Kaohsiung is constructing monuments to progress, but basic quality-of-life improvements are needed to make the city truly livable.

The News Lens
Date: 2018/05/24
Date: Eryk Smith

Photo Credit: Kaohsiung Urban Development Bureau

This October, the planet’s largest concert venue under one roof officially opens in Kaohsiung, built on the site of an old military base.

It’s an impressive building. Impressive, too, is what’s planned for the new Kaohsiung Main Train Station, a gorgeous open, green and friendly complex that will make the Taipei Main Station look downright Stalinist.

I love my adopted hometown of Kaohsiung and bristle at expat bloggers or friends who rag on this city. I’ve seen what was – with only slight use of hyperbole – an industrial wasteland, transform into what I consider one of the most livable cities on the island. Watching electric buses silently glide along relatively clean streets or solar-powered tour boats on the Love River fills me with pride. Other changes to the waterfront and various beautification projects are likewise inspiring.    [FULL  STORY]