The 1753 Songshan Ciyou Temple is the most spectacular religious building on the east side of Taipei — a six-storey high temple dedicated to Mazu, the goddess of seafarers, with riotously colourful jiannian mosaic-tile decoration over every external surface and a forest of carved wood and stone inside. It stands at the western gate of Raohe Night Market, and most visitors combine the two.
The most active worship is on the 23rd of the third lunar month (Mazu's birthday) in spring, when the temple is at the heart of one of the largest Mazu pilgrimage processions in Taiwan. The rest of the year the temple is open all day, with continuous quiet stream of worshippers. Free.