A visiting Henry Luce Fellow looks at the progress Taiwan has made on its urban digitization efforts and what is needed to make those programs more effective and equitable for all citizens. Over the past five years, Taiwan has placed “smart cities” – urban centers that run on data collected through sensors and other electronic…
The race is on to position serviced offices as hip co-working spaces, but questions remain about the sustainability of market demand. The Executive Centre in Taipei’s Nanshan Plaza feels like a lounge on the club floor of a five-star hotel. Office workers dressed to impress chat casually, seated on quirky designer furniture. Floor-to-ceiling windows offer…
From smashed avocados to beetroot lattes, the city’s restaurants and cafes are catching on to the latest international eating trends. There’s something wonderfully devilish about an otherwise health-oriented brunch place that also serves a wide range of alcoholic beverages. After all, a piña colada is the perfect accompaniment to a plate of poached eggs. The…
Much of what is now downtown Taipei was once enclosed within city walls, with access through five gates. The area has a lot to tell about the city’s history. The Taipei city wall was completed by the Qing Dynasty in 1884. Although it survived for only 16 years, its influence on modern Taipei is still…
Since starting operations in March 2017 after repeated delays, the Taoyuan Airport MRT line has quickly become popular among airline passengers. Riders have commended the service as convenient, safe, and punctual. Last year, the airport MRT carried an average of 63,000 passengers daily, 12.5% more than the 56,000 in 2017. The train served 34% of…
Construction continues on several extensions to Taipei’s mass rapid transit system. Residents of Danhai New Township by the mouth of the Tamsui River in New Taipei City got a Christmas present last year. On December 24, the first section of the Danhai Light Rail system went into service after four years of construction. The line…
Meal delivery is changing rapidly and growing exponentially due to the online-to-offline revolution, which offers easy online ordering, customized offerings and speed. Thinking Curry (微想咖喱) operates out of a back alley on Wuxing Road, not far from Taipei 101. Providing the option of three curry flavors – Indian, European, or Japanese – it was so…
Authentic Thai cuisine is no longer hard to find in Taipei thanks to changing tastes and more outbound tourism. The Taiwanese have always been ambivalent about spicy food. Some Taiwanese revel in the explosive effects of chili peppers on the palate (consider the popularity of spicy hot pot here), but just as many balk at…
Katy Hui-wen Hung and Steven Crook discuss their newly published book. Katy Hui-wen Hung: I grew up in Taipei, studied in the U.S. from 1984 to 1986, and have lived in the UK since the late 1980s. Some years ago in the UK, I got to know Marlena Spieler, the acclaimed cookbook writer. Marlena, an…
What it’s like to dine out with celebrities on delectable, rich Michelin-starred food – gout be damned. Publication last year of the first Taipei Michelin Guide launched Taipei into the rarefied ranks of cities like San Francisco, New York, and Shanghai that can boast their own Michelin guides. Of the total of 20 restaurants in…
