Luodong

Luodong, also spelled Lotung, (羅東; Luódōng) is a city in Yilan County.

Get in

Luodung is accessible by train, bus(Capital star, Kamalan or Guoguang) or car(National Freeway 5). Navigation is easy as all street signs are in both Chinese characters and either Romanization or English.

Get around

There is a free city bus. The buses run every 30 minutes or so. Route maps are in Chinese only. Taxis are available at the train station, and the bus station near Jungshan Park. Bus drivers and taxi drivers at this time(2009) do not speak English.

See

There are several spots of interest. The biggest attratction is the Luodung Sports Park. There are basketball courts, tennis courts, a profesional baseball field, a track for exercise, in addition to areas for strolling, fish feeding (Japanese Grass Carp) and other outdoor activities.

Another park is the Forest Park, on the north side of Luodung. It is built around two logging ponds from the Japanese logging era. The main attractions here are the old train engines and the giant tree stump sculptures.

Night Market, located on three sides of Jungshan Park, is full of food stalls all with traditional Taiwanese cuisine. Try the oyster omelette, fried rice noodels, or filled tapioca starch balls. For the brave at heart, or smelling impared, try the stinky tofu. Good buys are dried fruit from Yilan County and an abundance of costume jewlry.

Many temples dot the city of Luodung. Each one is dedicated to a particular god. Gung An temple is one of the biggest. There is also a smaller one dedicated to Sun Wu Kung (the monkey god). The smaller temples are often the most intriguing. While the larger temples have many of the same gods, the smaller temeples are dedicated to lesser known deities, such as the god of agriculture, or even the "Brother Pig" - god of thugs and seedy night life.

Do

There isn't much to do in Luodung. But it is a fantastic jumping off point to see the rest of Yilan County.

Buy

Eat

• Jun, 10-1,Chuanjing Road, Sec 2, ☎ [phone]. Specializes in Yilan cuisine. 

Drink

Sleep

Go next