Taiwan Chinese New Year Traditions

TEXT | RICK CHARETTE

PHOTOS | ASKA CHI, RAY CHANG, TAIPEI XIA HAI CITY GOD TEMPLE, TAIPEI LUNAR NEW YEAR FESTIVAL

Dihua Street and the Taipei Lunar New Year Festival

Come explore Dihua Street in Dadaocheng, the city’s best-preserved old commercial street in one of its oldest neighborhoods, while enjoying the crowds and revelry produced by one of Taipei’s best-loved seasonal celebrations

The two-week-long Taipei Lunar New Year Festival is a huge public celebration leading into the Chinese New Year holidays. Centered on historic Dihua Street in the city’s heritage-rich Dadaocheng neighborhood, it is a shopping festival, with people streaming into the area to stock up on traditional New Year food goodies and auspicious decorations, and also a cultural festival, with “edu-celebration” of New Year traditions. As in other lands, the demands of modern living oblige citizens to keep their eye on the future, resulting in a waning understanding of the roots of their culture, and many of this festival’s activities are specifically designed to teach revelers the “whys” behind the seasonal things they buy out of habit.

In the lead-up to the Chinese New Year holidays in 1996, local vendors organized the first version of the festival. It has since grown almost dramatically and become a key annual city tourism attraction. Today it is overseen by the city government, with a private organization seconded to run the event. Other commercial districts have been brought in to share in the fun. These are on the city’s west side. The west district, along the Tamsui River, was the first Taipei area to develop. Over the past half-century or so the city’s economic center has shifted steadily east, leaving the west behind, and in more recent years the city government has been using the Lunar New Year Festival and other initiatives to celebrate the west’s history and revive its economic fortunes.

Stall selling Lunar New Year goodies

History

Dihua Street sprouted amongst open, empty fields by the Tamsui River in the 1850s. At that time there were two Han Chinese settlements in the area, Bangka (today’s Wanhua District) to the south and Dalongdong to the north. Both of these communities continue to thrive today. In 1853 fighting exploded in Bangka between immigrants from two different areas in mainland China’s Fujian Province. The losing group moved to Dadaocheng, literally meaning “large open space for (drying) rice,” and a new community grew, with shophouse-busy Dihua Street its heart and the Tamsui long its key trading artery. Though the economic fortunes eventually ebbed, this district remains north Taiwan’s largest emporium for regional specialty goods, traditional fabrics, Chinese medicines and, during the Chinese New Year lead-up, “all things traditional New Year.”

Over the past two decades major tourism-oriented renovations and beautification initiatives have been undertaken, and Taipei’s most historic street has become one of its big tourist draws. During the Chinese New Year period international self-help and tour-group travelers are a constant. Like Christmas, the New Year is essentially a private family celebration, and this festival is one of the best ways for travelers from overseas to immerse themselves in the public manifestations.

During the festival, vendors set up stands in front of their shops on Dihua Street, stacked with New Year treasure, and their hawkers vie for the attention of the great streams of humanity passing by. There is a strong party atmosphere, and samples are liberally distributed. Myriad special-theme activities are staged, concentrated on and around the Yongle Fabric Market plaza. The city mayor makes a number of appearances to pass out “good-fortune money,” inviting the inflow of wealth over the coming year. There are art-experience activities and street performers, costume photo opps, AR photo opps, free taste-testing sessions, decorative displays highlighting New Year in different lands, postcard-sending fun, and guided tours in different languages.

Let’s now get to know some of the Dihua Street’s attractions a little bit better.

Taipei Xia Hai City God Temple

This is the soul of the Dadaocheng community, its religious and social center. Built in 1859 by the leaders that led the aforementioned exodus from Bangka, its main deity is the City God. The refugees had brought their patron icon in the exodus. According to Chinese tradition, each urban agglomeration has a resident City God, who watches over local citizens and decides a person’s fate upon death, calculating their good and evil deeds.

Taipei Xia Hai City God Temple

Today’s temple retains much the same look and trappings as in the latter 1800s, for it is believed any changes may alter the good fengshui that has brought so much prosperity to the community. Considering its importance in the city, visitors are struck by the temple’s small size. Nevertheless, it is home to over 600 deity figurines, Taiwan’s highest statue density. One of these, the Old Man Under the Moon, rivals the City God in bringing visitors. He is the Chinese Cupid, and people come from all over Taiwan and East Asia to pray to this particular icon, known to be especially effective in helping people find true love.

The temple stages varied special activities during the Chinese New Year festival. The most popular features a performer dressed as the City God parading about the vicinity, spreading blessings and festive good cheer.

TAIPEI XIA HAI CITY GOD TEMPLE

( 台北霞海城隍廟 ) (02) 2558-0346 www.tpecitygod.org No. 61, Sec. 1, Dihua St., Datong District, Taipei City ( 台北市大同區迪化街一段 61 號 )

Fleisch

This combination café/teahouse/bar/restaurant is in a four-story building directly across from the City God temple. The building had always been home to Chinese-medicine businesses; the landlord checked with the City God, using divination blocks, to see if the Fleisch change was OK. Staff are decked out in 1920s Dadaocheng nightlife-venue attire, and the retro interior décor evokes the fine homes of the period’s successful merchants. Fleisch sells a wide range of special themed products celebrating the area’s temple-ritual food items, floral fabrics, as well as larger themes such as National Palace Museum treasures. Unique Chinese New Year-themed items sold during the festival include auspicious decorative hangings showcasing Taiwan’s traditional paper-cut and embroidery art as well as Chinese zodiac animal table decorations.

