A Taiwanese Thanksgiving Break

As I’m nearing the end of my third month learning Chinese, the NSLI-Y cohort had our first week-long holiday break. Last Friday, the ten of us boarded the high speed rail at Zuoying Station. Flying through the countryside at almost 190 mph, it only took us around 40 minutes to step out into the central county of Taiwan: Nantou! 

Nantou is famous in Taiwan and beyond, as it’s the home to the vast majority of Taiwan’s tea-making farms. Scattered on every corner of every street in Kaohsiung, tea shops are a central aspect of the urban landscape. Therefore, it was an incredible experience to see the behind-the-scenes preparation of the tea leaves, from picking them off bushes to rolling the leaves into spheres the size of golf balls. 

As soon we left the 高鐵 station, we boarded our luggage into two large vans and headed into the mountains. After a 30-minute drive, I exited the van and was hit with the shock of hundreds of voices marching, chanting, singing, and beating large drums. We had arrived at Shoutian Temple which is, as Kai explained, the “HQ of the Taoist deity Xuantian Shangdi.” The Temple has more than 300 years of history and is the pilgrimage center for Xuantian Shangdi in Taiwan, a warrior god. Groups from all over Taiwan were pouring into the temple to pay respects to the deities, bringing their own statues, costumes, and gifts. At the same time, waves of fireworks and firecrackers were being set off outside. The effect of these simultaneous activities was a noise so loud you had to shout to try and speak with the person next to you. A few days later, I learned that people believe that the longer the trail of firecrackers you set off, the more respect you have for the god. This explained how, at the end of our temple trip, we were hit with a stream of firecrackers that continued for over a minute!

After leaving the temple, we journeyed an hour farther to a small village called Puzhong. Puzhong is the home of one of our NSLI-Y coordinators, Kaixin, and her family invited us to spend a few days at their house learning about tea making. Kaixin’s family are tea farmers, so she grew up surrounded by the tea-making process and even competed in traditional tea ceremony competitions. On the first afternoon, we each practiced running through the steps of the traditional tea ceremony. 

A traditional Taiwanese ceremony focuses on appreciating the high-quality tea, involving warming utensils, rinsing leaves with a high pour, short infusions, pouring into a fairness pitcher, using unique "sniffer cups" for aroma, pouring the tea into drinking cups, and savoring the tea in specific sips. There were so many rules to the process! For example, the tea kettle and leaves must sit at the center of the table, with the cups farther in front. You aren’t allowed to cross your arms or any items over the kettle. You had to maneuver everything behind it! 

One of my favorite parts of the day was testing all the different types of tea. In Taiwan, there are 6 types of tea that are commonly made: 綠茶 (green tea)，黃茶 (yellow)，白茶 (white)，烏龍茶 (oolong/celadon)，紅茶 (red tea)，and 黑茶 (black tea)。Interestingly, the tea that Americans call “black tea” is actually 紅茶, or “red tea” in Mandarin. We were tasting so many different types of tea that I think I got a caffeine overload because my head started to hurt! 

Next, we were all handed traditional bamboo conical hats and long-sleeve shirts, the perfect attire for picking tea leaves. In the late afternoon, we walked behind Kaixin’s family house to their personal tea fields. It was surprisingly tranquil as I walked up the rows of plants, looking for the perfect leaves that weren’t too old or too young. These factors could impact the final tea product! To end the day, we drove to Nantou’s biggest night market (夜市), rows and rows of delicious food to end the night.

The next morning, we returned back to Kaixin’s home to learn more about the next steps for our tea leaves. First, we spread the leaves out across big baskets to bake in the sun. This process is called withering, because we wanted the leaves to dry out and release their moisture content into the air, while encouraging oxidation. Tea leaves will begin to oxidise from the moment they are plucked, but the process is very slow. Therefore, withering speeds this up. Then, after about an hour or two, we each took a section of the leaves onto our personal bamboo trays to bruise the leaves. This helps increase the level of oxidation further and release the leaf’s full flavour. This part was particularly fun, and the leaves slowly shrunk in size as water still inside the leaves seeped out. 

