An NCCU Video

Came across this cute video developed by a German exchange student at NCCU and filmed by Student Ambassador, Hilary Lee:

Feeling Fully Hearted

Free your mind. Open your heart. Where is your heart? You must feel fully hearted. Let everything around you melt away. Your brain, your arm, the pen: they are one. Be one with the universe.

Ohmmmm.

Nope.

It’s not quite Confucius speaking.

Welcome to calligraphy, an exercise that requires as much discipline and total mind-body awareness as any other yogic or martial arts practice. The summer school at NCCU offered two free workshops, one last week and the final one today. The first class consisted mostly of getting a feel for how to use the brush (毛筆) and drawing simple dots and lines.

I have to say, it was slightly difficult to be wholly focused on the process when this is what we were drawing (see left)：

Are you thinking what I'm thinking? ...Sorry...

Chinese character writing practice in process (the 春 isn't finished yet)

Today’s class was a tad more interesting since we were allowed to try out writing Chinese characters, but was still a whole lotta difficult. One of the Taiwanese girls who was helping out told me that they start learning how to do calligraphy in the second grade. Every day they have to draw the same one stroke over and over and over and over and over again for two hours. They continue building upon this up through high school.我覺得他們都吃了非常多辛苦！！！

I would love to see any American kid in elementary school sit in one place for that long drawing lines.

As for me, I also don’t think “calligraphy master” is going to be on my resume any time soon, but it was fun to try out such an important piece of Chinese culture.

The class with our 書法老師

The Essential Mental Packing List for Study Abroad Students in Taiwan

Your flight is a week away and you are super excited to start your study abroad in Taiwan. Your suitcase is already filled with cotton t-shirts, sneakers, a supply of deodorant, a toothbrush, a Chinese-English dictionary, your passport and visa, and of course a good stash of quality dark chocolate.

But what about your mental suitcase?

Before you embark on any relatively long-term project abroad you need to be prepared for new customs, new thought patterns, new tastes, new language, new beliefs, new sounds–new everything. Basically, you need to be prepared for culture shock.

One major point to note:

• Culture shock does not come in one shape and size. We all come from our own different cultural backgrounds, so naturally our experiences among new cultures will also be different. Therefore, some of the following coping mechanisms might work for you while others might not. Also, some of what you experience in Taiwan may be very stressful to you, but may be wholly insignificant to your friend.

And now, a short mental checklist (to be edited and updated periodically):

Rain or shine, time to break out the umbrella.

• Taiwan’s weather is mad-eye MOODY. (Please excuse the really bad HP allusion).

Spend one day in Taipei and you may experience blue sunny skies, sweltering humidity, torrential downpours and cold damp temperatures. If this does not eventually affect your mood, you are not human. Also, weather forecasts are useless; my rough guestimation is that they are correct maybe 10% of the time.

o How to Cope: Learn from the locals—always carry an umbrella (they sell them everywhere here for $100NT). They protect you not only from the rain, but also from the brutal sun. I would also recommend always having a plan B. You may plan an amazing five day trip to the Kending complete with hiking, sandy beaches and surfing for yourself and your best friend who has traveled all the way from the U.S. to visit you. Then it rains. It pours. It downright monsoons. (Believe me, it happened). This is where an alternate itinerary (like visiting the hot springs and checking out the local aboriginal culture) comes in handy so you won’t be too disappointed. Also, pack appropriate clothing and allergy medications before you arrive.

• Not everyone in Taiwan speaks English. Big surprise this one, I know. But I’ve also come across a handful of foreigners who continually bemoan the fact that they cannot understand the locals and the locals cannot understand them. If you weren’t already aware, the official language in Taiwan is Mandarin Chinese, though many people also speak Hoklo (or “Taiwanese”) and other indigenous languages. Sometimes you may experience being in a supposedly English-taught class and the professor will begin to speak in Chinese. Don’t panic. Understand that there are some local students in class that might not fully understand a concept or idea unless explained in their own language. However, if this becomes a problem (ie: the professor persists in repeatedly speaking Chinese for long lengths of times), then talk with the professor privately about your concern and if it still does not change, speak to a representative in your school’s international office (at NCCU, the OIC)

o How to Cope: Study a little Mandarin before you arrive. This doesn’t have to be much—just enough to learn about the four tones and maybe a little about the history of the language. Learning a few basic phrases, such as how to properly say ‘hello’, ‘thank you’, ‘this one’ and ‘I want/I don’t want’ wouldn’t hurt either. You will most likely learn a lot more once you get here and there are plenty of friendly people willing to help, but you will feel a lot more comfortable if you have some background in the language beforehand.

