Jiufen Old Street, Taiwan
Jiufen is a seaside mountain area in Ruifang District, New Taipei City, Taiwan. Jiufen is a maze of narrow alleys, traditional stores, small shops, tea houses nestled into the mountainside. Every alley is crowded. We were given 2 hours including eating of lunch at Jiufen but still we rushed up to the last minute because the alleys are full of people and you can't even walk normally. Prepare to climb a long fleet of stairs.
We got our tour package from Klook. Tour includes Yehliu Geopark, Jiufen, Shifen (waterfall and setting off lantern). Klook package starts from Php762 (discounted from original price Php1693). We added entrance to Yehliu Geopark plus a chicken roll meal and peanut roll ice cream to be claimed at Shifen. Our Klook tour was Php907. And this is so sulit! Tour price may vary from time to time.
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| In front of the famous A-Mei Tea House |
A-Mei Tea House was built originally as a blacksmith in the early 20th century. Jiufen has a considerable economic growth due to gold mining rush in the area. After the height of the gold rush, Jiufen turned into a touristic famous tea house. A-Mei Tea House is located in the middle of the Jiufen Old Street Market.
In 1989, Hou Hsian-hsien's A City of Sadness, the first film to touch on the February 28 incident (The February 28 massacre was an anti-government uprising in Taiwan that was violently suppressed by the Kuomintang-led Republic of China government, which killed thousands of civilian beginning on February 28, 1947. The number of Taiwanese deaths from the incident and massacre was estimated to be 5000 and 28000).
It was then a taboo subject in Taiwan. A City of Sadness won acclaimed around the world. As a result, Jiufen, where the film was set, revived due to the film's popularity. The nostalgic scenery of Jiufen as seen in the film, as well as appearances in other media, charmed many people into visiting Jiufen.
For the beginning of the 1990s, Jiufen experience a tourist boom that has shaped the town as a tourist attraction. Soon retro-Chinese style cafes, tea houses,a nd souvenir stores bearing the name "City of Sadness" were built.
Jiufen also became popular in 2001 due to its resemblance to the downtown in the Japanese anime movie Spirited Away by Studio Ghibli. Jiufen soon attracted Japanese tourists. Many Japanese travel magazines and guide books about Taiwan introduced Jiufen. It became a must visit place among Japanese tourists. However, Miyazaki himself denied that Jiufen was the model city of the movie.
At present, Jiufen is a renowned tourist attraction representative of Taiwan. It draws many tourists from Taipei during the weekends.
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| in front of the famous A-Mei Tea House |
1. Taro balls
2. Peanut ice cream roll
3. Taiwanese sausages (that taste like Pinoy longganisa)
4. Fish balls
5. Rice cake
6. Fried squid
Stores and shops here are open from 8AM to 7PM during weekdays and 8AM to 10PM during weekends.
How to get here?
Bus from Taipei:
Take bus No. 1062 from near MRT Zhongxiao Fuxing Station (Exit 1) in downtown Taipei to Jiufen and Jinguashi. The ride takes about an hour.
Train plus bus:
The nearest train station is Ruifang Station of the TRA Yilan Line, which is 15 minutes away by bus. Take a bus bound for Jiufen or Jinguashi or further on to Fulong passing the Golden Waterfall.
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