Taipei's historic Datong District gets new lease of life
The revitalisation of Datong District has given the historic area a new lease of life, writes Ralph Jennings. Pictures by Duncan Longden.
Most tourist maps of Taipei lead to places such as the Taipei 101 skyscraper and other relatively new landmarks. But one of the Taiwanese capital's oldest districts, a dried food hub, is vying for visitor attention as merchants revitalise the streets while preserving an aura of yesteryear.
Over the past five years or so, the Datong District has been rewarding travellers looking for tea, herbal medicine or puppet shows on self-guided tours of low-rises built during the late 19th century and the occupation by Japan, which began in 1895.
"The idea is tourism development that lets people see the old Qing dynasty architecture," says Selena Chen, owner of four-year-old boutique coffeehouse Hare Cafe. "That in turn brings younger business owners and tourism investors."
Datong thrived in the early 1900s, when the Dadaocheng Wharf emerged as Taipei's main stop for boats bringing rice down the Danshui river. Merchant ships from China would reach the pier through the river mouth. Some of the district's original settlers, many of whom had roots that stretched back to China, had fled from another Taipei riverside tract after squabbling over land rights had turned violent.
