Hi there! I’m in Taipei for the 2019 Taiwan Pride March. It’s Asia’s LARGEST LGBTQ+ pride march. It’s xxxtra special this year! Why? The country approved same-sex marriage a few months ago… making history as the first Asian country to do so. Anyway… I’m writing a series of posts and this one features the neighbourhood that I stayed at. This is the second of two parts. The first part covered Ximen at night. This one covers Ximen in daylight.

I’m on Instagram! You can follow updates at @bekpackr.sg 🙂 Maraming salamat!

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XIMEN in daylight is slightly less busy as it is in the night time.

What’s become a hotspot for Instagrammers and visitors is the rainbow crossing right outside Exit 6 of Ximen Metro Station. I was there at the height of Taiwan Pride so there was quite a crowd. You’d have to manoeuvre to get a clearer shot.

Now, let’s take a walk around Ximen during the daytime. One of the things I noticed was advertising in the area. Most of the ads cater to young people. That means… video games! Spotted the next game I want to play on my Nintendo Switch.

Heading into the pedestrian area, you can find several stores like Uniqlo and sports shoes. You’ll encounter arcades with claw machines, bubble tea shops, and stores selling shoes, bags, cellphone cases, and other collectables.

Walking back towards the Ximen main intersection (with the rainbow crossing), another area I wanted to look at was the famous Red House which is ground zero for creativity and art in Taipei.

Inside, are a collection of tiny stores selling art products. I found a store that was selling a pin-on embroidered rainbow flag which I felt would look great with my bag.

During Pride weekend, the area outside The Red House had tents setup which featured LGBTQ businesses. They were selling collectable Taiwan Pride memorabilia as well as things ranging from sexy underwear to subscriptions to LGBTQ content.

Some of the tents featured advocacies. One tent had brochures for Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis otherwise known as PReP. The brochure was cute!

I’ve barely scratched the surface at Ximen even during daylight. It was a highlight to see how gay-friendly the area is. It makes me wonder how it’s like in other parts of the country. The locale seems to support LGBTQ rights… given how many establishments had rainbow flags displayed prominently. They know how to court LGBTQ dollars!

Where is Ximen Pedestrian Street?

Location. Ximen (Ximending) has a metro station: Ximen (Interchange with Green and Blue Lines). It’s a lively neighborhood that has stores and street food available til late.

Can’t wait to write the next post! Follow me on Instagram @bekpackr.sg