Besides Snake Alley, What Else Do We Have to Offer?

Think of Hawaii, and the first thing that flows into your mind are the hula dancers; think of Hokkaido, and you can almost see the snow festival; Vienna brings images of classical music concerts and gabled houses to mind, as Greece does the Temple of Athena standing among the blowing wild grass. What about Taiwan?

The answer should be the National Palace Museum, the island's repository of 5,000 years of Chinese culture. This indeed was true in the past--but things have changed.

A professor in the journalism department at Chengchi University asked some foreign colleagues at a meeting if they planned to go to the National Palace Museum after the meeting was over. No, came the reply, they were going to have a look at Snake Alley first.

Snake Alley is not in the Tourism Bureau's guidebooks; but after-hours large numbers of Japanese, American, and European tourists will find their way down there to join in on the crowds and excitement. Why does this place, which many natives of Taipei have never visited, attract so many foreign tourists? Snake Alley has long been a gathering place of street peddlers and performers. But it was the addition of a red-light district, and later of shops selling snake meat and a mixture of their blood and bodily fluids, that noticeably increased the appeal of the area to tourists.

There have been two different reactions among Chinese to this situation. One is that killing snakes like this in a period of growing concern for wildlife gives a bad impression to foreigners, and, moreover, leads to misconceptions about Chinese culture.

Others respond that foreign countries have similar tourist areas, like the red-light district in Holland or Las Vegas in the United States. Since Snake Alley is already a well-known tourist spot, it should be further developed by improving its general appearance and adding plyers of traditional Chinese arts and crafts such as engraving and pottery.

Both views have their reason. What is important is developing Snake Alley in line with the current trend in tourism; and that trend is towards offering visitors more dynamic activities than viewing mountains, lakes, and historic sites.

For example, holidays and religious festivals are good tourist attractions. Although some feel that holidays and festivals have the drawback of not being everyday events, in fact there is almost always some kind of celebration going on somewhere on the island. The responsibility lies with tourist agencies to arrange their itineraries carefully to maximize the number of celebrations the tourists see.

Getting around Taiwan is very convenient, and if no hotels are available in the vicinity of the activity, visitors can stay in nearby cities, or even board with families for the night.

"Holiday celebrations can perhaps create a seasonal wave of tourists," says chairman of the department of tourism at Chinese Culture University, Tang Hsuehpin; "On the other hand, activities involving folk customs and artistry can be presented to visitors all year round." Making historical recreations of whole villages, as has been done in Korea, puts such cultural activities in their historical context and thus makes them both more impressive and more meaningful to visitors. The government has been planning to undertake such a recreation with Lukang by some of the inhabitants, who resist any kind of development of their village.

Similarly, complementing historic sites with cultural activities will make them more interesting and more meaningful to tourists. For example, temples can be "livened up" by giving performances of Taiwanese or Peking opera, or of puppet and marionette shows to complement the stories and historical anecdotes already carved on the temple's windows.

Trips to various scenic areas, such as Taroko Gorge, Wulai, or Sun Moon Lake, can be accompanied by exhibitions of the regional folk customs, such as the dances and religious festivals of the island's aboriginal peoples. As of yet, however, such programs have been either hampered by poor planning, or criticized for being crude or too commercial. The offering of such activities invariably causes an immediate sensation, but then business falls off badly. "The major reason is that the activities are too static--it's a matter of poor presentation," says Ni Chih-chung, an advisor to the Tourism Bureau. A perfect example of the successful combination of a scenic tourist spot and a cultural activity is the winter snow festival in Hokkaido, Japan.

What can be done along these lines in Taiwan? Although small in area, Taiwan has almost every type of geography, from snow-capped mountains, to beaches, to tropical forests. This variety allows for many possible tourist activities; and yet, for the most part, tourists are still travelling to scenic areas without being sure what they will do once they arrive. "The problem is that we're not using the proper methods to exploit our natural resources," says Chiang Hui-chen, a planning expert for the Tourism Bureau. Taiwan's scenery requires a "circuitous" visiting method to bring out its points of interest. For example, everyone knows that the best way to get to Alishan is by the slow, winding train from Chiayi. Moreover, railways do much less damage to the natural environment than do highways.

