Caoshan Zhongleyuan

Sōzan Shūrakuen, as it was originally known, was the largest hot springs bathhouse in Taiwan when it was completed in 1930 to mark the enthronement of Emperor Hirohito. Its walls were built with locally quarried andesite and its interior divided into gendered baths, a dining hall, a shop, and a billiard room. It was one of only two works completed under the enthronement memorial park plan for Datunshan (御大典紀念大屯山公園), an aborted scheme to link the hot springs and scenic areas of Caoshan, Beitou, Jinshan, and Tamsui that became the basis for Datun National Park; the other was Zhuzi Villa.

It was briefly renamed Caoshan Public Bathhouse (草山公共浴場) after the war but as the American military presence in Taiwan grew it was assigned for use as dormitories, becoming the Joint Logistics Yangmingshan Guesthouse (聯勤陽明山招待所) until 1970, when downsizing prompted a relocation to the nearby Tomoe Ryokan. It is now occupied by the Taipei Teachers’ Education Center (臺北市教師研習中心).