1061 42 1

Vol. 42 No. 1 January 2017

CHINESEENGLISH BILINGUAL MONTHLY ISSN 1991-525X

1
Taiwan Panorama

The Charm of the 24 Solar Terms

O

NT$150
US$5
HK$40
600








Ellisa Yao

40


Thank you, Taiwan Panorama,
for the light you have shone upon
this land for so many years.
(Jullian Chu, New Taipei City)
As someone who has lived abroad for
40 years, I have a particular fondness
for Taiwan Panorama because it offers
content like National Geographic,
writing like Time, and a
layout like Fortune.
(Kent Wang, USA)
Ive been reading Taiwan Panorama for years,
from my barefoot youth all the way through my time
abroad, because it captures the moment and makes it
beautifully eternal. (Ellisa Yao, Norway)
Taiwan Panorama has its own space in my
memories because then I get to hold on to not only
my own memories of good times, but Taiwan
Panoramas brilliance as well.
(Xu Zhilian, Taipei)
I love Taiwan Panorama because it lets me read about
Taiwanese trends, customs, and history in other languages.
(Daniel Liao, Taoyuan)

Thank you for accompanying us on Taiwan Panoramas 40-year

journalistic odyssey. The heartfelt letters we have received
have encouraged us to be bold in launching the magazine
onto the next leg of its journey, and we look forward to
traveling with you for years to come....

To subscribe, please use the form in the back of the magazine.



1212








* * *


* * *

l

106116511

Publisher: David Tawei LEE
Director: Paul Kuoboug CHANG
Editor-in-Chief: TIEN Yun-liang
Senior Writer: LIU Yingfeng
Writers: Cathy TENG, CHEN Chun-fang
Director of Layout: HU Ju-yu
Art Editors: HSIAO Ying-tsen, Henry WANG
Photographic Coordinator: CHUANG Kung-ju
Photographic Director: Jimmy LIN
Photojournalist: LIN Min-hsuan
English Editors: Audrey CHEN, Robert TAYLOR, Phil NEWELL
Japanese Editors: YAMAGUCHI Yukina, Shila SHIH
Senior Administrative Editor: DUAN Shu-hwa
Deputy Manager: CHEN Jyun-wei
Chief of General Affairs: CHEN Shu-ing
General Affairs: S.H. LEE
Circulation: HO Shih-lung

100512
Address: No. 2, Tianjin Street, Taipei 10051, Taiwan, ROC

100998-398 E-mail: pressdivisionla@yahoo.com
PO Box 8-398, Taipei 10099, Taiwan, ROC All rights reserved. Photos and articles may not be reprinted without our permission.
(02) 2397-0633 If you wish to reprint any of our articles or photographs, please contact our senior administrative editor.
Fax: +886-2-2397-0655http://www.taiwan-panorama.com/ Damaged or misbound copies returned to us will be gladly replaced.
 EDITORS NOTE
Rhythms of Life
F lipping through a Chinese Farmers Almanac, one
finds it full of detailed notes on what to do when and
what to avoid when. But the dates are also accompanied
by a variety of descriptive seasonal names like Awak-
ening of Insects, Clear and Bright, Grain Rain, Mi-
nor Heat, Limit of Heat and Frosts Descent. These
are the solar terms, playing out over the year as the
greater seasons change. Each 15-day solar term is like a
bar of music, the 24 coming together in a great natural
symphony, a rhythm that repeats in celebration through
the highs and lows of life.
This symphony, long ago arranged by the heavens,
plays out in our environment, with sun and clouds, rain
and shine, summer and winter all following their spec-
ified parts as the seasons and climate change in their
regulated procession. Still we follow our ancestors rules
of wisdom and experience, the essence of the solar terms
shining through in our food and drink, our natural and
manmade environments, and our art. By immersing our-
selves in these, we can experience that same daily wis-
dom and local culture ourselves, gaining a sense of the
life stories of every inch of land that makes up Taiwan.
In this months issue, we conclude our series of ar-
ticles on the seven necessities of the Chinese kitchen:
charcoal, rice, oil, salt, sauces, vinegar, and lastly tea.
Our feature brings you tales of tea and taste from the age
of sea trade to the resurgent elegance of the teahouse,
SUBSCRIPTION RATES:
Republic of China: NT$150 per copy.
NT$1500/year, NT$2600/2 years
Hong Kong & Macao: HK$150/year, HK$280/2 years
Asia & Pacic Regions: US$40/year, US$72/2 years by airmail
North America: US$32/year, US$55/2 years by regular mail
Elsewhere: US$45/year, US$80/2 years by airmail
Sinorama Magazine951 Taiwan Panorama Readers in the US & Canada should subscribe through Kwang Hwa Publishing (USA), Inc.
GPN: 2008000038 ISSN1991-525X
Tel: 1-888-829-3866 Fax: 1-213-389-0021
186
229(02)2915-0123
10455256 President: K. T. Yang; General Manager: Jenny Wu; Assistants: WU Chia-ying, Thomas KOH
(02) 2505-2288
(02) 2397-06330128106-5
15015002600
18003400
19003600
from the joy of the tea ceremony to the enticing scent of
a fresh brew.
Our Living History series looks at the 120th anni-
versary of Chunghwa Post, and the 20th anniversary of
the International Cooperation and Development Fund.
As they reach these historical milestones, both organi-
zations are dedicated to committed and wholehearted
service to the people. One is oriented inward, the other
outward; one dives deep into rural life, the other reaches
out to distant allies. Honor, responsibility, and commit-
ment are credos, are duties, and even more are missions
of selflessness.
This months Southeast Asian Focus presents a re-
port of outreach to other AsiaPacific cultures in both the
north and the south of Taiwan. Warm winds caress Tai-
wan from Southeast Asia, bringing a new climate, new
nourishment, and growing ties with the nations of the
region. As together we seek to develop a shared vision,
we reach out across cultures in a firm handshake.
As each solar term plays its part in the regular sym-
phony of nature, following the rise and fall of the seasons,
their passage brings with it reminders, arrangements, and
comfort to the bodies and souls of all the worlds chil-
dren. With the regular procession through wind, warmth,
rain, drought, and cold, the rhythms of life are a beautiful
tribute to happy lives, both fast and slow. l
(Tien Yun-liang/tr. by Geof Aberhart)
Taiwan Panorama (USPS 000624) is published monthly, US$32.00 per year, by
Kwang Hwa Publishing (USA), Inc., 3731 Wilshire Blvd 104, Los Angeles, CA 90010
USA. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission
is prohibited. Periodicals postage paid at Los Angeles, California.
POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Kwang Hwa Publishing (USA), Inc., 3731
Wilshire Blvd 104, Los Angeles, CA 90010 USA.
Kwang Hwa Publishing (USA), Inc., 3731 Wilshire Blvd 104 Los Angeles CA 90010
 1061 42 1 Vol. 42 No. 1 January 2017
The Charm of the 24 Solar Terms

