About a year and a half ago, one of my best friends and I traveled by train down to Kaohsiung. We were going away for the weekend to the hottest city in Taiwan. It was, admittedly, the first time I had ever booked a hotel in my life without my mom or dad assisting. Aside from the moment I stepped away from my family at the airport two years ago, I like to think of that weekend in Kaohsiung as one of the first times I really felt like a responsible adult.
We checked into our hotel and relaxed. It was supposed to be the perfect weekend–aside from the fact that I had a very, very bad cold. I tried to ignore it and think that it was something minor, but I had a good bit of medicine in my luggage. Later that weekend, we’d have to find even more medicine. Pretty sure I spent half of the trip high on my cold medicine, to be quite honest. Nonetheless, this didn’t stop us. We adventured to our heart’s content.
Our second day into the trip, we ventured out to the sea. We took the bus, like frugal teachers that we are, and found ourselves at the British consulate. We sat and ordered afternoon tea while we overlooked one of the most beautiful scenes I have ever seen in my entire life. The water was a deep shade of blue I’d only seen on my dream boards on Pinterest. It was unreal. You could see all the way to the bottom and for miles, far enough to see nearby cargo shipments and the distant shadows of other ships. And the breeze. Oh my, the ocean breeze was warm and provided a mist that I didn’t know we needed in the Taiwan heat.
Despite our tea taking what would be about two hours before we actually ate, we still had time to explore that afternoon. We left, heading for Cijin, where there were beaches and more importantly, our next destination: the Portuguese fortress. I love history when I travel and the best part of the trip–after spending some quality time with my friend–was seeing all the historical places. Kaohsiung used to be a port for the British and at another time, the Portuguese. Nonetheless, it holds many secrets and stories to be uncovered. Which makes this city easily one of my favorites, right next to my home city, Taichung.
I remember thinking two things as we made our way to the top of the enormous hill: one, it was unbearable hot. And two, the medicine I had taken was about to knock me the heck out. But we hiked and climbed our way up to the top of the fortress, right in time for the sunset. I love sunsets, sunrises, starry nights, and anything having to do with nature. There’s nothing quite as satisfying and beautiful as nature and the world around us.
Getting to the top of that fortress, we were relieved. It was one of the moments I’ll never forget. We stood there in the crowd of about twenty or so people, watching as two entertainers released their macaws into the sky. They flew over the island of Cijin, in clear view of the rest of the city. I got literal chills down my spine, realizing just how small we were at that moment in time. Hundreds of feet down below, people walked and lived and worked. We came to explore the city of Kaohsiung but underneath all the sweat and the high moments on cold medicine, it was clear we’d never really see it all, no matter how long our weekend away was.
So after much thought and walking on the roof tops of the fortress, we found ourselves a place as the orange sun descended on the horizon, slowly sliding down further and further next to the cargo ships, until it was nothing but a sliver on the horizon. And then it was completely gone. The vibrant citrus colored skies transformed into pinks and purples, preparing themselves for the stars and the moon high above. Cijin District night life woke up on the beaches. Music played and people danced, sipping on fresh coconut water and spirits, but we headed to the line of people looking to return to the mainland, which curved around every street on the small island. Another time, Cijin, I will be back to see what night time holds once daytime bids the city of Kaohsiung farewell. But until then, I occasionally find myself dreaming of coconut water, climbing old buildings, and a sunset too perfect to replicate.
