A lady's heaven @ Wu Fen Pu (五分埔), Taipei

... definitely a great place for any girls who want to do a little shopping while they are in Taipei. Don't get fool by just the look of this place, although it might seems a little rundown, it's definitely a gem. This place has almost the latest trend for those fashion forward and to make the place even sweeter, things here are sold at low prices so no big hole in your wallet after a shopping spree. The proof of their low price, you can see price tag of TWD 100 which is roughly USD 3. Furthermore, if your bargaining skills are good, then there are chances of you getting the good at even cheaper price tag. I do feel a little guilty for bargaining since the price is already so low. Heck, I did it anyway *grin*.

I was curious on the name so I did a little search online, here is a direct quote from this wiki:

Wufenpu (traditional Chinese: 五分埔; simplified Chinese: 五分埔; pinyin: Wǔfēnpǔ̄; Wade-Giles: Wu3-fen1-p'u3; Taiwanese: Gō͘-hun-po͘) is an area in the Hsinyi District of Taipei City, Taiwan. It locates at the foothill of “Sishoushan” (四獸山, “Mountains of the four beasts,”) and includes all five neighborhoods in Sec. 5 of ZhongXiao E. Rd., east to Songren Rd., and Zhongpo N. Rd. During the Chinese Qing Dynasty, is was the land of the “Malixikou” ( a Taiwanese aboriginal tribe.) In 1769, five families from Fuken Province, China bought this place from the Malixikou, that was how it got its name, (for “Wu-fen-pu” means “divide the land by five”). Most soil in this area was too poor to farm; in addition, there were mental hospitals and pig farms built in this place, and therefore it was thought to be the wasteland of the ignobility.

Wufenpu was mainly in the countryside until 13 years after World War II. In 1958, there was a typhoon that caused a major flood in Taiwan, called “the Flood of Aug. 7.” Taipei City was almost under water. To settle those veterans who were living in the back neighborhood of Taipei Train Station, Taiwan Province Government donated an area in Wufenpu, and the Ministry of National Defense helped to construct 1,200 one-and-a-half-story temporary homes for the veterans.

In 1960s, many people from FangYuan (芳苑, a town in Chang-Hua County, Central Taiwan) noticed that it was easier to make a living in Taipei and came to rent houses from the veterans. They used the first floor as a pret-a-porter (ready-made clothes) shop and the second story as their houses and the tailoring place. After a few years, the veterans all sold their houses to these inhabitants from FangYuan and many newcomers, and as of today Wufenpu is still a special pret-a-porter wholesale hub for clothes retailers in Taipei.

To get there you can either hail a cab to Wu Fen Pu or if you like the public transportation like me, you can take the subway to Houshanpi Station (后山埤站) and it is a short walk to reach there. If you are not sure which direction to get there once you get off the subway, just ask anyone on the street and you will get the information.

Too bad I didn't have more time, so just spend couple hours at this place, oh how I love to go back again, I heart this place.