Taipei's Little Burma

New York and London have multiple ethnic enclaves, but while it’s likely true that Tianmu (天母) has a higher proportion of Western expatriates than other parts of Greater Taipei, Taiwan’s capital has perhaps just one true immigrant neighborhood: Little Burma in New Taipei City’s Yonghe District (新北市永和區).

It’s said between 20,000 and 40,000 people in Greater Taipei have Burmese roots. Some of them arrived as early as 1954; others came more recently to attend university in Taiwan. Almost all are of Chinese descent and many fought in KMT units which retreated to what’s now Myanmar after the Communists won the Chinese Civil War in 1949. Several of those units were kept combat-ready for years at the behest of Chiang Kai-shek, who never quite gave up his dream of retaking mainland China by force. Many of the men were originally from Yunnan in China's southwest, which is why you'll see a number of restaurant signs (like the one above) offering Yunnanese dishes. Gradually, these aging soldiers and their dependents were allowed to settle in Taiwan.

Huaxin Street (華新街) is the heart of Little Burma, and I set foot there for the first time a week ago. I walked the 550m from Nanshijiao MRT Station (at the southern end of the Orange Line; leave by Exit 4 and turn right), following signs to ‘South Pacific Food Street.’ This is the local government’s mistranslation of 南洋 (which Wikipedia describes as ‘a sinocentric Chinese term for the warmer and fertile geographical region south of China, otherwise known as the 'South Sea' or Southeast Asia...’). Just after the police station on the right-hand side of the road, I found Huaxin Street on the left. Most of the buildings hereabouts are old apartment blocks. Few have more than five floors and the prosperity so obvious in central Taipei is conspicuously absent.

It being well before lunchtime, I first explored the neighbourhood market which occupies the street’s Lane 30. It’s a pretty standard market, except for a handful of vendors who label their produce in Burmese script. The lady selling this was too busy dealing with customers to answer any questions. 

In a few of these eateries, the Burmese-language bill of fare is much more prominent than the Chinese-language menu, and a lot of the Mandarin you’ll hear spoken in this neighborhood is strongly accented. Two or three early-opening places attract groups of men aged 50 and over who sit, chat, smoke and drink tea or coffee.

I’m sure that if you know where and what to order, and you’re with a group of friends, you can have an splendid feast here. Being by myself, and a first-timer, I chose at random one of the street’s halal eateries and ordered a bowl of Jinshan Noodles (金山麵), in part because I prefer broader, bantiao-style pasta. It was pretty good: A generous amount of mildly-curried chicken, hard-boiled egg and raw onion.

After that, there wasn’t time to do much except have a cup of sweet Indian milk tea in another halal restaurant...

Avoiding crowds when touring Taiwan

Over at Forbes.com, my friend Ralph Jennings gives some sound advice for places (and categories of places) visitors to Taiwan should avoid if they dislike crowds, going beyond the obvious duo of night markets and temple festivals. He’s right in saying that around Yongkang Street (a foodie neighbourhood that’s become so popular the authorities have begun deleting any mention of it from official guides) and Taipei Main Station, there are always huge numbers of people, and finding a spot to sit down and have a relaxing coffee isn't easy. However, if you head into the capital’s backstreets, it isn’t difficult to find cafes where you can enjoy a bit of peace and quiet. Digital nomads are good at sniffing out such places.

I’ve never been to Yangmingshan National Park during flower season or when the cherry blossoms are out, and I’ve no intention of going. At weekends and on public holidays, the traffic in and out - not to mention the queues for buses and the lack of seats once you’re one - is bad enough. Yet in the middle of the week, the park is wonderful; get a copy of Richard Saunders’ book if you plan to do any serious exploring. 

I’m not the only person who believes the allure of Kenting National Park is often overstated. The beaches aren’t that great, and the accommodation is overpriced. Go to Taitung, or the indigenous communities in the mountains of Pingtung, instead.

Number four on his list is the Danshui boardwalk on weekend afternoons. In my opinion, Danshui’s history always makes it worth visiting, and it’s near enough to Taipei you can leave the moment you feel bored. It’s not even necessary to return to the capital the way you came. If time allows, you can set off on a loop around the north coast, as I explain in this article.

