One of the coolest vibes in Taipei City these days is that surrounding the 1914 Huashan Creative Park district down on Bade Road in the mid-eastern downtown. There is usually an eclectic mix of artists, performers, musicians and other neo-punk/hippie wantabes hanging around while couples, groups, and families with little kids intermingle in the cavernous halls, fresh garden pockets and alleyways of curiosity.
An artist's squat enclave for many years, the city government decided to embrace the modern usage of the generous site and instead of fencing it off and banning people, decided to form a co-op to restore and run it properly. The result is a real triumph and to have such spaces with accompanying open land in the middle of a hyper-dense city like Taipei is truly amazing.
The buildings are mega shabby chic, yet the crumbling facades belie the solidity of the structures: the exterior has been deliberately neglected for the look and feel desired, yet the cavity brick walls of the old factories and warehouses have been restored and rebuilt where necessary.
There were tap dancing piano accordionists, people in weird looking koala suits promoting a "Study In Melbourne" display, bubble blowing balloonists, giant versions of popular TV puppets and even a foreign guy who regaled the crowd with jokes in Mandarin in between juggling and performing other body twisting contortions! The crowd built during the afternoon and after wandering in and out of various trendy little shops and stalls all filled with essential Asian wonders, we dropped in to the industrial trendy Italian cafe in a side alley.
The chairs were the steel variety we used to use at fetes at the local primary school, the lights all big industrial numbers, all different, while the walls were graffitied and splashed with old paint. The wait staff of both genders were attired in jeans and chambray shirts, suspenders and "Andy Capp" hats....sounds weird but it was an interesting look that "fitted" the place. We were sandwiched in between a couple of girls speaking Japanese on one side and a group of girls cackling in Mandarin on the other. I was trying valiantly to eavesdrop on both parties only to discover that the drivel being spilled seemed to be universal! Our lunch was a delicious tiny set with a main meal of pasta (chilli chicken for me and smoked salmon with spinach for Cassy) washed down with a glass of red, incongruously (for the restaurant's style) served in a stemless, Riedel crystal wine glass.
It was such good fun to soak up some long-awaited sunshine while following the snaking line of humanity in and out of trendy cafes and tea houses, bookshops and boutiques, art-house cinemas and shops full of cutting edge tech gear or artisan trinkets. In the end, we left with no purchase other than a cute design Taiwan flag inspired baseball cap for Cass along with our lunch and drinks. We lingered a little as the ambiance was just so enjoyable: Taiwanese really do know how to appreciate their city and the various delights served up to them.
The MRT home was another interesting highlight as we traveled on an offshoot line we don't normally take: even though the overall journey was similar to one we would have taken on different lines, the change of scenery meant the journey too felt fresh and speedy.
We're looking forward to some improved weather this week and a concomitant lift in spirits that the warm sunshine usually beams in. Photos: all scenes from the Creative Park. See yaaa!