Wen-Wen Chen is the sixth generation manager of the Xiahai City God Temple. Her ancestor was the first-generation manager to bring the City God to Taiwan. The temple is small, with an area of about 150 square meters, but it has been the local religious center for over 100 years.
The affairs of the Xiahai City God Temple seem to be the “family business” of the Chens, but Wen-Wen Chen describes herself as having “gotten in by merit”, relying on her beautiful calligraphy and “writing donation slips of the devotees’ names and the amount” every day to earn her position in the temple. The temple was built more than 170 years ago, and with the changes in society, it is necessary to grab the hearts of young people and know their needs in order to keep faith alive. Wen-Wen Chen hopes to start with the temples in Dadaocheng, combining community and culture so that more people can learn about folk traditions and the Dadaocheng area where we are located.
This year, the Royal Explorer will look at the Dadaocheng area through the perspective of Wen-Wen Chen. Here, travelers can see century-old buildings mixed with new shops selling artsy goods, and experience the unique vitality that comes from the fusion of the old and the new.
