The Office of International Education and International Exchange (OIEIE) arranged a tour to Sun Moon Lake, which is in central Taiwan, for TKU’s international students on May 26 and 27. This tour, led by Ms. Kuo Shu-min, a Secretary at the OIEIE, provided them with the experience of seeing some beautiful landscape and local culture.

The tour included a visit to Kuang-Fu Elementary School in Nan-tou County that was devastated by 921 Earthquake. The school set up an exhibition area devoted to details of the event, so TKU students learnt about the tragedy, stories of courage, and how people rebuilt their homes. After the school, they took a boat trip on Sun Moon Lake and toured a fish farm nearby. They were impressed by the technology and types of fish that are farmed there. Following this, they closed this day with a visit to Wen-Wu Temple, a traditional Taiwanese Daoist temple.

The next day, they toured Nan-tou Distiller, sampling liquor and beer. After that they went to a paper mill and factory that makes fans, where they learnt how to make Chinese fans. On their way back to Taipei, they stopped at Miao-li to see wooden carving and sculptures.

One Japanese student summed up the trip as meaningful and delightful. Not only did they see the beauty of central Taiwan, but also experience the richness of local culture. She and other students would like OIEIE to hold similar activity more often. ( ~Ying-hsueh Hu )