With the invitation of the Overseas Community Affairs Council of the Taiwan Government, thirty-nine representatives from LID Camp, LYF Camp, PIP, TAP chapters and TACL National Board acted as delegates and held formal meetings with Taiwanese government officials. We visited the Office of the President, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and National Revolutionary Martyrs’ Shrine. It was an honor to meet the Vice President of Taiwan, Chen Chien-jen, as well as touring the Office of the President, as it was its 100th anniversary of being built. A special exhibition was being held to celebrate this milestone. Finished in 1919, this building and the Taiwan people have witnessed how the country has evolved. It is also a symbol of democracy, which is of great significance for Taiwan.

However, no trip to Taiwan is complete without learning about its culture and trying the delicious food. We checked off tea tasting in the mountains of Pinglin (坪林) and making our own pineapple cakes at Vigor Kobo Pineapple Cake Factory (維格餅家鳳梨酥夢工場) off our bucket lists. Another new experience for us was having dinner at the all-inclusive “Qian Sui Yan” of Ningxia Night Market (寧夏夜市千歲宴). We all have visited night markets before, but this was a whole new experience, where we sat at round tables at a restaurant, and owners from different night market vendors hand delivered the twenty-course meal throughout the night. We got to get a taste of everything, including oyster omelet, stinky tofu, car wheel cake (車輪餅), etc.

Besides food related cultural expeditions, the other items on our itinerary were very fulfilling as well. Through our interactive lectures and workshops, we gained deeper understanding on industries of Taiwan, learned about Taiwanese indigenous people, and had an interesting discussion with young professionals living in Taiwan. We also visited the Formosa Plastics Group Museum and the TSMC Museum of Innovation in Hsinchu. The semiconductor industry in Taiwan is quite impressive. The country of Taiwan is not only known for its beauty, friendly people, and great food, it is also famous for its art. During our visit to U-Theater (優人神鼓表演36房), we studied this performing group’s philosophy, which is “Tao and Art as one.” They express themselves through various forms, including meditation, drumming, martial arts, Tai Chi, dance, and acting. Their discipline and focus were breathtaking, and it was no doubt that they are an award-winning group who has performed overseas!

Through this weeklong professional program, we all got to know our fellow delegates very well and had a blast exploring Taiwan. We got the chance to understand Taiwan on a deeper level, economically, politically, and culturally. This is a trip some of us will never forget and we will treasure this forever!