Jiufen

Jiufen is a little town on a mountain in Rueifang Township of Taipei County near Keelung. It is said that there used to be only 9 families living in this mining village and that every time a shipment arrived from town, these families request for 9 portions thus the name Jiufen or 9 portions in Chinese. Did you know that Jiufen has a special charm and was the inspiration for the village in the movie Spirited Away ? Wow..I luv this anime and its really a recommended to watch!

When you are in Jiufen, you should not miss this famous 7-11 shop which every visitor recognized. It was also the drop-off point for tourists to begin their journey of Jiufen Old Street. 

Famous 7-11 drop-off point to go into Jiufen Old Street. Can you spot the signboard beside 7-11?

This is the signboard I mentioned. Sigh...its too overcrowded that day that I can't even get a full shot of the signboard :-(

Dun ever come here on weekends! You won't enjoy a single bit except bumping each other bum. No fun at all. See the photo below and you know what I mean.

mountains and seas of humans -_-"'

So what is the famous food in here? Well..I have to say..I can tell you based on my observations and from what I heard from my tourist guide as with the mountains and seas of humans..there is no way I can try all the food here *sigh* 

I think this fish ball shop "Jiufen Ancient Fish Ball Shop" is quite famous in here as you will be attracted to the surprisingly large quantity celebrities photos pasted all over the shop.

Jiufen Ancient Fish Ball Shop

Looking closely at all these photos, one will be wondering who is the smiling lady that appear in most of the photos with the different celebrities? She is the wife of the shop owner, Ms. Lai Hsiudan. And did you know she's actually born in 1920s? Wow..over age 90 and yet still looks so young? Wonder what is her beauty secret?

Spotted Ming Dao is here before too!

I managed to grab seats upstairs of this shop and mummy order their fish ball soup while Jen, Dad and myself had pork rice (鲁肉饭; luroufan). 

My luroufan..portion is kinda small for guys

Here are some photos of this shop:

Mummy busy ordering for us

See so many photos all over the shops?

How to get to this shop?
Jiufen Ancient Fish Ball Shop

Address： 
No. 135 Jishan Street Ruifang District, New Taipei City (head store) ; 
No. 109 Jishan Street Ruifang District, New Taipei City (first branch) 
Tel： 886-2-24969519
Opening: 9.00 AM - 8.00 PM (weekdays), 9.00 AM - 9.00 PM

Ok..so what else is nice to have in here? Well, you can easily grab so many various snacks while you walk along the street. A few that is recommended like glutionous rice balls (粉圆), beef noodles, fish balls, herbal eggs and sun cakes (太陽餅). Beware ahead...lotsa of food photos. Dun read beyond this point if you are hungry *LOL*

Glutinous rice balls

Corns?

Apart from food, you can get various souvenirs from here too. And one of the must visit shop is the Henry Cats & Friends. It's just two shops away from the 7 11 shop.

Henry Cats & Friends -Jiufen Jishan Shop
No.9-6, Qiche Rd., Ruifang Dist., New Taipei City 224, Taiwan (R.O.C.)

Henry Cats & Friends

Super luv the cute doggy pillow here. Regret din buy it..sigh..

Cute pillows!

How to get to Jiufen Old Street:

1. From Taipei Main Station, take a train (eastward bound) to Rueifang Station. Take a bus heading towards Keelung directly opposite Rueifang Station (outside Wellcome Minimart with a notable long queue). The uphill ride should take approximately 15 minutes.
2. From Zhongxiao Fuxing Station, take a bus heading towards Keelung at Exit 1 and alight at Jiufen Old Street.
3. Travellers can also opt to take a cab just outside Rueifang Station. The last time I checked, the taxi fare to Jiufen is NT$180. Not recommended unless taken with 4 persons (or if you got cash to spare.)

* Check here for the summary of my 2012 Taiwan trip itinerary.