Taiwan
(2008-2025): Taipei
City (Part 1/2:
North of Minquan W. Rd. MRT station)
To
see the locations of the places pictured below, click here. (A
Google map with red markers will open in a new tab.)
Puji temple (March 2025):
Built in 1905 on a hill
in the northern Beitou district of Taipei City, this temple is one of the few
remaining Japanese-era Buddhist temples in Taiwan. Its construction was
financed by Japanese railway workers. The traditional Japanese architecture of
its main prayer hall includes a simple swallowtail roof and bell-shaped
windows. The temple is dedicated to Guanyin (known as Kannon in Japan), the
popular Buddhist deity (bodhisattva) of mercy and compassion.
- Main prayer hall.
- Interior of the main
prayer hall.
- Small prayer hall in a
separate building.
- Statues of bodhisattvas
in the temple. Left: A typical Japanese representation of Jizo holding a child.
Right: A classical Chinese representation of Ksitgarbha (who is known as Jizo
in Japan).
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Dharma Drum Mountain Nung Chan Monastery (March 2025):
Guandu temple (March 2025):
This temple was built in 1712 and
subsequently expanded considerably. It is now an exuberant complex featuring
richly decorated prayer halls topped by colorful roofs. These halls are
distributed on two natural slopes forming a shoulder coined between the Tamsui
river to the west and a narrow tributary to the southeast. Man-made decorated
tunnels connect the two sides of the shoulder. Matsu, the Taoist goddess of the
sea, is the principal deity worshipped in this temple.
- Entrance of the temple on its western
side.
- Part of the temple on
the western slope above the Tamsui river.
- Temple buildings (and
some of their roof decorations) on the ridge between the western and
southeastern slopes.
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- Views looking south
over the intricate arrangement formed by the roofs of the temple buildings on
the southeastern slope.
- Highly decorated prayer
rooms.
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[Closeup of a
small section of a carved column.]
[Closeup of a
small section of the carved lintel above the altar.]
- Tunnels between the two
sides of the temple and some of their decorations.
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[The statue in the middle of the above
photo represents Guanyin, the goddess of infinite compassion. Her 24 arms and
multiple heads (the principal head and smaller ones above it, hence many eyes)
symbolize her power to reach out many people in need and alleviate their
pains.]
- Various carved murals
in the temple.
Guandu fishing port connected to the
Tamsui river (March 2025):
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Bright modern statues near Shilin MRT Station
(April 2017):
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In the gardens of the Chiank
Kai-shek Shiling residence (April 2017):
Taipei Performing Arts Center (March
2025):
Opened in 2022, this
building (located next to the Jiantan MRT station) immediately catches the eye
with its large spherical appendage, which houses a performance hall with a
capacity of 800 seats.
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Street and night markets, and their delicacies
(2008 and 2009):
Street markets, especially night markets,
are extremely popular in Taiwan. There are several large ones in Taipei. Food
stands are some of their main attractions, often with long waiting lines.
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The Grand Hotel (June 2019 and March 2025):
After retreating to
Taiwan in 1949, Chiang Kai-shek decided to build a lavish hotel with a Chinese
palace-style architecture to accommodate distinguished visitors. This decision
led to the construction of the Taipei Grand Hotel. The iconic 14-story, 87m-high
building, pictured below, was completed in October 1973.
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Bishanyan Kaizhang Sheng Wang temple
(March 2025):
Located on Mt. Bishan,
this temple is dedicated to the hero Chen Yuan-kuang (worshipped as Kaizhang Sheng Wang) and two of his generals. Dating from 1751, it has been expanded
several times to become a large multi-level temple.
- Left: View over Taipei from the temple (with
Taipei 101 in the center). Right: Statue of Kaizhang Sheng Wang at the entrance
of the temple.
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- Facades with finely
carved stone walls and columns.
- Beautifully decorated
stairway between two levels of the temple.
- Inside the main praying
hall.
Jiantan Historical temple (March
2025):
First built in 1773 in
Jiantan, about 3km west of its current location, this Buddhist temple was moved
at the end of the Japanese occupation. It is dedicated to Guanyin.
- In the main prayer hall
of the temple.
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- Gilded wooden statues
of the Eighteen Arhats, considered the first disciples of the Buddha who have
attained the four stages of enlightenment. They are believed to wait on earth,
protecting Buddhist teachings, until the coming of the future Buddha (Maitreya).
