Located in the heart of Taipei’s historic Dadaocheng (大稻埕) area, the Xia Hai City God Temple (霞海城隍廟) has become a must-see attraction thanks to the manager’s decades-long effort to preserve the temple and revitalize the community.
“When I travel abroad to promote tourism to the temple, I always invite people running businesses in the neighborhood to come along,” said 69-year-old Tracy Chen (陳文文), who has served as temple manager for 26 years.
When hosting travel shows abroad to introduce the temple to potential tourists, Chen takes the opportunity to showcase local delicacies, such as pastries, cakes and tea, she said.
Photo: CNA
Some people believe that the temple’s city god helps their businesses flourish, she said, adding: “However, it is ancestral workmanship that has left a rich cultural milieu and makes the temple an attractive destination.”
Following the sudden death of one of her brothers in 1994, Chen shouldered the temple’s managerial duties, making her the sixth generation to head the family-owned place of worship, which was built in 1859 on Dihua Street (迪化街), in what is now Datong District (大同).
The Ministry of the Interior in 1985 listed the temple as a historical monument. It is touted as one of Taipei’s “big three” temples, along with Baoan Temple (保安宮) in the same district and Wanhua District’s (萬華) Longshan Temple (龍山寺).
Although it is small, covering just 152m2, the temple has the highest density of statues in Taiwan, housing more than 600 deities in addition to the city god, his wife and the renowned matchmaking god, Chen said.
One of Chen’s many initiatives to revamp the Dadaocheng area, which saw its heyday as a major shipping port on the banks of the Tamsui River in the mid-19th century, is a twice-per-month group tour designed for people to explore the area’s history and culture.
Since the “Wandering Dadaocheng” project was launched in June 1997, more than 500 tours have been conducted, with experts in architecture and historical relics leading visitors on strolls through the alleyways steeped in history to understand Taipei’s past and experience the neighborhood’s mix of old and new.
The temple’s management was surprised that members of the public — and not just historians — have welcomed the tours so warmly.
The enthusiasm that the tours have generated for area preservation has helped keep the community’s collective memory alive, Chen said, adding that it has been a major push behind public and private refurbishment projects.
More than 70 community buildings have been awarded listed-building status by the Taipei City Government, she added.
“Thanks to decades of effort, we are proud to say that the Dadaocheng community is recognized as the nation’s best-preserved historical neighborhood,” she said.
International tourists visiting Taipei in 2017 ranked the Dadaocheng area as the third most-loved attraction, a survey released in October last year by the city’s Department of Information and Tourism showed.
The historic district is famous for century-old buildings of various styles that have been repurposed into shops selling products of time-honored workmanship, including tea, Chinese herbal medicine, dried goods and snacks, textiles and calligraphy brushes, alongside trendy venues that house cultural and creative industry start-ups.
“I was really touched when I recently came across a travel guide book in a Japanese hotel that juxtaposed photographs of Xia Hai City God Temple and Taipei 101,” Chen said. “That made me feel our efforts had not been in vain and that we must keep them up.”
US climber Alex Honnold is to attempt to scale Taipei 101 without a rope and harness in a live Netflix special on Jan. 24, the streaming platform announced on Wednesday. Accounting for the time difference, the two-hour broadcast of Honnold’s climb, called Skyscraper Live, is to air on Jan. 23 in the US, Netflix said in a statement. Honnold, 40, was the first person ever to free solo climb the 900m El Capitan rock formation in Yosemite National Park — a feat that was recorded and later made into the 2018 documentary film Free Solo. Netflix previewed Skyscraper Live in October, after videos
Starting on Jan. 1, YouBike riders must have insurance to use the service, and a six-month trial of NT$5 coupons under certain conditions would be implemented to balance bike shortages, a joint statement from transportation departments across Taipei, New Taipei City and Taoyuan announced yesterday. The rental bike system operator said that coupons would be offered to riders to rent bikes from full stations, for riders who take out an electric-assisted bike from a full station, and for riders who return a bike to an empty station. All riders with YouBike accounts are automatically eligible for the program, and each membership account
NUMBERS IMBALANCE: More than 4 million Taiwanese have visited China this year, while only about half a million Chinese have visited here Beijing has yet to respond to Taiwan’s requests for negotiation over matters related to the recovery of cross-strait tourism, the Tourism Administration said yesterday. Taiwan’s tourism authority issued the statement after Chinese-language daily the China Times reported yesterday that the government’s policy of banning group tours to China does not stop Taiwanese from visiting the country. As of October, more than 4.2 million had traveled to China this year, exceeding last year. Beijing estimated the number of Taiwanese tourists in China could reach 4.5 million this year. By contrast, only 500,000 Chinese tourists are expected in Taiwan, the report said. The report
Temperatures are forecast to drop steadily as a continental cold air mass moves across Taiwan, with some areas also likely to see heavy rainfall, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. From today through early tomorrow, a cold air mass would keep temperatures low across central and northern Taiwan, and the eastern half of Taiwan proper, with isolated brief showers forecast along Keelung’s north coast, Taipei and New Taipei City’s mountainous areas and eastern Taiwan, it said. Lows of 11°C to 15°C are forecast in central and northern Taiwan, Yilan County, and the outlying Kinmen and Lienchiang (Matsu) counties, and 14°C to 17°C
RSS