C O N T E N T S
06


Natures Hidden Treasures
Journeys of Flowers, Birds, and
Butterflies

Living History Taiwanese Abroad

64
120

108


Our Good Neighbor at 120 Dedicated to Community Service:
Chunghwa Post Adapts to a New Era World Taiwanese Chambers of Commerce
President Jason Lin

72 20

The International Cooperation and

Development Fund20 Years On

80
Tea

The Golden Age of Taiwanese Tea Exports

92
Fragrant SpacesDaxi Tea Factory

100
Tea Your Way to Happiness

 16 36

Reimagining Architecture Cheers to Craft Beers
Symbiosis of Space and Nature Fresh Flavors to Delight the Taste Buds

26 46

Comfort Food Like from the Wizarding World
Cultivating Taiwans Local Flavors A Colorful New Take on the 24 Solar Terms

Southeast Asian Focus

114


AsiaPacific Cultural Festivals Take the
Stage in North and South

Editors Note

Rhythms of Life

The Fleeting World

01



54 Cover: The turning of the seasons and
the passage of the 24 solar terms are
Variety Pages
reflected in the rich cycle of nature and
the abundance of the harvest.
(design by Henry Wang)
 T erms
The 24 Solar

Natures Hidden Treasures
Journeys of Flowers, Birds, and Butterflies

T hink of the Chinese calendars 24 solar terms

as a clocks perpetually revolving hands, marking
time throughout the year. Over the span of a thou-
sand years, their regular motion has become part of
Chinese cultures genetic makeup. With this clock
as a guide, we can explore the natural world, for it
knows the movements of the sun, the direction of the
wind, and the currents of the seas. And there are even
stranger natural forces afoot that sync the rhythms
of the blooming flowers, the emergence of the cicadas,
and the nesting of birds with lifes pursuits. These
forces become part and parcel of our daily lives and
set the tempo for an individuals footsteps.

6 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1

 art
by Hu Ju-yu

Clouds shot through with sunlight

are reflected in calm waters, in
the season when nature rests and
recoups its strength according to
the cycle of the solar terms.

7



Through her travels around Taiwan, Laila Fan
experienced the rhythms of the four seasons.
Traveling was never just about seeing. Listening, in
fact, proved to be even more important. The sounds
of the wind and the water, the chirping of bugs, and
the warbling of birds are all highlights.



In a scene of spectacular beauty, fog enshrouds
the mountains and layers of cloud float in profound
mystery.

9



11

8 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1


When it comes to explaining the relation-
ship between the solar terms and changes in
the natural world, no one does it better than
Laila Fan, Yezi, and Anfernee Shih.
Thus Laila Fan, chronicler of wild places,
has authored Traveling with the Solar Terms.
Yezi, a plant expert who avoids the spotlight
and whose penname means leaf, has given
us Photographing Flowers According to the Solar
Terms. And Anfernee Shih, who left behind a
background in industrial technology to become
a commentator on the world of insects and
amphibians (his online nickname is Little But-
terfly), published A Seasonal Eco-tourism Guide
of Butterfly-Watching in Taiwan.
Early spring treasure map
Anfernee Shih began chasing butterflies in
the third grade. He was guided by an Early
Spring Treasure Map that introduced butter-
flies appearing from the third solar term (Awak-
ening of Insects), which falls in early March, to
the fifth solar term (Clear and Bright), which
ends in mid-April. These butterflies included
Celastrina sugitanii; the Chinese hairstreak (Am-
blopala avidiena); the freak (Calinaga buddha); the
lesser mime (Papilio epycides); Graphium timur;
the sixbar swordtail (Graphium eurous); and
the tawny mime (Papilio agestor). And the best
place to collect these seven treasures is the river
valley in the village of Fushan, in New Taipei
Citys Wulai District.
Early spring butterflies appear only fleet-
ingly, and as soon as summer begins they are
nowhere to be seen. After that brief explosion,
however, there are two particularly famous
protected species that can be found after Start
of Summerthe broad-tailed swallowtail (Age-
hana maraho) and the Japanese emperor (Sasakia
charonda). Jiuzhize Hot Spring on Yilans Mt. Tai
ping, Mingchi Forest Recreational Area (also in
Yilan), and areas along the Northeast Coast are
mustvisit destinations for butterfly watchers.
As soon as Summer Solstice (the 10th solar
term) ends in late June, the temperature slowly
rises, and highaltitude butterflies stir to life. At
Frosts Descent (the 18th solar term, occurring

