“Asian Review 027” ― Taiwan part4
A new landmark in Xinyi, “Taipei Nan Shan Plaza”
In 2018, “Taipei Nanshan Plaza” (48 floors above ground and 5 floors below ground, total floor space of 192,891 m²) opened in the site next to the “Taipei 101”. Taipei City sponsored a project competition in 2012 in the block originally planned as the second phase of the World Trade Center intended to construct a large complex. As a result, a large complex consisting three parts: office, commercial and cultural facilities has been constructed. The office tower in the center of the premises has a height of 272m, which is about half the height of the “Taipei 101”, but it has a strong presence. The commercial facility on the west side close to the “Taipei 101” is in a form like accumulated boxes while the cultural facility is located on the east side. The shape of the buildings as a whole is designed to represent a mountain range.
The builder of the “Taipei 101” and the designer of the “Taipei Nanshan Plaza” are Japanese companies, and it is proof that Taiwanese trust the Japanese skills considerably. When you look at the restaurants in “Taipei Nan Shan Plaza”, you can see the names of the Japanese national chain lined up. This prooves how much Taiwanese people like Japan.
By the way, the official language of Taiwan has been unified to Mandarin by the Kuomintang of China (Chinese Nationalist Party) which moved to Taiwan after the war. However, the citizens often use “Taiwanese Language”. Taiwanese language is based on Fujian words used by people in the southern part of Fujian Province, and it seems to be Taiwan’s own language which was made by adding Japanese and Mandarin vocabulary. In any case the notation is traditional Chinese notation, most of which were used before the war in Japan, so for Japanese it may be easier to read than the simplified Chinese in mainland.
From “Taipei Nanshan Plaza” to “Songshan Cultural and Creative Park”, it is about 20 minutes on foot, even if you make a stop by the municipal government heading north. It can be said that this area is the center of the Xinyi Development Area. “Taipei Dome” is located just south of the “Songshan Cultural and Creative Park”, but its construction is ceased due to conflict of opinions on safety standards, the defect of construction, the problem of ground subsidence and etc. Those problems have not been solved yet, but the political background seems to be somewhat complicated.
