The Rainbow Village is one of the two most famous tourist spots in Taichung. In my first summer in Taiwan, I must have came here at least six times. Everytime I had friends and family visiting, this was a must go location, in the end it was getting a bit too much for me and I stopped taking visitors there (I know, I'm a terrible host).
My last visit was over last summer when friends and their two daughters from USA were in town, I couldn't bear to disappoint the little girls so figured it was about time to pay Rainbow Village another visit. You can't miss Rainbow Village when you arrive as you can see the colourful houses from quite far away. In fact, they even have a Rainbow Village bus stop at the front!
When the Nationalist government and Chiang Kai Shek arrived to Taiwan from China in the 1940's, some 2m soldiers and their families came with him, and upon arrival, the Nationalist built many housing complexes all around Taiwan to house them. Before Rainbow Village became Rainbow village, it was just another one of these normal complexes, and was even about to be demolished by the local government as all but one resident had moved out. This was Huang Yong-Fu, who then started painting out of boredom. His colourful and unique paintings caught the attention of the students from the local university nearby who started to spread it across social media and it quickly went viral. That was back in 2010, and all the rest is now history.
Mr Huang is now better know as Rainbow Grandpa and he continues to paint around the complex, though probably not as active as he used to be as he is 95 after all. If you're lucky, you might see him around, and I actually have seen him twice in my past visits. There is an exhibit about Rainbow Grandpa where you can learn more about him and how all this started, the interviews he's done with all the media around the world, and his workshop/office.
Now let's take a look around the Rainbow Village. Isn't it just amazing? Rainbow Grandpa's style is very unique, full of wild imagination and colour, and extends all over the buildings, including the tiles on the rooftop, and on the ground. The drawings are a mixture of animals, traditional characters, weird monsters and includes many lucky sayings written in Chinese. Walking around here is like a Chinese version of Alice in the Wonderland, so surrreal!
I think since I last went, Rainbow Grandpa must have been really busy because there are a lot more murals around now. The Rainbow Bear, and the cute photo boards are new. The board on the left says 'bestie sister' and the one on the right says 'as beautiful as a flower'. Girls would absolutely love this, no wonder this is one of the most IG'ed spots in Taiwan. In fact, I couldn't resist taking a photo myself!
As with all tourist spots, this has become a bit commercialized since my last visit. Don't forget, the painting needs to be refreshed and paint costs money!!! This snack shop is new, and there a souvenir shop selling all bits and pieces of merchandise. My friend bought a colourful T-shirt for her daughter but I forgot to take a photo of it!!
Children and adults will all love this place, as will lovers as there is so much love going around. This wall has Rainbow Grandpa's own version of what love looks like. The top says "hearts together forever" and "together for a hundred years". So sweet!!!
And guys, if you're thinking of proposing, this might just be the spot for it. Let's get married!!
Shoutout to anyone who is visiting Taiwan, and specifically Taichung, don't forget to drop by the Rainbow Village if you're in town!!!
