During the weeks leading up to Lunar New Year's Eve, there is no better place in Taipei to soak up the holiday atmosphere than Dihua Street. A usually calm street, it comes to life as shoppers flock here to stock up on foods used to celebrate the holiday.
Besides being a holiday shopping spot, Dihua Street is also significant for historical reasons. We discovered this during a stroll around the neighborhood with our guide, Mr. Chiu, who told us about the street's long history.
Located in an area known as Dadaocheng, Dihua Street became part of an early commercial center in the 1850s. Goods from China were shipped to the nearby port and traded for tea, sugar, and other local items. Since Dihua Street was close to the port, it became a major point for selling imported goods.
As Mr. Chiu led us through the northern part of Dihua Street, we felt like we were taking a trip back in time. Century-old shops selling household items lined the sidewalks. The southern Fujian–style brick buildings that housed these shops, built during the second half of the nineteenth century, reminded us of the daily lives of the first Chinese settlers here.
農曆除夕前的幾個禮拜，在台北沒有別的地方比迪化街更能感受年節氣氛了。隨著購物者蜂擁到此採買過節用的各式食品，這條平常寧靜的街道也變得熱鬧起來。
迪化街除了是採買年貨的地點，其重要性也有其歷史因素。我們和嚮導邱董一同漫步這個地區時發現了這一點，他向我們說明了這條街的悠久歷史。
迪化街位在大稻埕地區，在一八五○年代成為早期的一處商業中心。來自中國的商品運送到鄰近的港口，用以交換茶、糖及其他本地商品。由於迪化街離港口很近，便成了進口商品的主要販售點。
邱先生帶我們經過迪化街的北街時，我們有種回到過去的感覺。販賣著居家用品的百年老店林立在人行道兩旁。這些店家是閩南式的磚瓦建築，建於十九世紀後半葉，使我們想起這裡第一批中國移民的日常生活。
文章出處：Live互動英語雜誌
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