• Wearing surgical masks. Many people in Taiwan, as well as throughout East Asia, wear surgical masks. (They even come in fancy colors and patterns now!).

Masks are sexy here!

Coming from the West, we are often suspicious of people who cover their faces; it implants a spatial separation we are generally uncomfortable with, and also may suggest sickness or disease (as my Dad remarked, it reminds him of  those old doomsday sci-Fi flicks about the plague). However, people here sincerely believe  wearing a mask will either protect them from getting sick, or will prevent them from spreading germs. Whatever the validity of the claim may be, remember the context. East Asia’s recent experience with SARS and H1N1 scares has prompted many to prepare for the worst.  Moreover, with so many people living in one place, the Taiwanese are very wary of the potential of one virus.

• Noise. Forget the stereotype of the quiet little Asian man. Taiwanese people are LOUD–and all the more so when they share a big meal together. Want evidence? Simply mozy on over to any restaurant, bar or cafe in Taipei. More significant, however, is noise tolerance in general. Be prepared to encounter high levels of noise due to traffic, the garbage man jingle, trucks blaring advertisements for political candidates, construction at 8AM, neighbors arguing and fireworks.

o How to Cope: Pack some earplugs just in case and your own mp3 player. Find a quiet spot in the city and visit it at least once a week.

• I’d like some food with my oil, please. One of the most difficult quirks about Taiwan that I’ve had to adjust to is the liberal amount of oil they use in cooking. You can readily find most anything in some fried form–deep-fried, stir-fried, pan-fried–you name it, they fry it. Most vegetable dishes are also fried and, I’ve found, usually drowning in oil to the point where all nutritional content has disappeared. Be prepared to have to adjust to local flavors–it may be difficult to find the foods you are used to eating, especially for those with certain dietary restrictions. But before you write off Taiwanese cuisine as a whole, make sure you try as many different types of foods here as possible: night market snacks, different regional and aboriginal cuisines (including from mainland China), as well as Taiwan’s international food scene.

o How to Cope: Bring some spices and local foodstuffs from home that don’t go bad. Buy fresh vegetables and other produce and cook your own food. This is always the best method to eat healthier, and more critically, to eat exactly what you want to eat. True, this is also difficult for students who live in the dormitories where cooking is forbidden, but students can still purchase fresh fruits and vegetables, wash them and eat them raw. You can also ask for your food to be prepared with less oil when you order. Of course, obviously not *everything* is fried or cooking with oil. Look for steamed, boiled or grilled options (you usually won’t find baked/roasted/broiled because most people don’t use ovens).

• Smile for the Camera. No use beating a dead horse. Refer to my recent post for a fuller explanation.

o How to Cope: Taking a word of advice from good friend Daniel, when and if this happens, kindly decline and explain to the person who is asking that you are a resident of Taiwan and that not all foreigners like to have their picture taken.

• Food is not served all at once. When you go to a Western-style restaurant with a group of friends, be prepared to wait a while for your food. Often your friend’s meal will come out and you will have to wait up to twenty more minutes or more for your own to follow. This is mostly due to the tradition of family-style eating. If you go to a Taiwanese style restaurant or eat in someone’s home, all of the food will be put on plates in the center of the table and you will be expected to share and serve yourself. Thus, dishes typically do not come out all at once because everyone can begin eating once the first dish is served. For some reason, this has translated over to almost all of the restaurants in Taiwan.

o How to Cope: Inform the waiter that you would like all of the dishes to be served at the same time (this sometimes does and sometimes does not work). I would better suggest, however, that you do like the locals and eat once your meal is served. Don’t worry about “being polite”–that Western custom simply does not apply here. Also, I would recommend telling the waiter that your want your drink first or served with the main meal; often, drinks are otherwise served last, like dessert. Bon appetit!

