Today was not a good day because it was raining quite heavily for half of the day. It was such a bummer as today's destinations were mostly outdoors and there were more opportunities to take photos. In the end, rain did not stop me from taking photos. It was okay to get wet a little bit during the times when photos were taken as I was hiding my umbrella away so that it would not spoil the photos.
The first stop of the day was Cigu Salt Mountain. It should be actually be called a hill than a mountain. Luckily I managed to take enough photos with and on the mountain before it started to rain. The place has an abandoned theme park vibes with a night market-ish area on one side (which was not open as we went in the morning) and a few small exhibition halls with sculptures which were still under construction.
 |
| Lucky for us there were not many other tourists |
 |
| This reminds me of Tottori Sand Museum |
From here we went to Beimen and the first stop was a shop called "Money Coming" which was famous for being the shoot location of a Taiwanese drama (The Prince Who Turns Into a Frog) in the 2000s. We walked to Beimen Visitor Center. Because of the rain, we only took photos with various paintings on the walls since there were a part with canopy to shelter us from the rain. There are some sculptures around but we did not bother walking towards them to take photo because of the rain. Honestly paintings on the walls are something quite so so. I simply took photos to entertain myself. And hey, the group needed someone to be the first to be so thick-skinned with the photos despite the rain (aka me) before they started to take as well.
Beimen Crystal Church looks so nice in photos but the actual spot building is not that impressive. It is quite small and the actual "church" is closed when there is no actual wedding. Around the area, there are buildings with painted walls (something similar to Beimen Visitor Center but the themes are more about love) for some wedding-themed photos.
 |
| It is just like that... |
The next disappointing destination was Jiangzaijiao Tile-paved Salt Fields. It is simply an open area with plots of salt fields. There are 2 to 3 plots opened for visitors to play around with the salt or build salt sculptures.
We did not have anything planned for the day as we would go to Kaohsiung in the afternoon. On the way back to Tainan city, our driver recommended to stop at Lao Tang Lake Art Village. The place simulates a traditional or perhaps olden days Taiwanese village. The place has been used for shooting of some period dramas as well. The buildings feel more like a run down village rather than a preserved tourist destination so I kinda have mixed feelings. Even the toilet has no urinals and I was just peeing against a wall. The only fun thing to do here was taking the boat across the lake. We had to pull the strings attached to the boat to 'drive' the boat.
 |
| The other string (the one I am not holding) is connected to some pulley system so it is not purely muscle strength to pull the boat :p |
Just as we were done, the rain also stopped. We went back to Tainan city for quick lunch before continuing to Kaohsiung. The driver recommended a quick stop at Chimei Museum. Initially we declined but after seeing how crazy we were with photos today, he insisted that we would be having fun here as well. Lol.. he was right. I have to admit that the place is nice but it feels like imitation of the garden at Schonbrunn Palace in Austria.
 |
| Apollo Fountain (which is like Neptune Fountain in Schonbrunn) |
Behind the fountain, we had to walk through a bridge before reaching the museum building. The bridge is named Olympus Bridge and statues of Greek gods and goddesses are lining both sides of the bridges. Again, it feels similar to one of the pathways in the garden of Schonbrunn Palace. Suprisingly, some of the sculptures here are in full nudity lol.
Apollo and Athena
Upon arrival at Kaohsiung, one thing that caught my attention is the many schools (primary, secondary, high schools) along the way since when we entered the city until we reached the hotel. The schools are so big and it makes me wonder how many students they have. They are even bigger than my schools back in Jakarta.
The hotel blows my mind. I was initially skeptical since the name is F Hotel but this hotel is actually A star. Lol. I get a corner room so it is so big. The most mind blowing thing is the bathroom that has a window to the room. I usually do not bother to waste time to soak in bathtub but with such an 'atas' bathroom, I also want to experience soaking while watching TV (although I did not know how to change channel and ended up watching a tennis match).
 |
| From the door, there is an alley leading to this window before I have to turn right to the 'actual' bed room |
 |
| The huge window separating the bedroom and the bathroom |
 |
| Yes I did soak and had my bubble bath hahaha... |
We took a taxi to go to Carrefour to shop for souvenirs since tonight is already my last day in Taiwan. A friend bought shoes and I offered to use my card and take her cash since I think I am running out of cash. The famous night market is not open on Monday so we went to an area with street foods and that marks the end of the day.
I have to pack for my flight back tomorrow T_T I am tired and I regret that I have to leave so early. I want to enjoy this atas hotel at least another one night.
No comments:
Post a Comment