Fleisch

FLEISCH

( 福來許 ) (02) 2556-2526 www.fleisch.com.tw No. 76, Sec. 1, Dihua St., Datong District, Taipei City ( 台北市大同區迪化街一段 76 號 )

Old Man Under the Moon cake

Dadaocheng Visitor Center

This center is on the first floor of a multi-story former corner-shop building, in what is today called the URS44 – Dadaocheng Story House. The “URS” stands for “Urban Regeneration Station,” a reference to a Taipei City program in which heritage structures are renovated and repurposed. Creative educational activities on Dadaocheng’s history are held here, on such topics as the local tea and rice trades, markets, and temple gods. The visitor center provides a wide range of print materials, including on DIY walking tours. It also has a special facility, popular with foreign visitors, in which you can dress in 1920~1940 Dadaocheng period costumes, with downloadable pics featuring Dadaocheng backgrounds taken. The center will have all the info you need on special attractions during the New Year festival.

Learning calligraphy at Lam Sam Yick

DADAOCHENG VISITOR CENTER

( 大稻埕旅遊資訊站 ) (02) 2550-6959 No. 237, Nanjing W. Rd, Datong District, Taipei City ( 台北市大同區南京西路 237 號 )

Selfie time with the "City God" during the Taipei Lunar New Year Festival

Little Garden

This enterprise was born in Shanghai in 1936, by the grandfather of the present owner, who specialized in exquisite embroidered shoes. The business was moved here in 1949, as the Chinese Civil War ended. The grandfather’s handmade-treasure traditions have been faithfully continued, and the treasure vault has been much expanded, today including qipao, children’s outfits, purses, scarves, place mats, and much else. Virtually everything in the store is a possible gift or souvenir choice, each a one-and-only work of art. Most visuals used have auspicious meaning, such as dragons (symbol of royalty and nobility), and goldfish (wealth; they look like ancient Chinese gold ingots). The custom in Chinese culture is to wear new clothing at the New Year, inviting all-new good luck.

Little Garden

LITTLE GARDEN

( 小花園 ) (02) 2555-8468 taipei-shoes.com No. 2, Lane 32, Sec. 1, Dihua St., Datong District, Taipei City ( 台北市迪化街一段 32 巷 2 號 )

Lam Sam Yick

The flagship store of Lam Sam Yick is located on Chongqing North Road. This is a calligraphy brush maker/seller renowned for expert craftsmanship. It also has an equally stellar reputation for its brave, creative push into an entirely new world in 2008 with the introduction of LSY, a cosmetic brush brand. Founded in mainland China’s Fujian Province in 1917, the decision to move to Taiwan was made in 1946 in the face of Chinese Civil War turbulence. After decades of success, despite its soaring reputation sales began to wane as a result of the modern-day pencil, pen, and keyboard onslaught.

Fourth-generation owner Lin Chang-long came up with the idea of building on their expertise to make high-quality makeup brushes for women and facial-cleansing brushes for men, which can also be custom-made. These upscale items are sold in such high-end retail outlets as major department stores. “Calligraphy brushes help the user in pursuing ‘inner beauty,’” says Lin, “and we now help users in pursuing ‘external beauty’ as well.” Each of their calligraphy/LSY brushes is unique, and Lin says they enjoy steady sales with overseas visitors as gift/souvenir items.

During the New Year festival, Lam Sam Yick sets up a special booth in the Yongle Fabric Market plaza, with calligraphy masters holding DIY calligraphy sessions, helping people write auspicious spring couplets, and helping them write auspicious wording on wooden prayer plates for placement in temples after drawing divination lots. This coming New Year it will also begin helping people craft unique street art, creating auspicious calligraphy on the pavement with washable ink. (Note: Calligraphy sessions are offered year-round in the main store.)

LAM SAM YICK

( 林三益 ) (02) 2556-6433 www.lsy031.com No. 58, Sec. 2, Chongqing N. Rd., Datong District, Taipei City ( 台北市大同區重慶北路二段 58 號 )

Red envelopes handed out by the city government

Auspicious paper-cut art sold by Fleisch

ENGLISH AND CHINESE

Bangka 艋舺

Dadaocheng 大稻埕

Dalongdong 大龍峒

Dihua Street 迪化街

Lin Chang-long 林昌隆

Old Man Under The Moon 月下老人

Taipei Lunar New Year Festival 台北年貨大街

Tamsui River 淡水河

Urban Regeneration Station 都市再生前進基地

URS44 – Dadaocheng Story House URS44 大稻埕故事工坊

Wanhua 萬華

GETTING THERE

If using the Taipei Metro system, Daqiaotou Station on the Zhonghe-Xinlu Line (Orange Line) is closest to Dihua Street's north end, Beimen Station on the Songshan-Xindian Line (Green Line) closest to its south. Zhongshan Station and Shuanglian Station on the Tamsui-Xinyi Line (Rred Line) are about equidistant from the Lam Sam Yick store.