If you ever visited Kenting - and trust me - if you ever take this chance, you will definitely fall in love with this place as I did, the only way to go there is through Hengchun township. Raise of popularity of Hengchun township is really associated with two things.
First of all - as I said Kenting - beautiful, vibrant and everliving golden sand beach resort in southern Taiwan,I wrote about it here, and will write again (and again).
Second - Cape No. 7 - movie, where as Wikipedia says here about Cape 7 movie,
In the 1940s near the end of the Japanese occupation of Taiwan, an unnamed teacher (Kousuke Atari) dispatched to the southernmost town of Hengchun falls in love with a local girl with the Japanese nameKojima Tomoko (Rachel Liang). After the Surrender of Japan, the teacher is forced to return home as the Chinese occupation of Taiwan resumed. On his trip home, he pens seven love letters to express his regret for leaving Kojima Tomoko, who originally planned to elope with him in Japan.
Poster here:
This film as we can see from the Wiki's explanation has won various awards internationally, and without any doubts are extremely popular here in Taiwan. What need's to be said, that it's not already just a popular film - the objects and places where filming took place, now many people are going to take a trip and make photos with those houses and landscapes in background. Even such high level and representative hotel as Chateau, has a picture from this movie on the wall in their lobby room.
If I would not live in Taiwan, i would suspect Pingtung mayor in product placement marketing efforts - flock of tourists definetly doubled after the film gained popularity, but of course that's not the case here.
But a thing to learn for example for Nantou county mayor - next love story can happen in Nantou, right? Just bribe the editor...
Let's get to the Hengchun now. As we were heading to the Kenting late evening, I was forced to take a shots here at night time,eventually quality of pictures are not the best.
In fact, if you are dropped out from a car after you were sleeping, and asked where are you - well, Hengchun in fact looks mostly same as all such size townships - in southern and western Taiwan - in Miaoli for example.
Most surprisingly is a fact, that even if we were here at chinese dragon festival time - a season where most tourists should flock to southern Taiwan for vacation - and as we noticed later for tremendous traffic jams in North East of Taiwan when we were going to Taipei, this township where already preparing to sleep at 9:30 - 10:00 at evening! Some restaurants already were closing. That is not usual for western part of Taiwan, for example the area which I know most - Fengchia district in Taichung - get's sleepy outlook maybe just in 12, and then again if you are more far away from night market.
Those two shops sell tea.
Noodles - preparing to close even at 9:30...
Again, I am here to suggest you a restaurant. Once you are in Hengchun, try to find this:
First 2 symbols are usually woman name, and second two - mutton, so, this restaurant specializes on mutton dishes, and makes them really delicious and tasty.
It's small actually, and at busy time, you will be lucky to find a place - as I suggested in my post about rule nr.1 to choose a good restaurant in Taiwan, there are always people inside. Can you see the yellow map on the wall? Guess what it says? Let me show you more close:
It's map of places where Cape 7 movie has been filmed. Yes, as you can see in Hengchun everyone is proud of this now - they feel honored enough to hung it on a wall.
Most special one in my opinion here - Tan Guei Pai Gu. Tan Guei - chinese medicine, and Pai Guei - mutton. Chinese medicine used here is called "roots of chinese angelica" - anyway, when you wat this soup - you naturally feel power coming to you, and you are ready to continue the trip. Must try dish.
Lamb's tripe - another special dish here
and noodles with mutton.
This bookstoore has good selection of maps and tourist guides on south east and southern taiwan.
old street of Hengchun - at least a sign says so. I wrote before, that it get's sleepy early here.
I really mean it, they get sleepy early, here is proof. This by the way is chinese tradition medicine shop, in this area there were many of them.
One more chinese medicine shop - and as my wife told - this one should be better, because the drawers, where selection of herbs are stored are more old, and wooden, while this one in photo below - used plastic drawers. I am not sure this conclusion is valid, but that's what I know now.
Hengchun has a land area of 136.7630 square kilometers and has a population of 31,288 as of December 2007.
Awesome pictures, it is a fantastic film for sure, I love independent film, this one is a good example of a good foreign film.
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The place is so simple and basic. People there are probably having a very simple way of living.
Posted by: cryogenic freezer | May 31, 2011 at 10:47 PM