Taipei’s Dihua Street Restoration Progressing

Dihua Street is one of Taipei’s more interesting thoroughfares dating back to the mid-nineteenth century, though traces have been found that date back to the 1600s and the Dutch occupation  of Formosa. It certainly contrasts with much of central Taipei which was developed slightly later and still betrays its Japanese influences. Pretty much since then it has been an area specialising in the sale of traditional products – medicines, teas, cloth, herbs and spices etc. The name Dihua was given to the street in 1949 in reference to Urumqi. Dihua is one of a network of pre-1949 streets in the area. The Taipei City Government has been renovating many of the building facades along the street (the phenomenon of ‘facadicide’ is sadly no stranger to Taipei’s older streets). Work is still ongoing but plenty of them look good now.

I’m sorry but I can’t help but wish that such a programme of facade refurbishment had occurred along Shanghai’s Wujiang Road  rather than the wholesale destruction that took place – think how great the old Love Lane could have looked.

Well done Taipei city authorities; shame on Shanghai…I think though the example of Dihua Street is worth studying for those who persist on telling me that streets like Wujiang Road in Shanghai are all slums and fit only to to be bulldozed.

Two views along Dihua Street showing how much better the building facades are now looking

A Dihua Street facade being worked on – brick and concrete cleaned before windows reinstalled and then the traditional shop space below can be re-coccupied

One building covered up where work is underway

A particularly Dihua Street shop house yet to be finished