Hengchun: From Orchid Village to Tourist Hotspot

You can track Hengchun's cultural evolution through the changes in the town's name. Its earliest name, "Langqiao," appears in Sui dynasty historical records. This and later variations are said to be an approximation of the aboriginal name for a stretch of coast between Checheng and Haikou on the Hengchun Peninsula. That aboriginal name, romanized as Longkiauw or Lonckjau, is said to mean "Orchid Village" in honor of the orchids that abounded on the peninsula in those days. Unfortunately, over the years, poachers picked the area bare of its orchids, leaving only the name to posterity.

In 1874, Hengchun was the location of the infamous Mudan She Incident in which Japanese troops attacked Taiwan aborigines in what was claimed to be retaliation for the killing of a number of Japanese sailors. Following the incident, the Qing government took a more active role in the administration of Taiwan, assigning Shen Baozhen, an imperial official from Fujian, to oversee shipping around the island. Shen discovered Longkiauw on one of his patrols. Noting its fine climate and strategic position, he petitioned the Court for permission to construct a regional administrative center to be known as Hengchun. Not only did the Court accept Shen's recommendation for the name, it also approved his petition to build a defensive stronghold.

Protected on all sides

In the eyes of today's younger writers and historians, Hengchun's old town is a cultural asset, but the older people of Hengchun see in the town the continuity of Han Chinese culture. This continuity is manifested in the very apparent use of the principles of fengshui in the selection of the town's location. When you enter the old town of Hengchun, you can't help but note the hills that surround it like guardian spirits on all four sides. These hills are a visceral reminder of Hengchun's history and the role that fengshui played in the founding of the town.

The building of a town is a major event in any context. However, the importance of fengshui in traditional Chinese culture raises the selection of a location to a high art. According to the Hengchun Gazetteer, the persons supervising the construction were adepts in the Kanyu School of fengshui. Fengshui holds that an auspicious location balances the influences of four celestial animals, the "Dark Turtle," the "Cerulean Dragon," the "White Tiger" and the "Vermillion Bird." Further, these animals must be represented in the landscape at the cardinal directions.

Hengchun's builders chose to locate the town atop Santai Hill at the tail end of the Central Mountain Range. Santai Hill is Hengchun's Dark Turtle, which denotes a hill or mountain to the north. To the southeast of the town is Longruan Hill-the site's Cerulean Dragon. To the northeast is Tiger-head Hill, the site's White Tiger. And to the southwest is Hsiping Hill, also known as Kuan Hill, which is the site's Vermillion Bird and is famed for its sunsets. The town is exposed only to the northwest, and even there the gap is filled at a distance by Turtle Hill. Moreover, Monkey Cave Hill, which lies inside the old town's walls, is said to have an auspicious ridge.

The old town has a perimeter of 820 zhang, or about 8,200 feet. The walls, meanwhile, were 16 feet high and 20 feet thick. Between the gates were eight barracks, and each gate had four cannon mounted above. The outer wall was further fortified with brick parapets. Finally, the whole of the town was surrounded by a moat bridged at each of the gates. This standard late-Qing wall-and-moat design not only intimidated, but also provided for a very solid defense. Moreover, the gates of Hengchun's old town still exist, impressing visitors with their size and allowing them to visualize the town's original appearance.

The sun still sets as of old behind the hills on the Hengchun Peninsula. There's more than meets the eye in Hengchun. Scratch the surface, and you'll discover the memory of things that are gone, for all practical purposes, but certainly not forgotten-prehistoric stone coffins, orchids, and 19th-century cannon, to name a few.

With hoe and plow

Among Hengchun's sites is Taiwan's first professionally managed "vacation" farm-the Ever Spring Eco Farm. The farm's gate gives visitors a good idea of what the farm is about. Before the gate stands a bronze statue of a rearing goat, while the gate itself is framed by a couplet which runs: "Sowing peace with hoe and plow, the peasant is as proud as the official."

Visitors to the farm remark that they have come to Hengchun to get back to nature, to enjoy a sort of leisure different from the noisy varieties offered by the city. They also enjoy the farm's fresh, organically grown produce. Visitors say that the experience engenders a greater respect for life and an understanding of the importance of protecting the natural environment.

Ever Spring's director, Chang Kuo-hsing, feels the farm has a bright outlook: "When construction of the Pingtung Airport is completed at the end of this year, Taipei will be only one hour away. And the Second Southern Freeway is being extended to Linpien. Linpien is only half an hour by car from Hengchun, so Hengchun is going to be flooded with tourists from Taipei."

Weekend holidaymakers are clearly enjoying themselves on the farm's 48 hectares. The farm, located on Red Cow Ridge in Hengchun Township, provides a panoramic view of Hengchun and its environs, including Longruan Lake, Kuan Hill, the old town and South Bay. Hengchun is also known for being home to the beautiful golden birdwing butterfly, fireflies galore, migratory birds, numerous tropical plants carried to Taiwan on ocean currents, and a number of breeds of goats and sheep.

In fact, Pingtung County is Taiwan's most important sheep- and goat-ranching region, and Hengchun has historically has been the center of this activity in Pingtung.

Chen Yin-chuan, who has been jestingly referred to as "the father of goat husbandry" by the residents of Hengchun, is head of the loans division of the local agricultural cooperative. The nickname stems from his long-term use of the cooperative's resources to spur the development of sheep and goat husbandry in Hengchun. In fact, Chen was responsible for persuading Hengchun's ranchers to raise their sheep in pens rather than grazing them over the open range. He further contributed to sheep and goat ranchers' success by pressuring feed companies to lower their prices. Chen, who has spent the greater part of his life involved with sheep and goat husbandry, says playfully: "The fortunes of Hengchun's farmers depend upon their sheep and goats-they believe that a cup of goat's milk a day keeps the doctor away."

