When this station was built, it did not stand at the center of Tainan. For a long time, the heart of the city lay to the west. That was where the harbor was.…
Multilingual AI audio guide exhibit on WOUDiO (PWA). WOUDiO pioneered the world’s first audio guide platform with built-in donation: listeners can support the cultural venue without leaving the listening experience. The text below is the localized description, details, and narration script for this audio guide stop.
When this station was built, it did not stand at the center of Tainan.
For a long time, the heart of the city lay to the west. That was where the harbor was. Temples, markets, merchants' houses — all gathered toward the water.
The railway, however, passed along the eastern edge of the city, outside the old town.
Once the station rose there, government offices, schools, and banks began to line up facing it. The flow of people turned ninety degrees, from west to east. The very direction you now walk in, with the station at your back, is the direction fixed a hundred years ago.
The present station building dates from 1936. Its second floor once housed the Railway Hotel — with a dining hall and guest rooms, travelers could stay the night without ever stepping outside the station.
If you are able to go down to the platform, take a look at the iron columns supporting the roof. Layer upon layer of paint has been applied to them over the years.
A station is a building that forms a city's entrance. When the position of that entrance changes, the shape of the city changes with it. The very different atmospheres of Tainan's east and west sides are the result of the boundary drawn by this railway line.