71

50

From left to right: The life cycles of the broad-tailed swallowtail

(photo by Anfernee Shih), Mugimaki flycatcher (photo by Lin
Lizhong) and little tern (photo by Su Hui-chao) unfold in turn
through the spring. The blooming of the blue jacaranda (photo by
Su Hui-chao) signals the arrival of summer.

10 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1


in late October), their numbers are greatly re-
duced. Some varieties also change their appear-
ance, donning a special look for winter. At this
season, the sun is still scorching in Southern Tai-
wan, but the best choices for butterfly watching
are Xinhua in Tainan, Pingtung Countys Mt.
Dahan, and Meinong in Kaohsiung.
Flowers too beckon to be photographed in all
their glorious detail. Each type of flora has its
ideal time to be photographed, says Yezi. And
this is the reason that she published Photograph
ing Flowers According to the Solar Terms. The book
features 50 of Taiwans most common plants
and lists the most suitable time of the year (by
solar terms) to photograph them. Examples in-
clude the blossoms of the Taiwan cherry (Prunus
campanulata) during Start of Spring, upright
elephant ears (Alocasia odora) during Clear and
Bright, blue jacaranda (Jacaranda mimosifolia)
during Start of Summer, flamegold (Koelreute
ria elegans) during White Dew, glossy shower
senna (Senna sulfurea) during Minor Snow, and
of course the Chinese plum (Prunus mume)
during Major Cold, the flowers of which open
in ever greater numbers as the cold increases.
For Yezi, capturing flora in their ideal solar
terms is also a process of perception, by which
she can grasp the true nature of the plants not
through the camera, but through the senses.
The photos merely act as annotations for the
sensory experience and as narrative of the vi-
sual spectacle.
Traveling by calendar
After many years of traveling around Tai-
wan, Laila Fan first presented her experiences
through the rhythms of the four seasons, and
only later used a more detailed scheme incorpo-
rating the 24 solar terms. Her travels never rely
solely on observation. Listening, in fact, is even
more important than watching. And the sounds
of the wind and the water, the chirping of bugs,
and the warbling of birds are all highlights.
11


58


9





9
920193
10 14


9,000

Silvergrass flowers at the foot of Teapot Mountain near

Jinguashi herald the arrival of late autumn.
 winged stilts (Himantopus himantopus) arrive for
another winter. Garden chrysanthemums (Chry-
In the wilds, the Chinese sparrowhawk, at times
circling and at times resting, divulges to its human kin
the secrets of the solar terms. (photo by Lin Lizhong)
Year after year, we have experienced the nat-
ural rhythms of life during the various solar
terms and relearned the lessons of Awakening
of Insects (spring) and Cold Dew (autumn),
previewing life withered and reborn. This is the
source of natures teachings, Fan says.
During Start of Spring, she went to see the
blooming of oilseed rape (Brassica napus), then
the azaleas (Rhododendron simsii) and the blos-
soms of the peach tree (Prunus persica). And
during the Grain Rain solar term in late April,
the fireflies take wing, corals spawn, and flying
fish come calling. During the months from May
to August (Start of Summer to Start of Autumn),
the petals of the tung tree (Vernicia fordii) swirl
through the air, swallows prepare their nests,
and the yellow flowers of the Formosa acacia
(Acacia confusa) bloom, followed by the blossom-
ing of alpine flowers such as Dianthus pygmaeus
and Gentiana arisanensis. September is the peak
season for alpine flowers, and when the Japa-
nese knotweed (Fallopia japonica) flowers and
sets its seed, it gives the slopes the appearance
of a field of wildfire. Life then enters a period of
dormancy and recuperation.
During Start of Winter, dry creek beds sprout
silvergrass (Miscanthus floridulus), while black
faced spoonbills (Platalea minor) and black
santhemum morifolium) are in full bloom and the
leaves of the Formosan sweetgum (Liquidambar
formosana) take on a reddish hue in late winter. At
this time of year, cherry blossom watchers begin
to count the days before the spring flowering.
Fan has learned to plan her travels around
the unique call of each of the solar terms. Peter
Mau-hsiu Yang, a philosopher and Fans some-
time traveling companion, explains. On the
one hand, you learn to plan your travels around
lifes rhythms, becoming sensitive to the pulse
of the Earth, he says. On the other hand, you
learn to slow down and take notice of the little
thingsa tiny flower, an insect, small changes in
scenerythe things that make you stop, hunch
over and take a closer look.
The coming of the eagles
For birdwatchers, the climaxes of the year
have always been the spring and autumn mi-
grations.
Known as the Dongyin bird king, Lin Li-
zhong, a resident of Matsus Dongyin Island,
has for years spent his days crouching under a
camouflaged canopy silently recording the phe-
nomenon in images.
In the period from Cold Dew (early October)
to Frosts Descent (late October) the Chinese
sparrowhawk (Accipiter soloensis) and the grey
faced buzzard (Butastur indicus) migrate through
Taiwan in large numbers. The grey-faced buz-
zard rides the wind on an annual northsouth
13
 4

4
30

2016

24
The frost and snow of winter signal the end of the annual
rotation of the 24 solar terms, which then begin the journey
all over again.

