Get lost in Ximending's hip-hop alleys

In a small area of Ximending bounded by cinemas, the Danshui River and a strip of karaoke bars and hotels, are lanes and alleys that cater to hip-hop crews and consumers of Asian fashion. It is a lively section of Taipei, with rehearsal spaces for bands and film workshops, mixed with vendors and by-the-hour hotels. There are hundreds of places to eat and all-night cafes.

Taking a stroll and probably getting lost is not a bad way to kill some time if it involves lunch or dinner and a break for coffee. On the way you'll see a hoard of graffiti. It's not unlike taking a stroll through a contemporary art gallery's exhibition of ghetto artists. Among the prominent artists, there is the sublime Arnold -- who is rumored to be doing his military service -- and Ragdoll. Tags are in Chinese and English. The boom-box greetings of the competing storeowners are the rhythm of the streets, with a half-abandoned car spray-painted with the terse statement: Fuck Nike.

Though papers reported gangland street fights over drugs a few years back, Ximending is now heavily patrolled and has a lot of closed circuit TV cameras mounted on streetlamps.

It feels like a peaceful, sub-tropical urban jungle. At night there are 24-hour tea and coffee houses, bowling alleys, PC game places and arcades. There are a few nightclubs and many karaoke and red-envelope bars (so called because men pay for a song with a red envelope containing money). At dawn, the clientele and hostesses from the piano bars on Chengdu Road spill out into the street and toward the line of yellow taxis.

Originally a public burial ground when it was first developed in 1885, Ximending's name derives from being one of the five gates of Taipei. It was an entertainment district developed by the Japanese in the first half of the century and flourished in the1950s and 1960s, when it first became a fashionable hotspot for the prospering Chinese Nationalist Party soldiers and locals.

Japan is back now, at least when it comes to fashion. Young women wear minutely planned and accessorized looks inspired by manga comic characters. They wear shorts and layers of long colorful socks with flat sandals or boots. The guys are a mixed bunch of shorts, cargo pants, baggy jeans, extra-large clothing, hats and shades.

Ohtomo (大友), who is half Japanese and Taiwanese has a couple of stores in Ximending, one in an alley between Hankou and Wuchang streets called How!? Cube. He shuttles between Tokyo and Taipei, introducing what he considers the smartest and most stylish clothes, accessories and gadgets. He says 80 percent of the goods in his stores are from Japan because people appreciate the quality, design and prices.

Mao (毛) and Dong Shan (董珊) help run a fashion store on Wuchang Street selling just Japanese, South Korean and Hong Kong clothing. Mao says US street styles are no longer so popular. "People want clothes from Asia. These are the styles now, so you can look a little more different. These are special clothes, not just label clothes," says Mao, who enjoys posing for photos among the rails of garments. There is light trance music in the background. Dong Shan says she likes going to Ministry of Sound, Luxy and Room 18. "We all know each other round here, we work and play together."

They both say business is good.

At Doobiest, on Wuchang Street, many of the clothes and accessories are from the US, with labels like Tribal USA and Dickies. The Denon turntables are prominently displayed, but a CD plays in the background. XXXL shirts and pants are being sold to the guys, hot pants for the ladies. There is an Apple computer and 12-inch records. At another hip-hop store nearby, kids admire a custom-made low-rider bike with high handlebars and chrome accessories.