Old-style facial treatments at Traditional Market No. 3
Tel: Contact Phone Number: 0921 337 662 Mrs. Zhuang
Hours: 9 am-6 pm
Taiwan's older generation often talks about the facial treatments that they received when they were young. With just a piece of white thread, a block of white powder--used in the old days for makeup--and the hands of a trained expert, one could easily have their faces nicely exfoliated to reveal fine radiant skin. This traditional beauty technique is rarely seen nowadays and, with few young people interested, the skill is quickly dying out. It is therefore a pleasant surprise to discover a 70-year-old lady at Taichung's Traditional Market No. 3 still offering this service. She has been giving facial treatments to people since her youth and has been in the business for almost 50 years. You will not find any black spots on her face, and her fine pores are good proof of the effectiveness of her trade. Using these simple techniques, you, too, can have glowing skin. Each facial treatment takes approximately 20 minutes and costs only NT$200.

Yong Shin Shoes
7, SanMin Road, Sec. 2; (04) 2221-0048
Hours: 9 am-10 pm
Do you have a pair of shoes that you cannot seem to part with, despite the fact that they are getting old and falling apart? Help is at hand; take them to this shop and get them fixed up.
Master Jiang Bo-hui started his training as a cobbler when he was 15, and became accomplished at his trade by the age of 18. That was almost 50 years ago. His toolbox, converted from an old chair, contains sharp knives, pliers, super glue and much more. Mr. Jiang places a shoe on his near-antique anvil, then moves swiftly and accurately over it with a sharp knife to attach a nice, new sole. His movements remind some customers of kung fu. Even high heels that have been snapped at the heel are quickly restored to their former glamorous selves. "If you should find the shop closed for business, then I'm probably off on holiday having fun," says the 70-year-old gent as he flashes a smile with a mouthful of gold teeth.

Da Shan Straw Mats Factory
150, MinQuan Road (opposite Taichung Hospital)
Tel: (04) 2222-4585, 0939 721 699
Hours: 9 am-5 pm (closed Sundays)
Situated right between a modern hospital equipment store and a cafe, Da Shan Straw Mats Factory's sign looks more like something from a film set of an ancient street. There, old Mr. Xu sits on a bamboo chair at the door and stares aimlessly at the traffic. He has been making tatami mats for almost 50 years, starting with the rougher earlier materials to the much finer, smoother mats that are made today. Even with better materials and better techniques, it is still difficult to compete with the new mattress designs available these days. If you ask Mr. Xu--who is a little bit hard of hearing--when the tatami business was at its peak, he will reply in a slow but sure voice that it was during the Japanese colonial era. Such recollections leaves many customers quite speechless.

Taichung city's Herb Street
Representative Shops:
Han Qiang Herb Shop
1-1, Lane 90, ChengGong Road; (04) 2222-4244
Ah Lan Herb Tea
12, Lane 90, ChengGong Road; (04) 2225-2910
Bai Cao Shop
1, Lane 90, ChengGong Road; (04) 2223-9746
Ji An Herb Shop
29, Lane 195, LuQuan West Street; (04) 2225-5595
Ah Xian Herb
Company 47, GuangFu Road; (04) 2225-5486
Hours: 8 am-10 pm
In the old days before there were soft drinks, refreshing herbal tea drinks, special "liver-preserving" teas, winter melon teas and other drinks were the usual beverages of choice of local residents. Where does one go to find these drinks nowadays? Along ChengGong Road's Lane 90, next to First Square, is Taichung city's Herb Street, which has preserved these traditions. These 20 to 30 year-old shops are filled with paper cartons inscribed with bizarre names and containing dried herbs. Hundreds of live plants fill entrances. Having been in this business for so long, shop owners have each cultivated personal theories about maintaining good health as well as life philosophies. Thanks to their persistence, these businesses have lasted till now, allowing many customers with special needs to find what they are looking for amongst the herbs and plants.

San Yang Straw Mats Company
48, JiangGong Road, Da Jia Township, Taichung County
Tel: (04) 2687-2558
Hours: 8 am-10 pm
Da Jia (Tachia) straw mats can cost up to several thousand dollars each because the grass grown in the Dali and Yuanli districts is soft and does not break easily. The mats woven from this material are also absorbent and have a special fragrance. The careful, delicate weaving skills of local women help make these mats very tough and durable, so that they can be folded and are cool to sleep on during hot summer nights. Taiwanese officials who traveled to Beijing during the Qing dynasty would always bring these mats with them, making them a very precious item in Beijing.
So where can Da Jia mats be found these days? Most people in Da Jia will point you to San Yang Straw Mats Company, across from the Da Jia Railway Station. This 50-year-old shop has many kinds of straw products available. Apart from mats, they also sell straw hats, seat covers, pillows, slippers and much more. Local residents proudly note that Madame Chiang Kai-shek used to wear a Da Jia straw hat when she took walks in the hot summer sun.

