At the Snail Alley at the break of 10 a.m., fall in love at a slow pace with old Tainan

▲Life in Tainan unfolds in its alleys.

Reported and photographed by reporter Yu Jiayun / Tainan

Taiwanese literary writer Ye Shitao once said“Tainan is a place where people can dream, work, fall in love, get married, and live life at ease”—and many of those dreams and lives take place in the alleys. Tainan has countless crisscrossing small lanes, and Snail Alley is one of them. To be honest, this alley isn’t all that different from the ones most Tainan residents call home, but precisely for that reason, its existence represents a certain era of life in Tainan, a slice of everyday memory for its people.

▲Snail Alley, not particularly eye-catching at first glance.

▲Installation art in the alley.

Located in the bustling West Central District, Snail Alley may be an unassuming lane, but it leads to major roads such as Minsheng Road, Zhongzheng Road, and Ximen Road, making it highly connected. This quiet spot tucked within the lively area was also the final residence of Ye Shitao during his lifetime. Walking through Snail Alley, you’ll spot quotes from his books appearing on walls and stone slabs—some describing the alley itself, others offering musings on daily life, casual yet genuine.

▲This alley is a daily passageway for many locals in Tainan.

▲A board displaying a quote by Ye Shitao.

Xie Xiaowu, the owner of a homestay who grew up in Tainan, says he especially loves Snail Alley in the morning, when there’s no crowd or chatter—it’s just like how he remembers the alley from his childhood. Though situated in a busy district, Snail Alley feels as if it exists in another time and space. Even if you’ve never lived through that era or in Tainan, you can almost see the greetings and footsteps flowing through the lane.

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