Now you've probably all heard about Taichung's well-known Ching Ming 1st Street, with its European-style ambiance, pedestrian-only walkway and sidewalk cafes. However, much more recently, there have been references in the local media and talk about a new street, or area, referred to as "Taichung's Champs Elysses."
As expected, the section of this city which has been so named bears little resemblance to its Paris namesake. There's no Arc d'Triomphe, no wide boulevard, not even much in the way of traffic. Which is not to say it isn't a very worthwhile place to visit and a great option for a quiet, relaxing afternoon or evening.
The local "Champs Elysses" is located directly across the street from the Taiwan Museum of Art's main entrance and is actually two parallel roads which border a grassy, tree-lined parkway.
Wu Chuan West Third and Fourth streets both run perpendicular to Wu Chuan Road, away from the museum. Continuing down these roads about two blocks, crossing Wuchuan 1rst, 3rd and 5th streets, will bring you to the abundance of attractive cafes and restaurants which have made this area famous.
These establishments are almost all situated in remodeled, older stand-alone houses common to this neighborhood. What is striking at the first look is that there are no walls but, rather, sidewalks and even small yards and gardens. Altogether on both sides of the parkway, there are about a dozen very pleasant-looking cafes, facing the grassy area, which is also great for strolling along.
If you're on Wu Chuan 3rd West Street, you'll first come to the tall three-floor, green and white Veroli cafe, followed by the rather cute-sounding Punkin' House a little further down, which has a small wooden of a man holding pumpkins standing outside. Then there's Sun Forest coffee and tea and the Candy House Cafe, with its stone facade and white arbor entrance.
Pass a couple other cafes and you'll come to the corner with Wu Chuan 7th Street, where the large Garden of Givenchy cafe is located. This place, with white French-style floor-to-ceiling windows upstairs and downstairs, seems very popular. On the other side of the intersection is the area's only chain establishment, the Japanese Manabe coffee house. Use Wu Chuan 7th Street to cross the parkway to Wu Chuan West 3rd Street and work your way back towards the museum. Right on the opposite corner is the Compound Restaurant, with a few outside umbrella-covered tables, which has good, reasonably-priced set lunch and dinner options. A little further on is Koo Koo Roo cafe.
Turning the opposite direction, away from the museum on 3rd Street, will bring you to the Casual Fashion cafe, striking for the merry-go-round horses that decorate the exterior. What really helps makes this area so nice is its placid, quiet setting. Closer to the museum, the parkway is full of trees. Around the cafes, this gives way to a winding walkway moving through the grass, bushes, trees and even some bird houses mounted on tall polls. Parking for cars can also be found in abundance.
The next time you need to regain your sanity from the traffic and crowds, skip the therapy session and head for "Champs Elysses" for a peaceful stroll among the trees and grass and a relaxing afternoon or evening over a cup of coffee or a pot of tea.