Ah-Shun Traditional Grocery Store
321-2, WenXin South 5th Road, Taichung City (opposite FengLe Sculpture Park, Hu Shui An [Lakeside] Art Street)
Tel: (04) 2471-7029
Hours: 12-10 pm Mon.-Fri. (occasionally closed on Mondays), opens 9 am weekends/holidays
Along the Hu Shui An Art (Lakeside) shopping street are popular restaurants, fashion boutiques and arts and crafts vendors. There is also this old-fashioned traditional grocery store, owned by Mr. Huang Jin-Shun and in business for six years. The old wooden door, red tiles, brick walls and red lanterns all help give this place an authentic vintage look. For sale are many replica toys and snacks familiar to those born in the '40s and '50s. There are traditional kids' lottery games, bamboo dragonflies, wooden spinning tops, Taiwanese puppets, cigarette candies and other traditional sweets as well as traditional snacks. Mr. Huang has also collected some old porcelain bowls and iron lunch boxes that are available for sale or used to hold snacks for customers. Among the most interesting items are the antique soft-drink crates by the doorway, containing never-opened, 20-year-old fossil-like Warinta sodas.

Cheng Gong Steaming Basket Shop
273, ZhongShan Road; (04) 2224-3807
Hours: 8 am-9:30 pm (closed Sunday afternoons)
Metal cooking utensils can easily be found at department stores and hypermarkets anywhere. However, bamboo steaming baskets used for Hong Kong-style dim sum snacks and wooden rice buckets used by rice ball makers at their stalls cannot be easily replaced with metal products. Many Chinese bun and steamed cake makers, from restaurant owners to housewives, have a special affinity for these traditional baskets. Walk into the 50-year-old Cheng Gong Steaming Basket Shop and you will find all kinds of steaming baskets in various sizes and wooden buckets piled higher than a person. Eighty-year-old master Mr. Zhao Wan-Lai and his wife are still hard at work there, taking orders from customers. Although much cheaper products from China are already invading the Taiwanese market, this shop still uses traditional techniques to make their long-lasting products.

Chang Xing Rice Bran
431, ZhongShan Road, Sec. 2, WuRi Township, Taichung County ; (04) 2337-8470
Hours: 8 am-10 pm (closed Saturdays)
In Taiwan's early days, baby milk powder was very expensive and not everyone could afford it. So, many people substituted with rice bran powder, making this a common baby food. Situated in WuRi Township, Chang Xing Rice Bran has been in business for 30 years. From the very start, they have utilized electric appliances to fry their rice. This pre-fried rice then evolved into one of the earliest snacks, Mi Xiang Li (popped rice). Once the pre-fried rice is cooled, it is made into popped rice or ground into rice bran. Traditionally, the most popular item was the ground rice bran but, as healthy eating trends began to gain popularity, many other grains and beans were introduced as well. There is the 20-Grain Powder with high nutritional content, the Shi Shen Rice Bran, Yi Ren and Sesame Powder, 10-Grain Powder and much more. You can also have your own grain powder custom-made to your taste, with prices just as reasonable. The Popped Rice Snack is made from pre-fried rice mixed with malt sugar until it solidifies. This is cut into slices for a snack that appeals to both young and old.

Taiwan Banana New Paradise Culture and Lifestyle Museum
111, ShuangXi Road, Sec. 2 (diagonally opposite from Yu Ren Elementary School and the Confucius Temple)
Tel: (04) 2234-5402
Hours: 11 am- 2 am
If you want to learn about and experience some of Taiwan's earlier history, a visit to Taiwan Banana New Paradise is a must. This large nostalgia-themed teahouse restaurant has convincingly recreated a typical Taiwan street scene from 30 to 40 years ago. Post boxes, power poles, paper kites, a barber shop, a movie theatre, old signs and a lot of other interesting details bring history to life, taking visitors back in time to old Taiwan.

Taichung Folklore Park
(04) 2245-1310
73, LuShun Road, sec. 2, Beitun District, Taichung City
Hours:8:30 am-9:30 pm (????/closed Mondays)
Full ticket: NT$50, Half-price ticket: NT$20
Free admission for those over the age of 65.