Taipei Travel

Mayor Ko Wen-je presided over the opening of the Indigenous Living Aesthetics Hall on May 27. The facility is the refurbished Taiwanese Indigenous Cultural Center located inside the Taipei Expo Park.

During his address, the mayor noted that Taipei City is a diverse community, and indigenous culture makes up an important component of the lot. The Indigenous Living Aesthetics Hall is a venue to showcase elements of indigenous culture, including art, music, and cuisine.

Ko remarked that after he became the mayor, he learned that the gifts prepared by staff for the mayor to present to foreign guests consist of souvenirs resembling the shape of the Confucius Temple’s Chinese bronze bell. He believes that a bit of indigenous flavors should be added to the selection of souvenirs for international dignitaries in the future.

The opening ceremony for the facility kicked-off with the performance of hymns by elders from the Amis tribe. In addition to visiting individual booths and observing wood carvings and other merchandise, the mayor also enjoyed dishes fusing indigenous food with French cuisine. The ingredients used for the entrees include boar meat and conch. The mayor also purchased a pair of slippers which used areca leaves as materials for his own day-to-day use.

The mayor pointed out that the City decided to reopen the Indigenous Cultural Center as the Indigenous Living Aesthetics Hall in hopes of highlighting the indigenous elements as part of Taipei’s diversified heritage.