserted at that hour and in less than 10 minutes I reached the Taipei Main Station. Kind staff politely directed me to the THSR counter where I bought a ticket for the 7.31 am fast train, which would take me to the southernmost station on the system, Zuoying at 9.05 am. A seat in an unreserved car of the train cost me TWD 1490. I reached Platform 1B well in time to head one of the queues for Car 10. Non-reserved passengers were to board Cars 10 to 12. Passengers lined up without a fuss, a feature in Taiwan, be it at a train or bus station, elevators or lifts.
When the train arrived two minutes ahead of schedule there was no pushing or shouting. Passengers took their turn to board and place their luggage in the appointed overhead racks. The Car was full, and had a few standees too. Each standard Car accommodates 80 sitting passengers. Within a few minutes the train pulled into Banqiao station, in New Taipei, where more passengers boarded. I felt a tinge of pity for the standees as the train would hit top speed of 300 kph. I need not have worried, for the suspension of the train and the continuously welded track made it one of the smoothest and most comfortable train rides I have ever undertaken in my life.
The train barely moved from side to side or jerked at an expansion joint. The only time I felt a slight tug was when another high-speed train passed by on the adjacent track. Only the Taipei portion of the THSR system is underground. One can appreciate the industrial and agricultural growth of the country during the journey. The speed of the train is displayed in the Car and so is the weather forecast. A stewardess brought around food and beverages, if one wished to buy.
The train arrived a few minutes ahead of the appointed time of 9.05 am at Zuoying THSR station. The journey was so relaxing and comfortable that I did not feel that I had travelled all of 290 km. Exiting from the THSR station I took the Red Line MRT from Zuoying to Formosa Boulevard and changed to the Orange Line. Two stops later came my destination station, Yanchengpu MRT station. When I exited the station Google Maps started behaving erratically and I had to seek directions from someone working in an office. He went through the map on his phone and asked me to follow a particular road for the 300 meters to my Hotel.
As I started walking in that direction Google Maps on my phone started showing the hotel in the opposite direction. When I stood there perplexed for a moment the guy who had given me directions came running to me, profusely apologized and asked me to follow the directions now being shown correctly on my phone. In a short while I reached the hotel reception and was told that I would have to wait till 4 pm to occupy the room. Left with no other option, I spent some time in the hotel lobby charging the phones and drinking a cup of hot black coffee.
Less than a km away from the hotel is the touristy Pier-2 Art Center. A few steps away from the centre, across the LRT tracks, is the iconic Great Harbor Bridge, which is the first horizontally rotating landscape bridge in Taiwan and the longest cross-port rotating bridge in Asia. Its horizontal operation can be completed within 3 minutes. The pristine white Bridge spans 110 meters across the Love River and has a bridge width ranging from 5 to 11 meters. The bridge design is in the image of a shell and dolphin. At the center point of the bridge There is an observation deck at the centre point of the bridge where visitors get gorgeous views of the urban waterfront of Kaohsiung Port.
The erstwhile dock warehouses have been refurbished into boutique shops and eating joints. Along the walk from the dock depots to the Takao Railway Museum is the Harbour Museum. On display in the museum at the time were perceptive paintings by young children. The budding artists had given vent to their imagination and some of them surprised with their detail. The weather was hot and humid and it slowly started taking a toll on my walking tour.
When I reached the Hamasen LRT station I saw what I thought were relics of a bygone railway era of the area. Since I could not see Takao Railway Museum written anywhere, I asked a lady official of the LRT for directions to the Museum. It was evident that she was lost, but she told me that it was about 15
minutes’ walk away.
Fortunately, I ignored her and walked past the LRT station, and there in front of me was the entrance to the Museum. The two ladies minding the Museum were most helpful and I went around the museum with my eyes peeled. A railwayman's curiosity had turned to nostalgia. My thoughts went back more than four decades to the model room of the Railway Staff College, Vadodara and my first posting in Southern Railway in Mysore.
With the help of one of the ladies in the Museum, I took a bus with the intention of visiting the historic British Consulate in Takao. It turned out to be a very long ride, unintentionally, because I missed the stop where I should have hopped off and sat in the bus while it took a full round of the National Sun-Yet-Sen University, one of the six national research universities in the country.
I was able to appreciate the large campus and its awesome setting overlooking the Kaohsiung Harbor. The NSYSU campus is surrounded on three sides by mountains and also faces the open waters of the Taiwan Strait. The Sizihwan beach is located right on campus which makes the university campus a very attractive location in Taiwan. All this tour for free till I got off at the right stop on the return trip of the bus for the Takao British Consulate.
Takao is the original name of Kaohsiung. After the treaty of Tianjin between the China, British and French governments in 1858 for foreign trade in Taiwan the British opened the full-fledged Consulate in Takao in 1865 overlooking the harbour. The magnificent building has been restored and maintained as a tourist complex with a restaurant and souvenir shop. One can also take a historical tour of the complex and get a feel of what life and times were in a bygone era.
A long walk and a short bus ride from the British Consulate in Takao took me to the Sunfong Temple. With over 300 years of history behind the temple it was moved to the current location in the 1970s. The red lanterns and the exquisite paintings make it a must visit place in Kaohsiung.
Situated at the Formosa Boulevard MRT station, the Dome of Light was created by renowned artist Narcissus Quagliata. The dome is the world's largest public art installation made from individual pieces of colored glass. The Dome of Light took nearly four years to complete. The colored glass was shipped from Germany for installation at the station. The dome is 30 meters in diameter and covers an area of 660 square meters. It is a favorite with tourists and a whole lot of Chinese tourists were quite vocal in expressing their admiration of the masterpiece.
The Hou Yi shopping district near the Kaohsiung Main railway station is known for clothes and accessories and leather goods. Besides the shop till you drop experience, the Umbrella Street is a major tourist draw. Hundreds of colorful umbrellas are strung above the street that gives it a very unique look.
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