Landmark · Anping
Tainan Canal
臺南運河
Photo: Pbdragonwang, CC BY-SA 4.0A straight Japanese-era canal about 3.8 km long between central Tainan and Anping Harbour, now used by tour boats and dragon boat races.
History
Earlier waterways between the city and Anping silted up after the Zengwen River changed course in 1823 and floods breached them in 1903. Work on a new canal under the Japanese Government-General began on 16 April 1922, and it was finished in 1926 so that sea-going boats could reach the city. As Anping harbour silted up and trade moved to Kaohsiung, shipping faded, and the canal turned to leisure use. The red-brick Anping customs office, completed beside it in 1926, is now the Canal Museum.
Eat nearby
謝掌櫃Xie Shopkeeper
A young Anping seafood shop, open since 2018, cooking fresh seafood to order. It is best known for a loaded milkfish-and-seafood congee and for fish steamed in salt.
王氏魚皮Wang Shih Fish Skin Dishes
An early-opening Anping shop run by a former milkfish farmer. Its speciality is milkfish skin with a thin layer of flesh, served in soup or under braised pork sauce.
文章牛肉湯Wen Zhang Beef Soup
Anping beef soup shop that stays open late into the night, using fresh local beef. The broth simmers brisket, beef bones, onion, vegetables, pineapple and sugarcane with a few Chinese herbs. A second generation is taking over.
同記安平豆花Tong Ji Anping Douhua
An Anping douhua shop with more than 50 years behind it. The tofu pudding is made the traditional way from non-GM soybeans, and every topping is cooked fresh.
周氏蝦捲台南總店Chou's Shrimp Roll (Main Store)
Chou's Shrimp Roll (周氏蝦捲) has traded in Anping since 1965. Founder Chou Chin-ken was a banquet chef, and the rolls are wrapped in caul fat before frying.