10
journey of 9,000 kilometers. Arriving flock after flock,
10
thousands upon thousands of these raptors seek a place
17 to roost in mountainous areas of the Hengchun Peninsula
and in Changhua Countys Bagua Mountains. On the next
day, as soon as they have filled their bellies, the birds con-
1 tinue along their southern migration route. The arrival and

departure of the eaglesoccurring in the solar terms of

Autumnal Equinox, Cold Dew, and Frosts Descentare a
2
must for birders, and one of autumns most stunning sights.
22310
Aside from Dongyin, Yilan Countys Guishan Island
320 provides a migratory rest stop for buntings between the
Grain Rain (late April) and Start of Summer (early May)
solar terms. On April 30, Su Fu-mei, professor emerita
at National Taiwan Normal University, and members of
the Wild Bird Society of Taipei, recorded the presence of
various bunting species on Guishan. The birds they en-

countered included the yellow-breasted bunting (Emberiza

aureola), the chestnut bunting (E. rutila), the little bunting (E.

pusilla), the blackfaced bunting (E. spodocephala), Tristrams

bunting (E. tristrami), and the yellowthroated bunting (E.
elegans). They even sighted an African stonechat (Saxicola
l torquatus), decked out in its breeding plumage.

14 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1


Natures broken clock
Snow in the coastal plains, record-high
temperatures, torrential rains, and autumn
typhoons. These were the dramatic climatic
events faced by Taiwan in 2016. Birdwatchers
have recorded how these climatic aberrations
are affecting autumnal migration patterns
and causing birds to show up in unexpected
places. Orange-headed thrushes (Geokichla
citrina) have landed in the Qijin District of
Kao hsiung City and Lapland longspurs
(Calcarius lapponicus) have appeared in Long
dong, New Taipei City. Grey-faced buzzards
have mysteriously circled over Taipeis Hua-
jiang Wild Duck Nature Park for a few days.
And this year there has also been an explo-
sion of Narcissus flycatchers (Ficedula narcis-
sina) and bramblings (Fringilla montifringilla),
which can be seen everywhere.
Farmers have been even harder hit by the
climatic changes. Crops, including tea, are be-
ing harvested later and later, even as the crop
size dwindles. The 24 solar terms are totally
out of whack, sighs Lin Qingyuan, winner
of the Shennong Award (a national farming
award named after the mythical founder of
Chinese agriculture and herbal medicine).
And its not just crops that are affected.
In the past at Houdong in the mountains of
New Taipei City, in late October (after Frosts
Descent), the splendid Bretschneidera sinensis,
a flowering tree, would bloom for a brief pe-
riod. This year, however, the flowers failed to
appear, leaving Chen Qingke, a plant special-
ist who has been working to preserve them for
17 years, to hope wistfully for their survival.
In former years, it was common to see al-
pine birds such as the Taiwan yuhina (Yuhina
brunneiceps) and the firebreasted flower-
pecker (Dicaeum ignipectus) feeding on the
fruit of yanagi ichigo (Debregeasia orientalis)
growing on Mt. Lala in the spring. This spec-
tacle, however, can no longer be seen, because
the snow brought by an unusually cold Jan-
uary froze the shrubs, making them another
casualty of climate change.
Moreover, because of the late blooming of
the winter flowers, Wuling Farm, a popular
tourist spot in Taichung, announced that the
end of the cherry blossom season would be
pushed back from February 22nd to March
10th. Similarly, indicators point to a late
blooming date of March 20th for cherry blos-
som viewing on Mt. Ali, shifting the phenom-
enon into the Vernal Equinox solar term.
While flora will adapt to climatic changes
in order to survive, humans must take respon-
sibility for environmental change (one could
say deterioration), according to Chen Qingke.
Throughout the unending cycle of the so-
lar terms, natures subtle and not-so-subtle
changes are reminding humans that the Earth
does not belong to us alone. It belongs to soil
and stoneand to all living things. Its worth
remembering Aldo Leopolds exhortation in
A Sand County Almanac & Other Writings: The
opportunity to see geese is more important
than television, he wrote, and the chance to
find a pasqueflower is a right as inalienable
as free speech. l
(Su Hui-chao/photos by Chuang Kung-ju/
tr. by Robert Green)
15
 T erms
The 24 Solar

Reimagining Architecture
Symbiosis of Space and Nature

A s people the world over face environ-

art
mental degradation and cultural re-

gression, a group of Taiwanese people work-

ing in the field of architecture are convinced

that the solar terms, passed down by the

ancestors of the Chinese people, can be an

by Hu Ju-yu, Henry Wang

antidote to problems in modern society.

The solar terms are divisions of the year

into 24 periods of about 15 days each, each with
its own special spirit. The expression for solar

term in Chinese is literally spirit of the sea-

son. Most Taiwanese peoples first impression

of the solar terms comes from farmers alma-

nacs, a must-have in every household, or from
the tradition of consuming tonics during Start
of Winter, the first of the six winter solar terms.
As for buildings associated with the solar terms,
a particularly impressive example is the Temple
of Heaven in Beijing. Its layout represents the
ancient Chinese concept of round Heaven and
flat Earth, and the 24 middle and outer pillars

symbolize the 24 terms. Another example is the

One can perceive and appreciate solar term
architecture in every surface and corner. door gods of the 24 solar terms painted on

17



In such a living space,
surrounded by verdure,
mind and body can relax
and connect with nature.

