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Lalu Island/ Boat Trip around Sun Moon Lake

Located in the center of Sun Moon Lake, Lalu Island was called Guanghua Island in the past. Sun Moon Lake is the most famous water reservoir in Taiwan. Lulu Island is known as the island on the water. This area was dwelled by the Thao tribe in the past and the island had been called Lalu until 1946, when the government renamed it Guanghua Island. In the severe earthquake in 1999, Sun Moon Lake reservoir was damaged and a historic site of the Thao tribe was discovered. Thus, in 2000, the island was renamed Lalu again. The Thao tribe considers the island a sacred place and thus tourists cannot visit the island; however, you can still learn about the Thao tribe along the tracks surrounding the lake.

Lalu Island is said to be a sacred place for the Thao tribe. Witch candidates of the tribe would have to come to the island to seek approval of the ancestors' spirits. The witches are in charge of incantation and rituals. The Japanese also left a stone monument, remembering the development of Sun Moon Lake during Japanese occupation.

Wenwu Temple, Sun Moon Lake

Wenwu Temple is located at the shoulder of mountain where is on the north of Sun Moon Lake. It was built in 1938. People worried the water of Sun Moon Lake might cover Longfeng Temple and Yihua Hall of Shuishotsun(Ita thao Pier), they built Wenwu Temple. The Wenwu Temple is 2 (Longfeng Temple and Yihua Hall) in 1. It was rebuilt in 1969. Its gate is face to the north. People pray the Civil Saint of Confucius, the Military Saint of Guangong, and the Established God of two temples at the Wenwu Temple. The temple is popular among students.

Ci'en Pagoda

Ci'en Pagoda is located on Sha Ba Lan Mountain near Sun Moon Lake. It was built by Chiang Kai-Shek in memory of his mother in 1971. The construction was very difficult because the materials had to be shipped over the lake and moved up the mountain. The Ci'en Pagoda is 46 meters in height and has become the famous landmark of Sun Moon Lake. Surrounding the tower are beautiful plants and trees and there are stone tables and chairs for visitors to take a rest. The Ci'en Pagoda overlooks Lalu Island and Sun Moon Lake.

Ci'en Pagoda is an octagonal building; the 3 stories at the base are painted in white, while the 9 stories of the main body are painted in golden red. Tourists can appreciate the magnificent scenery of Sun Moon Lake from the Ci'en Pagoda. The tourists track as long as 700 meters lead to the Ci'en Pagoda. Alongside the track are beautiful trees and flowers, which make the track easy and comfortable to walk along.

Anping Fort

In 1624, Dutch built the first fort in Anping, Taiwan, called "Fort Zeelandia", now known as Anping Old Fort, where has been the administrative center of the Dutch regime, and the hub for trading. The building was originally constructed in square inner fortress and rectangle outer walls. In 1661, the fort was renamed as Anping to commemorate his home town when Koxinga (Cheng Cheng Kung) has driven the Dutch out of Taiwan. Therefore, Fort Zeelandia was also known as "King's Fort" or "Taiwan Fort", nicknamed Anping Old Fort.

In Kangxi Emperor's regime of Qing Dynasty, Taiwan was included in the empire that the political center was transferred to Tainan City, causing the decline of the Fort. The red bricks of the Fort have been taken for construction of Eternal Fortress. During the Japanese occupation, the Dutch style buildings in inner fortress were completely destroyed. A square red-bricked step platform was constructed with a western style house on the platform, being served as dormitory for Customs officials, where the memorial hall now is located. It was named Anping Old Fort after Restoration of Taiwan and become an attraction for tourists. The remaining more than 70 meters long south walls of the outer fort with worn-out red bricks, accompanied by the old banyan roots, chanted its odyssey. The fort is the very historical replica over three hundred years.

