Guyan Waterfall (谷燕瀑布)

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A few weeks ago some friends and I planned a swimming excursion to what turned out to be one of the best swimming holes I’ve found so far in Taiwan. The small peaceful lake next to Hsinchu’s Touqian river (頭前溪) with its deep pool and crystal-clear jade coloured water was the perfect solution to the extremely warm September that we’ve had here in Taiwan this year.

Celestial Lake (仙湖), which I blogged about a few weeks ago turned out to be one of my favourite finds of the summer. It is situated in the beautiful Atayal Indigenous village of Wufeng (五峰) which is an area of Hsinchu that I haven’t spent a lot of time exploring - but have quite a few locations on my list of places to visit.

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On my first trip to the lake I decided to make the most of my time and include one of Wufeng’s other tourist locations in my travel itinerary - Guyan Waterfall (谷燕瀑布).

The reason why I decided to make a stop over at the waterfall was actually quite simple - It was just a short hike away from the bridge that connects you to the entrance for the lake so stopping by wouldn’t take a whole lot of time away from swimming.

The path to Guyan Waterfall is clearly marked and it is easy to park a car or a scooter along the road for the five-ten minute hike to the falls. If you don’t feel like taking the hike to the base of the falls however you can still enjoy the beauty of the large falls from the road. I recommend taking the short hike though so that you can get up close and personal to this waterfall.

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The falls, which are a short hike up a path marked with hiking flags is easily accessible and if you want to take a dip in the pool below, it is quite easy to do so. The pool however isn’t deep enough for a real swim, but why would you want to have a swim in the frigid mountain water when the beautiful Celestial Lake is so close?

The view of the falls from the base is quite nice and from the top you also get a nice view of the road and river below which make the hike worthwhile.

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Don’t be lazy, if you’re in the area just hike up and check it out. Then go for a swim in the lake below.

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Map / Location

 

Getting to the waterfall is quite easy - Just follow County Road #122 (縣道122) from Jhudong (竹東) and when you reach Wufeng Village (五峰鄉) switch to County Road #63 (縣道63) which is also known as Luoping Road (羅平道路) and once you cross over Heping Bridge (和平橋) you have arrived.

I’m including a map above which should help visitors locate the waterfall but you can also check out Follow Xiaofei’s blog post about the same waterfall which offers a much more detailed map and directions on how to get to the waterfall. 

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Gallery / Flickr (High Res Shots)

Hsinpu Ancestral Shrines (新埔宗祠)

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I’ve probably mentioned this about a hundred times already but for the last decade I’ve been a resident of a small city in Taoyuan named Zhongli (中壢). The city is one of those special places in Taiwan that is well-known for its preservation of Hakka culture and the availability of amazing Hakka cuisine. 

Recently the local city government decided to start putting up signage around the town with the nickname the “Hakka Capital of Taiwan” which was an obvious shout-out to the people who have developed the city into the place it is today.

Like a lot of other towns and villages in the Taoyuan-Hsinchu-Miaoli area (桃竹苗), the population of Zhongli is made up predominantly of Hakka ethnic group and walking around these places you’ll likely hear a mixture of Mandarin, Hakka and Taiwanese from the locals.

While the population of the city is now a bit more diverse, the culture and history of the Hakka people remains prevalent on almost every street corner and that history is celebrated and promoted by all the people who live here.

Even though Zhongli refers to itself as the Hakka “capital” of the nation, Hsinpu village (新埔鎮) in Hsinchu would probably best be referred to as the “Hakka Mecca of Taiwan” thanks to the all-important Yimin Temple. The small village is one of the most important places in the country in terms of Hakka history, culture, cuisine and religion and has been instrumental in helping the Hakka people form their own identity over the last few centuries.

Hsinpu has experienced a revitalization over the past few years thanks to the cultural preservation efforts of the government and everywhere you go you can see the past coming back to life again - Whether you are visiting for some great food or to learn about the history of this amazing culture, Hsinpu is one of the best places to visit and has quite a few attractions for the savvy traveller.

Hsinpu Links: Yimin Temple  (褒忠義民廟) | Wu Zhuo-Liu Memorial House (吳濁流故居) | Hsinpu Dried Persimmons | Hsin-Hsing Theater

Today’s post is going to focus on some of the historic Ancestral Halls that you’ll find in the downtown core of the village. These halls, which are also known as shrines (祠堂) or temples (宗祠) are closely linked to Confucian ideology and place an emphasis on filial piety. Although their main purpose is for ancestral worship, they also provide a place for family get togethers and various events throughout the year.

The most common feature of Ancestral Shrines that transcend all of the Chinese ethnic-groups are the ancestral tablets (神位) in the main shrine room. Family members will visit several times a year to honour their ancestors, take part in rituals as well as whenever a wedding or a funeral takes place.

