TAINAN, Taiwan — Start strolling down the streets of Taiwan's old capital and it looks much like the island's other cities: Blocky concrete apartments and stores cluttered with shop signs and eateries spilling out onto sidewalks selling noodles and rice in plastic bowls.
But walk a little farther and visitors will quickly discover what makes this southern metropolis famous — temples and lots of them. Tainan has more than 200 temples, most of them shoehorned between homes in tiny alleys or tucked away behind new buildings.
The temples help make the city the cradle of Taiwanese culture. Tainan is also known for its friendly people, snack foods and historical sites created by the early settlers from China who laid the foundation of this island's strong trading tradition.
With a population of 735,000, the city is re-emerging as a new center of influence because it's the hometown of President Hen Shui-bian and other prominent officials in his government.
Most of Tainan's temples were built by Buddhists, Taoists or followers of various folk gods. The temples are usually open during the day, and tourists are welcome to visit as long as they stay out of the way of worshippers.
One of the city's strangest temples is the East Mountain Temple, a common Taoist venue for exorcists or mediums corresponding with the dead.
On the walls of the temple, horrific scenes etched in black stone warn the faithful to live a virtuous life or risk the tortures of hell.
Tainan was the island's capital from 1663 to 1885, and it was the home of Dutch invaders who set up a military and trading base in the city in 1624. The Dutch were kicked out 37 years later by Ming Dynasty warrior Chen Cheng-kung, also known as Koxinga, who later tried to use Tainan as a base to overthrow the Qing Dynasty, which toppled the Ming.
A Tainan shrine honors Koxinga, and there's a large statue of him under a shady banyan tree where the Dutch built their base, Fort Zeelandia. His chubby cheeks and long robe make him look more like a bureaucrat than a renegade warrior.
There's not much left of Fort Zeelandia, also called Anping Fort, in northwest Tainan. An outer wall made of red brick still stands, and locals say that the banyan tree that clings to wall is 300 years old. Other walls have been reconstructed and a museum features paintings of the fort's cream-colored walls and red-tiled roofs.
One of the greatest pleasures of visiting Tainan is sampling the city's famous snacks sold in markets and ubiquitous eateries.
About a block away from the Anping fort is the Chen Family Oyster Roll shop. Under the shade of the restaurant's long canvas awning, about 10 elderly women sit on wooden stools as they chat and shuck oysters from a mountain of the crustaceans dumped on the sidewalk.
Like most small Taiwanese restaurants, the kitchen is in the front of the Chen Family Oyster Roll shop and customers can watch their food being cooked before they sit down on plastic chairs on the sidewalk.
The restaurant serves classic Tainan shrimp and oyster rolls. The shrimp or oyster meat is blended with pork and fish, rolled into a long cigar, dipped in light tempura-like batter and deep fried until gold and crispy.
Another must-eat treat is Tainan danzi noodles, named after the shoulder poles vendors used to use to carry pots of the broth served with the pasta.
Ask locals where's the best place to try the dish, and they'll often recommend the Tainan Danzi Noodles shop near the city's center.