Jiufen, also known as Jioufen or Chiufen, is a mountain area in the Ruifang District of New Taipei City near Keelung, Taiwan.
One surprise discovery was this stall which sells grilled sea snails. They are simply slow-cooked over charcoal and served with a spicy chili sauce. The sea snails are springy and crunchy, sweet and with a fresh taste of the ocean. Do give it a try when you are there!
During the first years of the Qing Dynasty, the village here housed nine families, thus the village would request “nine portions” every time shipments arrived from town. Later Jiufen (“nine portions” in Chinese) would become the name of the village.
For the beginning of the 1990s, Jiufen experienced a tourist boom that has shaped the town as a tourist attraction. Soon retro-Chinese style cafés, tea houses, and souvenir stores bearing the name “City of Sadness” were built.