Jennings finishes up with a warning anyone thinking of going to Taitung or Hualien should heed. Between Friday afternoon and late Sunday night, eastbound trains are often booked solid. To get tickets, try at least a week in advance. Go midweek if you can, because both the Kaohsiung-Taitung and Taipei-Hualien railroads provide varied and always interesting views.

Among places I’d add to the list: The Pingxi Branch Railway during the summer; the old heart of Anping on sunny weekends; and pretty much everywhere during the Lunar New Year holidays.

Two day-trips in New Taipei City

New Taipei City is Taiwan's most populous local-government division (officially, 3.97 million people live), but most of the municipality doesn't get as much attention from tourists as it perhaps deserves. International visitors typically spend a day or two in Taipei, then head east to Taroko Gorge, or south to Sun Moon Lake. 

Fans of traditional architecture, and those who like to see how the gentry of yesteryear lived, have two options. The sometimes-crowded but easy-to-reach Lin Family Gardens in Banqiao, or the less well known Lee Family Mansion in Luzhou. (This blogger introduces both in the same post.)

Among north Taiwan's best beaches are Baishawan and Fulong. The former is not far from Danshui (some government departments prefer the heritage spelling, 'Tamsui'), and can be enjoyed as part of a daylong coastal tour I often recommend to people who want to get out of the big cities, but don't want to drive themselves or sign up for a guided excursion. Buses between Danshui and Jinshan are frequent. At Jinshan, it's easy to get aboard another bus which will take you on to Keelung, or over the mountains and back into central Taipei. Setting out from Danshui, there are several places worth stopping at, such as Laomei Algal Reef (near Fuji Fishing Harbor, where I took the photo above) and the Eighteen Lords Temple at Shimen. At each attraction, it's simply a matter of walking back to the main road (Highway 2) when you've seen enough, and making yourself comfortable (most stops have shelters and benches) until the next bus comes along. 

As well as the Danshui-Jinshan-Keeling corridor, another place in New Taipei deserves special mention: Sanxia. Separated from the ceramics town of Yingge by the broad Dahan River, Sanxia has around 100,000 inhabitants. It can be reached by bus from the capital, from Yingge and also from Taoyuan. Natural resources including camphor, coal, tea and timber powered Sanxia's growth, and indigo dyeing was a major industry in the 19th century. However, when trains and trucks replaced boats as the main means of moving goods around north Taiwan, Sanxia was overtaken by upstart towns like Taoyuan. 

Sanxia's most famous place of worship is regarded as a pinnacle of religious art in Taiwan. Zushi Temple has a fabulous number of wood and stone carvings: In addition to the usual dragons and sages, there are crabs and other crustaceans, elephants, fish, owls, pangolins (scaly anteaters about the size of a fox), and a whole orchestra of musicians. The gold leaf-bedecked ceiling of the central chamber, where incense is offered to Zushi, is breathtakingly ornate. Zushi, which means 'divine progenitor', is the godly name of a 13th-century government official honoured for his bravery at a time when the Mongols were invading China. The temple's long history has been punctuated by violence and dissent. Founded in 1769 and rebuilt in 1833, it was flattened during fighting between Japanese forces and Taiwanese militia in the War of 1895. Rebuilt again in 1899, a major renovation effort was begun in 1947 under the supervision of local politician and acclaimed painter Li Mei-shu. Since Li's death in 1983, progress on the temple has been stymied by rows among members of the management committee. Some prefer to use cheaper semi-finished decorations imported from the Chinese mainland, while others back Li's policy of employing local master carvers and artists. 

