Taiwan Exchange Trip 2023

by Addie Canady and Evan Jones:

This morning was an early one, to say the least! We woke up at an astounding 5:00 AM with a taste of disappointment in our mouths as our thrilling trip to Taiwan was finally coming to a close. With that being said, there was also a tone of excitement on the bus that transported us to the airport, each one of us itching to see our loved ones again after the almost two week long period.
The long and daunting baggage check line was the only challenge that we came across in the first airport.

However, the incredibly interesting waiting areas and stores in the airport itself provided us with many opportunities to stay entertained while we waited to board our flight which made the long baggage check line even more worth it.

Once about to board our flight, reality set in that these were our last moments in Taiwan. We quickly became eager to enjoy the time remaining that we had all together while we began boarding.

Once on the flight, we took our seats and selected movies to watch while we waited for our first meal. Once we ate, we got to enjoy a long lights out period in which most of us took the time to get some rest, our wish by doing this was to help us adjust back to the time zone in Raleigh. We were awaken by another meal that served as breakfast; sausage and rice with a side of a blueberry pastry.

Although most of the duration of the flight was filled with extreme and scary turbulence, the landing in America was very smooth.

While waiting for our flight to San Francisco, a group of students explored the airport, coming across a racing simulator. Additionally, students came across multiple computers that were available to play video games on and a video game console with the new Hogwarts game. All in all, it was a cool experience that you wouldn’t expect from somewhere as random as an airport.

After a long 12-hour plane ride from Taipei to San Francisco, students arrived back in the US after 10 days of exciting action throughout Taiwan.

After landing, students traversed long lines and security to reach our gate for the final flight of our travels. However, before boarding, students craved something to quench their hunger. As a result, students branched off in groups to search for food throughout the airport. With a large group coming across a Burger King, where they bought and brought back burgers to the gate to eat.

Then it was time to board our final flight back home to RDU. The trip flew by quickly because so many students fell asleep shortly after boarding due to a mix of the lack of sleep and the lack of airplane entertainment on the 5-hour flight.

After traveling from the opposite side of the planet, students finally made it back home to North Carolina. Students rejoiced when seeing their family for the first time in weeks, told stories of their travels throughout Taiwan, and said bye for the summer to the new friends they had made.

 

 

 

by Vincent Chen and Salim Alvi:

On this hot, humid, and sunny day we left at an early 8:20 am to visit a spiritual place close to many Taiwanese people’s hearts. The biggest Buddhist Museum: Fo Guang Shan Buddha Museum.

This Museum has a massive Buddha statue with beautiful surrounding architecture wonderful for pictures.

After learning background information about Buddha and his message, and then taking a group photo, we were off on an adventure to explore the museum by ourselves for 40 minutes. Those that decided to go closer to the statue were greeted by a wonderful friendly monk who was happy to take pictures with us.

Those who were hypnotized by the beautiful Buddha statues and cold ice cream at the shops went back to the entrance to look at beautiful carvings and buy cool souvenirs like scrolls, gems, and keychains.

After, we took the bus for a few minutes to a veteran general’s house where we got to see all their uniforms, clothing, and the food they ate.

For today’s lunch, we went to a restaurant for a delightful Chinese style hotpot meal. We started with some cold veggie salad snacks and then the hotpot was brought out.

At first, it was layered with cabbage, pork or beef, and fish balls, but it quickly diversified after rounds of foods came out, consisting of a plethora of different dumplings, tofu, and vegetables.

Dessert was a steamed red bean nian gao which was quickly devoured.

While cooking everything, we had to make sure the level of broth in our hotpot was high enough so the food inside did not burn. Along with the different foods came the sauces. The mix of spicy, sweet, salty, and umami flavors of the meat and veggies with the sauces made each bite divine.

At Shoushan park, we gazed at the beautiful city and monkeys as we hiked in the near 90 degree weather. At first, we saw very few monkeys and many people doubted we would see more than 10. However, after hiking for a little bit, we came across a small group of monkeys on a small cliff overlooking the city.

While hiking, we also saw some wild stray dogs and cats which was not something we were expecting. After a quick stop at a platform overlooking a wonderful city view, our group split into two with one group staying in a small wooden structure and the other hiking further to see more monkeys.

As part of the group that continued to hike, we quickly came across a family of the monkeys. There were mothers and cute little baby monkeys along with the larger chief monkey who had bold red features.

