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Sightseeing and Attractions

Taichung City

HOW TO GET THERE
 

Taichung is the third-largest metropolitan area on Taiwan.It enjoys a yearly average temperature of 22.4 degrees Celsius and a mild spring-like climate all year round. Taichung city is known as an educational and cultural center. Its commercial disirict,abundant cultural activities, and the warmth of its residents make Taichung an attractive city. The history of Taichung's development spans over 300 years. The Taichung City Archive displays a Chinese- language exhibition and explanation of the area's development, Introductory pamphlets in Chinese and English are avaiable.


FOREST PLEASURE GROUND

• Dakeng Forest Recreation Area
  The Dakeng Forest Recreation Area, located in suburban Taichung, has one of the best preserved natural environments in the Taichung area. In addition to eight hiking trails that wind through its forested hills, it also encompasses a variety of recreational facilities and tourist farming areas. Its combination of spectacular natural scenery and recreational facilities in the same place makes the Dakeng Forest Recreation Area one of the best places in the Taichung vicinity for mountain hiking and quiet relaxation.
   

AMUSEMENT PARK

• Dongshan Park
  Historical Background : Dongshan Park lies in Dakeng and the theme of the park is Kui Lin Shan Shui and Lung Pan Kuan Yin.Dongshan Park combines natural environment and the art of gardening. There are over 10 amusement facilities. In early 2000,Dongshan Park discovered the first hot spring well in Taichung. Now the hot spring is used in the park spa and hot spring pools. Dongshan Park is also the first amusement park in Taiwan that provides hot spring service.
  Cultural Highlights : Lung Pan Kuan Yin features traditional Chinese atmosphere. Dongshan Park has increased several recreational facilities in recent years. The newly developed spa and hot spring are suitable for family visits. Unlike other hot spring and spa, Dongshan Park also has amusement facilities, swimming pool and the pool-side slides.
   

• Taichung Encore Garden
  The 30-hectare Encore Garden is a pleansing patchwork of carefully designed European and Japanese-style gardens. Visitors can relax in this splendid setting, while enjoying a number of special attractions,including the "water dance." This eyecatching display is the main feature of the park and is famous thrughout Taiwan. Leave the Sun Yatsen Freeway at the Chungching interchange, take Wenshin Road to Hengkeng Alley and on to the park.
   

• Taichung Folk Park
  The Folk Hall in the Taichung Folk Park was built in the southern Fukien-style of a traditional "U-shaped compound." The plaza is used for various cultural and folk performances. Artists- in-residence give displays of dough figure-making, paper-cutting, bamboo weaving, and other traditional skills. On festivals and holidays, the park comes alive with Chinese acrobatic displays, dragon and lion dances, top-spinning, and other activities. Visitors are advised to leave the Sun Yatsen Freeway at the Daya Chungching interchange and take Wenshin Road to the park.
   

NIGHT MARKET / SNACK

• Jingming 1 Street
  Historical Background : Jingming 1 Street is the official pedestrian-only street in Taichung. Along the street are boutique shops, coffee shops, restaurants and galleries. There are outdoor concerts or exhibition on holidays. The street combines the functions of shopping, recreation and art. No vehicles are allowed to enter the street and coffee shops provide many outdoor seats. The street was elected the model street in 1995 and it has become a tourist attraction in Taichung.
  Cultural Highlights : In the hectic daily life, Jingming 1 Street provides an artistic and recreational space for city dwellers. Sit on an outdoor seat and enjoy a nice cup of coffee. The street presents an atmosphere just like the Champs Elysee in Paris.
   

GENERAL

• Dakeng Forest Recreation Area
  The Dakeng Forest Recreation Area, located in suburban Taichung, has one of the best preserved natural environments in the Taichung area. In addition to eight hiking trails that wind through its forested hills, it also encompasses a variety of recreational facilities and tourist farming areas. Its combination of spectacular natural scenery and recreational facilities in the same place makes the Dakeng Forest Recreation Area one of the best places in the Taichung vicinity for mountain hiking and quiet relaxation.
   

• Dakeng Scenic Area
  Historical Background : Ta Keng Parkland locates in Beitun section in Taichung City. It belongs to Dakeng cordillera. The place name Dakeng came from the dwellers that lived here in the early years. They gathered in a width of three hundred fifty meters wide pit valley. This named the place here. The people who came here to create the land at the beginning were mostly from the kinsfolk of Ke Chia in Sinshe Town in todays Taichung. And earlier than that, this place belonged to the Ping Pu clans gathering place. There are more than thirty kinds of fallen leaf trees. During the change season between the dry wet seasons, you can see the view of the golden leaves covered everywhere on the ground. It is the same as the great autumns fallen season. They contain the highest quality for the people to have the vacation. It is also a place for people to rest, play and forest showing.
  Cultural Highlights : With the area of about 3300 hectare, Dakeng Parkland has eight hiking paths. The earliest number one to five footways was built in the Chinese Year of 69th. The total length of the footways is 11.87 kilometers. The number six to number eight footways with the total length of 6.59 kilometers. They were built in the Chinese Year of the 79th. There are kiosks among the footways. Overlooking form the top makes your heart feel comfortable and make you lose every sadness. With the imitate build of beautiful landscape in Kweilin in China. There are many kinds of playing equipments in the park and the SPA equipments for the tourist to enjoy the SPA besides playing. The scenery in the Encore Garden is the European style. It has a name of Singapore the second Hoping these gardens can make tourists all having a good time.
   

