Last week we went on holiday to Kaohsiung, a city on the southern coast of Taiwan. It's the world's sixth-largest port.
Caty and Dillon came with us, which made the trip extra fun.
We also took care of Micah for the entire week (since the orphanage was closed for the holidays). It was our first time traveling with a baby, and we enjoyed it though it was different than past vacations. (I will write more on that in a later post).
On our first day, we went to the Lotus Pond. This large lake is surrounded by twenty or so temples of all shapes and sizes. Because of the lunar holiday, the temples were crowded.
Inside, people gave their offerings and burned incense before stepping outside to partake in carnival games, stinky tofu, quail eggs on a stick, and a variety of other street foods.
Some people come to worship gods like this one (the god of war).
Many people burn paper money as an offering to their ancestors.
Another Chinese New Year tradition are fireworks. These kids were having a blast...literally.
We walked around the lake and took it all in: flashing lights, popping firecrackers, temple drums, and aromatic incense. It was a strange juxtaposition of chaos and calm.
That night we settled into our hostel and enjoyed cooking dinner and watching a movie together. We felt thankful for the chance to get away from Taipei for a few days to relax.