And finally, the two universal coping mechanisms: (1) Learn how to practice cultural relativity—the ability to put yourself in someone else’s cultural “shoes”. What does this entail? Trying to think about the reason *why* people behave the way they do here. What is the value behind the action? What does this person believe? For example, before you accuse someone for being stupid to put shrimp in your “vegetarian” stir-fry, put yourself in their cultural mindset. Many Taiwanese do not consider fish or shellfish to be meat. Learn from these experiences. This time, politely inform them that you also cannot eat shellfish and can they please make a new dish. Next time, make sure you make it clear exactly what foods you cannot eat when ordering and again politely ask them to repeat it back to you to make sure the order is correct.

Cultural relativity means that an observer cannot condemn any practice in which culture engages. In other words, cultural relatively does not allow us to judge another culture, even when its practices are inhumane. Cultural respect requires us to be aware that our own ways are not the only ways, but it allows us to judge others when warranted.

"Don't let ignorance be an excuse."

(2) Learn to develop empathy. This is hardly a conscious act, but it should be an obligation. Cultural empathy refers to the ability to accurately understand the experiences of people from diverse cultures and to convey that understanding responsively. When you are empathetic, you are able to develop an emotional and psychological bond with another person or social group. Ultimately, you become “other”-oriented and THAT is an invaluable life skill.

Don’t let your ignorance be an excuse. Being mentally prepared will enable you and the others around you to have a smoother and more enjoyable experience abroad.

For those who are already here, perhaps take some time to reevaluate your own attitudes and behaviors. I know I could definitely benefit from an attitude readjustment every so often as well. Nobody likes a complainer and it is all to easy to fall into the trap of being negative about everything. It’s not *that* bad and, if it is, then go home. Nobody is forcing you to be here.

Also, for those who are already here, what are some other cultural quirks you have encountered in Taiwan and how did you learn to cope?

For those who are now mentally packing, don’t let any of this alarm you. You are about to embark on an exciting journey full of wonderful and surprising experiences that only Taiwan can uniquely supply. Be proud of taking the leap and being adventurous–you will not regret it!

See you on the other side.

Yellow Fever, Foreign Moons 黃色戀情‧外國月亮比較圓

Update on NCCU Page

I created a Google map of where to eat around NCCU’s campus. You can find the page on the menu under the NCCU page. Just hover your mouse over the link to “Inside National Chengchi University” and you will find the link to the new page. Leave comments!

Note to Self…

Never try to  bake apple pie in a country where:

1. There are no pre-made pie crusts,
2. The local supermarket and houseware stores do not sell measuring cups and spoons,
3. Those measuring cups that do exist in the country are not the same as the ones in the US,
4. There are no real ovens.

Lesson learned.

In other news, for your viewing pleasure, my Chinese class’s video for last week’s Language Center performance:

We didn’t win, but it was a valiant effort. I think it may have had something to do with the fact my Chinese accent sounds like some weird New York twang. “Hen duoooooo”. 哎喲. Something I’m definitely working on, but I suppose it adds to the film’s already comical effect.

The second place team actually hired a real camera crew to shoot and edit their movie. Tell me how that is fair, please, after I spent an entire night editing and adding captions to our movie start to finish. -_-

加油吧!

Kuo Yuan Ye Museum of Cake & Pastry

Museum Entrance

On Friday a couple of my Chinese class classmates, other Chinese language students, my teacher and I went to the Kuo Yuan Ye Museum of Cake & Pastry. Kuo Yuan Ye Foods is known primarily for its traditional Chinese-style cakes and pastries; some of the recipes have been passed down since the first pastry shop’s establishment in 1867 in Taipei. Since that founding, the company has expanded into other products and services such as soaps, millet wine, and wedding planning.

The Museum was opened in 2001 in Shilin. There is a small exhibit that displays the history of the company, the company’s products, and visions for the future. There is also a wedding ceremony exhibit area where you can try on traditional Chinese wedding garments. On the second floor there is a DIY area where, after watching a promotional video about the company in both/either Chinese and English, some of the bakers will teach you how to make different pastries. We made the traditional Taiwanese pineapple cake, 鳳梨酥 （fènglísū）.

老師 and 信賴 making 鳳梨酥

我的名字 (my name)

While the cakes were baking, we toured the museum exhibit and snacked on some Taiwanese 點心 (diǎnxin) and tea.

點心

And the finished products…

好香啊！They smelled so good!

