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The Young March of the Old Neighborhood Back to Dadaocheng’s Glamorous Age (TAIPEI QUARTERLY 2017 WINTER Vol.10)

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Post date:2017-12-14

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The Young March of the Old Neighborhood

Back to Dadaocheng’s Glamorous Age

 

ArticleXu Licen   

PhotosXu Bin, Tua-Tiu-Tiann International Festival of Arts

 

“The Old Town areas in Taipei are like aging beauties, while the newer ones are like pretty thirty-somethings. If you only visit the latest neighborhoods, you won’t get the whole picture of Taipei,” says Taipei City’s Department of Information and Tourism (台北市政府觀光傳播局) Commissioner, Chien Yuyen (簡余晏). She believes that Taipei is a city with a multiplicity of aspects. Many sites have special historical significance or they express the spirit and ideals of Taipei City. All of these places are worth visiting, and Dadaocheng (大稻埕) is surely one of them. Come check out these areas! You’ll see how they take a traditional beat and march to youthful drummers integrating old and new.

 

Gathering People from All Walks of Life; Setting Trends in Literature and the Arts

 

Dadaocheng has made an important mark on the pages of Taipei’s history … even on Taiwan’s! Time’s fermentation has brewed an historical concoction here. In the early days, owing to Dadaocheng’s convenient location for shipping, an excellent port was opened, and the tolerance and aggressiveness of the local people allowed it to enter world trade exporting tea and camphor. It attracted foreign stores and many people marched in to do business and then stayed. A whole host of famous firms and successful merchants with political influence arose here.

 

It’s worth mentioning that Dadaocheng was also the starting point for Taiwan’s modernism, and the cradle of its new cultural movement. It was the center of activity for fine arts, music, literature, plays, and cinema. With this creative stimulus, all kinds of cultural activity and entertainment blossomed in Dadaocheng. The main axis was Yanping N. Road (延平北路) and restaurants, theaters and bookstores were everywhere. All of these contributed to the spread of salons and exciting places to gather and eat, and created the unique atmosphere of the Dadaocheng society of that era.


TAIPEI WINTER 2017 Vol.10 The Young March of the Old Neighborhood Back to Dadaocheng’s Glamorous Age

Tua-Tiu-Tiann International Festival of Arts puts Dadaocheng’s retro arty atmosphere on display. (Photo: Tua-Tiu-Tiann International Festival of Arts)
 

Tradition Rejuvenated Brings New Energy to Old Neighborhoods

 

Although Dadaocheng went through a long period of apparent dormancy, its unique history attracted many people with old souls to make it their home. The Department of Cultural Affairs, Taipei City Government (台北市政府文化局) points out the key reason why Dadaocheng became a cornerstone in the Reinventing Taipei Project: “This is a place where officials and civic groups are willing to invest.” Official departments are willing to push forward development projects in this area, many of which involve historical preservation, industry and culture. Civic groups have taken the initiative as well. The variety of new cultural and creative shops plus all the experimental spaces is a feast for the eyes indeed!

 

As the founder of the Tua-Tiu-Tiann International Festival of Arts (大稻埕國際藝術節), Zhou Yicheng (周奕成) says, “Dadaocheng represents the era when Taiwan and Asia entered the modern age. For us, it is not just a place to remember the past and dream of old ways it is actually an innovative and creative place.” Perhaps visiting Dadaocheng will conjure up images of what it used to look like, but it will also reform the picture you have of Taipei, and let you weave your own city story.

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