There’s no better place in Taipei to learn about Taiwanese rice farming and rice culture. Here you’ll find unique Taiwanese snacks and condiments such as dried mullet roe, fermented tofu and rice-flour snacks for sale. There’s also a selection of tableware and earthen pots to browse.

If you’re interested in print media then an excursion to Ri Xing Type Foundry is a must. As the last remaining type foundry still operating in Taiwan, it’s home to a vast collection of traditional Chinese movable type characters and Japanese katakana and hiragana characters. The owner inherited the business from his father, who founded Ri Xing in 1969, and regards the shop as a way to preserve the dying practice of Chinese letterpress

Ama Museum is a women’s rights museum dedicated to the “comfort women” who were forced to work in Japan’s wartime military brothels – “ama” means grandmother in Hokkien dialect. The museum opened in December 2016 inside a 90-year-old building that houses a café as well as an exhibition space.

In Taiwan, pineapple cake is the king of the pastries, but Hoshing 1947 makes it worthwhile to branch out to their cakes flavoured with red bean, chestnut and sesame. Part of what makes this store special is its Japanese take on interior design and service – the 70-year-old storefront is run by the family’s third generation following an extensive rebranding project. Even if you don’t have a sweet tooth, the gorgeous red boxes are hard to resist