After the amazing but slightly scary encounter with mountain monkeys, we were off to the train station to take a bullet train back to Taipei. The speed of the train intrigued our unknowing American eyes.

After only about 90 minutes we were suddenly back in a familiar place, TaiPei.

It was nostalgic getting back into our bus which we hadn’t seen for a few days.

Dinner was another hotpot restaurant, this time a Taiwanese style one. Each person had their own stove and soup in front of them and they got an array of different vegetables and meats. There was a wide selection of mushrooms, seafood, pork, beef, and even lamb. It was an awesome experience and was a great last supper to conclude this trip.

by William Chow and Ian Fan:

To kickoff our second to last day, our exchange group had an opportunity to see the southernmost point of Taiwan, but before that, we happened to see something essential to the country: the Kenting Weather Radar Station Central Bureau Ministry of Interpretations and Communications. The soccer (or football) shaped radar helps forecasters predict the upcoming weather.

After walking along a beautiful .5 km long trail we finally reached the southernmost point of Taiwan, which was an exquisite view of the vast Pacific Ocean. But just being able to see it wasn’t enough! We went up to the beach shore where we where greeted by the soft yellow sand and crashing waves in the crystal clear water.

After a quick bus ride we had an opportunity to attend Ping Lai High School, which is made up completely of students from Taiwan’s aboriginal tribes. We met so many amazing people, who were able to tell us everything about their daily lives. We started the experience off with a traditional dance performance from the boys, followed by the girls beautifully singing many of the tribes traditional songs.

But they weren’t the only students who got to show off their talents in the welcoming ceremony. From Vincent’s Tai Kwan Do, to Aida’s solo cover of All I Ask, to Ben’s hilarious magic, everybody in the building was wowed by all the performances. Afterwards, we had the opportunity to make our own symbolic bracelets, and finally, learn the basics of boxing from the school’s coach.

After sadly waving goodbye to our countless new friends, we headed on a 90 minute long bus ride to our final new hotel in Kaohsiung, where we were met by a delicious array of Taiwanese snacks. Finally, we went to dinner where we had the difficult choice between sweet & sour chicken, roasted pork, or steamed fish. With our brains tired and bellies full, we headed back to the hotel to prepare for our final day in amazing Taiwan.

By Pierce Bloedon and Connor Chuang:

Day 8! We started the day off by eating a tasty breakfast at the Cham Cham hotel, which consisted of both nutritious foods and not so nutritious foods (chicken nuggets). After that, we hopped on the bus for a short ride to meet and learn about the Kakawasang tribe and their customs.

We then went to meet the 老人(elderly people) and performed morning workout dances. We watched and mirrored three dances created by the tribe. After the tiring dance, the tribe offered us Black tea which was delicious!

After the short break, we joined the elderly people in the tribe’s communal building for a lesson on Aboriginal language. We learned simple words like hello, thank you, you, me and beautiful. We also were given the opportunity to connect and share laughs with the elderly people.

After the lesson, we went outside to practice how to net fish and how to make mochi. We also played a game of basketball with one of the teenage members of the tribe! To wrap up, we took a group photo with the aboriginal tribe.

We then got back on the bus for a 5 minute ride to 打鹿岸 (Dǎ lù àn). Here we ate a variety of dishes consisting of chicken, pork soup, fish with a spicy sauce, vegetables, and local fruit.

With our stomachs full, we returned to the bus where we began a three hour ride to our next hotel. Around halfway through the bus ride, we took a break at a rest stop to use the bathrooms and grab snacks for the rest of the ride.

A little while later our group arrived at the Hotelday + Kenting Hotel. Before doing anything else, we all checked into our rooms to unpack our luggage. Some of us chose to spend our free time relaxing while others threw on bathing suits and hopped into the hotel pool.

At 6:50 pm, we all walked over to 巷子內海鮮熱炒 to eat a delicious dinner of seafood, meats, veggies, and soup.

After dinner, we traveling to the Kenting night market which was located right in front of our hotel. While exploring the night market, we interacted with various shopkeepers, played games, bought gifts, snacks, souvenirs, and enjoyed the chance to practice both our Chinese and bargaining skills.

