Photo Tour of Po Kok Temple in Taichung City

Posted by on Mar 8, 2009 in Taiwan 2004 | 2 comments

One more day, and Flip will be in Taipei.  Once he gets here, we will have a packed schedule of where to eat and play.  So today, I was to fulfill a little family duty and go to Taichung to pay respects to my ancestors.

I am going to spare you the boring details of the trip.  I do, however, want to share with you the history and beautiful architecture of the temple. Po Kok Temple was built by monks from Fujian in 1927, during the Japanese Era.  The temple was dedicated to Buddha, Medicine Buddha and Amitabha Buddha.  World War II left many Japanese soldiers buried on the grounds of the temple, therefore, the Po Kok Temple is a major tourist destination for Japanese visitors to Taiwan.

I have been coming to the temple ever since I was a little girl.  But it has been over 8 years since my last visit.  Walking in through the gate, memories of my childhood rushed back to me.  I was glad to be visiting again, yet there was this melancholy feeling that I couldn’t explain.

  • molly ll

    Wow, how incredible! I’m on inspiration overlaod at moment, but am bookmarking this.

    Please read “Last Days of Teipei” from NY Times if you have not already.

    molly ll

    • Sara

      Hi Molly,
      I read “Last Days of Taipei”, very real, definitely portrayed Taipei’s current sentiment. I think one thing the author did not convey, is the energy of the city. From the article, it almost feels as if Taipei is a sleepy town, given up to the unstoppable Chinese influence. However, being in the city, the more prominent feeling would be the upbeat and perpetual energy from the people… Then again, it might just be that I am so very biased, since I am Taiwanese, and painfully in love with her land… We will be going to Taiwan and Japan in October. It will be Bugg’s first time to Asia. If you would like and have the time, you are welcome to join us. We will be doing a lot of kids oriented activities though… :) I do very much hope to meet Flip’s enigmatic sister someday… :)
      Love, Sara