You’ll find Ancestral Halls like this dedicated to a specifically family all over Taiwan but the reason why the halls in Hsinpu are of particular interest is because of the history of the town and that they represent most of the families who first settled the area several centuries ago.

This post will unfortunately have to be one that will be updated gradually over time because the halls are in varying states of disrepair and are currently being restored. There is also the issue that while these ancestral halls are national historic monuments, they are not always open to the public which makes them a bit difficult to take photos of.

As there are seven of these shrines in the village, I’ll provide photos for most of them but I won’t be going into too much detail about their history apart from when they were constructed and how accessible they are to the public. Most of this information isn’t available online in English so I’ll do my best to help make this stuff a bit clearer to travellers.

Chen Family Ancestral Shrine (新埔陳氏宗祠)

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The Chen Family Shrine is situated directly on the Main Street of Hsinpu Village and dates back to 1868. The shrine is currently in the process of being restored but is one of the few that is accessible to the public. The shrine is looks as if it is in good shape from the outside but the wooden planks in the interior of the shrine had started to rot and were causing structural problems which forced the shrine to close for a period of time.

The building is quite beautiful with artwork on the walls, doors and the roof and a tree-covered courtyard between the shrine and the main gate.

When the restoration project is completed it will reopen and you’ll be able to stop in for a visit between Tuesday and Saturday. (Closed for family gatherings on Sundays and Mondays).

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The shrine is considered a county-level historic site (縣定古蹟).

Address: 新竹縣新埔鎮中正路510號 (中文介紹)

Zhang Family Ancestral Shrine (新埔張氏家廟)

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The Zhang Family Ancestral Shrine is probably in the worst shape of all of the ancestral shrines in Hsinpu today. The shrine which dates back to 1868 is currently undergoing a process of large scale restoration and is inaccessible to the public.

This kind of thing however rarely stops me and I wandered on site to check out the shrine. After a few minutes of walking around the construction site the foreman called out to me and I figured I was going to get kicked out but instead got a free tour of grounds. Despite the fact that the shrine is in terrible shape, he said that it would likely reopen to the public sometime in 2018. Currently the shrine is empty and the spirit tablets have been moved elsewhere for safe-keeping.

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The shrine is considered a country-level historic site (縣定古蹟)

Address: 新竹縣新埔鎮和平街347巷22號 (中文介紹)

Liu Family Ancestral Shrine (新埔劉家祠)

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The Liu Family Ancestral Shrine is currently the only shrine in town that has been fully restored and is accessible to the public. The shrine is open between Tuesdays and Saturdays and has both information available in English and Chinese to visitors.

The Liu Family Ancestral Shrine dates back to 1867 and as it is the one that is most accessible to the public and in the best shape you’ll be able to enter the grounds and walk around. The things to notice with this shrine is the incredibly preserved artwork on the walls as well as the wooden craftsmanship on the roof and the trusses that hold it up.

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The shrine is considered a county-level historic site (縣定古蹟)

Address: 新竹縣新埔鎮和平街230號 (中文介紹)

Pan Family Ancestral Shrine (新埔潘屋)

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The Pan Family Ancestral Shrine dates back to 1861 and from the outside looks to be in relatively good shape. The shrine is not accessible to the public however and the best you can do is look at it from a distance.

The shrine is next door to the Liu Family Shrine but instead of being next to the road, it has a large front lawn between the main gate and the shrine which is actually quite rare in Taiwan.

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The shrine is considered a county-level historic site (縣定古蹟)

Address: 新竹縣新埔鎮和平街170號 (中文介紹)

Chu Family Ancestral Shrine (新埔朱氏家廟)

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The Chu Family Ancestral Shrine was constructed in 1846 and is currently being restored. The shrine is the smallest of the seven and looks as if there is a family living on-site. The shrine isn’t open to the public and the best you can do is check it out from the gate outside.

I’m not sure how long the restoration process will take but the metal canopy that was constructed over the shrine to protect it from the elements likely means that there is an issue with the roof and the structure itself.

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Address: 新竹縣新埔鎮和平街158號 (中文介紹)

Lin Family Ancestral Shrine (新埔林氏家廟)

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The Lin Family Ancestral Shrine is the newest of all of the shrines in town and also in the best shape. Dating back to 1917 the shrine is the most colourful and most beautifully decorated of the shrines.

The shrine is somewhat open to the public, but to gain entry you have to first make an appointment to be let in meaning that unless you plan ahead you won’t be able to gain access. If you visit however you can see enough of the shrine to appreciate it from the front gate.

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The shrine is considered a county-level historic site (縣定古蹟)

Address: 新竹縣新埔鎮成功街136巷16號 (中文介紹)

Fan Family Ancestral Shrine (新埔范氏家廟)

The Fan Family Ancestral Shrine dates back to 1860 and is currently undergoing a process of restoration. The shrine is currently inaccessible to the public and when the restoration process is complete, it will only be accessible by family members. This shrine is the most difficult of all the shrines to get photos of which is why I don’t have anything to show at this point. I hope that I’ll be able to get something in the future though.

