Today had been quite a busy day starting with the Forts and European tradings posts at Anping this morning and then exploring the many elaborate temples in the Chihkan Cultural Zone. I was now going to move thru the Five Canals Cultural Zone which which close to my hotel so I could wind down for the day. There are still three more 'cultural zones' I would be exploring tomorrow.A few blocks north of my hotel is the Water Temple Fairy Market and Temple. This starte...

Having explored the colonial past along the coast I was now ready to explore Tainan's rich cultural heritage back in the town centre. Conveniently the city has divided the centre into five 'cultural zones' complete with walking maps posted regularly throughout each to guide visitors around the places to visit in eachI was to begin with the Chihkan Cultural Zone, named after the Chihken Tower. This was originally a Dutch Fort but was captured and all that remains ...

Today was an exciting day exploring the ancient capital of Tainan. Not only is Tainan rich in historic treasures it was the site of a European settlement so has two fortresses and trading outposts.After lots of exploring the last few days I was able to sleep in and have a long hot shower before heading out for the day. The first challenge was finding the bus stop. It was meant to be just a block away but it was hard to make out anything that looked like a bus sto...

Having achieved everything I needed to today all I needed to do now was to head to Tainan back via Taichung. Tainan is the ancient capital of Taiwan similar to Kyoto in Japan and a wealth of historical treasures.I managed to jump on the 2.45 bus from Puli to Taichung for $135 TWD ($4.50). When I reached Taichung they sold me a bus to Tainan at 4.48 which was over an hours wait.Wandering by the bus terminal I found so many food stands. I had been looking for food ...

The highlight for today was a visit to Chung Tai Chan Monastery, the largest monastery in Taiwan. Private tours are only allowed by reservation which need to be faxed and confirmed 3-5 days beforehand. Also the Monastery can only be reached by private car, tour bus, or taxi.The bus to Puli from Sun Moon Lake was $116 TWD ($3.80) and took about 30 mins. I had been told by the tourist info desk that a taxi to the Monastery from the Puli station would be $200 TWD ($...