Department of Information and Tourism, Taipei City Government

The 2010 Lunar New Year Street Bazaar is now open! To show his support for this annual event, Mayor Hau Lung-bin visited Dihua Street commercial district on February 5 to greet storeowners and pass out small souvenirs to shoppers on the scene.
Led by a procession comprising "Tiger God", "God of Wealth," and drummers, the city officials traveled from Dihua Street to Guisui Street and passed through the Dadaocheng Park, passing out "Tiger Charms", red envelopes, and spring couplets to people along the way. After passing out gifts for two hours, the stock of 3,500 "Tiger Charms" ran out at the end of the walk.
Hau said he is very pleased to see the venues packed with pre-holiday shoppers. According to the mayor, the average amount of business at the LNY Street Bazaar surpasses NT$1 million a day. With the upturn of economy, the Taipei City Office of Commerce projected sales volume to pick up by thirty percent this year.
However, the upward trend is only a beginning, Hau stressed. With the support from Taipei City Council and various Commercial District organizations, the business at Datung and Dihua areas has changed for the better, driving up property prices.
The city government will continue to fund renovation projects for commercial districts in the city, and the mayor promised storeowners a more business by offering residents a safer and cleaner shopping environment.
Following the event, the city officials arrived at Ningxia Night Market for the second promoting session. Hau bought NT$1,000-worth of pig blood cakes and treated his companies to the wonderful snack, downplaying a recent survey conducted by a British website describing the delicacy to be the world’s most unusual food.