|Home|

Two Cities: Tainan vs. Kaohsiung

Wendy Huang

I was born in Tainan. I had never been away from home until I started studying in Kaohsiung at the age of fourteen. People may think those two cities are both in the south of Taiwan, so that there is no big difference between them. However, they are very different. You can find many differences from what I do in those two cities. I had never thought that I would be in love with Kaohsiung before moving there. The longer I live in Kaohsiung, the more I love this city.

Since Kaohsiung is the most prosperous city in the south of Taiwan, it has exciting entertaining activities and a wonderful night life. On weekends, I usually spend the whole afternoon in the cinema watching two movies in a row. Some cinemas in Kaohsiang are special. I can watch two movies and they only cost me sixty dollars. For me, a student without lots of money, this is the best choice to spend time on weekends. After watching movies, I often go to the most famous shopping plaza – Shin-jie-jiang. I can get the coolest American or Japanese style outfit there. Coolest outfit is not enough, various designs of tattoos, girly accessories, skateboard gears, and new cosmetic products can also be found there. It is like a plaza of paradise for young people. After shopping, I always find some food to eat. Liou-he or Ruei-fong night markets are highly recommended. Various kinds of food, such as twelve-ounce steak, red bean slush, and butter pancake, and stewed herbal pork, all display in front of me and wait for me to have a taste. But the day is not finished yet. After having delicious food in the night market, it would be great to go to Sitze bay to have beer and sing out loud with friends at the beach. There is so much fun living in Kaohsiung.

Tainan is a city very different from Kaohsiung. There are not many exciting activities you can do on weekends. However, Tainan is famous for its monuments, temples, and traditional food. “Eternal Fortress” and “Old Fort of Ainping”, the two historical castles, are located around the Ainping River. The castles tell the great story of Taiwan’s conquering glory. Nowadays they also become famous sights where couples come to take wedding photos. When I was a child, I used to have field trips to those castles and learned the history there. I liked to walk down the riverside and I never got bored walking there. There is a lot of traditional snack food, such as Coffin Cakes, Eel Noodles, and Soy Bean Jelly. I always enjoyed those delicacies while walking down the riverside. Moreover, Tainan is a temple city too. Many efficacious temples were built here. I still go to some temples, such as Temple for Great Queen of Heaven and Temple for Altar of Heaven, to pray for a variety of things by burning incense and spirit money. Tainan is not an exciting city, but it is a good place to live in if you want a relaxing life.

I have lived in Tainan for fourteen years and studied in Kaohsiung for six years. I am in love with Kaohsiung, but in fact it is hard to say which city is better than the other. I like both cities. I am a girl who love excitement and traditional food and tend to be a little superstitious. Therefore, I would like to separate my weekend half in Kaohsiung and half in Tainan. Those two cities play important roles in my life.