Koxinga Shrine

The Koxinga Shrine (Yanping Junwang Temple), located by Kaishan Road surrounded by trees, is the only Fujianese style shrine in Taiwan. This is the shrine built in memory of the work and achievement of Cheng Cheng Kung, the pioneer of Taiwan. Cheng Cheng Kung was originally called Cheng Sun, a native in County Fujian. His father, Cheng Chi Lung, was a wanderer in his early days. He has been a merchant as well as a pirate. His mother was a Japanese lady called Tagawa. Cheng was born with great intelligence. Not only was he diligent in his studies, he also has a huge ambitious to achieve something big, i.e. to become someone who are good in both academic work and in the military field. By the time he was 21 years old, Wu San Kuei led the Qing army into China and the Ming dynasty thus came to an end. As a result of his father surrendered to the Qing Dynasty and his mother committed suicide, Cheng Cheng Kung suffered a lot of pain and decided that he should turn against the Qing Dynasty to rejuvenate the Ming Dynasty in order to get rid of the shame caused by his father's traitor behavior. In April 1661, which is the 15th year of Emperor Yung Li's reign, he led his army crossing the Taiwan Strait and after 9 months' battle, had finally retrieved Taiwan from the hands of the Dutch. Taiwan thus was no more a colony of the Netherlands. After gaining access to Taiwan, Cheng quickly built up the whole place by setting up governing offices, regulations, education system as well as developing more farm lands to improve the living standards of the local people. He also actively trained people in military tactics, preparing them to fight the Qing army. However, just half year after he had retrieved Taiwan, Cheng died of illness on May 8, 1662. His aim of rejuvenating the Ming Dynasty was unfulfilled which was the biggest regret of his whole life. In 1874, which is the 13th year of Emperor Tongzhi of the Qing Dynasty's reign, emperor's special envoy Shen Bao Chen requested for the enlargement of the then existing Kai Shan Wang' shrine which was in memory of the work of Cheng Cheng Kung. It was approved by the regime and the new shrine was officially called "Koxinga Shrine" and for people to pay tribute to this folk hero.

Inside the Koxinga Shrine, there is the Koxinga Museum where exhibits various historical culture of Tainan. The first floor is for pre-historic preserves and dig-ups. Apart from illustrating the geographic connection between Taiwan and the Mainland, these things also describe the evolution of life from the past to the present. Most of the exhibits in the second floor are the historical materials of Tainan. These include the materials and things related to the concerned ancestors, such as the portraits of Cheng Cheng Kung and Shen Bao Chen, and also their works. In addition, daily items of Tainan city of the old like the street signs, bedding equipment, land deeds, money bills are on exhibition so that the public can understand the daily life of the past generations. It is a cultural spot very worth visiting.

Confiucius Temple

The Confucius Temple in Tainan was built in 1666, it was the first Confucius Temple, before the end of Manchu Dynasty, it was the location of the highest official institute of higher learning in Taiwan. The Taiwan Palace of "Confucianism Study," it owned the incompatible position of culture and education, and was called "The Highest Institute." The Confucius Temple has been through more than thirty times of reconstruction, a part of the building was destroyed during the wars or ruined by nature disasters; the present scale of the Confucius Temple was the look after reconstructing during the time when Japanese were ruling (1917), its elegant and simple localization characteristic takes a distinctive attitude of its own among the Confucius Temples buildings in Taiwan. There are fifteen structures inside the Confucius Temple, the primary sacrifices in the palace is to Confucius divine tablet, on both sides, the sacrifices are to the sixteen pupils of Confucius.

Between the beams and pillars, there hang twelve horizontal described boards awarded by sovereigns of all dynasties since early Manchu Dynasty till today, it is the Confucius Temple in Taiwan to own the most complete royal horizontal described boards of all dynasties. Inside the temple, there are very old trees towering, classical elegant and tranquil, self-becoming a place of its own, the whole space presents a cultural breath, and is presently ranked among the national historic spots. Speaking of the preservation of the cultural articles in the Confucius, the inscriptional records through all times of repairs, the horizontal described boards awarded by sovereigns of all dynasties, and ceremony and musical instruments from early Manchu Dynasty till nowadays are still kept perfectly, and these are all very precious historical cultural articles that deserve to be carefully appreciated.