Lukang Yaolin Street & Putou Street 瑶林街 & 埔头街

Yaolin Street (瑶林街) and Putou Street (埔头街) are the oldest streets in Lukang. These names originated from Quanzhou (泉州), where the first immigrants are from and named the streets in memory of their homeland.

Due to their historical significance, these red-brick-lined streets have not only been preserved but also been made into popular tourist destinations due to the olden-day charm they exude. I thought the place felt similar to Malacca and Penang, both also historically important port cities.

While some retained its original structure and only had minor additions like this "convenience store" here...

... some were new buildings but built in similar architectural styles and materials:

I suppose residents had to move with the times (and demand), which saw many of them convert the front of their homes into momento shops, tea houses or cafes.

Also, there was a Wen Wu Temple (文武庙) located somewhere along these streets.

One of the most unique feature of this old part of Lukang is the narrow streets that run deep (because of the long houses) and lead to a hidden network of turning lanes.

Another unique feature is their wine urn walls. Wine urns were a symbol of wealth residents used to show their status among themselves as traders. Also, wine urns were plentiful from the trade ships, as wine urns were used to stabilised the ships during rough sailing times.

Dad was so impressed with the use of these wine urns as decorations, he stopped in his tracks to wonder if he could do the same with the wine urn we have at home... but Dad, we only have one!