By MOOK Scenic Spots Family Travel Life Network Editorial Team
 

Tainan’s historic Laiyi Department Store was dormant for over eighty years before being transformed into a cultural and creative department store after renovation and reopening in 2014, becoming one of the must-visit attractions in Tainan. To celebrate the one-year anniversary of its reopening on June 14, Laiyi Department Store is hosting the Tainan Modern Parade, inviting visitors of all ages to join in the celebration and revelry.

After being dormant for over 80 years, Laiyi Department Store reopened on June 14, 2014, under the management of Gaoting Fashion. Now marking its one-year anniversary, the store held a warm-up event on May 22 with a flash mob performance by the Chicken Dung Vine Dance Troupe in collaboration with the Laiyi HD team. Actors dressed in Japanese colonial-era attire suddenly appeared on the second-floor balcony, performing a nostalgic show that transported the audience back to the colonial period.

6Month14On this day, Laiyi Department Store has arranged the Tainan Modern Parade, led by city mascots from Taiwan and Japan. The parade will start from the soon-to-be-demolished China City, symbolizing the rebirth of Tainan’s vibrancy, much like the reopening of Laiyi Department Store. This is a major city event and a celebration for its citizens, becoming a shared memory for the people, just as Laiyi has. After the parade, the Chicken Dung Vine Dance Troupe will perform a dance drama story from the Showa period, recreating the scene of Laiyi Department Store scattering candies from the upper floors during the Japanese era.