Saturday, January 21, 2012

Cih-en Pagoda

Not far from Ita Thao, on the other side of Sun Moon Lake, is the Cih-en Pagoda. You can see it in the distance right before the hike up to its location. President Chiang Kai-Shek built it in 1971 in memory of his mother.


Even the lamp posts in the area have the sun and moon symbols.


From the bottom, it is approximately a 700 meters (1/2 mile) walk to the pagoda on the Cih-en Pagoda Trail.
It is a fairly easy hike on a paved road with greenery all around.


Depending on your pace, within 20 minutes, you will reach the 9-story pagoda plus 3 stories at the base.


There are no elevators, so you will have to take the staircase up 12-stories. Close to the top is a net in case of falls.


Also at the top is a bell visitors can ring for good fortunate. During our visit, a number of people struck the bell too hard and it became quite annoying.
Remember to strike it gently to save the eardrums of those visitors still inside the pagoda!


A view from the top to the base of the pagoda.


A view of Sun Moon Lake from the top of the pagoda's lookout.


- Karen

15 comments:

Carol @ Always Thyme to Cook said...

Beautiful Pagoda! And what a stunning view from the top. I can just imagine how annoying the bell has to be. It's a pretty bell.

betchai said...

so beautiful, it always pay to go up and look from the top.

geoffsteen said...

Fantastic. And the added bonus of great exercise too!

Jenny Woolf said...

These are awesome photographs. The one all the way down the stairs is amazing. And what views! The lookout over the bay with its little white boats and interesting clouds, is like a dream. Your post really made me want to visit

Yogi♪♪♪ said...

That is amazing. I know nothing about pagodas but had never thought of them as potentially being so tall.

ArtandArchitecture-SF.com said...

Wonderful shots, the I am so glad you included a photo of the stairway, that is something you just don't think about when looking at these wonderful monuments, the basic things inside.

FilipBlog said...

Super pictures, I would love to do this hike.

Greetings,
Fliip

Emm said...

What a beautiful place. My favourite photo is the greenery and walk way leading up to the pagoda and I know I would have been taken by it. The pagoda is quite exquisite, isn't it? What a lovely honour for his mother and definitely worth the walk up!

Ryan said...

That is a stunning view but these guys really need to invest in an elevator, I feel tired just looking at those stairs.

William K Wallace said...

Cih-en Pagoda is a beautiful looking structure, and the view from the top is worth climbing up all those stairs.

There is great looking Pagoda in Kew Gardens in London, which they do not allow the public to climb up, oh how I wish they did.

Jenny Woolf said...

Havent been able to unfollow and then follow again. So, I'm going to see if this fixes itself, meanwhile I'll just keep checking!

lina said...

That is a beautiful pagoda, surrounded by equally gorgeous scenery. :)

Yoshi said...

Great entry. It must be a good exercise to be on top of pagoda:) The view from the top is awesome!

Sukhmandir Kaur said...

Oh my that's quite a staircase!

LifeRamblings said...

wow, the views are stunning but i don't think i'd climb up the pagoda. i feel dizzy just looking at the stairways.