After exploring the night market, we returned to the hotel and prepared to go to bed.

by Christopher Kelly:

Today, we packed up all of our clothes, souvenirs and last minute 7/11 snacks, and hopped on the train headed toward Hualien. During the two and a half hour ride, we got to see some incredible views: the Pacific Ocean on our left and the Taiwan Mountain Range on our right.

After getting off the train, we grabbed lunch at a packed local restaurant, where we ate venison, duck, bamboo, and some super spicy red peppers.

Afterwards, we took a bus over to Taroko Gorge, where we hiked around for a couple of hours and took in some truly 雄伟 (majestic) views. We also visited the Buluowan Suspension Bridge and learned about the Atayal tribe, one of 16 aboriginal Taiwanese tribes.

After an afternoon of exploration, we had a long and rainy and sleepy bus ride to Taitung, where we ate a late dinner at and then finished off the day by checking into Cham Cham Hotel.

by  Dillan Jagannath:

Today was Day 6 of our trip and our last full day in Taipei. With a late start after a long night, we attended a lesson on the the cross-straight relationship between (mainland?) China and Taiwan. Here we explored the question: is Taiwan an independent country? The answer has several theories, leading us to look through the lenses of history, geopolitics, economy, and world politics.

After the lecture, we took a long bus ride to lunch at 也果蔬食. This restaurant only serves organic vegetables.

After a meal of soup or rice, we went to the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Museum of Innovation. TSMC, based on a revolutionary business model, is the world’s first and best integrated circuit manufacturer. Used in devices from computers to VR systems to our phones, ICs are used in several modern technologies. They are the central force of innovation and TSMC is the leading producer of them.

The museum had a haptic VR area, where we experienced someone’s futuristic vacation, virtually flying in an air-taxi and eating dinner on a cruise ship.

From TSMC, we went to a temple in the City of God. In the temple was a statue of the Daoist god of the afterlife. In their religion, all of your actions are written down. When you die, the god judges if your actions were good enough to let you into heaven. People leave fresh food and candy for the god as offerings.

After the temple, we had a little time to buy food and walk around the city. Ms. Yu bought a very fashionable and cheap straw hat!

Then, we took the bus all the way back to Taipei to dinner at Cantonese Cuisine and Dim sum. Among other really good food, we had their specialty: roasted duck. This duck is so special, it requires a reservation two months in advance.

Finally, we returned to the hotel for our last night before leaving.

Today was another fascinating and educational day in Taiwan. In the words of TCSM’s founder, Dr. Morris Chang: “behind every challenge is a great future”!

By Aida Lo and Chelsea Cui:

This morning we woke up with filled with some uncertainty about going to volunteer at the Zenan Homeless Welfare Foundation Charity Fair from 9:00am to 1:30. While we were exited to contribute to a great cause, we were slightly apprehensive about working in 90 degrees Fahrenheit for so long. However, we soon found the seemingly daunting task very enjoyable. Each of us were assigned to a stand to help sell products at. Our exchange group worked at a wide variety of stands selling things such as meat balls, cake, ice cream, iced cold drinks, Starbucks, and boba tea! The peaceful environment quickly turned fiery, when our innovative tour guides arranged a competition between our stands. Whoever made the most sales got a prize! The experience turned out to be not only a way to connect with our peers but extremely educational. We were introduced to the different Taiwanese bills and coins on the bus ride and learned to communicate, market, and sell our products to Taiwanese locals. We also learned the very important distinction between 买(in the 3rd tone) meaning “to buy” and 卖 (in the 4th tone) meaning “to sell”. It was a perfect start to our day!

After a quick history lesson and trivia season with our lively tour guides, we arrived at the national palace museum: an institution with the worlds largest collections of artifacts from the Forbidden City. After a short guided tour of a few artifacts such as the renowned jadeite cabbage, we got to explore the museum freely! Despite our high anticipation for the visit, our expectations were blown out of the water with the stunningly beautiful and rich contents of the museum. Particularly the use of 毛笔 (calligraphy) to create extremely detailed images inside pottery. The museum offered an incredibly wide range of stunning sights and culture to experience. From statues, calligraphy, paintings, and carvings made from a variety of stones. We even got to enjoy a cafe and gift shop where we personally enjoyed some cheesecake and bought our family members gifts.

After the museum we headed to 洪楼小馆 for a delicious dinner with a variety of dishes, from miso soup and shrimp.

