Narrow, covered Jishan St often leaves lasting impressions. It’s really just one long covered lane, but spending a few hours here browsing the snack and craft shops is a lot of fun. Jiufen’s famous stair-street, Shuqi St, which features an old theatre and teahouses used as sets in the movie City of Sadness, intersects a few hundred meters down. One of…

This Earth God (Tudigong) temple is an interesting blend of Japanese, Chinese and Western elements. The outside features two old stone lamps, while the interior sports a beautiful post-and-beam structure (made without nails), intricately carved stone pillars, and panels, including one over the main altar with nude Western-style angels. To reach the temple, walk up the main road to the…

Just across from the Golden Waterfall, on a sea-facing bluff, are the remains of a massive copper-smelting refinery (十三層; Shísāncéng) whose 13 levels descend towards the sea in rapid progression. The refinery inspires such a heavy, dystopian industrial awe that it has been used as a background for music videos. If you want to get close, head up the side road just after…

This quirky private collection can seem underwhelming at first, but then it dawns on you: these things can really fly! Its collection ranges from the tiniest butterfly-shaped kites to a 3m-long phoenix with a fox in its mouth. Some kites even have musical instruments built into them so they drum or whistle when in the air. Miners’ children in Jiufen…

This park, set high above the village in green, quiet hillsides, is a true slice of 1930s Taiwan, with restored Japanese-era residential and office buildings connected by narrow walkways bordered by aged brick walls. The remains of the gold-mining industry that once drove the local economy are also well preserved, including one of the original mine tunnels. The Crown Prince Chalet (太子賓館;…

The water that forms this unusual fall has a yellow hue from the copper and iron deposits it picks up as it passes through Jinguashi’s old mines. You’ll find the waterfall down from the Gold Ecological Park as you head towards the sea (which is also a yellowish colour from the river water). Travel Info Golden Waterfall [黃金瀑布 / huáng jīn bào…

Nestled against the mountains and hemmed in by the sea are Jiufen (九份; Jiǔfèn) and its neighbour Jinguashi (金瓜石; Jīnguāshí), 10 minutes by bus away from Jiufen’s main road. These two villages are the quaintest stops along the northeast coast. Both were mining centres during the Japanese era, and by the 1930s Jiufen was so prosperous it was known as…

[台南 / tái nán] You’ll almost certainly receive looks of jealousy from any Taiwanese person if you mention you’re going to Tainan (台南), and it’s not hard to see why. Traditional culture continues to thrive in Tainan, the oldest city in Taiwan. The name ‘Taiwan’ was once used to refer to Dayuan (大員), Anping’s former name. Inside temples, bwah bwey(moon blocks; 搏杯)…

[花蓮 / Huālián] Hualien is eastern Taiwan’s second-largest city and one of the more pleasant small towns in Taiwan. Many travellers like to base themselves here, even when Taroko Gorge is their interest, as the range of food and accommodation is greater. Budget travellers will find everything they need near the train station. Head east to the Meilunshan Park (Měilúnshān…

[高雄 / Gāoxióng] The southern city of Kaohsiung is Taiwan’s largest port, its second-largest city and centre of the country’s heavy and petrochemical industries. Despite this, today’s Kaohsiung is a modern urban landscape of airy cafes, wide streets, waterside parks, public transport, bicycle lanes and cultural venues that have embraced and re-imagined the city’s manufacturing past. There are also two…