- Wall paintings in the
temple.
National Revolutionary Martyrs’
Shrine (March 2025):
This grandiose shrine
houses the spirit tablets of nearly 400,000 people killed in various Chinese
struggles, revolutions, and wars. Its architecture is reminiscent of the Hall
of Supreme Harmony in the Forbidden City of Beijing.
- Murals depicting the
Battle of Shanghai (left) and the Guangzhou Uprising (right). The 1937 Battle
of Shanghai was a major battle between the Empire of Japan and the Republic of
China during the second Sino-Japanese War. The 1911 Guangzhou Uprising was a
revolutionary event aimed at overthrowing the Qing Dynasty. (These murals are
also partially visible on the left and on the right of the above photo.)
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- Main building of the
shrine.
- Spirit tablets in one
of the shrine's building.
Views over parts of northern
Taipei before landing at Songshan airport (November 2018):
Lin An Tai Historical House (March
2025):
Originally built at
another location by the Lin Family who migrated from the Fujian province of
China to Taiwan in the mid-18th century, these Fujian-style buildings were
moved to their current location at the end of the 20th century.
- Ancestor hall in the
residence.
Left: Two-story mansion
in the complex. Right: Moon gate.
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Dalongdong Baoan temple (April
2017):
This Taoist temple is one
of the most beautiful temples in Taipei (along with the Longshan temple). The
original temple was completed in 1760, but its current buildings date from 1805
and 1830. They also underwent a major restoration in 1995. The main deity
enshrined here is Baisheng Dadi, the Taoist god of medicine.
- Main entrance gate.
- Incense burner and lion
guards at the gate.
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- Prayer hall in the
inner courtyard.
- Inside the temple.
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- Murals depicting
Chinese legends and historical events. They were painted in 1973 by Pan Li-Shui
(1914-1995), a renown Taiwanese temple artist.
- Nuns leaving a
religious ceremony.
Confucius temple (April 2017):
-This temple was constructed in the late
1920s under the direction of Wang Yi-Shun, a renowned builder of Fujianese
temples. The sober style of its architecture and decorations reflects the
rather austere spirit of Confucianism. However, due to his origins, Wang
Yi-Shun added several Fujian-style elements, such as the colorful Cochin
ceramics shown below, which are not found in other Confucius temples.
- Wall of Supreme
Knowledge. It faces the Lingxing Gate, the first of the two large consecutive
gates leading to the temple's main hall, the Dacheng hall (see below). The
vermilion wall is emblazoned with a colorful Chinese Unicorn standing above
four scrolls. A stone bridge spanning a pond, Pan Pond, leads to the wall.
- Scenes involving
Confucius made of Cochin ceramics. They adorn the walls of the Lingxing gate.
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- The Yi gate, the second
large gate leading to Dacheng hall.
- Cochin ceramic
bas-relief decorating the walls on the sides of the three doors of the Yi gate.
Left: Figurines of military generals. Right: Flowers from two of the four
seasons.
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- Dacheng hall in the
central courtyard of the temple.
- Interior the Dacheng hall
with the Confucius tablet.
- Ceiling inside the
Dacheng hall
Linji Huguo temple (March 2025):
This large Buddhist
temple is made of multiple halls. The pictures below were taken in its
northernmost prayer hall.
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Jingfu temple (March 2025):
Originally built in 1875
as a tiny temple, this Taoist temple was reconstructed into a larger
multi-story temple in 1961 and expanded again in 2000. Its main deity is Fude,
the earth god popular among farmers and villagers.
- Left: Facade of the
temple. Right: Detail of a dragon pillar finely carved in diabase (a rock with
the same mineral composition as basalt).
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- Inside the temple. Fude
is the central figure in the first picture below.
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Xingtian temple (March 2025):
Built in 1967, this
Taoist temple is dedicated to Lord Guan (Guanggong), a deified general who
lived in the late 2nd and early 3rd centuries, now the patron deity of war and
wealth. It was the first temple in Taiwan to ban the burning of incense in an
effort to reduce air pollution from fine particles. In addition, unlike many
other temples, it does not have a ghost money furnace.
- Views of the facade of
the front hall.
- Facade of the main
hall.