18 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1

 the four doors of the Hall of Literacy in Chao-
tian Temple in Beigang, Yunlin County, by the

late artist Chen Shouyi from Tainan.

Solar terms architecture

In 2009, the Solar Terms Architecture
Task Force was formed in central Taiwan by
24 Chiang Wen-yuan, Allen Hooboth veteran
practicing architectsand Lee Shwuting, then
dean of the Department of Architecture at
Feng Chia University. Solar Terms Architec-

ture, as proposed by the task force, is not sim-

ply architecture based on the 24 solar terms,

climate and surroundings, but rather archi-

tecture in a broader sense that incorporates
every aspect of our lives. The task force aims
to rediscover the Chinese philosophy of and
attitude toward architecture, building abodes
for the soul that touch peoples hearts.
Jieqi, Yijing, Wholeness: 5-Dimensional Ar-
chitecture, a book published several months
2009
ago, took the Solar Terms Architecture Task

Force six years to finish and is the preliminary

result of its work. Chiang Wen-yuan describes
a building as a container for peoples lives, a
living organism tightly integrated into its sur-
roundings, a site of daily life tightly connected
to nature, and a place where people can relax.
Chiang takes inspiration from the tradi-

tional solar terms and from old villages. Take

Taiwans old courtyard residences, for exam-

ple. In the past, when there was no electricity

Lee Shwuting takes
time out to commune
with nature.

19

6

LOGO

Chiang Wen-yuan focuses on old villages and the traditional
solar terms, creating a holistic connected ambiance.
or air-conditioning, courtyard houses were
cool in summer and warm in winter, because
they were built facing south, to greet the
southerly seasonal breezes of summer and
ward off the cold northerlies of winter. The
buildings represent a dialogue between peo-
ple and nature.
The central courtyard may seem useless
but in fact has many purposes, serving as
a place where grain is dried, people work,
children play, adults mingle, and weddings,
funerals and other ceremonies are held. The
courtyard is called the heart of Heaven, a
hub for sky and earth and man and god, an
interface where humankind and nature meet.
Chiang Wen-yuan is very moved to see a
landscape of terraced fields and traditional
masonry irrigation ditches, rarely seen in
Northern Taiwan, preserved in Bayan Village
in New Taipei Citys Jinshan District. More-
over, people living in old towns like Jiufen or
Jinguashi in New Taipei City and Zhushan in
Nantou County have gradually become more
aware of so-called solar terms architecture.
21



The indoor space and the outdoor aromatic garden at the
Je Shui Pavilion echo and complement each other.

Frank Lloyd Wright

22 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1


Abodes for the soul
In both old towns and courtyard homes,
we can find commonly used but overlooked
corners where the energy flows of people
and places congregate. Chiang cites the Je Shui
Pavilion located in Zhubei City in northwest-
ern Taiwan as an example. The pavilions outer
wall is long, but there is only one small gate 120
centimeters wide. When you visit the pavilion,
the first thing you see is the sign of the pavilion
in the shade of the trees outside the gate, which
welcomes visitors and bids them farewell. As
you walk in, what you see next is an Earth God
temple with a temple square. The layout reso-
nates with the land-based culture and ethics of
a traditional agrarian society.
Take a turn and you will see a huge rock,
making you feel as though you have entered a
mountain village. Then you see a garden, not
of ornamental plants but rather of edible plants
such as sweet potato, Chinese angelica and
papaya. There are also chickens scratching and
pecking around. Stroll across a small bridge and
you will hear the burbling sound of a brook,
which filters out the noise of the bustling traffic
outside. After you cross the bridge, youll see a
traditional cooking stove of a kind now rarely
seen in cities. This is the favorite corner of the
employees at the pavilion, who lunch here on a
daily basis. Every day, you can see people feed-
ing the chickens as they eat.
A serene temple situated in a bustling city,
the Bodhisattva Temple in Dali District, Tai-
chung, was designed by Chiang Wen-yuan.
When just built, the fair-faced concrete walls of
the temple were austere. However, over time
they have been embellished with greenery, and
are now covered most of the year, being only
bare in winter. Time has inscribed an ecological
succession on the walls and adorns the temple
in various styles in different seasons.
To Chiang, Western architecture is like a static
music that emphasizes form, visual effect and
People can admire the traditional customs, the
scenery and the cultural life of Zhubei at the Je Shan
buildings, constructed in harmony with the cycle of
the solar terms. (courtesy of Banmu Tang)
balanced proportions; while Eastern architecture
is a fluid music that does not focus on outward
appearance. He associates the Bodhisattva Tem-
ple, a task-force creation, with a traditional Chi-
nese poem that goes: Deep, deep, how deep the
courtyards are. A perfect example of solar terms
architecture, the temple is a place for people to
heighten awareness and visit space in time, and
have a holistic, five-dimensional experience in
which sensation and location merge, as they were
supposed to do in traditional Chinese poetry.
Chiang Wen-yuan and Allen Hoo founded
the architectural firm Banmu Tang Environmen-
tal Integration and came up with the idea of so-
lar terms architecture based on years of expe-
rience as practicing architects. They envision an
architecture that not only meets peoples needs
for basic lodging and leisure but also integrates
with nature, effecting what ancient Chinese phi-
losophers called peaceful coexistence and unity
of heaven and humanity.
Lee Shwuting also confides that the core value
of solar terms architecture is the Tao or Way
mentioned in a passage in Laozis Tao Te Ching
that goes: Man follows Earth. Earth follows the
Universe. The Universe follows the Tao. The Tao
follows only itself. In other words, the Tao of
solar terms architecture is based on humanity
and the universe. Inspired by this core value,
forgiving, adaptable abodes for the soul have
been built in the hopes of bringing about the
peaceful coexistence of heaven and humanity.
23
24 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1
 Symbiosis with nature
Frank Lloyd Wright believed that the ar-
chitect who studies life and understands life
will achieve the greatest success.
The goal of solar terms architecture is
to rediscover the symbiosis between human-
kind, architecture and nature that character-
izes old settlements and courtyard houses,
so that people who have lost touch with
the seasons with the advent of electricity
and air-conditioning, people who no longer
follow the solar terms tradition, people
whose mental and physical health suffers en-
vironmental repercussions, can recover by re-
forming relationships that have been broken