All packaged up nice and pretty

We were told that the cakes will stay fresh for up to a week unopened, after which they should be consumed quickly! I would imagine these would freeze well too. I brought my box into Chinese class yesterday and shared them with everyone who couldn’t make it on Friday.

If you are in the area and interested in going the Shilin branch is open Monday-Friday from 09：00~11：30 and 12：30~15：00. Each DIY session is divided into 3 hour increments and they can accommodate up to 40 people. For our group of nine people, we each paid $250NT. The phone number for the program is （02）2838-2700 ext. 457 for Ms. Zeng. More information can be found here: http://www.kuos.com/foundation/cake/cake_cover.htm, but the website is in Chinese. The workers there do speak some English, so for any non-Chinese speakers out there who still want to go, I don’t think it should be so much of an issue. I noticed some of the women working in the bakery part were Filipino and were eager to try speaking English with us. The museum is a little tricky to find, but if you view the map on the website, just follow the dotted line from the blue rectangle to the red circle.

A fun trip

American Food?

Recently I decided to participate in a wonderful event facilitated by the Student Ambassadors (SA) at NCCU called NCCU World Festival. The festival, which takes place in May, includes a food festival, fashion show, and a talent show and involves both local students and international students. We are currently in planning mode for the food festival, so that means my team–Team USA (well, one of three)–and I have to decide the menu ASAP. Facilities are limited, preparation can be done beforehand, and the food will be sold (yes, I might be able to make a little $$ off of this) and served outside.

But my question is: WHAT is American food?

Foreigners to the USA, of course, will almost invariably say “McDonald’s” or “hamburgers” or “french fries” (which all pretty much go hand-in-hand) when asked what American food is. But I think Anthony Bourdain summed it up best when he said, “American food is whatever people are eating now in America.”

Indeed, there is simply no one dish that I think perfectly encompasses what the USA is.

So I am reaching out to you, 朋友們, friends: What should I include in my menu?

Some of my ideas so far include:

“New Jersey Grub” – sloppy joes and milkshakes…or bagels? One my my teammates mentioned that she would love to learn how to make bagels (good thing I’ve actually done that a couple of times).

“Americana” – apple pie, potato salad and lemonade

“Americanese” – General Tso’s Chicken and fortune cookies (nobody in Asia, unless they have been to the US, has ever heard of such things)

“New England’s Best” – New England Clam Chowder, whoopie pies/frappe (which is basically a milkshake)

I’m trying not to be too ambitious; I would like to keep it as simple as possible. But I also want to make something memorable and unique.

Other ideas, anyone? What do you think American food is? I would love to get your input!

Also, a video for more information about the festival: NCCU World Festival

我們喜歡吃晚飯

The NCCU Dinner Club was born last year by a combination of my voracious appetite and lack of people to share dinner with. It is a completely unofficial group, apart from the Facebook page. The basic purpose is to get a mixed group of students–both local and international–from 政大 to meet new people and share a good meal and conversation, and so far it’s worked out all right. To date, we have visited four restaurants–perhaps each better than the last–and have a new one planned at an Irish pub next week.

We have been to:

Din Tai Fung 鼎泰豐 – Zhongxiao Fuxing 忠孝復興. Din Tai Fung is the place you go to when you have friends visiting Taiwan and you want to show them what haute-Taiwanese cuisine is all about. My favorite dish is, of course, the xiaolongbao 小籠包.
http://www.dintaifung.com.tw/ch/index.asp
Casa Della Pasta. This is a Taiwanese chain that serves up pretty decent Italian food. I can honestly say that I really enjoyed my linguine with white clam sauce.
http://www.capasta.com.tw/main.html
Dubu House 涓豆腐. This place is fantastic if you like authentic Korean food. We all ordered various Soondubu jigae pots that are served steaming hot along with a stone bowl full of purple rice. Delicious!
http://www.dubuhouse.com.tw/
Sababa Pita 沙巴巴. The best place in Taipei for Mediterranean street eats like falafel and schwarma.
http://www.sababapita.com/index.php

All of these places are pretty popular, so make sure you call ahead for a reservation if you don’t want to wait for food for over an hour. And if you are a student from NCCU, come join us! 請你跟我們一起吃飯！ We would love to dine with you.

NCCU Dinner Club at Dubu House