Gloria Outlets’ opening two years ago was a sign of impending change in the retail environment, from urban department stores to suburban shopping centers. A number of recently opened outlet malls are tempting shoppers to spend, even though overall consumer confidence has dipped due to rising prices and anemic salary increases. Retail market experts say…
The evolution of Taiwan’s mass market eating establishments has speeded up over the past decade to meet developing tastes and higher expectations. In recent years the long and colorful tradition of food vendors setting up roadside stalls has become less common, as hygiene requirements and city ordinances tighten up. Taking its place is a multitude…
Famous foreign personalities like Jamie Oliver bring business expertise, but in the long run it is local master chefs like André Chiang who will carry the torch. Celebrity chefs spread stardust over a nation’s food scene. They take the spotlight and make the headlines, introduce new ingredients and food preparation styles to give cooking an…
More can be done, say experts, particularly through government incentives, education, and retrofitting old buildings. Green buildings would seem to be perfect for hot climates. They’re cool (literally) and energy-efficient. They save money and may even contribute to saving the planet. Why then aren’t more of Taiwan’s commercial and domestic buildings green? According to…
Camping is the ideal way to rest and relax in nature and has become an extremely popular leisure activity in Taiwan over the past decade. For good reason. One night while camping in Pingtung County’s Kenting beach area, my family and I were awakened by a whooshing sound – like flames spreading quickly –…
Beneath Taiwan’s modern façade is a body of beliefs that stretch back for millennia. For an insight into how people really think, you need to know about folk religion. In Taiwan, temples seem to be everywhere, ancestral shrines take pride of place in many homes, and altars can be found in numerous offices and restaurants….
Taiwan is redoubling efforts to halt the spread of dengue fever, which has hit the southern part of the island hard over the past two years. Growing global concern about the Zika virus has led to intensified efforts to combat the white-speckled Aedes aegypti mosquito that also transmits dengue fever, a disease that has ravaged…
E-sports have become mass market and big business, but can Taiwan leverage its advantages to make the most of the opportunities? The arena’s star performers were bathed in laser lights as the music pumped and their ardent fans cheered them on, caught up in the thrill of competition. Big bucks were at stake. It had…
For a foreign national, learning Taiwanese cooking turned out to be not just a culinary adventure, but a life lesson. Photos by Jules Quartly It used to be that if foreigners could pronounce the intended destination with approximate similitude, the cab driver would in wonderment compliment them on their “excellent” Chinese. I get much the…
Green civic organizations are making next January’s legislative elections their next battlefield. Taiwan’s environmental movement is entering a new phase of more direct political activism. On September 21, the Green Party-Social Democratic Party (SDP) Alliance announced that it would field six candidates in next January’s legislative elections, including Green Party Taiwan co-convener Lee Ken-cheng. The…
