Dali Old Street

Located in the Dali District of Taichung City, Dali Old Street, formerly known as "Dali Yan," is one of the six major traditional streets in Taiwan during the Qing Dynasty. In the past, due to the convenience of shipping via the Wu River, it became an important transit and trade hub in central Taiwan. "Yan" refers to the wooden piles used to anchor boats, symbolizing that this area was once a busy river port with boats coming and going and crowds bustling about. The old street is built along the original river channel, with a narrow, elongated layout, and both sides retain complete red brick arcades, wooden street houses, and quaint storefronts. One can see architectural styles and traces of life from the late Qing Dynasty to the early Republic of China everywhere. Historical buildings such as "Qingyuan Hall," "Fuxing Temple," and "Dali Yan Cultural Center," along with local cultural landmarks like the "Upside-down Banyan" and "Pickled Vegetable Barrel," tell the stories of the local area over the past century. Today's Dali Old Street still retains a rich atmosphere of daily life, with traditional markets and grocery stores during the day, where residents move about, creating scenes rather than just backgrounds. There is no excessive commercialization here; what remains is the authentic human warmth and sense of time.