Location: Takao Signal Cabin (高雄臨港線鐵路北號誌樓), Gushan District, Kaohsiung, Taiwan
I was quite surprised to find the old signal cabin in the condition it was in. The upstairs was sealed off, but on the ground floor one room was open and a mess inside.
Archive: 高雄
The Jade Market
Location: Jade Market 十全玉市, Sanmin District, Kaohsiung, Taiwan
Jade is extremely popular in Taiwan, and has historical significance in Chinese culture. It’s also very valuable, but the difficulty in distinguishing fakes from the genuine article means it’s best to avoid spending large amounts on it, unless you know what you’re doing.
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Abandoned Cement Factory – Kaohsiung, Taiwan
Location: Taiwan Cement, Gushan District, Kaohsiung, Taiwan
The Taiwan cement factory sits tucked in against Monkey Mountain, in Kaohsiung’s Gushan District. For years half of the factory was left abandoned and each time I went hiking on the mountain the urban explorer in me was more and more intrigued to take photos there. I finally got around to going there in February 2014 and took this set of photos.
The Delight of Chinese Characters Festival 2015
Event: The Delight of Chinese Characters Festival
Location: Pier 2 Art Centre
Dates: Jan 16th ~ Mar 15th 2015
Cost: NT$149 Entry fee
The Delight of Chinese Characters Festival is an art show that runs every year at the Pier 2 Art Centre in Kaohsiung. It’s an art show all about Chinese characters, their form, history, usage, and pronunciation. Artists create displays that make you think about all of these aspects of Chinese characters.
The Lunar New Year Market at San Feng Zhong Jie
Location: 三鳳中街 Market, Kaohsiung, Taiwan.
The 三鳳中街 (Sān fèng zhōng jiē) market runs all year round, but it’s busiest on the run up to the Lunar New Year. It’s an indoor market that runs parallel to JianGuo 3rd Road, and if you weren’t paying attention you could easily miss it – Not on the day I visited, though.
Gin and Bananas in Qiaotou
Location: Qiaotou Sugar Refinery Station, Kaohsiung.
I thought that the area by the Qiaotou Sugar Refinery station would be empty on a Friday afternoon – everyone at work or in school. When I arrived, though, there were groups of students rushing to and fro with cameras, then I noticed a sign advertising the “Golden Sugarcane Film Festival”, a competition to make a short film about the area. It seemed my quiet Friday afternoon photowalk might not be so quiet after all.
China Steel Headquarters Building
Location: China Steel Headquarters, Kaohsiung, Taiwan.
The China Steel headquarters building is one of the more interesting buildings in Kaohsiung. Not only is it a unique shape, described on the Wikipedia entry as a “multi-faceted image with geometric 3D facade”, but on the weekend the sides of the building show an animated light show.
Neiwei Flea Market
Location: Neiwei Flea Market, Kaohsiung, Taiwan.
Neiwei flea market (內惟跳蚤市場) is one of the bigger second-hand markets in Kaohsiung, the other being the Shiquan Road flea market (十全跳蚤市場), which I’ll cover in a separate post.
The main entrance to the market is on Juiru 4th Road (九如四路), but I found parking for my scooter in one of the side streets so I entered the market from there. The market is a giant rectangle with small shops lining the outer walls on the right and back. The rest of the area is split between makeshift shops and stalls with their stuff spread out on mats.