Question 1

Keelung on Your Own

Accepted Answer

Keelung's harbor reaches into the city center, and the Miaokou market, the waterfront and Zhongzheng Park are all in town. For a bigger city, commuter trains reach Taipei in about 40 minutes. Miaokou: The market lanes around Dianji Temple on Ren 3rd Road are open around the clock and busiest in the evening, so they work for lunch too. Zhongzheng Park: On the hill above the harbor, a white statue of the goddess Guanyin, 22.5 meters tall, faces the harbor entrance. Heping Island: Buses from near Keelung Station go to this island park, joined to the city by a bridge, where wind and sea have carved the rocks into mushroom shapes. Taipei by train: Local trains to Taipei Main Station leave every 15 to 20 minutes. Coming back, take only a train whose last stop is Keelung, because many trains turn off at Badu for the east coast. Getting back on time: All-aboard is usually about 30 minutes before sailing, and your ship posts the exact time. A ship will not wait for passengers touring on their own. Watch the clock: All-aboard is given in ship's time, which may not match the local clocks or your phone. Taiwan keeps National Standard Time, eight hours ahead of UTC, all year. Carry ID: Carry your passport or another ID; the police usually accept a printed copy of the passport photo page.

Question 2

Getting Around Keelung

Accepted Answer

Keelung Station is the place to start: trains run south to Taipei, and city and intercity buses leave from the transfer station built above the platforms. Taxis use meters, and up to four people ride for one fare. Paying for a train with an EasyCard costs the local-train fare less 10 percent. A direct bus links the Taipei City Hall bus station with Keelung, stopping near the night market, in about 35 minutes. Eating, drinking and smoking are banned beyond the ticket gates on the Taipei metro. Jiufen, an old gold-mining town with a narrow street of shops and teahouses, is about 15 minutes by bus from Ruifang Station, up steep, narrow and winding roads. On the north coast, Yehliu's wave-worn rock formations include the Queen's Head, which draws three million visitors a year. Scooters weave through traffic and drivers do not always stop at crossings, so cross with care.

Question 3

What to Eat in Keelung

Accepted Answer

Keelung's food is street food, and the Miaokou market, about 200 stalls that grew up around Dianji Temple from the late Japanese era, is where to eat it. Expect seafood soups, fried snacks and shaved ice. Ding bian cuo: This is a thick broth of rice-noodle sheets with pork, shrimp, squid, mushroom, bamboo shoot and dried lily flowers. Tianbula: This is Taiwanese tempura, and a few of the stalls sell it. Paopao bing: This is Keelung's bubble ice, a shaved-ice dessert that several stalls sell. Nutritious sandwich: This is a fried bun filled with sausage and mayonnaise. Shacha beef: The cooks stir-fry beef and tripe to order in a house-made shacha sauce.

Question 4

Culture & Local Life

Accepted Answer

The Ghost Festival in the seventh lunar month is Keelung's great event, and one of the oldest and largest in Taiwan. It began after a truce in 1855 ended bloody fighting between rival clans, who have competed ever since in folk performances instead. The main ritual is held on the 15th day of the seventh lunar month at Zhuputan, a temple at the top of Zhongzheng Park. On Zhuputan's first floor, the Keelung Zhongyuan Cultural Museum explains the festival's rituals and offerings. Dianji Temple, built in 1873 at the center of the market, honors Kaizhang Shengwang, the Tang dynasty general Chen Yuanguang, venerated by families from Zhangzhou. The old name Kelang is often taken to mean rooster cage, but it more probably comes from the Ketagalan, the area's first people; the present name dates from 1875. At the Lantern Festival, a firecracker-lion procession leaves from Xiding Road and calls at four of the city's temples.

Question 5

Tides of Empire: Dutch, Spanish, Chinese, Japanese, and the Republic

Accepted Answer

Keelung's sheltered harbor has drawn one power after another: Spain built a fort here in 1626, France fought over it in 1884 and 1885, and Japan rebuilt it as a modern port after 1895. Since 1945 it has been part of the Republic of China. First people: The Ketagalan lived around the harbor before any Europeans came. 1626 to 1668: Spaniards from Manila landed on today's Heping Island and built Fort San Salvador; the Dutch took it in 1642 and left for good in 1668. 1863: The Qing opened Keelung to trade, and gold washed from the Keelung River and local coal helped it grow. 1884 to 1885: French forces captured Keelung in October 1884 but could not advance, and the campaign ended in stalemate in April 1885. About 500 French soldiers and sailors, most of them killed by cholera and other illness, were buried nearby. 1891 to 1893: Keelung's first railway station opened in 1891, and the line to Taipei was finished in 1893. 1895 to 1945: Under Japanese rule the harbor was rebuilt in five phases between 1899 and 1944, and Allied bombing nearly destroyed the city and port in the Pacific War. After 1945: Keelung became a city of Taiwan Province under the Republic of China, and by 1984 it was the world's seventh-largest container port. Where to learn more: The Keelung Zhongyuan Cultural Museum, on the first floor of Zhuputan at the top of Zhongzheng Park, covers the Ghost Festival's history. The Ershawan Battery on Zhongzheng Road, a class one national monument, was the command post of the 1884 defense.

Question 6

Keelung with Children and Families

Accepted Answer

Keelung's sights for children are close together: a snack crawl through the market, an island park of odd rocks and a marine science museum in an old power station. Younger children: The mushroom-shaped rocks of Heping Island Park are easy to explore, and the park has a seawater pool that opens from May to October; check before you go. School age: The National Museum of Marine Science and Technology, at 367 Beining Road in a 1937 power plant, has galleries on ships, the deep sea and ocean science, and an IMAX theater. It is a short walk from Haikeguan Station. Teenagers: Taipei is about 40 minutes away by train, and its metro is simple to use with an EasyCard. In the market: The lanes are narrow and crowded, above all in the evening, so agree on a meeting point. Weather: Typhoons are most active from July to September and can upset plans.

Question 7

Accessibility in Keelung

Accepted Answer

Keelung Station by the harbor was rebuilt in 2015, and the entrances and accessible facilities of its south hall are in use. If you go on to Taipei, nearly all its metro stations have lifts. Ask your ship about the gangway and the route through the passenger building on the east side of the harbor. The market lanes are narrow and fill up in the evening, so an afternoon visit is easier going. Taxis are metered, but ask whether a folding wheelchair will fit before you set off.

Question 8

Shopping in Keelung and Taipei

Accepted Answer

In Keelung, the thing to buy is food, above all pastry from the old bakery by the market. For department stores and bigger shops, take the train to Taipei. Lee Hu Bakery, at 90 Ren 3rd Road, has been baking since 1882 and is known for pineapple cakes and mung bean pastries.

Question 9

Beaches Near Keelung

Accepted Answer

Keelung is a working port, so for sea swimming head for the Waimushan shore. The Waimushan seashore runs for about 5 km from the Waimushan fishing harbor to the village of Aoditong, with open shore and sea cliffs. Near the Waimushan fishing harbor there are facilities for experienced swimmers and divers. The beach near Aoditong is the last stretch of sand on Keelung's shore. Heping Island Park has a seawater pool, open from May to October; check before you go.

Keelung

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