I went to Taipei for the food and the mountains and came away thinking mostly about the temples. Not because they are grand in the way the big mainland sites are, but because they are alive in a way that is easy to miss if you treat them as monuments. People are actually using them, all day, for ordinary reasons.

Most are free to enter, open from early morning until late evening, and sit right in the middle of the city. You can walk in on your way to dinner.

Longshan Temple

Longshan is the oldest and best known temple in Taipei, founded in the eighteenth century in the Wanhua district. It is dedicated to Guanyin, the bodhisattva of compassion, and it is busy from opening to closing.

The thing that struck me was the sound. There is chanting, sometimes amplified, sometimes a group of worshippers reciting together. Bells. The clatter of divination blocks being thrown onto the floor by people asking for guidance. It is not a quiet museum. It is a working building.

What you will see inside

• People lighting incense and bowing three times at the main altar.
• Worshippers throwing two crescent shaped wooden blocks to get a yes or no answer to a question.
• Stacks of paper money being set aside for burning in the furnaces outside.
• Offerings of fruit and flowers laid out on tables.
• Fortune telling stalls in the surrounding arcade, where an older practitioner will read your situation for a small fee.

Evening is my favourite time. The lanterns come on, the light shifts, and the crowd changes from tour groups to local families. It stays open until around 10pm.

The surrounding Wanhua area is the oldest part of Taipei and has a slightly rough, lived in feel that is worth walking through. It is also where some of the best old school street food in the city is, and I would not skip it.

Bao'an Temple

Bao'an sits in the Datong district, near the Confucius Temple and the Dihua Street area. It is smaller than Longshan and less visited, which I liked. It is dedicated to Baosheng Dadi, a deity associated with medicine and healing, and there is a tradition here of people coming for matters of health.

The building itself is a good example of the ornate southern Chinese temple style, with a carved roof ridge full of figures and a courtyard that catches the afternoon sun. It was restored fairly recently and the detail work is in good condition.

Pair it with Dihua Street, which is a five minute walk away and is the old trading street of the city, lined with shops selling dried goods, tea and Chinese medicine. It is one of the better places in Taipei to buy tea, and the shopkeepers will often let you taste before you buy.

How to visit respectfully

Nobody will tell you off for getting things wrong, but a few simple things go a long way.

• Enter through the side doors, not the central one. The centre door is traditionally reserved for deities.
• Do not step on the raised threshold at the doorway. Step over it.
• Photographs are generally fine, but do not photograph people while they are praying, and look for signs in the main halls.
• Speak quietly, and do not use a flash.
• If you want to light incense, follow what the people around you are doing rather than guessing.
• Dress reasonably. You do not need to cover up fully, but beachwear is not appropriate.

On divination blocks

If you want to try the moon blocks, the process is usually: state your question clearly in your head, throw the blocks, and interpret the result. It is a serious practice for many people. Treat it as such.

Other temples worth the trip

The Confucius Temple near Bao'an is quiet and austere in a way that contrasts sharply with the folk temples. No incense, no statues, a formal atmosphere. It is a good pairing and a ten minute walk away.

Further out, the Xingtian Temple is famous for encouraging worshippers not to burn paper money, which makes it cleaner and cooler inside. Different mood again, and popular with younger locals.

Practical notes

All the central temples are free. Donations are welcome but not expected. They are close to MRT stations, and Longshan Temple has its own station on the blue line.

Open hours vary but most run from around 6am or 7am to 9pm or 10pm. There is no need to book anything.

Do not overplan this. Pick one temple, go at dusk, sit at the edge of the courtyard for twenty minutes and watch. That is the experience. The culture is in the people using the building, not in the guidebook facts about the building.

Originally published on 71Asia Tours blog.