Updated Thursday, December 11, 2008 11:01 am TWN, By Richard Saunders, Special to The China Post

Li Teng-fang House -- One of the finest surviving examples of a Hakka residence in Taiwan

Driving along the narrow, dead straight lane that leads through the fields from the town of Dasi　 (大溪) to Lee Teng-fang House, the town’s greatest historic relic, the countryside is strikingly quiet and soporific. There’s almost none of the ugly factory development that scars the once pleasant farming countryside that stretches out on either side of Freeway One as it crosses Taoyuan County　 (桃園縣) on its way south, and the many high-rise developments that have forever changed the character of the neighboring town of Sansia　 (三峽), just a few kilometers to the east, thankfully haven’t made it out this far yet. Here, in the flat, fertile valley of the Dasi River, the landscape is gentle and undulating, the town is bordered on the south by pleasant wooded hills, and there’s no sign, from here at least, of the mountains that rise towards the 2,000 meter mark less than twenty kilometers south.

As we get closer to the old house, there’s an even more delightful surprise: The fields on either side of the lane are a riot of countless pink, orange red and white flowers which thrive in the well-watered soil of the valley. This must be a favorite location among the wedding photo crowd, only we’re here in late November, and the air is a tad chilly, so we have this glorious sight more-or-less to ourselves.

A little further along the lane we turn right into a large parking area, and the rich, orange brickwork of the Li Teng-fang House (李藤芳古厝), or ‘Lee Teng-fang Archaic Mansion’ as the English translation quaintly refers to it) can be seen behind an encircling wall. Designated a Grade Two historic building by the government, the house is among the finest surviving examples of a Hakka residence in Taiwan. Built between 1860 and 1864, the house is a kind of symbol of prestige built by the owner (after whom the house is named) to commemorate his passing of several important government examinations. This made him a high ranking official in the government, an achievement of such magnitude that the whole town (until then known as Daguxian) was actually renamed in his honor! The town was later renamed once more, taking its present, more neutral name of Dasi (大溪, literally ‘big river’) in 1920.

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	Beside the entrance to the inner courtyard of the Lee Teng-fang old house, several stone bases are supports for ceremonial flagpoles that would once have flown Lee’s ceremonial flag of office. (By Richard Saunders, Special to The China Post) More Photos (2)

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