[makeitshine]

Taipei has an ugly beauty to it. Individually, the typical concrete, tiled covered buildings, are ugly, but cram them together, throw up some neon lights, a tiny park with a Daoist temple crammed in the mix, add a few street vendors and the bustle of people and its downright charming.

Cities in Japan are much better put together, but I prefer the chaotic, gritty feeling of Taipei, and Treasure Hill is an interesting segment of that.

[maxglute]

Taipei a little too grimy more often than not for my taste, takes time for the charm to shine through compared to JP. But it's certainly there. Wouldn't hurt to have their conscripts do a few days of pressure washing if water wasn't so scarce.

[jeffparsons]

Would pressure-washing using sea water be viable? If it's all going into storm water drains and out to sea anyway, what's the difference? Or does it go via, e.g., sewage treatment, first?

(I suppose this is a bit of a lazy question, but I couldn't easily find anything conclusive when I searched, and I bet there are interesting angles on the idea that I haven't even considered.)

[maxglute]

I'm guessing salt water bad for rebar in cracking reinforced concrete.