After completing our tea-making tasks for the day, we boarded the vans for Nantou County’s Cultural Center. It was here that we took part in a tea spa! Every aspect of the spa centered around tea. We placed our heads above large bowls of it, feeling the tea steam on our faces. We were also given a tea mask made out of tea and cold tea leaves were placed over our eyes. I sadly wish we could've stayed there all day, but we luckily got to take a second trip to Shoutian Temple. This time, we each got in line to go up to the large pot in front of the main deity, blessing our newly packaged tea leaves!

The next day, we didn’t focus so much on tea making, but instead got to spend the day with a local high school in Nantou. Our NSLI-Y program coordinators often bring us on trips to local schools to connect with new students, and this one was no different. From 9 am to 3 pm, we toured around Nantou City, made Ang Ku Kueh (the Taiwanese name for a red tortoise rice dessert), practiced our traditional tea ceremony skills, and got more Chinese practice! Every student was extremely welcoming, and it was great to practice our Chinese while they practiced their English. This was our final day in Nantou, so we all boarded into the van again. This time, our final destination was Sun Moon Lake. 

Set in the mountains of Nantou County, Sun Moon Lake reminds me of the glacier lakes I’ve seen in France and the US. The lake is actively protected and managed by the Taiwan government, so there are only a handful of small towns that border the lake. Hence, it’s able to stay secluded and keep its beautiful forests and landscapes unburdened by deforestation. The first night we stayed at Sun Moon Lake, I wandered through the streets of Ita Thao (village off of the lake) and found a local indigenous restaurant. For $40 USD, six of us shared a 7+ entree meal including a shrimp and tea leaf dish, fish dish, bamboo soup, beef dish, water lily tray, cold pork dish, and rice. 非常好吃！

Our second to last day was what I called our “tourist day.” From an early-rise at 5:20 am to paddle-board to biking 10+ miles around the lake, our morning was extremely hectic. After lunch, we continued to explore the lake by taking a gondola into the mountains and traveling across the water by boat. However, I think pictures can capture these experiences better than my short descriptions.

Rounding out our jam-packed trip, I think our last day in Nantou County remains my favorite. Early in the morning, we packed our bags and took our final van trip out of the mountains and back to Kaixin’s home town. As we arrived, I could hear the faint beating of a drum in the distance. That sound kept drawing nearer and nearer until it began blasting right next to our building. From around the corner, a line of individuals neared our house. At first, it was a team of 4 people holding up yellow dragon costumes, dancing and weaving the dragons around the house’s front yard. Next, it was a team of 8 people holding up 2 deity palanquins, and finally, five people all wearing deity costumes, complete with masks and elaborate clothing.

The team paraded around the front of our house, stopping in front of Kaixin’s family shrine, and then headed back towards the street. As soon as they left, Kaixin’s father let off a stream of firecrackers which erupted on the driveway. For the rest of the day, we enjoyed following along the parade as they walked through other front yards. I even got to take a turn holding up a deity palanquin (extremely heavy) and wear a deity costume! Right before lunch, we ended the morning by watching a traditional puppet show that the local residents put on for the gods. 

In order to understand what happened next, I think I need to set the stage. In the blazing sun, all ten of us were standing in front of around 40 disposable tables, all covered with gifts and food that the townspeople set out for the gods. In front of us, there was a colorful, elaborate puppet show. To our right, there was a cage big enough to fit five people, filled to the brim with burning paper money. Surrounding us, around 40+ other people watching the puppet show. The show depicted a story about 8 gods and throughout the show, the puppetmaster would throw rice wine, candy, and money at us, all at various random times. I was told that picking up as much money and candy as possible would bring me good fortune. Therefore, every time the puppetmaster threw stuff at the audience, we would all humorously scramble around on the ground to pick up the items as fast as possible. I sadly got beat by about 5 local grandmas, all of whom were very serious in their candy-picking-up strategies. By the end of the day, we walked back to the house covered in rice wine, pockets full of sweets, and happily pointed out the different fruits the local farmers were growing (dragonfruit, bananas, tea, cocoa, papaya, ginger, and guava!). 

As I’m looking back on this eventful week, I’m struck by how different this Thanksgiving was from any I’ve ever had, and just how meaningful it felt. This time around, I was reminded that thankfulness isn’t tied to a holiday back home, but to the moments that make you feel connected, welcomed, and happy, surrounded by people to cherish. I couldn’t have asked for a better week!