1. The Roundabout
This hub of Taipei's old district has long been used as an eatery. Over the years it became rather more decrepit than the city authorities could tolerate, but because it houses stalls that many regard as serving the best snack food in town, it got an extra lease on life through extensive renovation. It is still pretty raw, the floors slippery with oil and water, and you don't want to look too closely at the work areas before you eat. Five-spice chicken sticks, oyster omelets, fried fish cakes, beef noodles (see review), and fresh-made fruit juice are all highly recommended. No need to worry about the language just point, open your mouth and hope for the best.
2. The Chinchunfa Beef Shop (金春發牛肉麵)
See review.
3. The Hsinbaodao Barber Shop (新寶島理髮廳)
Hsinbaodao, one of many traditional barber shops in the old part of town. Not a hair dressing salon, but a men's barber shop, one of the few places these days that you can still get a shave with a cut throat razor. The decor, a little decrepit but making an effort at modern rococo, is half the fun of this place. Check out the mirror tiles and blue spiral pilasters framing the windows. The place is a little messy, a little full of real life but then that's one of the best things to check out in this part of town.
33 Tienshui Rd., 天水路33號
4. Tienshui Japanese Restaurant (天水日本料理)
Taipei has more than its fair share of Japanese restaurants, but shops like Tienshui, with its cozy bar-like atmosphere that caters mainly to regulars are getting increasingly rare. Open for almost eight years, its focus is on good food at a fair price. Regulars can be found sitting over lunch late into the afternoon at the black marble counter, sipping on Suntory whiskey or Taiwan beer, chatting with the counter man who is no obsequious servant, but who gives as well as he gets. "No frills," said one customer, "but the bill doesn't come as a shock at the end of the meal." This is the kind of place for soaking up atmosphere.
48 Tienshui Rd., 天水路33號; tel: 2556-6758, 2556-0735.
5. The Chiu'er Tobacco Company
It started out supplying cigarettes and pipes more than 40 years ago and this remains the most distinctive part of its business. This is a place to come for finely crafted pipes from Dunhill, Cartier, Comoys, and Plumb, or perhaps one of the firms special limited edition pipes that can set you back as much as NT$30,000. In the market for Cuban cigars or Dutch tobacco, this is the place to come. "We have a pretty comprehensive range," said Ms Yang, a sales assistant. With cases of designer watches, pens and leather, there is the exclusive atmosphere of a club smoking room.
73 Tienshui Rd., 天水路73號
6. Mei Chiao Clothing Materials
Everything you could ever want in the shape of beads, buttons, sequins and all that glitters. A revelation as to what can be done to clothing to make it gaudy.
54 Tienshui Rd., 天水路54號 ; tel: 2558-4359, 2559-5613.
7. Hsiao Hsiang Ting (小巷亭)
See review.
8. Pu Chang Plastics Company (晉菖膠業有限公司)
Just one of many shops in this area selling every conceivable thing made out of plastic. Buckets of every size, hoses, adhesive tape, plastic sheeting. A great place to browse if you don't know what you're looking for.
142 Taiyuan Rd., 太原路142號
9. Chen Family Ancestral Temple (陳德星堂)
The current building was erected in 1920 and preserves many beautiful architectural features from that period. It is registered as a heritage site of the third rank and still contains ancestral tablets from the 1890s. It now also serves as a community center and kindergarten.
27 Ninghsia Rd. 寧夏路27號
10. Pig Trotter King (豬腳大王)
If you are in to porcine feet, this is the place to come. Eating pig's trotter noodle soup is often used as an expression for longevity, but this rich mass of meat, fat and softened tendon looks like a recipe for early cardiac failure. But for those who like this sort of thing, the dish is prepared with melt-in-the-mouth smoothness. They have been at it for more than 50 years, after all. There is a lean meat version of the soup as well.
44 Pingyang St., 平陽街44號
11. Hong Chih Tea Company (洪計茶行)
An old fashioned tea processing firm. Huge tin canisters of tea line the walls and the dark wood counter comes from another age. The smell of tea pervades everything. A great place for the authentic feel of the tea business.