The Bodhisattva Temple in Dali, Taichung is a

off, relationships captured in the old saying:
peaceful oasis in the hustle and bustle of the city, respect heaven and humanity, listen to your
a place where the alternations of nature arouse
different sensations with the changes of the seasons. surroundings.
The slogan of the Je Shan (like a moun-
tain) series of buildings built by Banmu
Tang in Zhubei is Lets bring back water and
trees! Lets invite bulbuls, dragonflies and
fireflies back home! Banmu Tang is proud to

hear from the residents of the buildings that

they often see fireflies, Chinese tree toads and

light-vented bulbuls around their buildings.

As the residents are guided by solar terms
architecture to follow the solar terms, learn
local customs and agrarian traditions, and
create collective memories by celebrating fes-
tivals with their neighbors, a contemporary
solar terms lifestyle has taken shape.
Lee Shwu ting, Chiang Wen-yuan, Allen

Hoo and other members of the Solar Terms

Architecture Task Force are convinced that

they are not alone in their pursuit of the Tao.
In addition to Taiwans local solar terms
architecture, which has established sites of
subjectivity that grow out of the local soil,
distinctive architectures that celebrate the
spirit of each season of the year can be found

all over the world. Lets join hands and wel-

come new natural and spiritual vistas on

l

our contemporary civilization!

(Tempest Lai/photos by Chuang Kung-ju/

l tr. by Darryl Sterk)

25
 erms
T
The 24 Solar

Comfort Food
Cultivating Taiwans Local Flavors


T he solar terms are derived from the wis-
dom of our ancient Chinese ancestors,
guiding people toward coexistence with the

environment and farming according to times

and seasons. But as industrial and com-

mercial activities have gradually replaced
agriculture in modern society, the role of the

(courtesy of Seed Design)
solar terms has been slowly fading.
Fortunately, there are people who appre-
ciate the value of the solar terms in Chinese

culture. A company called Seed Design, for

example, promotes a diet related to the solar

terms, and an organization called Taiwan

Way encourages organic cultivation in

Taiwans Aboriginal communities, and runs
a restaurant using ingredients produced
according to the terms. These groups have
revived the solar terms as a natural part of
peoples lives through food.

art by Hu Ju-yu, Henry Wang

27


15

The beautiful flavors of solar term foods are preserved in
glass jars at Seed Design.

28 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1

 As early as the Spring and Autumn Period
(770476 BCE) of the Zhou Dynasty, ancient
Chinese astronomers devised the solar terms
according to the position of the sun every 15
degrees along the ecliptic, making each solar
term a period of approximately 15 days. Each
has its unique characteristics: for example,
when spring thunder sounds during Awak-
ening of Insects, all living things on the
earth wake up; while at Frosts Descent,
winter is approaching and the weather is get-
ting cold. In the past, farmers would organize
their agricultural program according to the
solar terms, and they became an agricultural
calendar in the ancient Chinese world that
has endured to this day. a deep sapphire blue. So the company cleverly
Solar terms in color uses xingguan baolan (stars in a sapphire blue
While the ancient Chinese used texts to sky) to describe Major Heat, bringing a cool
explain the solar terms, Seed Design employs mood to a hot summers day.
colors to interpret their characteristics. For The solar terms can become an important
example, sapphire blue is used to represent part of peoples lives, says Pink Kan, creative
Major Heat (the hottest time of the year).
While many might argue that the hottest
day should be hot red, the company thought

about the color of the sky after sunset, just Seed Design believes the solar terms are an
before darkness falls. At that moment when important part of life, and bring a more natural flavor
to dining. Their foods are displayed in decorative
the stars are just becoming visible, the sky is patterns. (photo above courtesy of Seed Design)

29

called chun jiu zhi yue (spring chives rendezvous), which
is full of the atmosphere of spring. Watermelon harvested
With a rich cultural foundation springing from
the solar terms, Seed Design is able to explore
creative uses of local foods in its research lab.
director at Seed Design. They are very important for Chi-
nese people. In fact, they are our lives: we eat the produce
that farmers cultivate according to the solar terms. By so
doing, we come to appreciate the functions of the solar
terms, the land, and the wisdom of our Chinese ancestors.
Then we feel more confident in facing the world.
In order to explore the profound cultural expression
of solar terms, Kan set up Seed Sight Lab next to Seed
Designs office to transform produce grown according to
the solar terms into a range of delicious foods ready for
the dining table.
Fresh chives, which are in season at Start of Spring,
together with bean sprouts, omelet and fried sakura
shrimps, all in a spring roll wrapping, becomes a dish
at Minor Heat, diced and sprinkled with cheese, lemon
zest and toasted pine nuts, becomes a dish that uses com-
mon local ingredients, but boasts an exotic tang.
Seed Design have edited their delicious solar term diet
recipes into eight books, which are as much about the aes-

8 thetics of life as they are about healthy eating.