An agricultural revival

As with most other rural townships, Hengchun's other traditional industries are facing a crisis. Pingtung County Councilor Lin Yu-hung has raised the issue before the county council, stating: "Taiwan's pending entry into the World Trade Organization will have a tremendous impact on traditional industries. The Pingtung County Government must promote the use of more advanced farming techniques and consider how to make local farmers more competitive."

Chang Kuo-hsing believes that by promoting "eco-tourism" farms rather than just vacation farms, the government can make working the land more viable. The survival of traditional industries is dependent upon a transition to sustainable land-use practices, which will have the added benefit of stimulating tourism.

Speaking from the heart, Chang says: "The spirit of conservation is sustainable use-finding a balance point in terms of land use, and creating leisure activities that marry the concepts of productivity, ecology, and life. We should turn our area into a model of 'eco-tourism' farming. This will engender a sense of local pride and bring in tourists. The switch to eco-farming will raise productivity and give local farmers a future they can have confidence in."

However, Chang also notes that there remains the issue of finding sufficient investment capital to implement the plan. "How do we persuade Taiwanese business people to invest in Taiwan rather than permanently relocating to China? This is a key issue." Chang feels that if these business people can be made to appreciate the beauty of Taiwan, there is hope that they can be persuaded to invest in the land that their fathers and uncles and great uncles have tilled in Hengchun.

Bringing in international tourists

Looked at as a whole, Hengchun's future as tourist destination depends on four key factors: government policy, the farmers' willingness to adapt, consumer interest, and investors' willingness to provide capital. But locals interested in turning Hengchun into an international tourist destination already have a plan in mind. Specifically, they believe that eco-tourism farming can spur a revival in the local farming industry and bring in the tourists by providing a higher-quality vacation experience.

"With the move towards two-day weekends, Hengchun's tourism industry has room to develop." Noting that the two-day weekend has now been widely implemented in Taiwan, locals take what might be called the Goldilocks view of the weekends-two days is too little time to go overseas and too much time for the indoor entertainments available in the city, but just the right amount of time to get out of the city.

Measures are being taken to encourage tourism in Pingtung County. Over the last several years, the Pingtung County Government has been developing the Hengchun Peninsula Tourism System. The county government has also been working with the Ministry of Transportation and Communications on the "Hengchun Flight Plan," an effort to facilitate flights into the region. Local residents view the transportation projects, which include the Gemini Airport plan, the Wuliting Airport, and the Blue Highway, as one means of fostering economic growth.

The transportation issue has become a hot topic for local residents, and messages such as the following are appearing frequently in the chat rooms of the Pingtung County Government's website: "Once it becomes easier to get out into the countryside, development will be more evenly distributed between urban and rural areas. We hope that with the completion of these projects Hengchun will not only draw tourists from northern Taiwan, but also from overseas."

Nourishing the spirit

As part of its efforts to boost the economy through increasing domestic demand, the government is attempting to stimulate domestic tourism. Efforts include Cabinet-approved measures that: (1) provide travel subsidies of up to NT$16,000 for domestic vacation travel; and (2) increase the number of compulsory annual vacation days for government employees from seven to 14. (Civil servants get a bonus for each day of discretionary vacation time on which they work. The government wants to force people to take more vacation time so it can pay out fewer bonuses and get people to travel more within Taiwan.)

However, even with enthusiasm for the two-day weekend building, there remains the question of what people will do with their days off. If we take people's leisure-time activities as indicative of their national character-the Swiss with their mountaineering and skiing, the English with their afternoon tea and the Thais with their massage-what distinctive leisure-time activities does Taiwan have?

Asks a group of weekend visitors from Taipei, "Though there are other options for free time, isn't the experience of getting back to the earth more fulfilling to the spirit?" In truth, strolling through Hengchun and hearing the locals humming "Thoughts Arise" carried on the wind off the mountains, one's thoughts do turn to days long past. A journey to Hengchun is like making a visit to a beautiful memory.

Hengchun Facts and Figures

As its name-"Eternal Spring"-implies, Hengchun, which lies at Taiwan's southern tip, enjoys a spring-like climate year round. The area's traditional industries are agriculture, fishing and animal husbandry. Agricultural products include rice, onions, watermelons and sugar cane. Animal husbandry in the area focuses on cows, sheep, and goats. Other once-important industries such as sisal, whaling and sugar refining have all died out. Sisal had its heyday before the invention of nylon, making Hengchun a key supplier of the raw materials for ropes and fisherman's nets. Today, however, Hengchun's tourist attractions-its stunning scenery, its national park and its eco-farm-have made tourism an important part of the local economy.

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The Ever Spring Eco Farm was the first specialized eco-tourism farm in Taiwan. Visitors come from far and wide on weekends and holidays. (photo by Jimmy Lin)

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In recent years, as agriculture has declined, Hengchun's beautiful scenery and the establishment of Kenting National Park have helped spur a growing tourism industry.

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Old Hengchun was surrounded by four guardian deities. This gate, part of the old walled town, is one of the most famous historic sites in the town.

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Visitors stream across this scenic area of volcanic rock, picking up souvenirs along the way, and getting a feel for down-home Hengchun in the process.

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The goats at the eco-tourism farm-with their life of eating, sleeping, and head-butting contests-are a big favorite among visitors. (photo by Jimmy Lin)