Christmas day 2010 was a big day for Taiwan. It's the day that Taiwan got a lot bigger (or smaller, depending on how you look at it). It's the day that Taichung county and Taichung city merged to form the third biggest city in Taiwan. It's the day that Kaohsiung city and Kaohsiung county merged to form the second biggest city in Taiwan. And what's the biggest city? Taipei? Nope! It's New Taipei City!
So New Taipei City is just Taipei city and Taipei county merged? No, my friend, this is not the case. Throw that logic away! New Taipei City is just a city made up of the districts which used to make Taipei County. This is basically all the land that surrounds Taipei city. The area and population of New Taipei City is so large that it is the biggest city in Taiwan, while poor regular Taipei city is just number four. New Taipei City takes the throne of also probably being the most inconvenient city to govern as some areas are completely different from others economically, culturally, etc. Thankfully though governing is not my job.....yet.
More interesting is that the district that I live in used to be it's own city before it merged with New Taipei City. When it was it's own city, it was the second most densely populated city in the world (Manilla being the first) with a population over 230,000 in an area of about 2 square miles.
To be honest, living here I really can't see how that many people live here. Especially given that many buildings are those cement soviet style buildings that are at the most five stories high, with generally two apartments per floor. Then again the area is just a maze of small alleys with only two or three large streets. So there are large number of buildings.
Above is a picture of some new high rises that are springing up in the district. In true Taipei fashion old buildings are being torn down, with the inhabitants being paid a large sum and also given an apartment in the new building that is built in it's place, when it is completed. Not a bad deal, and this drives many house hunters to desperately try to find these homes that this will happen to next.
Anyway, add a few more to those 230,000. Manilla here we come!
