On Mar 21, 2024 we docked at Kaohsiung, Taiwan (Republic of China). Both Communist mainland China and Taiwan consider themselves to be the Republic of China. Mainland China is referred to as the People’s Republic of China. Taiwan is referred to as the Republic of China.

Kaohsiung is the second largest city in Taiwan (founded during the Ming Dynasty, it’s among Taiwan’s oldest cities) and the third largest container terminal in the world after Hong Kong and Singapore. It was an important facility for the Dutch in the 17th century and continues to be a major international trading port. Kaohsiung is on the Southwest coast of the island of Taiwan.

We took an excursion that took us to a number of different sites in the Kaohsiung area. The first was Lotus Pond for a look at Taiwan’s gift for synthesizing old and new. The pagodas, pavilions and temples around the lake and in the neighborhood all are built with classical architectural features, yet the oldest dates back only to 1953. Among the places we saw were the Spring and Autumn Pavilion, a Taoist complex, and the Tiger and Dragon Pagoda – a seven-story pagoda tower with yellow walls, red pillars and orange towers.

We then went to the Chi Ming Tang Temple of Enlightenment, which is a four-story Taoist shrine. The interior is filled with depictions of Taoist deities, including gods, major hsitoric figures, and Confucius himself.

On our way back through the city to our port, we stopped at the Kaohsiung National Stadium, which was built in the early 2000’s and was the main site of the 2009 World Games. The stadium was designed in a dragon-shaped style.

As we headed back to our ship we both expressed amazement at how beautiful and clean this city was compared to many in Indonesia and the Philippines.