Category: Nantou

Formosan Aboriginal Culture Village
From Wenwu Temple, we went on to the nearby Formosan Aboriginal Culture Village theme park (ä¹æ—æ–‡åŒ–æ‘). The large theme park is dedicated to preserve the cultures and traditions of aboriginal tribes (åŽŸä½æ°‘) in Taiwan. Native villages were reconstructed and Taiwanese aborigines employed to showcase their tribes skills and handicrafts.
As Formosan Aboriginal Culture Village is situated deep in the mountain area, our bus driver brought us to Sun Moon Lake Ropeway for a panoramic ride via its Cable Car/ Gondola.
Saw this very interesting mozzie indicator at the carpark.
We didnâ€™t have to wait long for our turn early in the morning. Also finally see the promising turquoise water up in the air.
Even if culture and history are not your things, fret not, because the thing that caught our attention from far is this â€“ UFO ride.
Yup, thereâ€™s actually an amusement park in Formosan Aboriginal Culture Village. Hmmâ€¦I fail to see the linkage between a cultural village and amusement park but I suppose the mix of attractions appeal to different people. And yes, we did get our adrenaline rush on the UFO ride and actually ended up spending quite a bulk of our time around the amusement park later half of the day…
Thereâ€™s also a European garden in the vast theme parkâ€¦did not explore much of it though as we wanted to catch the culture show at Formosan Aborigines Square â€“ Ritual Theatre.
Cultural show at Formosan Aboriginal Culture Village
After some fast walk, we managed to reach Formosan Aborigines Square – Ritual Theatre (ç¥å…¸æœƒæ‰€) just in time for the show performance by the aborigines.
According to Formosan Aboriginal Culture Village website, thereâ€™s only one showtime per day. The aborigines showcased some rituals, songs and dances of different tribes, while the rather animated emcees will give out some souvenir as prizes for those who answer his quizzes correctly.
Aborigines villages
We went around the aborigines villages located near the theatre after the show has ended. Each indigenous group have their own area that contains reconstructed houses and wax figures. There are also activities by the aborigines like dancing, sculpting, weaving and handicrafts making.
The chilling enemiesâ€™ heads display rackâ€¦imagines if this is the real McCoyâ€¦
And we went back to end the day at the amusement park before taking the gondola ride back.
STAY: Sun Moon Lake Teachers Hostel review
The night was spent at Sun Moon Lake Teachers Hostel (æ—¥æœˆæ½æ•™å¸«æœƒé¤¨). Our tatami rooms come rather basic but are big in size and have a nice view of the lake.
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What are your thoughts about Formosan Aboriginal Culture Village? Leave a comment and share it with me.
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May 21, 2015
Wenwu Temple of Sun Moon Lake
Moving on to Wenwu Temple (æ–‡æ¦å»Ÿ) located at Sun Moon Lake the next day. The majestic temple sits on a mountainside, north of Sun Moon Lake, was built according to the landscape. Wenwu temple is known to be largest in the area and itâ€™s not hard to tell that. We were greeted by the towering dark green Memorial arch entrance followed by a huge square area. In it, two giant red stone lions flanked the steps to the temple halls.
In Chinese, æ–‡ relates to scholarly and cultural pursuits while æ¦ refers to military knowledge and martial arts. Hence, the temple has three halls dedicated to the deities like God of Literature (æ–‡æ˜Œå¸å›), Confucius (å”å), Yue Fei (å²³é£ž) and Guan Yu (å…³ç¾½).
The Martial Sage Hall (æ¦åœ£æ®¿) which house Yue Fei and Guan Yu seem to be the largest hall. There are nice stone carvings like the two dragons chasing the pearl (åŒé¾™æŠ¢ç ) near the steps in front of the hall.
And other carvings like these two depict scenarios during the Three Kingdom era, ä¸‰é¡¾èŒ…åº and ä¸‰è‹±æˆ˜å•å¸ƒ.
The imposing Martial Sage Hall is surrounded by awesome work of art.
Outside the hall places Guan Yuâ€™s weapon of choice – Green Dragon Crescent Blade (é’é¾™åƒæœˆåˆ€).
The carvings of nine dragons outside Hall of Achievement (å¤§æˆæ®¿) which house Confucius are less fearsome than the one at Martial Sage Hall, but equally impressive. The hallâ€™s dÃ©cor is also simpler with an unmistakeable calming effect.
And the best part is the roof area of Wenwu temple which offers a spectacular view of Sun Moon Lake. But sadly, the gloomy weather that morning kinda dampened my mood as the famous turquoise water is nowhere to be seenâ€¦
Another interesting thing about the temple is the stairs that lead all the way down to the pier below. Formerly known as the Stairway to Heaven, people used it to reach the temple from the pier when roads have yet to be constructed. Itâ€™s now redone into 366 steps which symbolize 366 days in a leap year and lined with golden wind chimes. I hope to take the Stairway to Heaven perhaps from the pier when I revisit Wenwu Temple in future.
Right across Wenwu temple is where the famous Sun Moon Lake stone marker is located. People will come here to take a mandatory picture/selfie/wefie with it. And the viewing platform allows one to take in a good surrounding view of Sun Moon Lake. If not for the gloomy weatherâ€¦oh well.
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What are your thoughts about Wenwu Temple? Leave a comment and share it with me.
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May 18, 2015