Asia

[Visited: October 2024]

After a short taxi ride from the airport, we arrive at Tianhou temple in Magong, the main town of Penghu islands. We walk under the yellow and orange lanterns across a small square, go up the stone stairs and enter the oldest Mazu temple in Taiwan. Just behind us, someone puts a wooden board across the entrance. We walk around the temple and admire the wooden and stone carvings, the colourful details, the worn off sculpted details. Then, an older man tells us that the temple is closing, so it is time to go. We walk some of the narrow streets of the old part of town, until the sun sets and it is time to find a place to stay. We see somewhere we like, ask the neighbouring cake shop to call, and within minutes, are talking to the sweet owner. After a local dinner, we enjoy walking the narrow and deserted streets back to our new home.
The next morning, we take a car to explore the islands. We head straight to the place where once a Dutch fort stood, at the far end of Penghu main island. It was located on Snakehead, a sliver of land jutting out into the bay and thus a strategic position. It was the first western fort in Taiwan, and the Dutch dismantled it after two years, in 1624, to use the basalt rocks for the construction of Fort Zeelandia in Tainan which I had visited eight months before. From the fort, we drive to Fenggui blowholes, which turn out to be not so spectacular during low tide. We see waves going into the black rocks, and can only imagine the effect when the force of the sea pushes the water high up in the air. We continue by driving further east and checking out the beach of Shili. We try to be smart and drive a small road further east, only to end up at a military base. The soldiers stop us at the gate when we try to drive out, check our documents, and let us go. We now take the longer road to Shanshui beach. This seems like a very attractive beachside town. We still have so many more places we want to see, that we take a short stroll on the fine yellow sand and move on.
We visit Aimen beach and Lintou Park, where we find a collection of well executed sand sculptures. Driving further north, we arrive at Kuibishan geopark. At low tide, you can walk to islets off shore, but the tide is high now, and the sea looks pretty rough. We watch the waves crash, see a whale made of trash fished out of the sea, and walk to Kuibishan beach. We are off to a slightly longer ride now, to a 300 year old banyan tree whose branches are supported by a concrete structure. It must be among the biggest trees I have ever seen. We try the cactus ice cream for which Penghu is famous, before crossing the bridge to Xiyu island. We first drive to Whale Cave on Xiaomen island. The wind is fierce here, and we struggle walking towards the basalt arch whose hole is said to have been created by a whale. We watch the violent waves of the sea crashing on the rocky shore, the wind blowing off water in a spectacular and natural show. Further south, we find the ancient houses of Erkan with its cobble stone streets, and nearby, the basalt columns of Daguoye. We then make it all the way to the end of the island where we find the Yuwengdao lighthouse in scaffolding. A short stop at other basalt formations is the last one before driving back to Magong town. The next morning, we go for another walk in town, past the old city gate and Guanyin temple with its old bell, across the rainbow bridge to the giant Buddha statue along the coast. Our last walk takes us through narrow streets, back to Zhongyang Old Street where we stayed. We would have stayed, but unfortunately, it is time to leave.

Around the World in 80 Clicks

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Penghu Islands (Taiwan)

Penghu Islands > Taiwan > Asia

[Visited: October 2024]

Around the World in 80 Clicks