Shortly after our very nourishing meal, we hopped on our bus and arrived at the Shilin Night Market, Taiwan’s largest and most famous night market. At Shilin, there was an incredible assortment of Taiwanese street food, such as stinky tofu, sugar glazed fruits, boba tea, and even fried scorpions. Aside from the very many foods, there were also stands selling graphic t-shirts, watches (which were a very popular purchase), bags, keychains, legos, and wire statues just to state a few examples. While it was extremely exciting to shop and play the claw machines, our visit to Shilin put our language skills to the test. In order to navigate our way through the market, we had to know how to ask things such as, how much something was or if something came in a different color. Whether we were shopping or wasted some money playing the claw machines, we all had an amazing time at Shilin.

 

by Hamza Adnan:

On Day 4 of our Taiwan trip, we began our marvelous foreign adventure by making our way to the world-renowned Taipei Zoo. And what a fascinating experience it was! Not only was our mode of transportation for getting there (Taipei Metro) unique and snazzy, but the zoo itself was also such an absolute delight to behold. We were blessed with the opportunity to feast our eyes upon a plethora of aesthetically appealing animals. I got to see monkeys, elephants, giraffes, zebras, birds, pandas, and many more unique and interesting creatures! One important observation that I would like to make is that the animals in the Taipei Zoo felt fairly exotic compared to the animals which I have seen in the zoos in America. Furthermore, I’d like to add that most of the time, there was no fence or cage to prevent the animals from reaching us! It felt quite odd!

After the zoo, we headed to the Breezy Autumn restaurant, where we feasted upon a cornucopia of scrumptious nourishments including chicken, pork, beef, salad, soup, and rice. We also got to drink some delicious guava and orange juice!

After eating lunch, we headed to Pingxi, where we had the opportunity to write our wishes in dark ink on red lanterns, and then we got to light the lanterns and release them into the beautiful sky! I found this experience to be quite engaging and appealing because most of us have never been able to enjoy such interesting endeavors back home in the United States!

After lighting the lanterns, we headed over to the Wen Shan Farm, where we got to personally handpick tea leaves and get a tour of the farm while wearing cool, authentic hats and baskets! Following the tea-picking, we ventured to the Wen Shan True Heart restaurant, where we feasted upon a plethora of delicious food, including fish, chicken, pork, soup, rice, and some interesting vinegar!One thing I found particularly exciting was the fact that the local Taiwanese people were so enthusiastic ab out the various flavors and characteristics of their tea.

Finally, we headed over to the forest on the mountain in pitch black darkness, in utter awe of the bioluminescent fireflies that came into our views. I would also like to point out that this experience with the fireflies resonated especially deeply with me because it made me reflect on the fact that I’ve never really had the opportunity to interact with fireflies in the past. Because this experience was completely new to me, it felt particularly special and awe-inducing.

All in all, Day 4 of the Taiwan trip was a huge success, and I would say it might even be the best day of the trip so far, with many more amazing days to come in the near future.

by Kayleigh Ko:

On day 3, we started off our morning by getting a tour of the President’s house. Here, we covered a multitude of topics including Taiwan’s presidential history, the building’s architectural design, the Hakka aboriginal tribe, and Taiwan’s lively social history. All while enjoying riveting views of the grounds and an amazingly sweet tour guide, our group explored the intersectionality between the old and the new, getting an authentic taste of the road Taiwan traveled on leading up to its current state.