Solar terms in daily life

Food produced according to the solar terms is not

only good to eat fresh; it also makes delicious preserves

through natural drying or pickling. We divide the ingre-
dients into fresh and preserved, and whats important

when cooking is to think about what fresh ingredients are
suitable to cook with preserved, rather than what the dish
is called says Maya Ma, an employee of Seed Design.
Adding onions cooked in red wine to braised beef, or
using sugared roses when cooking a dessert to enhance

aromas, Seed Design aims to promote new ways of think-

ing about the interactions between fresh and preserved

ingredients in order to create new flavors. A solar term
diet can be simple, but is never boring.
In addition to ingredients that can be bought from
the market, homegrown Chinese basil, rosemary or wild
flowers and herbs can form an important part of a solar
term diet. For Seed Design, the solar terms are not just

related to food, but can also be an important part of peo-

ples lives. For example, the ingredients make delicious

food but create beautiful decorations for the dining table

as well.
For special events, Seed Design uses seasonal herbs to
create a circle on the dining table at each diners place,

30 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1



Cultivation according to
the seasons and climate
is an inheritance from
ancient Chinese ancestors.
The solar terms have been
used for millennia as an
agricultural calendar.

31


16





12

32 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1


Wu Meimao (right) has encouraged
organic farming among Taiwans Aboriginal
communities for many years. This year, she
opened a restaurant called Original Food to
deliver the simple but rich flavors of solar term
food. (photo at right courtesy of Taiwan Way)
into which are placed the dishes of food,
bringing a more natural environment to the
dining experience. For Seed Design, the dis-
play of the food can be just as satisfying to a
diner as its taste. Its an attitude to food that
integrates aesthetics with healthy eating.
Taiwan Way
If Seed Design is performing magic with
peoples dining experiences, Taiwan Way has
the goal of incorporating the concept of the
solar terms into peoples lives.
One concept is that crops should be culti-
vated according to the natural solar terms. As
modern agriculture places increasing empha-
sis on quick and efficient mass production,
people are becoming concerned about dam-
age to farmland, since modern techniques
ignore the solar terms. As a result, a group of
people in Taiwan have initiated a revolution
to embrace more organic farming methods.
Wu Meimao, founder of Taiwan Way, is one
of the pioneers of organic agriculture for Tai-
wans Aboriginal communities.
Wu was originally engaged in research
into the possibility of replacing chemical
pesticides with microbial pesticides. But after
she underwent surgery for cancer, an organic
diet became a priority. At the same time, a
Christian missionary in Hua lien was plan-
ning to create job opportunities for Aborig-
inal people in agriculture. The missionary
contacted Wu at the Development Center for
Biotechnology to involve her in the project.
Wu has worked in organic agriculture
for 16 years. She has contributed to many
Aboriginal communities across Taiwan, and
has earned the epithet of tribal mother.
Wu has helped Aboriginal farmers to find
the right crops for their local climates and
environments. For Wu, the solar terms are a
normal part of life for ordinary people, and so
as long as people are engaged in natural farm-
ing, the earth will return the investment with
abundance. For example, during the period of
Frosts Descent, persimmons grown in the
Atayal village of Piyaway in Taoyuan Citys
Fuxing District are ripe for harvesting; after
Major Snow in early December, its a good
time for Chinese cabbages grown by Atayal
farmers in the mountains to be pickled. People
can make the most of a natural lifestyle if they
follow the solar terms.
Authentic flavors
Wu established Taiwan Way as a social
enterprise, stressing the authentic flavors of
local Taiwan produce and providing advice to
help the Aboriginal peoples develop process-
ing techniques for their agricultural products.
The company also helps to revitalize local vari-
eties, looking for stories from the local Aborig-
inal communities relating to their traditional
crops and farming techniques. For exam-
ple, Limnophila rugosa is a semi-aquatic herb
that grows in the Amis village of Tidaan (Shiti-
ping) in Hualien Countys Fengbin Township.
Flourishing in an environment fed by fresh
spring water, its a Taiwanese endemic species
that is used by the village elders to brew alco-
holic spirits. As Wu observed and explored
33


If farmers work hard to cultivate crops according to
the solar terms, the earth will return the investment in
abundance. (facing page photo courtesy of Taiwan Way)

