A few days ago, we found time to take a little break from work. We decided to spend our free day in Yuchi Township, which is home to the beautiful Sun Moon Lake, and the birthplace of Taiwanese black tea, Lugao Village. Even though the afternoon turned rainy, we had a great time visiting one of the most beautiful places in Taiwan.
We spent the morning in Lugao, but first, we want to share our trip to the famous, and beautiful, Wenwu Temple of Sun Moon Lake. Wenwu Temple was originally built in 1938. In 1969, the temple was rebuilt and expanded to its current grandeur. The temple, flanked by two red lions, is located on top of one of the hills that surround Sun Moon Lake. On a beautiful clear day, the view from the top of Wenwu Temple is absolutely stunning.
Above are some assorted photos taken inside the grounds of Wenwu Temple.
We found the motif above to be especially beautiful. It's located at the back of the temple, behind the god halls. This motif is called a Dragon Wall (龍壁). The Dragon Wall represents power, brings prosperity and luck, and protects the temple from evil.
From Left to Right: The idols of Yuefei (岳飛）and Guan Gong（關公）。
The idol of Yuelao （月下老人）, which is carved from white jade.
Wenwu Temple has many god halls, but the two most popular ones are the main hall, which is dedicated to Guan Gong（關公）and Yuefei (岳飛）, and a side hall which is dedicated to Yuelao （月下老人）。Guan Gong and Yuefei are two very popular generals from Chinese history who were later deified in Taoism. Guan Gong and Yuefei are very merciful. Because of this, many people will come here to ask for their help in business, or to pass an exam in school. Yuelao, also called Yue Xia Laoren lit. Old Man Under the Moon, majors in matchmaking, marriage, and love. When you visit his hall, you will see many young people coming here in hopes of finding their match. After paying our deepest respects to the gods of Wenwu temple, we departed for a quick stop at the Yuchi Branch of the Tea Research and Extension Station (TRES).
Unfortunately, the Yuchi Branch of TRES is closed to the public. But, that doesn't mean there's nothing to do there. We stopped by and took a photo of a mist touched garden that surrounds TRES. We also took some time to read the history, and pay respect to one of the fathers of black tea in Taiwan, Mr. Arai Kokichiro. Mr. Kokichiro played a big part in establishing the black tea industry in Lugao, which is considered the birthplace of black tea in Taiwan.
In a few days, we will also publish the next part of this blog, which will focus on the beautiful village of Lugao, and the famous black tea of Sun Moon lake.