Within walking distance of the temple there's a thoroughfare which not long ago reverted to its pre-1945 name, Sanjiaoyong Street (pictured here). Sanxia's original business hub is now a touristy “old street” but the renovated redbrick Baroque-style shop-houses are well worth seeing. Some of these dwellings are more than a century old, although the street's distinctive look did not appear until around 1915, when the colonial authorities ordered gutters to be added for reasons of public health. When the street was renovated in 2004—2006, the declared doctrine was 'original architecture, original materials'. This meant firing hundreds of mud bricks for internal partitions and straightening sagging roofs. Residents were permitted to build additional floors so long as facades were preserved and the classical appearance of the street maintained. Embellishments of vases (a symbol of peace, as in both Mandarin and Taiwanese the word for vase, ping, a homophone for peace) lotuses, dragons and lions were redone. The street and the alleyways that lead off it have been paved with chiselled granite slabs, while unavoidable modern features such as utility-hole covers and house numbers have been made to look as traditional as possible. 

Taiwan through the lens of Josh Ellis, Part 2

This is Part 2 of an interview with Josh Ellis, a Canadian photographer living in north Taiwan. (Part 1 is here.)

Do you do commercial photography?

Yes. I have to travel around the country getting shots for clients, which requires a bit of flexibility. Most of the people I do work for are overseas and probably don't understand the amount of travel involved in doing what I do for them. When I originally arrived in Taiwan, I started working for an English school and I'm still there part-time. They’re quite flexible with me and treat me quite well; they’re willing to accept that my workload will be considerably less than most of their other employees. I teach a few days per week for them and also help with training new employees. Teaching was always a means to an end, particularly when I needed a work permit. I'm now a permanent resident, so I can do pretty much whatever I want, work-wise. My friends often ask why I still bother to teach, but I like the flexibility my company gives me. Also, the income it brings stabilizes my fluctuating photography income.

Have you had any weird or unpleasant experiences when taking photos?

Generally speaking, Taiwan is a very photo-friendly country. Over the past five or so years DSLR cameras have become pretty common. A lot of people are trying their hand at photography and I find that the accessibility of so-called professional-level cameras tends to skew the line between amateur and professional; this is part of the reason why I don't like to use the terms very often. The amount of images floating around the internet really creates a lot of competition for working photographers, so you have to do your best to stand out from the crowd and only post your best work. That being said, Taiwanese people are generally pretty great when it comes to photography. When you do street photography it is all about the momentary relationship you create with a person. Sometimes you’ll find someone who doesn't want their photo taken but most of the time it is fine and people don't mind. 

In my decade of shooting here I’ve only been told not to take a photo of something twice. I remember each experience vividly because of the rarity of being told not to take a shot and the strangeness of the situations. The first time was a year or so ago on Shenkeng Old Street. I came across a store that had a bunch of cool-looking traditional hats and oddities on the storefront. What struck me about the place was how adamant the boss was about not wanting pictures to be taken. He had at least 10 different signs saying “No photos,” which I thought was quite extreme. I decided to take a photo out of spite since the boss was standing in front of me. The resulting photo [below] features a guy with an angry face, and it made an excellent street shot with what was happening in the background. 

More recently while I was shooting Zhinan Temple, near Maokong in Taipei. A temple volunteer took exception to me shooting a religious ceremony taking place and indicated quite rudely that I shouldn't be taking photos. She then proceeded to follow me around until I felt so uncomfortable I left. As a photographer you have to be considerate of people and know when something is okay and when it isn't. I do my best to be respectful and considerate of people in all aspects of life, so photography is just an extension of that. If anyone ever objects to what I do, then I will delete the shot and apologize. I think that is probably a general rule among most people who are fans of street photography – but for the most part Taiwanese people are very welcoming and don't mind having their pictures taken.

You live in Zhongli, which has something of bad reputation.

Before coming to Taiwan I didn't do much research. I had heard how beautiful Taiwan was when I was in China. The people there had talked about the country as a sort of Shangri-La they all wanted to visit but couldn't because of the political situation at the time. I thought that nowhere could be as bad as Beijing when it comes to pollution and weather, so when I decided to accept a position as a teacher I didn't really bother to check where it was. I noted that I'd be living close to the airport and a short bus or train ride to Taipei, but would also be close to the mountains and Hsinchu. 

