Taiwan Trip Day 2: Jiufen Old Street 九份老街
Check out the full itinerary of the Taiwan Trip 2013: 6D5N Taipei & Jiufen here
Jiufen 九份 (“nine portions”) got its name because during the Qing Dynasty, the village here housed only nine families and every time the shipments arrived from town, the village requested for only “nine portions” to be distributed to the people in this place.
Till when the gold discovered in this area around late 1800s, there was a massive development from village into a town and reached its peak during the Japanese colonization. During World War II, a POW camp named Kinkaseki was set up in the village and they were forced to worked like slaves in the nearby mine. Gold mining activities declined after the World War II followed by the shutting down of the mine and Jiufen was almost forgotten.
Jiufen then became popular again when the Taiwanese movie – The City of Sadness was filmed and an anime – Spirited Away used Jiufen as a model. Till now, it is a crowded touristy spot especially during the weekends and holidays.
To get to Jiufen, you can always opt for train, bus or even private transport (read my experience here)
Up here, there are a lot to see and experience. It is always advisable to spend a night over here to enjoy the slow pace of Jiufen. Also, there are actually a lot to buy, try and eat at Jiu Fen Old Street 九份老街. It is always crowded up here where may love to travel up here to get away from the hustle and bustle city. Moreover, it is merely less than an hour drive from Taipei City.
Check out where I stayed when I was in Jiufen here.
It’s always “people sea people mountain”/ crowded over here.
Stone crafting
EAT:
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賴阿婆芋圓 Lai Ah Po Taro Ball
Fully filled with wholesome chewy and flavourful taro ball.
廖家百年老店 Hakka Glutinous Rice Cake
阿蘭草仔粿 Ah Lan Hakka Glutinous Rice Cake was at a long queue, we moved to this stall selling the same thing. Love the soft chewy texture of the kuih, with different fillings in it. I love the one with salty fillings the most!
邮局前葱油粿 PC Front Sticky Rice Cake
Lou Mei 卤味 or Braised goods from 护理长的店
Always at a long queue. They offer varieties include duck wings, pig’s and duck’s blood, tongue, internal organs, kelps, mushrooms, and etc. We queued up twice and mix-and-matched our favorites!
Wild boar sausage 黑山豬香腸. Seriously soooooo good!!!
九份紅糟肉圓 Red Wine Meat Ball with Glutinous Rice Skin.
Kuih, which i forgot from which shop too! lol.
Stinky Tofu
Had the grilled version which I didn’t find it really stinky. Okay only larrr
Peanut Roll with Ice Cream 花生卷冰淇淋. A special combination of grounded peanut, malt sugar, ice cream and coriander leaves. The additional of coriander leaves gave a very oriental taste to this dessert/snack.
Pink Guava Juice, packed in the very cute Doraemon bottle, a great thirst quencher.
Grilled squid and Escargot
BUY:
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Pineapple Tarts from 老珍香饼店. Most shops offer food sampling before purchasing and I find the pineapple tarts here taste the best!
桂圆茶姜母茶 Dark Sugar Block with Honey, Winter Melon or Ginger. Got some ginger dark sugar blocks which are really good for ladies.
阿原肥皂 Yuan Hand Made Soap which is made of pure and natural herbs.
川贝枇杷 . Great for throat soothing, especially during sore throat.
牛扎糖 Nougat Sandwich.
咸酸甜 for pickles and preserved fruits.
Grab a few packets of 艾玉 Ai Yu too for homemade lemonade/desserts. Not forget a glass of Ai Yu Bing after a long walk up and down the staircases.
We ended up burping all the way climbing up and down the old street with both hands carrying lots of shopping bags.
Was raining whole day when I was here >.<
ya wor, mine also but luckily not heavy one…