Empty stores in Kaohsiung, Taiwan. Josef Lieck
Listener Josef Lieck just spent a week in Taiwan. He writes:
At first you might think it's a shopping mall a night, but then you'll see that all the doors are wide open on an early afternoon. It is actually a whole bunch of completely deserted flag ship stores in a shopping mall (Star Place) in Kaohsiung, Taiwan. People here tell me, yes, they have been hit and hit hard.
I went back to the shopping mall to see if I just caught a non-shopping day and time. But I hardly saw more customers there.
Another empty store in Star Place. Josef Lieck
I also went to few other department stores and a brand new mega-mall (relatives love to show you the new malls) on different days and times, and it always felt like they just opened 15 minutes ago and the customers haven't arrived yet.
I had just spent time in India and have traveled to other Asian countries and cities, so I expected a shoving crowd like in Hong Kong or Bangkok. I was quite surprised to find even the night markets in Taipei (where it is generally more crowded than in Kaohsiung) really easy to navigate even during peak hours.
Star Place in Kaohsiung, Taiwan was completed in 2008. Josef Lieck
categories: Letters
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