After living in Zhongli [pictured below] for ten years, I can't say I have any complaints or that in my ignorance I made a terrible mistake. I have a love affair with the city, even though I know it has a bad reputation among expats. I think most of those opinions are unfounded. The way I see it is that I live in a city full of Hakka people, culture and food. I have a great respect for that culture and I think you'll see through my work that I've done a lot to promote Hakka culture and different tourist spots related to their history on the island. Zhongli isn't perfect – like any industrial city it does have its gloom, especially during winter. 

Living here for ten years means I've seen the city change and develop into much nicer, cleaner and greener place. I like the direction the city is taking. When the MRT line is completed, it’ll be another satellite city of Taipei and will attract people sick of the cost of living in the capital. People often ask why I don't move to Taipei, but I don't see why I'd leave where I am. Most of my work is done outside of Taipei and moving there would just require more travelling. Also, most landlords in the capital aren’t big fans of tenants who have pets. I have a Shetland Sheepdog that was saved from a shelter near here. My ancestry is 100% Scottish and one of the ways we celebrate our heritage is to always have a sheltie. My parents have one, my sister has one and when I found the opportunity to get one, I got one too.

Taxi fares in Taipei going up

For the first time in several years, taxi fares in Taipei, New Taipei City and Keelung are going up. In theory, all taxis should have started charging the higher rates on October 1, but because the majority haven't yet been able to adjust their meters, many are still using the old formula. Some, it seems, are using unadjusted meters then referring to a printed price list to calculate the right fare. If you're taking lots of taxis around the capital, be prepared for drivers who ask for a bit more than what's shown on the meter, and expect some confusion.

Here's the mathematics if you want to work it out for yourself: There's no change to the basic NTD70 charge for the first 250m, but from now on NTD5 will be added for every 200m, not 250m as before. When the taxi is stationery (at red lights or during a traffic jam), NTD5 will be charged per 80 seconds, instead of 100 seconds. 

According to media reports, typical journeys will be about 14% more expensive. Given that Taipei's public transport is pretty good, it is ever worth taking a taxi? It depends where you're going. If you're heading to the National Revolutionary Martyrs Shrine, for instance, a taxi ride from Yuanshan MRT Station will certainly save you some time. But for many other destinations, the MRT is likely to be just as quick. If there's three or four of you, a taxi may still work out cheaper than taking the MRT.

It's unclear whether certain set fares to more remote spots - such as from Wulai's bus stop to the village of Fushan - will also rise. 

Free half-day tours for transit passengers at Taoyuan Airport

Like several other airports around the world (Singapore being perhaps the best-known example), Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport now offers transit and transfer passengers with at least seven hours before their next flight the chance to see a little bit of northern Taiwan for free.

Each tour last around five hours. The morning tour, which sets out at 8:00, heads inland to Sanxia in New Taipei City for a look at Zushi Temple before proceeding to nearby Yingge, a town best known for its ceramics industry and museum. The afternoon tour kicks off at 13.30 and goes to the heart of the capital, stopping at Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall and Taipei 101. 

Not everyone can join these tours. Britons, Americans, Japanese, Singaporeans and others whose passports qualify them for visa-free entry are in the clear. Some other nationalities - among them Indians, Thais and Indonesians - can join the tours if they hold a valid visa for or permanent residency rights in the United States, Canada, Japan, the UK, any Schengen nation, Australia or New Zealand.

Each tour is limited to 18 people. It's not possible to sign up in advance, so it's best to get to the waiting point ahead of time. For more details, go here.

Rushing waters in Wulai

One of the better photos I took on the murky but highly enjoyable day I spent in Wulai in January, researching this article. Even though the main village was crowded (it being the height of the hot-spring enjoyment season), peace and quiet wasn't far away...

The Kanakanavu and Hla'alua Tribes

During a recent revisit to Wulai Atayal Museum, I was pleased to see they've kept their displays bang up to date and list all 16 Austronesian tribes recognized by Taiwan's government. The two 'newest' tribes are the Kanakanavu and Hla'alua peoples; the former live in Kaohsiung City's Namasia District (那瑪夏區), while the latter are found in the same city's Taoyuan District (桃源區). As you can see from the photo - part of a map in the museum showing the locations and sizes of all 16 tribes - both are tiny minorities within Taiwan's aboriginal population, which itself is little more than 2% of the total population.

