The Town with Red Lanterns

There is a small mining town just east of Taipei, Taiwan, named Jiufen. The town is known for its red lanterns and street food, which attract many tourists. Jiufen is calm and composed during the day but comes to life at night.

During the day, Jiufen is quiet except for the sound of the ocean. The streets are almost empty. Everything in the town, even the bright colors, seem muted. Not wanting to disturb the peacefulness, food vendors talk quietly amongst themselves as they tidy up their food shacks and prepare for the many customers that will come at night.

Once it starts to get dark, the countless red lanterns hanging from the eaves of the buildings illuminate the town, seeming to wake it up. People begin to trickle into the streets until it seems like the streets are about to overflow. There are food vendors yelling, people talking, and tourists taking pictures. Various smells waft out from the food shacks, mostly of fried seafood and cooked meat. Sometimes the smell of stinky tofu drifts by. As the activities in the streets increase, ocarina music shops provide small pockets of calm. The nighttime chaos continues late into the night until the crowds disperse, and the lanterns go out, putting the town back to sleep.

From the time Jiufen wakes up until it goes back to sleep, this cycle of rest and play repeats itself. The town continues to oscillate between an introverted and extroverted personality, day in and day out, allowing its residents and visitors to experience the best of everything it has to offer.

— written by Katie L. (one of my former middle school writing students)