Lyla D.
Yelp
Soon after we arrived at the fabulous new Kaohsiung Port Cruise Center, our cruise ship tour groups headed out to the parked tour busses for another full day of shore excursion in sunny, humid, and hot Kaohsiung, Taiwan. Our excitement to explore Kaohsiung was piqued because we'd never been to this city. While entering the harbor, we could see the city's transitional design theme, which blends contemporary, architecturally unique, and eco-friendly structures with its historic buildings.
The first stop of this shore excursion was a tour of The Pier-2 Art Center, which our guide proudly mentioned would be a treat for those needing "retail therapy." The Yancheng District is an old town of Kaohsiung and is the least populated. This harbor district was constructed and developed during the Japanese colonial period while the railway transport system was established. This network of land and sea transport facilitated Taiwan's industrial development. Yancheng District's Pier 2 was predominately an industrial warehouse district and has been repurposed or modernized with an eclectic mix of shops, restaurants, and activities. Since its former industrial days, the old brick warehouses and their lanes or alleys have been cleaned and fortified for public access. There is public transportation, either MRT (Mass Rapid Transit) or Light Rail Transit, that can get you here, and of course, there is plenty of complimentary vehicle parking should you drive.
Pier 2 is divided into three areas: 1- Dayong Area, which consists of 12 warehouses along Dayong Road and is the earliest development area of the Center. It was established in 2002.; 2- Peng-Lai Area is a 2012 development along the West Side Harbor Line in the Penglai warehouses; and 3- Dayi Area opened 2013 eastward of Dayi Street. The three areas are distinctively different from each other. The Dayong Area is a collaborative workspace for designers; the Penglai Area features farmland where crops are cultivated according to season, and artists show their on-site creative work, an experimental theater, and a railway museum, and the Dayi Area is where most of us focused our time by browsing the exciting shops, cultural venues and restaurants and food hall. There were many products and apparel from local designers as well as popular and international brands being featured. We preferred using our credit cards when making purchases rather than carrying foreign money from the countries we visited on this cruise. Besides our credit card company doesn't charge foreign transaction fees.
Other than purchasing locally designed shirts (lightweight and easy to pack) for my husband, we got to enjoy the Great Harbor Bridge, the harbor skyline and gorgeous weather. The 90-minutes at this stop went by too quickly and I'd like to return to explore more.