Seline's 天馬行空藝想空間

Justin Guariglia Jason Wu.

Jens Mortensen Wu’s souvenir from the Museum of Contemporary Art Taipei.

On his first visit home to Taiwan since Michelle Obama catapulted his name into the fashion stratosphere, the designer Jason Wu was greeted by paparazzi, velvet ropes and tons of fans. Here, ‘‘the glory of Taiwan,’’ as Wu is now known in his birthplace, talks about his return to Taipei, where change is in the air but the old ways aren’t forgotten.

The Museum of Contemporary Art Taipei is the center of the city’s budding art scene (with a great design shop, where Wu picked up this T-shirt.) Housed in a refurbished historic building, the museum has locals happily looking ahead. ‘‘There are a lot of talented native artists now with their own space,’’ Wu says. 

Justin Guariglia Villa 32.

Traveling to Taiwan soon after showing his latest collection at New York Fashion Week was all about decompressing for Wu. One of his favorite chill-out spots is Villa 32, a hot-springs spa.

Jens Mortensen  

‘‘The Taiwanese are big on tea,’’ Wu says. Just don’t expect a to-go cup in the city. (But you can pick up packets of oolong, Wu’s favorite, to bring home). Having a cup at Tea House (30 TongHua Street) can take up to an hour: ‘‘I think it’s nice to slow down a bit. It’s very much a custom.’’

For Wu, the trip was complete when his brother gave him this handmade glass cat (right) from the specialty store Liuligongfang. ‘‘My Chinese zodiac is a dog,‘‘ Wu explains. ‘‘But I’m an exception because of how much I love cats.’’

Justin Guariglia Si Zhi Tang.

Speaking Mandarin came in handy for Wu at the traditional Taiwanese restaurant Si Zhi Tang. ‘‘My favorite thing about Taiwan is the food,’’ he says. A three-hour family-style dinner involves small plates — ‘‘little Chinese tapas.’’ He loves the lemongrass jelly and sesame and cucumber noodles.

In the heart of the city stands Taipei 101, the second tallest building in the world, with the fastest elevators. ‘‘You don’t even have time to feel your ears pop,’’ Wu says of the 37-second ride to the 89th-floor glass observation deck. The designer sees skyscrapers going up left and right: ‘‘It’s all moving really quickly now. It seems there’s not a building less than 30 floors.’’

Jens Mortensen  

‘‘My mom is a really good cook,’’ Wu says. ‘‘We used to make dumplings together.’’ Second to mom’s are the dumplings at Din Tai Fung. Hungry patrons are expected to use a clean spoon between every flavor (truffle being the big hit) and are even given an instruction manual. ‘‘There’s a line around the block every day of the year.’’

Wu is smitten with ‘‘Writing With Thread,” (left) a book on traditional Asian textiles he stumbled upon at the Xue Xue Institute, an arts school where several local fashion designers have studios. Look for Asian motifs in his coming collections.