BLACKBOOK ON THE GROUND - D E PA R T U R E S at m o r e I N T E R N AT S e e I O N A L For additional impressions of Taipei’s renaissance, go online . C O M ADDRESS BOOK BEDDING DOWN VVG BB+B 2F, No 18-20, Alley 40, Lane 181, Section 4, Zhongxiao East Road, Da’an District; +886 2 2775 4386 temptingplaces.com Clockwise from top left: lunch at Huashan 1914 Creative Park; designs on offer at ArtYard; the boho chic environs of VVG Thinking; colourful contemporary art at 44 South Village SMART ART Huashan 1914 Creative Park 1, Section 1, Bade Road, Zhongzhen District; +886 2 2358 1914 huashan1914.com Spot 18, Section 2, Zhongshan North Road; +886 2 2511 7786 spot.org.tw/index_e.htm Red House Theater No 10, Chengdu Road, Wanhua District; +886 2 2311 9380 redhouse.org.tw STYLISH CAFES AND QUIRKY BOUTIQUES HAVE CROPPED UP AROUND YONGKANG STREET peddles superlative bagels spiced with Taiwanese ingredients like red bean and black sesame. Nearby, Songshan Cultural and Creative Park occupies an old tobacco factory. Across town, design stores such as ArtYard are slowly populating the Japanese-built shophouses along Dihua Street, one of the city’s oldest thoroughfares, while at the historic Red House Theater in the lively Ximending neighbourhood, a weekend market showcases emerging designers. High-profile preservation projects aren’t the only places where you can catch the city’s growing sophistication. Stylish cafés and quirky boutiques have cropped up around Yongkang Street, once best known for Din Tai Fung, the famed dumpling chain. It’s easy to idle away the day here, starting with an espresso at Caffè Libero, which also serves as a lounge and patisserie, and then browsing hand-cast pieces at Chung’s Silver or fair-trade accessories and blouses from South Asia and Africa at Twine Studio. Elsewhere, the back lanes of bustling Zhongxiao East Road abound with indie-flavoured shops, including Designburg, a sleek space devoted to the creations of owner-jeweller Jadis Cheng and other homegrown talents. Taipei’s scene is still mostly local, but more and more, I spy weekenders from Hong Kong and Singapore exploring the new art spaces and funky ‘hoods and enjoying the city’s more relaxed lifestyle. It’s only a matter of time before the rest of the world catches on. Songshan Cultural and Creative Park 133 Guangfu South Road, Xinyi District; +886 2 2765 1388 songshanculturalpark.org HOT TABLES VVG Thinking Huashan 1914 Creative Park 1, Section 1, Bade Road, Zhongzhen District; +886 02 23225573 vvgvvg.blogspot.com Good Cho No 54, Songqin Street, Xinyi District; +886 2 2758 2609 Caffè Libero No 1, Lane 243, Jinhua Street, Da’an District; +886 2 2356 7129 IN STORE ArtYard 1, Lane 32, Section 1, Dihua Street, Datong District; +886 2 2552 1321 artyard.tw Chung’s Silver No 14, Lane 31, Yongkang Street; +886 2 2394 6420 chungsteam.com Twine Studio 1/F, No 3, Lane 2, Yongkang Street, Da’an District twinestudio.net Designburg B1, No 10, Alley 6, Lane 170, Section 4, Zhongxiao East Road, Da’an District; +886 2 2771 1833 designburg.com NEIL WADE 50 departures-international.com CONTACT PLATINUM CARD SERVICE FOR BOOKINGS
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