Mayor Shiow-yen Lu is proactively marketing Guguan’s tourism resources and agricultural products. Today (15th) she visited Guguan Hot Spring Square to promote premium local produce such as persimmon and Taiwan pine. According to Mayor Lu, marketing Taichung, Guguan and Heping is a top priority at the moment! The government’s efforts have attracted the attention of global travelers, including those from Kaohsiung, Taoyuan and the US. She thanked everyone for paying attention to Taichung, Heping, and Guguan; in the future, the government will continue stepping up efforts to market high-quality scenic destinations throughout the city in order to stimulate the economy by selling local goods from Taichung and attracting visitors to come to Taichung. The aim is to realize the vision of Taichung Wealthy City 3 through Free Trade, High Technology, and Logistics Center!

Before the election, Mayor Lu emphasized the need to bolster Taichung’s economy, since Guguan is a popular tourist destination in Taichung thanks to its high-quality alkalescent sodium bicarbonate spring, Mayor Lu visited the Guguan Hot Spring Square today accompanied by Deputy Mayors Chiung-ying Yang, Bruce Linghu, and Tzu-ching Chen, as well as several senior officials and the District Executive of Heping Chien-tang Lin to observe the number of visitors, strengthen tourism marketing in Guguan and promote local delicacies. City Councilor Ling-hsuan Jan also joined the entourage as well. Mayor Lu rolled up her trouser legs to experience feet dipping in the hot spring and promote tourism in Guguan. Many citizens were excited to see Mayor Lu, greeting her and taking photos with her enthusiastically.

According to Mayor Lu, Guguan offers picturesque scenery and magnificent agricultural products, making it a wonderful tourist attraction with “gourmet delicacies, great fun, hot spring and warm hospitality from the local folks”. Consequently, she recommended that everyone should visit destinations such as Lishan and Guguan in Heping during the Chinese New Year or other holidays.

Mayor Lu pointed out that Taichung is a liveable city in Taiwan, offering spectacular, world-class scenic destinations as well as an abundant selection of agricultural products from the plains to the high mountains, therefore she highly recommends everyone to visit Guguan to savor mouthwatering good and enjoy hot spring for free! It is hoped that the government’s rigorous air pollution control measures, as well as policies in promoting tourism and the regional economy, will encourage people to visit Guguan. The aim is to let tourists enjoy fantastic fresh air quality and the fun of traveling!

Thereafter, Mayor Lu headed to a local restaurant to taste local delicacies and introduce the characteristics of various fruits and produce in order to market Taichung’s gourmet food to more people.

“Many plants in Guguan and Heping District can purify air, and they are edible!” Mayor Lu expressed that, according to Heping District Executive’s explanation, the needles of Taiwan pine can trap dust mites, turning them into natural air purifiers. Besides the function of air purification, the leaves of Taiwan pine in Guguan are also edible, and they can be blended into juice with honey or lemon. Everyone is welcome to Guguan to savor local delicacies. City Councilor Ling-hsuan Jan thanked Mayor Lu for marketing the unique features of Heping District, as well as the region’s abundant selection of fruits including persimmon, apple, and pear. In addition, hot spring is also a specialty product of the region, thus it is hoped that the integrated marketing approach will generate tourism developments in Guguan and Shancheng.

According to the city government, Guguan hot spring is a prominent hot spring region along the Central Cross-Island Highway. Located in Boai Village, Heping District, Guguan hot spring was formerly known as Meiji Hot Spring. The sodium bicarbonate hot spring has been certified as having outstanding quality; with a temperature of 48 degrees Celsius and a PH of 7.6, the crystal clear hot spring is drinkable. The city government has assisted Heping District Office to build the Guguan Hot Spring Square, which is adjacent to the Indigenous Village Market Plaza, providing tourists a place to rest and soak their feet in the Guguan hot spring. The novel experience is offered to the public free of charge. Alternatively, visitors can also purchase locally grown, premium quality fruits, vegetables, produce or indigenous cultural and creative products at the Indigenous Village Market Plaza. The plaza has become the most popular attraction in downtown Guguan, attracting more visitors to come to the region.

The city government indicated that Heping District is blessed with an exceptional climate and geographic environment, producing plump, delectable sweet persimmon rich in vitamins that have proven to be very popular among consumers. Taiwan pine is a native tree species found in Songhe Village and Lileng Village, and there is a thousand-year-old Taiwan pine in Guguan. Diverse cash crops are grown in Heping District, particularly 8 produces such as peach, pear, persimmon, tankan, Taiwan pine, Lishan tea, apple, and Lishan cabbage. Collectively known as The Eight Treasures of Heping, they are the tourists’ favorite local specialty products.

The city government stressed that Mayor Lu is proactively implementing 4 following policies to take care of farmers: Partners of Farmers’ Association – Value Added Long Term Care; Good Price for Produce – No More Stagnant Sales; Agricultural Product Processing – Integrated Marketing; 6-Tier Industry – Experience Economy. By marketing agricultural produce at Guguan today, the goal of “Mayor Visiting Guguan to Sell Agricultural Produce” was successfully achieved, and the citizens have also been introduced to the abundant agricultural products, indigenous culture and hot spring of Heping District.