Erkan Traditional Settlement Preservation Area Introduction
Erkan Village was designated by the Ministry of the Interior in 2001 as the first traditional settlement conservation area in Taiwan. In recent years, the restored old houses have been fully utilized by the Erkan Village Settlement Association, developing into various small exhibition halls with local cultural characteristics, including a common life museum, an intertidal zone museum, a community museum, a traditional Chinese medicine museum, a toy museum, and a ballad museum. Entering Erkan, the most eye-catching sight is the walls of ancient houses filled with ballads created by local residents, describing snippets of their lives or expressing romantic feelings. Try reading them in Hokkien; it's guaranteed to be entertaining. When hungry, head to a local shop for "Tuirin Cake" and "Pumpkin Cake," or quench your thirst with a cup of authentic almond tea. Inside the quaint residences, listen to the elderly ladies singing original ballads or perform impromptu duets, creating a vibrant atmosphere that is truly delightful and enjoyable. Around the late Ming Dynasty, Mr. Chen Yanyi crossed the sea from Kinmen to Penghu, landing at today's Dachi Village, and engaged in agricultural and fishing life at the foot of Guishan Mountain south of Zhuanwan. After establishing a family, the family members gradually increased, leading them to decide to settle in Erkan near Zhuanwan. During the Daoguang period of the Qing Dynasty, the settlement gradually developed. After the First Sino-Japanese War, traditional livelihood activities were insufficient for living expenses, forcing many young people to leave their hometowns to work in Taiwan, leading to the gradual decline of the village. The Chen family residence is the representative of the ancient houses in Erkan, built in 1910 by brothers Chen Ling and Chen Bang, who prospered by operating a traditional Chinese medicine business in Tainan and returned home to expand the original old house. The luxurious layout of the "Sanluo Big House" is the only ancient house in Penghu, which is currently designated as a county-level historic site. The master who designed and built the ancient house was only about 29 years old and came from Chidong Village. Observing the details of the Chen family architecture, the overall building, along with its paintings, beams, and columns, is quite creative. Whether it be wood carvings, tile paintings, or stone carvings, they all exhibit elegance and vividness. The layout features a design that gradually becomes more private from the outside to the inside, following traditional residential construction methods, ensuring safety, and is considered a representative work of the blending of Chinese and Western architecture in the area. In the traditional settlement of Erkan, children are seriously learning to write Spring Festival couplets inside the Chen family old house. Holding red kites labeled "Fortune" and "Auspicious," they race through the traditional ancient house settlement while running across the vast grassland of Erkan, with joyous red colors mingling amidst the historic alleys of ancient houses. The accompanying background song, "Searching for Plum Blossoms in the Snow," creates a harmonious scene. Do you remember? Yes, in 2001, McDonald's shot an advertisement in Erkan that was filled with strong festive vibes. The expansive grassland shown in the music video for "Reconnecting" by Golden Melody Award-winning singer A-yun was also filmed in Erkan. Additionally, her "Penghu Love Song" MV was shot in Erkan, starting with the ballad sung by Grandma Yang Asong from Erkan, with a unique melody sung in Hokkien — "Eighteen sends you to Taiwan; our eyes are both red, tear drops heavy like a pound, falling to the ground like earth" — leading listeners into a nostalgic moment, the singing of ballads brings a unique flavor of reminiscence.