• Folklore Park
  Historical Background : To enable the general public to understand more about the life style of their ancestors so that the younger generations can pay tribute to their past heritage, the Taichung City Council had built the Folklore Park at Lu Shun Road in Taichung City in July 1984. This is the first Folklore Park built in Taiwan. The whole park which occupies a total area of 1.6 hectare was officially opened in March 1990 and is full of folk heritage of the people living in the coastal Fujian area at the end Ching Dynasty and early post-Ching period. In the park, the main features are the Folklore Hall, the Folklore and Cultural Heritage Hall and the Folk Arts Hall. They are further enhanced by the Folk Arts Square and the Folklore Square. In addition, in the garden therein are seasonal flowers, artificial scenery and visitors can enjoy the views of the lotus ponds or appreciate the traditional Chinese-style buildings in the pavilions, steps, huts and houses. The basement of the Folklore Hall, an ancient style construction, is for exhibition purpose. All the exhibits there have their unique historical backgrounds, showing the explorative spirit and the daily life of the early Taiwan inhabitants. In the Folk Arts Hall, during folk festivals, there are cerebration activities, conferences on folklore, tutorial and study meetings as well as performance on local arts and skills take place . This is the spot which provides visitors, apart from enjoying the scenery, an opportunity to recall and reminiscent the works of their past generations. . The Folklore Hall is a traditional 4-house combined construction. It is a true representation of the life style in that era. The basement of the hall is the show room. There one can find various farming tools, daily utensils and the costumes of different aboriginal tribesmen.
  Cultural Highlights : In the middle room of the Folklore Hall there exhibit the Worship Table, aiZhi Chairs, Octagon table, Chinese calligraphy and paintings as well as worshipping items. By the two sides are bed rooms and rest rooms . There one can find the bed made of red wood, the make-up table and mahogany chairs. The study room is at the east wing and on its walls hang a lot of Chinese calligraphy and paintings, indeed making the whole place very scholastic. The west wing is the dwelling place of the younger generations and their families. Apart from these, in the kitchen there exhibits wooden tables, wooden cabinets, ancient fire stoves, rain clothes, all of which demonstrate the different phases of daily farming life.. Inside the hall there is a tea house whereby on its upper floor visitors can taste the aromatic Chinese tea . With a cup of tea in hand and surrounded by sweet melody, one can easily forget the hustle of modern city life. Apart from the retail shops in the surrounding 8 houses selling traditional folk handicraft and art works, there is also a live shows performing stage. Traditional ancient wedding ceremony, folk drum and flutes music shows are being held in this place from time to time.
   

• National Museum of Natural Science
  Natural Science Museum is located in Taichung City. The Museum had its grand opening in 1986. Later, Exhibition Halls of stage I, II, III and IV were completed. So far, the museum has four multi-media theaters for different subjects, including Space Theater, Birdview Theater, Three-dimensional Theater and Environment Theater. The main exhibition halls for four different subjects are Science Center, Life Science Hall, Earth Environment Hall and China Science Hall. In addition, there are the park encompassing the greenhouse for tropical rainforest and the outdoor exhibition of evolution of low-altitude plants in Taiwan. It is the largest recreational and educational center in the country and it is the best-equipped museum. When one enters the walkway of life evolution of 50 meters wide and 220 meters long from Chung Kang Road, one can realize the evolution history of life. The walkway is a combination of both sides of roads and the park for green scenery. The inspiration comes from "Objects and Climate". A visitor may experience in person the changes of four seasons and the amazing forces of nature. In various exhibition areas, a visitor may participate in various science experiments in person. The museum increases the educational function by using light and sound effects. There are models in actual sizes in China Science Hall reflecting the traditional architectural techniques. The models can be actually operated and used. Thus, the true faces of ancient engineering projects are presented to viewers. There are also many theaters and classrooms that present exhibition in interesting, fun and educational ways. The theaters and classrooms combine audio/video equipment such as video players, projectors, slide machines, models, charts, as well as live animals, specimens, delicate replica and experimental devices. Through the interactions of instructors and viewers, visitors are given a learning opportunity for precise, rich and diversified knowledge.
   

• Taiwan Museum of Art
  The Taiwan Museum of Art, which opened in 1988, has a total of 24 exhibition halls. The museum regularly holds exhibitions of Western art, Chinese brush paintings, and sculpture, and has its own collection of valuable pieces of art. Residents can relax in the garden outside the museum.
   

• Tunghai University
  This campus is the most attractive one of all the universities in Taiwan. The buildings on the campus are modeled after the architectural style of the Tang dynasty. but the landmark of Tunghai University is the church designed by I.M. Pei.
   

HERITAGE / TEMPLE

• Taichung Confucius Temple and Martyrs Shrine
  This large and colorful Confucius Temple was built to imitate a Sung dynasty square-shaped palace. Every year on 28 September, the birthday of Confucius, the main door (Lingshing Door) is opened, and a dawn ceremony is held to commemorate the sage. A short walk away is the Martyrs Shrine, dedicated to the fallen heroes of China's wars. The impressive gateway and the traditional Chinese palace-style architecture make this a impressive neighbor to the Confucius Temple.

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Information provided by Tourism Bureau, Rep. of China.

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