We then quickly drove to Chiang Kai Sheik’s, the founder of Taiwan, memorial to watch the changing of the guards. Comprised of an astoundingly large statue of Chiang Kai Shek in an even larger building, our group was able to see firsthand the austerity of the guards and the reverence towards Kai Shek. However, this place was mostly an amazing spot for pictures.
Next stop held one of the most anticipated places in our whole trip: Din Tai Fung. A world-wide renowned Dim Sum restaurant, Din Tai Fung was the topic of giddiness filled conversations months prior to the trip. Students were able to enjoy an array of dishes including the most famous fish, pork xiao long bao, as well as shrimp dumplings, spicy wontons, and more. With a near-bursting stomach, students traveled 86 more floors in a high speed elevator to the top of Taiwan’s tallest building: Taipei 101. With windows on all sides, students got an extensive view of the city.
Moving on from the more modern aspects of the city, our next stop was the Daily Health Chinese Herb Pavillion where we participated in a Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) workshop. Not only did we create our own medicinal herb tea with chrysanthemum flowers, red dates, gooseberries, and more, but we also learned of the crux of TCM practice: 平衡 (balance). Our teacher told us that all of these herbs, bat poop and mantis egg shell included, were all used to bring back the balance of our bodies. Furthermore, we incorporated a traditional Chinese scale to measure the four ingredients in our tea. Learning about 中药 (TCM), a significant component of Chinese traditional culture, and its holistic approach to health, was an extremely interesting experience that we can all apply back home.
Our last few sightseeing spots on this day were the Confucius and Baoan Temple. Each specific artistic piece in the architecture held a story that added to the overall purpose of the temple. In Confucius’ temple, we learned of his philosophy, tutoring programs, and legacy. His famous books regarding his teachings were the crux of Chinese education back then which has exemplified the continuation of his honor today. Just a few blocks away was the Baoan Temple where beautiful Bonsai trees, intricate paintings, and traditional architectural designs were. We learned that the long time history of this temple was affiliated with health for the elderly with free intermittent medicinal practices are held for elders. In this place, we saw many people praying for fruitful futures and constant health. Through these two temples, we saw the intricacies of traditional architecture, the story behind it, and how purposes of temples are continued to this day.
After a much tiring day, we traveled to a local pork and rice restaurant and enjoyed delicious foods. Before heading back to our hotel, we had a short time walking around the streets of the night market. Overall, today was a culmination of the examination of both modern and traditional Taiwanese life. We were able to get an extremely diverse yet authentic grasp of what life in Taipei, a city with a rich history, could look like.

by Sydney Martin:

Today was our first full day in Taiwan. We woke up bright and early this morning to visit Fuhsing, a K-12 school. We rode there by train, packed with people on their way to work and school. It was much more crowded than subways I have ridden in the past in New York and Toronto.

Though it was a short walk to the school after our train, we all wore our jackets due to the light rain.

There was a sign to welcome us to the school, and we were greeted by the school principle and two ambassadors. These ambassadors were from the bilingual, western half of the school, but we each shadowed local Taiwanese students. This allowed us to be immersed into a fully Chinese classroom, and we each attended different classes based on our student’s schedule. We also were able to view other classes in session, and found the kindergarten classes especially cute.

After our shadow, we ate the school lunch. The ambassadors told us their school has received many awards for organic lunches. It was a very good meal.

After lunch, we took the bus to Fisherman’s Wharf, a popular tourist attraction. The streets were lined with small vendors of merchandise and snacks. I tried pigs blood coated in peanuts, and I did not like it◡̈

We took a group photo in front of a church, and walked the streets appreciating the culture and architecture.

Next, our tour guide taught us about Dr Mackey. He both was a great dentist, and opened first women’s high school in Taiwan. Though originally born in Canada, he dedicated his life to serving the country of Taiwan.

We then took a ferry to the other side of the water where we rented bikes and took a scenic tour of Tamsui.

To finish off the day, we visited a traditional Aboriginal restaurant for dinner. We enjoyed many different dishes, and were able to reflect upon our day using our Chinese speaking skills. We were also able to try on the traditional Aboriginal clothing.

Looking back on our day, it was definitely action packed. Visiting the Fuhsing school was my favorite part of the day, and I loved making new friends in Taiwan. Many of us were feeling the effects of jet lag today, but we cannot wait to see what the rest of our trip has to offer.

By Benjamin Coley:

 

Today, we got to RDU airport at the bright and early hour of 4 am and took a plane to Chicago, Illinois. After a brief layover, we got on a five hour flight to San Francisco, California.

After a quick lunch at the San Francisco airport, we got on another flight and we finally arrived at Taipei airport after a 13 hour flight. On the plane, we were given two different meals and had the choice of curry chicken or a vegetable stir fry for dinner and waffles or eggs for breakfast.

After meeting our awesome tour guides at Taipei International Airport, we took a bus to an authentic Dim Sum restaurant called Lucky Star. Exhausted and hungry we enjoyed a delicious meal that hit the spot. We devoured pork bao’s, stir fry noodles, beef noodles, sesame balls, sticky rice, turnip cakes, shrimp dumplings, coconut desserts, beef short ribs, and red bean soup.

After our meal, we took the bus to our first hotel and checked in at the Green World Zhonghua hotel. Finally, we went to bed full and excited for the next day.

Stay tune. The adventures in Taiwan are about to begin.