The groups' applications for recognition were approved in June 2014. Cheryl Robbins has written about the tribes and their campaigns to have their identities separated from the neighbouring Tsou and Bunun peoples. Visitors interested in exploring Taiwan's indigenous villages are advised to buy her specialized guidebooks. 

Taiwan's northernmost point

The lighthouse at Fugui Cape (富貴角), the most northerly point on Taiwan. The government in Taipei does control territory further north, namely in the Matsu Islands. The weather here is often blustery but walking all the way around the cape - starting or ending in the quiet seaside village of Laomei (老梅) - is worthwhile.

Travel in Taiwan magazine recently visited this part of the world. Click here and flip to page 41 to see the article by Joe Henley, who's also written a Taiwan-themed thriller. For more about Taiwan's lighthouses, see this 2012 blog entry.

Shenao Branch Railway reopens to passenger traffic

From this weekend, tourists will be able to take trains along the short but scenic Shenao Branch Railway (深澳線) for the first time since passenger services ended in 1989. The railroad was originally built to carry coal to power stations; freight services didn't cease until 2007.

The line has been restored as part of a development plan centered around Badouzi (八斗子), a little fishing port near Keelung. Trains will start from Ruifang (瑞芳), a nondescript town already well-known to railway enthusiasts as a place where they can begin to explore Shifen and the Pingxi Branch Railway (平溪支线). The Shenao Branch Railway is 4.2km long and provides good views of Taiwan's rugged northeast coast. Trains, of which they'll be 20 per day, will take just 8 minutes to reach the new National Museum of Marine Science & Technology. Another nearby and worthwhile attraction is Houtong Coal-Mine Ecological Park.

Sky lanterns at Shifen

Tourists from Taiwan, Korea, Vietnam and other places write their wishes on the sides of bamboo-framed paper lanterns which they then release into the afternoon sky over Shifen (十分), a tiny former coal-mining town near Taipei reached by the Pingxi Branch Railway. Mass releases of lanterns into the night sky are popular around the time of Lantern Festival.

Fresh Facts IV: Mudskippers

Mudskippers are fairly widespread along Taiwan's west coast, and two species can be found. According to this scholarly paper: 

"Mudskippers are air-breathing, amphibious fishes, and one of few vertebrates that reside on [intertidal] mudflats," and that such places, "are highly productive ecosystems that impose severe environmental challenges on their occupants due to tidal oscillations and extreme shifts in habitat conditions. Reproduction on mudflats requires protection of developing eggs from thermal and salinity extremes, oxygen shortage, dislodgement by currents, siltation and predation."

Pictured here (photo from a Chinese-language Wikipedia page) is the smaller and more common of Taiwan's two mudskipper species, Periophthalmus cantonensis. This creature, which sometimes appears on restaurant menus, has a particular liking for mangrove swamps like those at Bali, New Taipei City. The other, Boleophthalmus pectinirostris, has a green-brown mottled appearance and grows up to 15cm long. It's a territorial species that's now endangered in Japan.

Banqiao's Lin Family Gardens

Ticked off another place I've wanted to visit for years: Lin Family Garden (林家花園, sometimes called the Lin Ben-yuan Garden) in Banqiao, a substantial but little-loved city just south of Taipei.

It's one of north Taiwan's best-known attractions, and now that admission is free it gets very crowded on weekends and holidays. Despite the crowds (and the noisy tour guides, and the photography-club members clustering around models hired for the day) it's well-worth visiting. No one building in the complex, nor any particular aspect of the gardens that surround them, is jaw-dropping. However, there is a great deal to see, and if I wasn't pressed for time I could easily have spent more than two hours here.

