By MOOK Travel Life Network, Chen Guanxin, compiled and reported
The months of April to June mark the peak season for black marlin in Pingtung, and the 13th annual Black Marlin Festival has now kicked off the local summer tourism boom. This year’s festival runs from today until June 30, with the theme “Summer Sakura Romance.” It also features the adorable “Sakura Girl” as its mascot, who romantically meets the black marlin “Kiko” in the waters off Donggang, creating a heartwarming summer love story. On May 11, in conjunction with Mother’s Day, a “Paint Sakura Shrimp & Treat to Sashimi” family event was held for kindergarten and daycare children in Donggang and Pingtung. On May 18, the Campus Cooking King Creative Competition and Celebrity Chef Performance, hosted by “Traveler’s” Shasha and featuring celebrity chefs Jeffery Jiang and Allen Chen, demonstrated cooking skills live. On May 25, the “Donggang Fishing Youth · Live Auction” event allowed the public to bid on their favorite seafood dishes.
For those planning a trip to Nanwan in southern Pingtung recently, in addition to enjoying the cool refreshment of the sea, you might want to look for the hidden Richard Parker in Pingtung – there’s one in Nanwan, too (Photo provided by Mook Editorial Department)
To boost spending, during the Black Marlin Festival from today until June 30, the public can exchange a cute wind chime for every NT$2,000 spent cumulatively across the three townships of Donggang, Liuqiu, and Linbian, limited to 5,000 wind chimes while stocks last. If you collect stamp marks of the Sakura Shrimp Baby from any three hygienic specialty stores on the “I Love Sakura Baby Activity Card,” you can join the lucky draw, with the grand prize being a table of Donggang’s famous Sakura Tuna Feast.
In addition, on May 18 and 19, the Dapeng Bay Waterfront Park will host an International Sailing Invitational, featuring the spectacular sight of tall-masted sailboats passing under the cross-sea bridge. From today until May 19, every Saturday and Sunday, the public can bring five invoices issued between March and June 2013 to enjoy free kayaking, sailing, or wakeboarding experiences. On June 11, the Pingtung County Dragon Boat Race will also take place by the Donggang River. Official website: www.2013toro.com.tw.
The mascot of this year’s Black Marlin Festival, the “Sakura Girl,” is drawing attention with her adorable design (Photo provided by Pingtung County Government)
For those planning to attend the Pingtung Black Marlin Festival, there’s also a fun game where you can win cash prizes. Pingtung County Government has launched the “Fantastic Journey to Find Richard Parker” activity from today until August 30, featuring seven tigers in different designs placed at seven locations: Baisha Bay in Kenting, Hengchun Transfer Station, Folk Song Museum, Floating City Wall at Hengchun Junior High School, Qianggu Shed, Nanwan, and the Iron Horse Station of the Kenting Police Station. The public just needs to find the tigers, take photos with them, and then use a free smartphone collage app to combine five or seven photos into one and upload it to the event website (http://fv38.com/75982) to get a serial number. Upon successful upload, you can receive a beautiful souvenir and also enter the lucky draw.
The lucky draw is conducted in two phases. The first phase, “Catch 5 Tigers to Win 5-Star Accommodation,” ends on June 30, where participants who upload five tiger photos can win 5-star hotel vouchers, specialty homestay vouchers, and second-generation Pingtung premium souvenirs such as pineapple cakes. The second phase, “Catch All 7 Tigers to Win NT$70,000 in Cash,” runs from today until August 30. Those who collect all seven tiger photos and successfully upload them can join the cash draw for two prizes of NT$20,000 and three prizes of NT$10,000.
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