"Tourism is a service industry, so improving the quality of the service personnel should be a top priority," says Chiang. Taking Green Island as an example, the Tourism Bureau has constructed some hotels on the island, but as of yet few people have shown interest. The best method of increasing tourism there would be to turn development over to private investors and make the island into a honeymoon retreat. Creating an atmosphere suitable to the scenery, organizing trips around the island, and hiring musicians to serenade the guests would all be ways to increase the honeymooners' enjoyment of their vacation.

According to statistics from the Tourism Bureau, the number of visitors to Taiwan this year is an increase over last year. This is in part due to the Chernyobl accident, the danger of terrorism in Europe, and the rise in value of the yen. There is as well an increase in interest in visiting Taiwan. Yet Ni Chih-chung feels that not enough is being done. For example, at present there are only six offices abroad in charge of promoting tourism.

Many people think that most of the Europeans and Americans who travel to Korea for the Asian Games this fall will make a side trip to Taiwan. This will be especially true if the government decides to offer 72-hour visa-free stays.

What impression should visitors take away from Taiwan? Let us hope that after viewing the cultural treasures of the National Palace Museum, they don't just go off to see Snake Alley.

Table of Folk and Religious Festivals

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The lunar calendar is about one month later than the solar. If you would like to know the exact solar date of an activity, please send us a letter at Sinorama.

[Picture Caption]

Religious celebrations have yet to be developed as tourist attractions. (photo by Lin Tien-fu)

Wearing goggles to the thrilling Yenshui "Rocket Hives" display will ensure that it is a real "eye-opener."

Folk handicrafts are another possible tourist attraction. But if we don't develop them now, when will we?

Are tourists satisfied with taking an "I was here" photograph? (photo by Chien Yung-pin)

The ice-sculpture exhibition on Hokkaido is an excellent example of utilizing local resources to develop an area's tourism. (courtesy of the Japan Tourist Association)

Lit up at night by brilliant floodlights, the Parthenon is transformed into a splendid palace. (courtesy of the Greek Affairs Office)

Aboriginal activities can also be turned into tourist attractions. Pictured is the Yami people's "Hair Dance."

Can Peking Opera also become a tourist attraction? (photo by Yang Y'ung-shan)

"How old is this tree? Why does it look this way?" Such questions require the expertise of a guide. (photo by Vincent Chang)

When developing the islands as tourist areas, we must be sure to protect their original conditions and the customs of their inhabitants. Pictured are canoes on Orchid Island.

Rubber raft trips down the Hsiukulan river attract countless tourists, and are one way of "livening up" scenic areas. (photo by Hsieh Kuo-cheng)

Religious celebrations have yet to be developed as tourist attractions. （photo by Lin Tien-fu）

Are tourists satisfied with taking an "I was here" photograph? （photo by Chien Yung-pin）

Folk handicrafts are another possible tourist attraction. But if we don't develop them now, when will we?

The ice-sculpture exhibition on Hokkaido is an excellent example of utilizing local resources to develop an area's tourism. （courtesy of the Japan Tourist Association）

Lit up at night by brilliant floodlights, the Parthenon is transformed into a splendid palace. （courtesy of the Greek Affairs Office）

Aboriginal activities can also be turned into tourist attractions. Pictured is the Yami people's "Hair Dance.".

Can Peking Opera also become a tourist attraction? （photo by Yang Y'ung-shan）

"How old is this tree? Why does it look this way?" Such questions require the expertise of a guide. （photo by Vincent Chang）

When developing the islands as tourist areas, we must be sure to protect their original conditions and the customs of their inhabitants. Pictured are canoes on Orchid Island.

Rubber raft trips down the Hsiukulan river attract countless tourists, and are one way of "livening up" scenic areas. （photo by Hsieh Kuo-cheng）