Location
Hengchun Peninsula, Pingtung, Taiwan
Kenting lies on the Hengchun Peninsula at the ...
Kenting lies on the Hengchun Peninsula at the southernmost tip of Taiwan, where the Kuroshio Current meets the waters of the South China Sea and the Taiwan Strait; sandy beaches, fringing reefs, cliffs and the tropical sea all come together here. The Eluanbi lighthouse has stood on the cape for over a century, counted among the "Eight Scenic Views of Taiwan." Kenting National Park, established in 1982, was Taiwan's first national park.
"Eluan" means "sail" in the Paiwan language. The Eluanbi lighthouse, built in 1883, stands 21.4 meters tall with a light of 1.8 million candela, earning the name "the Light of East Asia." Facing Eluanbi on the east coast, the western cape of Maobitou takes its name — "Cat Nose" — from a fallen coral reef shaped like a crouching cat. Between the two capes lie Nanwan and Kenting Street; the coastal limestone terraces, eaten by the sea, form fringing reefs, collapsed cliffs and honeycombed rocks in colorful variety.
The main trunk of the Kuroshio flows north along Taiwan's east coast; its branch meets the South China Sea waters off Hengchun, carrying rich nutrients that nurture Taiwan's most flourishing coral-reef ecosystem. The soft corals and tropical fish of Houwan (Houpihu) and Wanlitong make this one of Asia's celebrated snorkeling grounds. From October to March, migratory birds pass over Hengchun; the autumn passage of the grey-faced buzzard — the "National Day bird" — past the ridges of Manzhou is a spectacular sight.
天之涯，海之角，知交半零落。 — At the sky's edge, at the corner of the sea, half my old friends are scattered like fallen leaves.—— Li Shutong, "Farewell"
Hengchun Old Town, built in 1875, is the best-preserved Qing-dynasty walled city in Taiwan, with all four gates still standing. The film Cape No. 7 made the romance of Hengchun and Kenting known far and wide, and the yueqin ballads of folk singer Chen Da are still sung across this peninsula. The white sands of Baisha Bay, the "sand waterfall" of Fengchuisha and the night-market bustle of Kenting Street compose the ever-turning human scenery of the cape through the seasons.