February 2, 2014 ---- It was during the Chinese New Year holiday when Nathan and I went to Sanxia Old Street. We took a public bus from Xindian MRT Station running straight to Sanxia. I don't remember the bus number, but it won't be difficult to figure out once you are at Xindian and see the sign on the bus saying "Xindian-Sanxia."
Sanxia Old Street was built during the Japanese occupation and is now a famous tourism street where you can find stores selling arts, tea, local specialty food, ceramics, and many more. What seemed to be most famous there was "bull horn croissants" because we saw so many people waiting in line to buy them. We didn't try, though...
I don't know what Sanxia Old Street looked like when it wasn't a holiday, but I assumed it to be rather quiet on weekdays more than weekends. Going there during the CNY wasn't wise either unless you love the crowds. People were everywhere! It was hard to do shopping, eating at a restaurant, or praying peacefully at a temple. There were long lines everywhere, and we didn't enjoy it as much as we hoped.
However, the most interesting thing we found at Sanxia Old Street during the CNY was seeing how people worshiped their gods or holy spirits at many Buddhist and Taoist temples. People lighted up incenses and offered food, fruits, drinks and/or flowers to the holy images or statues. One temple had a wooden bridge with many steps, and people would walk up and down to the other side. I don't know what this action meant exactly, but it could be for "luck" or prosperity over the course of the year.
Overall, we spent a lot of time observing locals at every temple we found. We tried lots of good food/snacks and walked into many interesting shops. I won't say that it's the must-see old street in Taiwan, but it is not a bad place to walk around if you have plenty of time while traveling in the Formosa.
