Exploring historical traces on your travels: Discovering Yunlin’s agriculture and puppetry traditions

Reported by You Ruru / Special Feature

Yunlin is the birthplace of puppetry. On this trip, you can learn about the making and evolution of puppetry, as well as sample many unique local specialties. Yunlin, where old and new cultures coexist, boasts bustling traditional Taiwanese markets that still retain the rich flavor of classic morning markets. Though history may not have been fully preserved, walking through the streets today still evokes the grandeur of Yunlin’s status as the region’s foremost city.


▲ Xiluo Bridge. (Photo / From Yunlin County Government website)

After waking up on the first day, upon arriving at Douliu Station, you can head toXiluo Bridge, which stretches 1,939.03 meters in length. Once the longest bridge in the Far East, it ranked just behind the famous Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco. In recent years, to enhance the status of Xiluo Bridge and raise public awareness of Luoyang culture, the Luoyang Cultural and Educational Foundation has hosted the “Xiluo Bridge Tourism and Culture Festival” during spring break every year. The event features activities such as concerts and kite competitions, not only drawing local attention but also attracting tourists.

Next, head toXiluo Wan Zhuang Soy Sauce Visitor Factory.Xiluo’s local specialty, “soy sauce,” has a century-long history here. It is made using the pure waters of the Zhuoshui River, along with the humidity and temperature unique to the Jianan Plain, combined with hundred-year-old traditional brewing techniques. The century-old brand Wan Zhuang Soy Sauce was established in 1909 and is the oldest soy sauce brand in the Xiluo area. The founder, Mr. Zhuang Qinglin, took advantage of Xiluo’s exceptional water quality and climate, along with ancient brewing methods, to create the traditional pure-brewed black bean soy sauce, thereby laying the foundation for a soy sauce dynasty.


▲ Exterior of Huwei Puppet Theater Museum. (Photo / From Yunlin County Government website)

After enjoying some local snacks from Xiluo at noon, spend the afternoon atHuwei Puppet Theater Museum,where you can explore Taiwan’s cultural and artistic heritage at a leisurely pace. As a comprehensive art form, puppetry incorporates elements of literature, theater, music, storytelling, carving, painting, and embroidery, presenting a fusion of beauty. It can be described as a cultural miracle of Taiwan. In recent years, the puppetry festival has placed greater emphasis on international exchanges, inviting puppetry troupes from around the world to participate and share their art. As a result, in surveys of Taiwan’s symbolic cultural representations, puppetry consistently ranks at the top almost every year. Huwei has firmly established its reputation as the “hometown of puppetry,” earning widespread admiration and holding an unshakable position in the hearts of the people.

After waking up on the second day, head toDapi Pickled Mustard Greens Culture Museum.The Pickled Mustard Greens Culture Museum collects information on Dapi’s representative crops, using vegetables such as mustard greens and rice as supplementary exhibits, and showcases various farming tools and equipment used in the cultivation process. The highlight of the local mustard greens culture museum lies in the sensory experience of aroma. The exhibits allow visitors to experience the distinctive scents produced at each step of the mustard greens-making process, while the audiovisual and thematic displays fully integrate the unique characteristics of Dapi.


▲% Instant Banquet? Songmu Cultural Museum? (#, ∽ planted screen single ? Jing, ◎ photo from Yunlin County Government website) / strong>


Next, visitCai Fu Mazu Shun’an Temple,a locally renowned temple built in 1736. The Mazu deity enshrined inside, known as “Meizhou Sheng Erma,” was brought by the ancestors of the prominent Chen family from Meizhou Islet in Putian County, Xinghua Prefecture, Fujian — the “Tianhou Temple of the Heavenly Mother.” A bas-relief image of the Holy Mother is displayed on the exterior wall of the 18-meter-high pilgrim building, with a spotlight installed above it. When illuminated at night, it becomes even more solemn and can be seen from afar, making it a new landmark in Dounan.


▲ Shun’an Temple. (Photo / From Yunlin County Government website)

After lunch, you can head to the area aroundBeigang Chaotian Templeto sample local Beigang street food. In the afternoon, visitZhenxing Cinema,whose surrounding street still retains beautiful Baroque-style architecture. Inside the cinema, the original high-ceilinged space has been repurposed into an arts and cultural exhibition venue and a bakery shop. The first and second floors preserve many antique film projection devices, showcasing the heyday of early cinema. Taking a stroll through it is quite an interesting experience.

Xiluo Bridge
Address: End of Daqiao Road, Xiluo Township, Yunlin County

Xiluo Wan Zhuang Soy Sauce Sightseeing Factory
Address: No. 25, Yanping Road, Xiluo Township, Yunlin County
Phone: 05 5863666~8

Yunlin Puppet Theater Museum
Address: No. 498, Section 1, Lin Sen Road, Huwei Township, Yunlin County
Phone: 05 631 3080

Cai Fu Mazu Shun’an Temple
Address: No. 126-1, Section 1, Chang’an Road, Dounan Township, Yunlin County

Dapi Pickled Vegetable Culture Museum
Address: Nos. 665 & 667, Minsheng Road, Dadie Village, Dapi Township, Yunlin County
Phone: 05-5916512

Beigang Chaotian Temple
Address: No. 178, Zhongshan Road, Beigang Township, Yunlin County 651
Phone: 05 783 2055
Zhenxing Cinema
Address: No. 42, Zhongshan Road, Beigang Township, Yunlin County 651
Phone: 05 782 3798