April 3, 2011 — Chenggong Tunnel, Kinmen
Continuing from our visit to Chen Jinglan Mansion, we followed the small path beside it uphill to Chenggong Tunnel.
Built around 1981, Chenggong Tunnel stretches 620 meters underground. Some sections were carved through granite, while others were constructed with concrete. After the troops stationed here withdrew, the Kinmen Defense Command released and renovated the site in 2005, turning it into a visitor-accessible tunnel.
The route leads deep underground, passing spaces and facilities left from its military days.
The layout is fairly straightforward, unlike the maze of branching passages inside Fort Yung Shih on Little Kinmen. There was little danger of getting lost, but reminders of military life were everywhere.
Tunnels like this are common around Kinmen and Matsu. Sleeping quarters, ammunition rooms, command rooms, and even a recreation and assembly room—they had everything down here @.@'"
The tunnel’s other exit opens into an old military compound by the sea. I had already explored that end during our previous Kinmen trip two years earlier. Since everyone else was having afternoon tea by the shore this time, I decided not to walk the entire route alone again.
The next few photos are from our 2009 visit—and offer a glimpse of how young Lisa and Belle looked back then ^.^
When Lisa saw a stone soldier lying on the ground, she asked, “Why is that stone man lying there without moving?”
I told her, “Because he broke the rules, so his commanding officer punished him.”
After that, she couldn’t let it go. She kept asking when he would finally be allowed to get up… oh boy @.@'"
After walking for so long, we pulled a water bottle from the backpack to quench our thirst…
Belle wanted a drink too, but Dad had forgotten to bring her water from the car @.@'". We asked her to work something out with her big sister.
But her stingy sister… simply put the bottle away ~.~
Oh~~ poor Belle could only watch longingly as Lisa walked away >.<'"
We retraced our steps out of the tunnel and returned to the seaside café. There was still some daylight left, and the tide happened to be out, so we decided to squeeze in one more unusual destination: Jiangong Islet.
The path to the islet appears only at low tide. Missing the crossing on the way out would be disappointing enough, but getting stranded on the return trip would mean waiting another twelve hours @.@'"
Sounds interesting, right? ^.^
Come on—let’s go see Jiangong Islet~~
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