Yesterday we went to what is normally Taiwan’s busiest tourist site, the mountain village of Jiufen, formerly a declining gold mine site, which took off after a clever marketer realised that it is very similar to the setting of the Studio Ghibli film Spirited Away (or perhaps it did inspire the setting for the film, it’s unclear to me what exactly happened). As often happens especially in Southeast Asia (see: Hoi An), the old town of Jiufen is normally a near solid mass of tourist bodies. But with coronavirus there are no Mainland tourists these days and generally fewer people are out and about, so the Old Town was almost empty.
We went there after a breakfast from a very popular street stall selling radish pancakes in Beitou – it took nearly an hour to get to the front of the line and then eat. Chinese style pancakes are basically the same as a paratha, and very enjoyable. Then a quick bubble tea and we left on the long MRT ride followed by a 40 minute bus journey to the northern coast.
Jiufen was indeed remarkably picturesque, a place where the rather smudgy Taiwanese architecture interrupted by extravagant Chinese temples is set along a steep green hillside overlooking a curving bay. The grime was tempered by clouds and mist and, eventually, rain – Jiufen is so rainy that the old Japanese-era cinema has a rain gutter running through the screening room. We walked around a bit, eventually going to the new town for views over the bay, and then found a tea shop where we had cup after cup of oolong brewed with water from a kettle set on a charcoal brazier, and on a balcony set over the hillside facing north towards the sea. Then a bit more strolling but the rain was getting heavier – I bought myself a cheap umbrella, very wise – so we finally hired a taxi back to Taipei.
Back in town we went first to a farmer’s market and then wandered off first to find a gallery, called Aki, with some nice pieces and a pleasant feel, and then to the stunning Baoan temple which the GF and I had really enjoyed on our last visit to Taipei. It remained as beautiful at night and this time we were with the Boddhisattva who could explain to us what we were looking at. Then dinner of herbal soup (not my favourite thing) and return to Beitou and our flat to watch an episode of Fleabag. We have started on season 2, but are also watching season 1 as neither of our flatmates have seen it. It remains superb and is much sadder on a second viewing.