[TOUR] 十鼓文化村 / Ten Drum @ Rende, Tainan
Day 2 of our Taiwan tour comprises breakfast buffet, an excursion and shopping. However, I will elaborate on breakfast and shopping in the next entry and give more details on the excursion in this entry. The first destination of the day after breakfast was traveling from Taichung to Tainan for the Ten Drum excursion.
十鼓文化村 / Ten Drum Culture Village
No.326, Section 2, Wenhua Road,
Rende District,
Tainan 71755, Taiwan
06-2662225
Entrance
When we first arrived, our tour guide hand us over to the tour guide from Ten Drums. I found that it was quite a confusing tour as the tour guide stated that we could take our time to take pictures of the place but the very next minute, he said that we should go quickly and snap shots later.
Marriage
This place is quite interesting as there are many different areas of interest. The above pictures depict marital ceremonies that were held there so that the marriage would be ever lasting.
Railway
The path shown above is a railway track that is currently not being used. There are many innovative decorations using natural items surrounding the area. We also watched about 5 drum performances in the theatre, which was nothing short of mind blowing. It is amazing when a country/city still wants to keep it’s culture and origin.
Drums / Equipments
As you walk down the railway track, turn right to one of the rooms and you will be able to see this room filled with drums and equipment used to make them.
Souvenir store
On the left of the railway track is the souvenir store that also has natural decorations showing the history of this village.
Make a wish
As you take a longer walk to the other side of the village, you will be able to see these wishing trees and a skywalk to leading to other places. The floor of the skywalk is made of glass so it is quite transparent. Shiling and I made a mistake by wearing a dress that day. We got through it with the persuasion of our Singaporean tour guide anyhow!
Darkness
After the skywalk, we past through the cafe, playground and sugar refinery. In the past, the village was called Che Lu Cian Sugar Refinery. The sugar industry played an important role in Taiwan export trade due to the Ming-Jheng and Japanese colonial rule period. However, with the passage of time, the Taiwan drum culture was used to promote Taiwan’s art culture so this became the main establishment of the Ten Drum Culture Village. Before the tour guide let us off for lunch, we were asked to go to a “drum class” and started following the tour guide’s instructions to play the drums. It was quite a fun experience for the other tour members, Shiling and I. My brother excused himself from the play and took photos for us instead.
Lunch
During lunch period, some tour members were unsatisfied with the tour guide and kept complaining. Our table was one of the last few to receive our food. It is quite funny how the food served by the tour is always cold and never hot, let alone warm. It is also interesting that the chopsticks are made of drum like material that is safe for picking on food. We were served two drumsticks, a bowl of rice, soup, vegetables, tofu, orange, glutinous like dessert and a glass of winter melon tea. I did not find any of the food, including the dessert appealing and could only finish the vegetables and one drumstick. The wintermelon tea was the only saving grace. Seriously, I was disappointed with the food provided. The decorations (which are made from natural input) of the restaurants kept me alive though.
Nature
After lunch, we were free to go wherever we wish so I went to explore some parts of the village on my own when my brother, mum and Shiling browse around the souvenir store. I was taken aback by the majestic beauty of the greenery Tainan had to offer. This is what I appreciate most from the tour. At least my money was worth it for something as natural as this.
Opens daily 9AM-5PM
Reservations required during weekdays
Tickets: Adults – NT$300; Students – NT$280
NEAREST STATION: Baoan Railway Station
Although I was quite disappointed in many of the factors of the tour, the beautiful scenic views of Taiwan helped me pull through the tour. This village was such a great experience.