The Lin Family Mansion and Garden was built 1847-1853 by one of north Taiwan's richest and most influential families. In the late 19th century, the garden was surrounded by rice fields, and Guanyinshan was visible in the distance. Now, of course, it is surrounded by tall buildings. Nonetheless, it's a beautiful oasis of greenery and a good place to see Qing Dynasty architecture, stone sculpture, wood carvings and other decorative arts. The main residence, the Three-Courtyard House (pictured top right), has 52 rooms and more than 120 windows and doors. Other buildings within the Garden bear endearing names such as the Revere the Cosmos Pavilion and the Fragrant Jade Anteroom. Entrances and walls bear auspicious bat or butterfly motifs (pictured lower left).

The garden (open: 09.00-17.00 daily but closed first Mon of each month; admission: free) is about 15 minutes' walk from Banqiao's combined HSR/TRA/MRT station. Fuzhong MRT Station on the Blue Line is very slightly closer.

Fans of traditional mansions heading to south Taiwan should make time for the Hsiao Family Residence and the Gupoliao Zhuang Family Residence.

Taipei MRT Luzhou/Xinzhuang Line

On my recent trip to Taipei, I used the MRT's brand new Orange (Luzhou/Xinzhuang) Line for the first time. It's entirely underground, so as a travel experience it's no different to most of the capital's rapid-transit system. The line adds nine stations (most of which are in New Taipei City) to the network; it joins the Red (Danshui) Line at Minquan West Road and the Blue (Nangang/Banqiao) Line at Zhongxiao Xinsheng.

The line is more useful for commuters than tourists, but it will take you close to Dihua Street, and also to one major house or worship not mentioned in my guidebook: Xingtian Temple.

It's New Taipei City, not Xinbei

The central government has confirmed the English name of the local government area formerly known as Taipei County: New Taipei City. I and many other English-speaking expatriates think it's a bad choice. It makes confusion with Taipei City (the ROC's capital) very likely indeed, and it implies the capital (which it surrounds) is 'Old Taipei'.

For months, it seemed that after the county was upgraded to a special municipality, it would be known to the outside world as Xinbei City, a direct romanisation of its Chinese name (新北市, literally 'New North City'). That's why I used Xinbei in the first edition of my guidebook. Fortunately, this shouldn't cause problems for visitors, as they'll be boarding buses and trains to places within New Taipei City such as Danshui, Wulai and Sanxia (pictured left).

I feel better knowing I wasn't the only one caught out. The new edition of The Handy Guide for Foreigners in Taiwan (published by the central government in November 2010, but I've only just received my copy) says that the new name of Taipei County will be Xinbei City.

The Danshui-Bali Ferry

The very frequent ferry (top picture) that links Danshui, the historic seaside town near Taipei, with Bali, the town on the south bank of the Danshui River, makes for an enjoyable and inexpensive (NT$39 return) excursion.

Until a few years ago, there was very little to see in Bali. It now has a major museum, Shihsanhang Museum of Archaeology, a cycling path and - right where you disembark from the ferry - mudbanks alive in crabs (lower picture) and mudskippers.

Local colour IV

Heping Street is one of the old thoroughfares that make up Daxi's charming if touristy merchant quarter. According to this website, the architecture that can be seen here, 'was popular during the Japanese colonial rule of Japan’s Taisho era. The picture patterns - including Greek mountains, Roman columns, Chinese-style fish and bats - seen at the stores on Heping and Zhongshan old streets, are a mixture of baroque, Taiwanese, Greek, and Roman styles'.

The town itself, in Taoyuan County, makes for a good stop if you're heading inland to the North Cross-Island Highway. It can also be visited in conjunction with Sanxia, a short distance away in New Taipei City.

The life of an aboriginal chief

This fascinating blogpost by an American who lives in Wulai, an aboriginal village on the outskirts of Taipei, describes the life of a tribal chief who experienced Japanese colonial rule and Taiwan's rapid post-war modernization. Wulai is now a popular hot springs resort.

Know your traditions: The Chinese coffin

It looks a bit like a dug-out, but this is a typical Taiwanese coffin, photographed in a coffin-maker's workshop in Sanxia, near Taipei. As you can see, shape-wise it's quite different to you usual Anglo-Saxon casket. The very best coffins in Taiwan are made from a single tree trunk and can weigh as much as two tonnes.