236 Nanking W. Rd., 南京西路236號; tel: 2556-5257.
12. Lin's Chiyang Foods (林氏滋養)
An up-market cake shop that offers a variety of Chinese, Japanese and vaguely western cakes and desserts. It's a great place to pick up something sweet in a comfortable environment. 188~190 Nanking W. Rd., 南京西路188~190號; tel: 2555-3709, 2555-6797
13. Kuokuang Buns (國光饅頭)
Steamed buns are ubiquitous, but ask locals, and they will point you to some small hole-in-the-wall shop that 涐s the only place to get good steamed buns. Kuokuang is one of those stores. It offers a variety of plain and filled buns. Check out its taro bun, a tight packed bundle that can serve as a meal. 3 Chungching N. Rd., 重慶北路2段3號
14. Ninghsia Road Night Market (寧夏路夜市)
One of the most vibrant and diverse of Taipei's night markets. Stalls start setting up around five in the evening and carry on through till late, largely depending on how good business is. Eat your way down the road selecting from grilled, stewed, boiled, iced and steamed dishes. Follow your nose it's the only guide you'll need.
15. Te Chang Blind massage (德昌按摩院)
The old town, like most old towns in cities around the world, is also a bit of a red-light district. Signs for massage parlors line the main streets, and are even more numerous in the alleys. Places offering massage, as opposed to sexual services, are sometimes hard to distinguish, but a good rule-of-thumb is to look out for the blind masseuse symbol. No. 46 Ninghsia Road is worth a try. This is quality massage, but the venue is less than salubrious. Cost: NT$700 for an hour's workover. Tel: 2556-3299; available between around 10am and 2am.
16. Sheng Kuang Fang Traditional Therapy Center (聖光坊傳統療法研究中心)
If the appearance of modernity and correct hygiene practices is important to you, then Sheng Kuang Fang might be a better choice. The center, with its glass exterior and no-shoes-please wooden floor specializes in foot massage. Sit in first-class airline seats and have the white-coated staff get to work on your feet. You'll feel better for it. Prices start at NT$550 for a simple foot massage.
13 Chungching N. Rd., Section 2, 重慶北路2段13號; tel: 2559-0606. 10am to midnight.
17. Shengyuan Pharmacy (生元藥行)
A traditional pharmacy that has established its reputation both inside and outside Taiwan. It has gone out of its way to create the right atmosphere, with lots of dark wood and the traditional high counter on which interesting herbs are weighed out on balance scales. Great for shopping and local culture.
181 Nanking W. Rd, 南京西路181號; tel: 2555-2970.
May 6 to May 12 Those who follow the Chinese-language news may have noticed the usage of the term zhuge (豬哥, literally ‘pig brother,’ a male pig raised for breeding purposes) in reports concerning the ongoing #Metoo scandal in the entertainment industry. The term’s modern connotations can range from womanizer or lecher to sexual predator, but it once referred to an important rural trade. Until the 1970s, it was a common sight to see a breeder herding a single “zhuge” down a rustic path with a bamboo whip, often traveling large distances over rugged terrain to service local families. Not only
Ahead of incoming president William Lai’s (賴清德) inauguration on May 20 there appear to be signs that he is signaling to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and that the Chinese side is also signaling to the Taiwan side. This raises a lot of questions, including what is the CCP up to, who are they signaling to, what are they signaling, how with the various actors in Taiwan respond and where this could ultimately go. In the last column, published on May 2, we examined the curious case of Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) heavyweight Tseng Wen-tsan (鄭文燦) — currently vice premier
The last time Mrs Hsieh came to Cihu Park in Taoyuan was almost 50 years ago, on a school trip to the grave of Taiwan’s recently deceased dictator. Busloads of children were brought in to pay their respects to Chiang Kai-shek (蔣中正), known as Generalissimo, who had died at 87, after decades ruling Taiwan under brutal martial law. “There were a lot of buses, and there was a long queue,” Hsieh recalled. “It was a school rule. We had to bow, and then we went home.” Chiang’s body is still there, under guard in a mausoleum at the end of a path
Last week the Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) released a set of very strange numbers on Taiwan’s wealth distribution. Duly quoted in the Taipei Times, the report said that “The Gini coefficient for Taiwanese households… was 0.606 at the end of 2021, lower than Australia’s 0.611, the UK’s 0.620, Japan’s 0.678, France’s 0.676 and Germany’s 0.727, the agency said in a report.” The Gini coefficient is a measure of relative inequality, usually of wealth or income, though it can be used to evaluate other forms of inequality. However, for most nations it is a number from .25 to .50