Page 4 - 張祝珊英文中學－ECHOv1.2

Overseas study tour

Delving into Taiwan

4B Yeung Tai Kiu
I never regretted taking part in the sports trip he knew that we had missed the train. We could feel Travelling does not just provide a retreat from
to Taiwan. It was truly an unforgettable experience the Taiwanese's friendliness to tourists. No wonder the bustling city life. More importantly it is an
as different from other sightseeing tours, it features Taiwan is so famous for her warm hospitality enjoyable way of learning about other countries. I
roaming, sports, cultural exchange and so on. which, deplorably, has been vanishing in Hong believe that my schoolmates on this trip would agree
Kong nowadays. Thanks to the local's help and the with me. Hopefully the school will hold more sports
On the fi rst day of the tour, we visited Toucheng marvellous map reading skills of my teammates, we trips like this in future!
Farm and stayed there overnight. Staying on a farm reached various destinations and completed the tasks
was impossible in Hong Kong, so it was an exotic set, such as exploring Taipei 101, visiting National
experience for all of us. Feeding lively goats and Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall and singing with
cows gave us urban dwellers a valuable chance to local people in Tamsui. We were glad to have the
get close to the nature. The highlight of the day chance to visit these places as they are not just some
was definitely rice transplanting. Our hands and touristy spots but places which showcase the unique
legs being stuck in the dirty and muddy soil, we history and culture of Taiwan.
got a taste of how hard farming work could be. But
hard work did pay off. We learnt the indigenous The later days were the highlights of our tour
method of baking sweet potatoes in the kilns using - sports exchange with students from Mingchuan
soil and bricks and tasted them right afterwards. University. On day 3, we practised korfball under
It was scrumptious, especially after all the tough the patient guidance of the student coaches from the
farm work! I was amazed that despite her level university. Though we had learnt korfball at school
of development, Taiwan could still preserve this before, the coaches did give us some new insights
traditional practice and incorporate it in the tourism into playing the game. After practising for a couple
industry. of hours, we all became skilful players. But the
most thrilling part of the day was the friendly match The lovely cattle enjoys the freashly harvested carrot
Apart from experiencing the life on the farm, between CCSC and Mingchuan University students.
we also had city tracing. We needed to work out the Though we were no match for our opponents, it was
routes by ourselves to reach the assigned destinations still a memorable experience to have fun with them
and finish all the tasks in the fastest and cheapest on the korfball court and learn from them. Besides,
way, just like the reality show ‘Amazing Race’! The it was a precious opportunity to have interaction
tasks were closely related to Taiwanese culture and with Taiwan university students and learn about
the latest socio-economic development of the place. the assorted lifestyles in Taiwan. They also shared
some tips about studying in Taiwan with us. It was
The most impressive part of this game was surprising to find that quite a few of them were
that we experienced the human touch of the local actually from Hong Kong!
citizens. A friendly man guided us for a ten-minute
walk from the railway station to the bus station when The trip ended with sightseeing in Jiufen and
Shifen Old Streets. We ignited flying lanterns or
‘Tiandeng’ with our wishes written on them. Then
we finished the ritual by releasing them. “It is so
magnificent!” shouted my friends. The view of
so many glowing lanterns flying in the sky was
stunning and we all hoped that our dreams and
wishes could come true. We also tried different local
cuisines such as oyster omelette and braised pork
rice at Raohe Night Market and Keelung Miaokou
Night Market. The ‘street snacks’ culture is well-
developed there. I wish Hong Kong could follow
the example of Taiwan and promote its own ‘along-
street’ food culture.

We experience how hard rice planting is in Toucheng Farm
May all our wishes come true

A lovely family photo with students from Mingchuan University An exciting match