The Taipei You Don't Know

What do you think of, when I say Taipei? Night markets? Ding Tai Fung? Bubble Tea? Shopping? 

After spending 14 years away, Taiwan is still my roots and the unchanged annual ritual is coming back to my beloved Taipei. If I were to say, there's a side of Taipei that most people don't know. 

Interesting enough, there is a question that I got asked more than a few times about Taiwan, which is what is the relationship between Taiwan and China. Hidden under the political noise and commercialization, the history and culture of Taiwan are often undiscovered. 

Discovered in the 17th century by the Dutch and Spanish, who named the island "Formosa", Taiwan's first inhabitants are actually Taiwanese aboriginal people. Later the Han Chinese immigrated to the island during Ming Dynasty in late 17th century. As the Qing Dynasty took over China, Taiwan was annexed as well, until it was ceded to Japan in the end of 19th century as a colony. After 50 years under Japan's ruling, China and Taiwan started going through a political split, which resulted in the Communist China and Democratic Taiwan as we know today. 

Behind the skyscrapers today, there is a city with rich history and cultural influences. Wanhua district (also known as Mengjia as it's old name) is one of the neighborhoods in Taipei that best preserved the architecture from historical times. 

This block is known as Bo Pi Liao (literally translates into Skinning Hut), which was said to be either the factory for producing leather goods or removing tree bark. The unique architecture is a combination of Baroque and Qing Dynasty styles, which you won't find elsewhere. 

In the same district, there is also the famous Long Shan Temple. Built in the mid 1700s, to me the temple resembles the overall religious belief system in the Taiwanese culture. The front hall hosts the 3 main buddhas in Buddhism; the main hall is dedicated to Buddhism as well; whereas the rear and side halls are a combination of Taoism and Confucian figures. On contrary to many countries today, there are rarely religious conflicts in Taiwan. As someone who was educated during early years in Taiwan, to me, the ideals and the drive to be a better person come from education, elders, teachers and family, versus a single god. Hence, various religions and believes form a special culture in Taiwan, instead of creating differences and confrontations. 

Before I started reflecting on experiences through living and traveling, I never thought to re-explore Taipei, a place that I'm so familiar with. Yet it was refreshing and inspiring to see a place with a fresh pair of eyes and much more appreciation. The "most Taipei" thing to do or place to go we know today isn't representative of all times. Re-engage, reconnect and rediscover a place will guarantee you that it is a place you didn't know.