Nanmen Market

I recently visited the Nanmen Market, a vibrant supermarket filled with a wide array of unique items and foods. This market offered an incredible selection of goods, including freshly caught fish, exotic dried fruits, pickled vegetables, and many other unique delicacies. The atmosphere was packed with energy, as the market was packed with people, making it challenging to guide myself through the crowds. The market even included a food court that featured one of the city's most famous boba tea and beef noodle soup restaurants. The lines were extremely long, stretching from the food court to the elevator.

You may think the market is an old, rusty market but it's quite the opposite. The history of the market longs way back to 1907 when it was located like a traditional Taiwanese market. The Nanmen market is one of the oldest markets in Taiwan’s history. In recent years, the location has switched to a modernized building while still preserving the same traditional, nostalgic, atmosphere. The new building contains escalators, air conditioning, elevators, and many more modern elements.

This market was an immense contrast to the other usual shopping experiences at places like Trader Joe's in the U.S. Unlike the quiet, dull, markets in the U.S., Nanmen Market was filled with color, noise, and freshly prepared foods. In the United States, many foods sit on shelves for months before being sold, giving markets more stale and unhealthy products. In contrast, the markets in Taiwan, like Nanmen, offer foods that are often prepared or harvested just hours before reaching the stalls.

I chose to photograph this market because it was an eye-opener that showed me Taiwan’s culture and how much they value having a wide variety of fresh and healthy food. I had the opportunity to try exotic foods that I would have never seen, in a Walmart. This market was truly a memorable experience.