MEINONG

Like the traditional village of Beipu in Hsinchu County, Meinong is a village where almost all the population is of Hakka ethnicity. Located half an hour's drive from Kaohsiung, in the northeast of Kaohsiung County, Meinong was once the nerve centre of Taiwanese tobacco production. Since Taiwan's entry into the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 2002 and the subsequent price liberalization, the local industry has declined and the plantations of yesterday have partly returned to the rural landscapes of yesteryear. To take advantage of the growing tourism in the region, Meinong is now playing the card of both natural retreat - with its rice fields, flower fields and lush landscapes - and cultural retreat, with its hakka heritage.

Founded more than 200 years ago by migrants from the "host people", the village contains architectural remains of bewitching beauty: its temples with curved roofs and traditional U-shaped houses with a central courtyard will soon take you back in time. You will also have the opportunity to admire the know-how of local craftsmen, whose favourite pastime is the making of paper and bamboo umbrellas. Imported from Chaozhou, in the Chinese province of Guangdong, at the beginning of the 20th century, this art is nowadays the reputation of the village and the pride of its inhabitants, whose custom is to offer two umbrellas to every new bride, as a good luck charm.