College Town: Taichung's Feng Chia University Area
By Mike Bossick

The area around Taichung's Feng Chia University is not for those wanting a particularly quiet night, as the crowds and high noise level are part of its charm. It offers the requisites and pre-requisites, such as cheap food, bountiful shopping, NT$30-an-hour Internet access, a "quiet street with tea houses" and a plethora of other modern conveniences. The night market here is probably the best in Taichung, so it's quite popular.

It is traffic hell most nights and parking for cars can be a nightmare. For the non-initiate, I would recommend taking a cab (say, "Feng Chia Ta Shwei"), or parking on Feng Chia Road a couple of blocks from the McDonald's.

As rapidly becomes obvious below, one of the main geographical reference points is a McDonald's restaurant, located on the corner of Fushing and Feng Chia roads. Fushing itself is a long, bustling road, packed with all kinds of establishments, while Feng Chia Road is shorter and leads directly to the university's main gate.

While it is near impossible to list all of the interesting places the Feng Chia area has to offer, I've provided a sampling of my personal favorites. In the end, the best thing to do is explore this fascinating area yourself and discover your own favorites.

Eating:
Most of the good food here is alfresco and eaten standing up. There has to be at least a hundred food stands to choose from in and around the night market. On the way to the night market there are plenty of restaurants that offer sit -down dining. They range from traditional Taiwanese cuisine to pseudo French at the Kaldi Cafe. Let your intuition be your guide. For a big steak dinner at NT$150, try Haur Dah at 377 Fushing Road. The meal includes either beef, chicken, or pork steak, spaghetti noodles, and an egg, all served on a sizzling platter smothered either in mushroom sauce or pepper sauce. A soup and salad is included. Lane No. 20, Feng Chia Road is a small lane, one block from McDonald's on the left, if you're heading for the main university gate. Turn in here and you will find several quality buffet-style vegetarian restaurants on your right, one next to the other. On your left is a brand-new "American-style" coffee place called Ka-Non that offers hamburgers, omelets, tater tots and sandwiches. In keeping with the spirit of the neighborhood, the prices are low and the music is loud. Continuing down this lane will bring you to least eight computer stores. The locals call this computer street and it offers some good bargains.

The Night Market:
Turn right at the University gate (this is where the road ends) and you are in the night market. This is where the action is. The crowd here is thick with young women in oversized shoes, mini skirts, and trendy accesories. Scooter punks thread their way through middle-aged women with poodles underarm, professionals with their families, and the hawkers and vendors working the street.You can find anything from used Levi's to surfwear, to video slot machines to funny watches to Peruvian handicrafts. On the food side, it ranges from squid on a stick to French style crepes to bagels with a smear. Here the shoppers never drop and the prices are some of the best in Taichung.

Department Stores:
More bargain shopping for boring-yet-necessary items can be had at Watson's, Season's and the Poya store across the street on Fushing Road. (Hang a left at Mc Donald's)

Handicrafts:
Buddha's Eye offers art, handicrafts, clothing, vegetarian food and yoga classes. Located on Hsitun Road near the night market. Call 451-6777 for details.

Bars:
Instead of turning left at the Family Mart, continue about a block and turn left when the small street ends. This is called Jen Shane Road, but you won' t see a sign. Walk one half block and on your left is the 89K Bar. The decor is exactly like a bar back in the States, even featuring a shrine to the American Indian Chief Joseph. Beer and drink prices are fairly typical with a big Taiwan beer going for NT$150 NT. The entertainment tends to run towards karaoke. A few doors down on the same side of the street is the Boss Piano Bar. It features a jazz pianist and cool blue lighting. Authors Note: For a college area there is a surprising lack of good watering holes.

Internet Cafe:
If you're heading towards the University gate, turn left on Fushing Road, at the Mc Donald's, and follow it a couple of blocks to the Circle K convenience store on the right. Turn right and follow the small lane up about a block. Three stores from the end on the left is Morning Computer. Here, for NT$30 an hour, you get Internet access at fast speeds plus cheap canned drinks. If you're into video games, the rates are the same. Walking around the small streets near here, you can find other smaller game/Internet parlors, at the same low rates. I only frequent them if Morning is full.

Record Stores:
Across from McDonald's, at the crossroads of Fushing and Feng Chia roads, is Tachung Records. By far the best record store to be found in Taichung is Grammy Music Plaza. Grammy's has large sections for Jazz, Alternative Rock, Adult Contemporary and other genres, plus several bargain bins and cheap blank tapes. They will also special order anything you want and, word has it, friends bring the music in from the States.

Tattoos:
Tattoo by Steven S. offers professional tattooing in both American and traditional Japanese styles. Located on the corner of Feng Chia and Hsitun roads. Call 259-4722 or 0931-470-703 for an appointment.

For Women:
The Body Shop at 434, Fushing Road. These are the same upscale potions and lotions that are found in other world-wide locations.

Swimming:
On the Feng Chia campus there is a decent public swimming pool. It is open from 6 am to 10 pm. The price is NT$20 for students and NT$100 for non-students. Ask the guard at the front gate or any of the students where it is.

Bookstores:
As in most college areas, there are many bookstores. Most have some books in English. There is a good computer bookstore Yang Yeh at 381, Fushing Road. Turn left at the Mc Donald's go three doors past the Watson's Store and you're there. They offer a good selection, ranging from "Mac for Dummies" to texts on VRML, Visual Basic and more upper level techie tomes.

Hotels:
The Beacon Hotel is located one block from McDonald's, on the same side of the road towards the university gate on Feng Chia Road. It is a business hotel but offers a nice room special NT$1,200 NT a night, complete with Internet access. As you get closer to the university gate and the night market that runs along its walls, the crowds get thicker and so does the shopping. If you're into mall shopping there is a three-story shopping mall called Sun Plaza with a food court on your left, a few stores down from the university gate.

Optical Stores:
President Optical Company at 338 Fushing Road offers steals and deals on prescription glasses for those that are astigmatic, near or far sighted. While they can't match the cheap sunglasses of the night market, it is worth a look if you need to see and can't afford department store prices.

Places to Sit:
One block west of McDonald's is Fen Chi Road, Lane No. 75. From McD's, cross the street, walk past the big scooter parking lot until you get to the Family Mart convenience store (The Smiling Star). Turn left when you see the cobblestones. This is the only really quiet place in the area to sit outside and enjoy drinks or teas, at a choice of 10 different cafes. Take your pick.

College Town: Taichung's Feng Chia University Area By Mike Bossick

College Town: Taichung's Feng Chia University Area
By Mike Bossick