The first floor of the guest house is a cafe run by the owner. Preparing before departure while waiting for breakfast.

The morning plate is a little bit of various foods in a nice bowl. The shrimp and avocado on garlic toast will energize you for the day, and you can enjoy your coffee while checking your route.

The weather on the fourth day was also sunny. The forecast is for a summer day with a high temperature of 27°C. Compared to Taipei, Tainan, which is located in the south, feels the sun more strongly. After breakfast and checkout, the fourth day's ride begins.

We decided to head to the Xingda Harbor Fish Market , a fishing port market near the border between Tainan and Kaohsiung counties, to see the actual sabahi, the model for the sabahi boy we met yesterday.
By the way, as you can see from these photos, we rode on better maintained roads in Taiwan this time than in Japan. While the asphalt on the city streets is uneven in some places, the bike lanes here and there are wide and safe. It makes you realize how strong the bicycle culture is in Taiwan.

After riding about 13km from the hotel, we arrived at Xingda Harbor Fish Market. The market is lined with fishmongers and food shops selling fresh seafood.
It is a weekday morning, so there are not many tourists, however it's a popular tourist spot on weekends.

This sabahi was about 40cm long. I had somehow imagined a sardine, a popular popular fish in Japan, so it was much larger than I had expected.
I later found out that adults can grow up to 1 meter, and wild fish can grow up to 1.7 meters.
The silhouette of the fish, with its small head and long tail fin, was different from the fish we eat in Japan. The big, round eyes and the (sort of) faraway stare are similar to the Sabahi boy I took a picture of yesterday.

I was eager to try the Sabahi meat dumplings from a street vendor. The dumplings, made of mashed white fish sabahi, are chewy but not stodgy, similar to fish sausage, and easy to eat. It was an accomplishment to finally encounter sabahi!

About 30km after leaving the tourist market, we decided to take a break and stop by "MUMU" after receiving a recommendation to try the original ice cream sold by Taiwan's largest oil company "CPC Corporation", "中油氷棒(zhōng yóu bīng bàng)".
Sam knew of the shop's existence, but had never had it before, so we decided to stop by.
Incidentally, MUMU is located on the premises of the welfare facility of CPC Corporation.

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中油氷棒(zhōng yóu bīng bàng) are reasonably priced at 16 yuan (about 80 yen) each. They come in several flavors, including red bean, pineapple, and milk. They are just right for cooling down after a hot ride in the sun.

Stop by the "蓮池潭 (Liánchí tán)", a tourist attraction in Kaohsiung City. The famous power spot "Dragon and Tiger Pagoda" stands on the shore of the lake, with two towers, each with a dragon and tiger motif, standing next to each other. I entered the Dragon and Tiger Pagoda to pray for the completion of our round-trip tour of Taiwan.

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The walls on both sides of the dimly lit passageway were painted with scenes of heaven and hell. Due to renovation work, we visited only the first floor (normally, it is possible to climb the stairs to the top of the tower, apparently).

At lunch time, we went to Sam's recommendation, 美華麺店 (měi huá miàn diàn). The popular beef noodle soup is flavored like soy sauce ramen and is light, the exact opposite of the color of the soup.
The braised beef is tender and hearty. A side dish of pickled vegetables was also brought in for a healthy lunch.

Beef noodle soup is so popular in Taiwan that it is considered a national dish.
It is treated much like ramen in Japan, including the fact that it is quick and easy to eat.

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After lunch, we stopped by "Port of Kaohsiung" recommended by Sam. Stores and galleries line the area, which were renovated from a group of port warehouses. The atmosphere is stylish, like Yokohama's red brick warehouses.
On the day we visited, the area was busy with music events for young people.

From Port of Kaohsiung, head south on Route 17 to Fangliao, where the inn is located. 17 is a road that is heavily trafficked by large vehicles, so it has a separated lane for motorcycles and bicycles. As you can see in the photo, there are few traffic lights, and it is safe to ride at cruising speed for a long time.

By the time we entered the town of Fangliao, it was pitch dark.
Compared to the streets of the previous two days, there was less traffic and streetlights, giving us the feeling that we were in a provincial city.

We rode in the dark at the end, but managed to arrive at the hotel safely.
Again, they allowed us to store our bicycles next to the lobby.
After checking in, we washed our dirty clothes in the hotel's laundromat and Mission Complete!

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Dinner was at a hot pot restaurant in front of the train station, about a 5-minute walk from the hotel.
A local restaurant crowded with local residents. I never imagined I would eat duck hot pot in Taiwan.

Check location on map

Choose your favorite ingredients, such as meat, vegetables, and tofu, and have them stewed in a pot set up on the table.
The hot pot soup contains ginger, which goes well with the wild duck meat.
The night of the fourth day passed as we enjoyed the duck hot pot with Taiwanese beer.