The shrine is considered a county-level historic site (縣定古蹟)

Address: 新竹縣新埔鎮成功街116-7號 (中文介紹)

As mentioned above, this post is just meant to be a general introduction to some of these historic buildings. I plan to update periodically with both new photos and information as the restoration processes of the various shrines are completed over the next year or two. The history of these buildings as I’ve also discovered deserve a bit more attention to detail than what I’ve been able to write in this post, so I will probably write individual articles for some of the shrines in the future.

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Gallery / Flickr (High Res Shots)

Dong'An Bridge (東安古橋)

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Social Media has the power to turn obscure, little-known places into an overnight hotspots - I’ve blogged a few times recently about how social media trends have transformed places like Jinmian Mountain and Water Buffalo Valley (which were once not very well-known by the general public) into tourist hotspots overnight thanks to the power of social media and a news media that more or less just looks to what’s happening online for its nightly news.

Today’s post is yet another one of these “instagrammable” hotspots and is one that I’ve likely passed by a hundred times, yet never actually realized that it existed until it became one of these ‘insta-spots’

Thanks to Instagram though, I’ve found yet another leftover remnant of the Japanese Colonial Era and while it isn’t a building like some of the other places I’ve been searching for, it is quite a nice place to take photos. 

The current version of Guanxi Township’s (關西鎮) Dong-An Bridge (東安古橋) is a beautiful stone arched bridge that dates back to 1933 (昭和8年) and has survived over eight decades thanks to the superb construction techniques and design brought to Taiwan from Japan.

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The stone bridge that we see today replaced the original wooden version named “Cai-Feng Bridge” (彩鳳橋) which was constructed only a few years earlier. The original bridge had to be torn down after six years of use due to structural issues that were caused by Taiwan’s humidity, the rainy season and frequent earthquakes and typhoons.

Upon completion, the new bridge served as an important connection between the downtown area of Guanxi Village with the Dong’An (東安) suburb across the river as well as the mountains nearby which made transporting fresh produce and timber into the business areas of the town much more convenient.

Guanxi Village, which was known as Kansai (關西街) during the Japanese Colonial-Era is most well known for its production of a medicinal herb of the mint family known as Chinese Mesona (仙草) which is quite popular in Asia. The herb, which is most commonly referred to as “Grass Jelly” in Taiwan helped to bring riches to the Guanxi area. With the help of modern production techniques, and of course the new bridge, the small village became known as the ‘Grass Jelly Capital of Taiwan’ and still contributes to over 80% of Taiwan’s Grass Jelly production today.

Design

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Dong’An Bridge is classified as a stone arch bridge, which is a type of bridge design that has been popular around the world for well over three-thousand years.

The bridge has five different arches that allow water from the river below to flow freely while at the same time allowing weight to be freely distributed between each of the five abutments as well as the support structure on either side of the bridge.

Japanese engineers are well-versed in the construction of arched bridges of this variety and as was the case with the beautiful wooden Kintai Bridge (錦帯橋) in Japan, the engineers who constructed the Dong’An bridge were also sure to protect it from floods by controlling the flow of water through the river which could overflow during a typhoon of Taiwan’s rainy season.

Recent Popularity

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There are a few different factors that went into adding to the popularity of the bridge over recent years. The first is that the the Guanxi village government recently completed a beautiful recreation park known as the Niulanhe Riverside Park (牛欄河親水公園) that the bridge is now a part of.

The park is a popular space for local people to spend time with their families as well as for exercising and is also a spot where you will often find local artists and musicians putting on live performances.

The next factor and the one that likely started the whole Instagram thing is that the bridge was featured in a scene in the hit 2015 movie, “Our Times” (我的少女時代) - a cute movie that I had initially avoided watching, but eventually succumbed to and enjoyed while doing research for this blog.

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Since then, the bridge has become not only a popular place for locals to pass by while doing their exercises or visiting the park, but also an attraction for people coming out of town who want to get some photos of the historic structure.

If you find yourself in the Guanxi area, it is quite easy to stop by this bridge and you need very little time to check it out. There is actually quite of bit of history to check out in the small village of Guanxi, so if you are in the area you might also want to consider checking out some of the old Japanese-era buildings, the Old Street, Chau-Yin Temple and some of the amazing Hakka restaurants in the town area.

Overall a quick walk around the downtown won’t take you very long, so you won’t need a lot of time to visit, but if you’re like myself and you’re interested in history, then a walk around the village will be one where you’re able to learn quite a bit while also sampling not only some great Hakka food but also the cuisines of South East Asians who have made the small village their own.

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Map / Location

 

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Gallery / Flickr (High Res Shots)