5
6









l

34 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1


their ancestral wisdom, she was able to guide
the community to appreciate the value of the
species, helping the young to see job oppor-
tunities in their own community and encour-
aging them to return to their hometowns.
Cultivation according to the solar terms
doesnt mean that crops will grow faster. In
fact, this mode of farming may create more
work for the farmer. Its an attitude of respect
for and protection of nature. For example,
processing of the roselle cultivated by some
Aboriginal communities in Taitung County is
a simple but time-consuming process involv-
ing a great deal of manual work to harvest
the calyxes and remove the seed capsules.
Pickled honey roselle, which uses the fresh
roselle calyx mixed with sugar and honey,
and roselle biscuits, baked from dried roselle
ground at low temperatures and wheat flour,
are examples of solar term products devel-
oped by Taiwan Way and Aboriginal commu-
nities working together.
The over-commercialization of farming
has meant that many have abandoned tra-
ditional cultivation methods and have lost
touch with nature. Taiwan Way aims to bring
people close to the soil again, says Wu. Nat-
urally cultivated crops are given an appro-
priate time period for growth, time to absorb
all of the rich minerals supplied by the soil,
bringing out all the deep, full flavors of natu-
rally farmed food. To highlight the enormous
differences between natural cultivation and
technology-based farming, earlier this year Wu
opened a restaurant in Taipeis Zhongzheng
District called Original Food.
Original Food is based on the concept of a
solar term diet, eating only locally produced
food in season. The restaurant uses only fresh
seasonal ingredients from Aboriginal commu-
nities, prepared simply, for its delicious solar
term meals. Its early winter, the right time
for a special soup that uses seasonal taro, and
fermented soybean paste with pineapple, all
stewed together with pork ribs and simple sea-
soning. People from the neighborhood are reg-
ulars at Original Food, regarding the restaurant
as their home kitchen away from home.
Apart from offering solar term meals, the
restaurant also features various pickled solar
term foods displayed in jars along the wall,
with produce such as pickled peaches made in
the Grain Full period, and Taiwanese chrys-
an themum (Dendranthema indicum) in the
Minor Snow period. Through simple preser-
vation techniques, people can enjoy seasonal
produce anytime without having to cultivate
crops in inappropriate seasons.
We are all organisms nourished by the
earth, and we can all benefit from the wisdom
of our ancestors. A deep understanding of the
solar terms helps us to learn how to live well,
and to understand our roots. People are far
better nourished by their own local resources.
We hope that the wonderful flavors of the solar
term diet can be enjoyed by increasing num-
bers of people, and hope also that the Chinese
solar term culture will proliferate forever. l
(Chen Chun-fang/photos by Jimmy Lin/
tr. by Geoff Hegarty and Sophia Chen)
35
 erms
T
The 24 Solar

Cheers to Craft Beers
Fresh Flavors to Delight the Taste Buds

S tarting with Grain Rain, the name of the solar term that presages
the imminent start of summer, Taiwan Head Brewers have launched
their Solar Term Series of beers, each sporting labels by renowned cal-
ligrapher Wu Ming.
After Grain Rain come Start of Summer, Summer Solstice, Ma-
jor Heat and the rest. The series is the brainchild of the three founders
of Taiwan Head Brewers, Ray Sung, Jay Duan, and Leo Yeh, and consists
of beers named after the solar terms in the traditional Chinese calendar.
Each beer is brewed to suit its respective season, providing beer lovers
with a perfect choice year round.

art by Hu Ju-yu, Henry Wang

37


20155

Leo Yeh, Ray Sung and Jay Duan (left to right) have
launched their Solar Term Series lineup of beers,
section giving drinkers beers to fit each stage of each season.

38 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1

 In May 2015, as that years busy season for
the beer industry was about to start, Taiwan
Head Brewers unveiled two beers nearly a
year in the planning: Grain Rain and Start
of Summer. Each of these beers combines lo
cal tradition with Western brewing methods,
creating beers that are distinctively Taiwanese.
Drinking through the seasons
By naming these and the beers that fol
lowed after solar terms, the young brew
masters and cofounders of Taiwan Head Brew
ers, Ray Sung, Jay Duan, and Leo Yeh, hoped
to not only bust open the stereotype that beer
is for summer drinking, but also create beers
with a touch of familiarity for drinkers.
For instance, the first beer of their creation,
Grain Rain, also uses Taiwanese oolong tea
as an ingredient.
The Grain Rain solar term in the traditional
Chinese calendar corresponds with a time when
rainfall increases and the earth is left moist and
fertile. This term, in late April, also corresponds
with the tea picking season at Longjing near the
West Lake in Hangzhou, mainland China, and
the tea collected at that time has a reputation
for quality. This solar term has more of a con
nection with tea than any other, and so Sung
and his two partners decided to pair Taiwanese
spring oolong with a Belgianstyle pale ale for
their beer Grain Rain.
After summer had begun in earnest, Taiwan
Head Brewers launched the second of their
summer beers, pairing a Belgianstyle specialty
ale with winter melon in Grain Full.
A Collective Interpretation of the 72 Phenologi-
cal Terms, by Wu Cheng (12491333), describes
39


Taiwan Head Brewers second Solar Term beer, Grain Full, is sweetened with winter melon punch
cake. The beers in the series offer a refreshing palate overlaid with local flavors like Taiwanese
tieguanyin tea, jinxuan oolong, and jasmine. (right photo courtesy of Taiwan Head Brewers)

stout

40 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1



the Grain Full solar term, in the fourth lunar

month, as being when the crop is somewhat
full, which is to say that as we enter summer
and the weather turns warm, crops begin to
set seed, with the ears of grain growing fuller
by the day, but not yet ripening. The arrival
of this solar term has traditionally been a time
of great excitement for the upcoming harvest
among agrarian communities.
In keeping with the name and what it sig
nifies, Taiwan Head Brewers aspired to make
Grain Full beer a pleasing drop that is full of
warmth. To this end, they chose a Belgianstyle
specialty ale as the foundation, topping it off
with Taiwans own distinctive winter melon
punch cake. (The cake is made by boiling down
winter melon with brown sugar. Pieces are dis
solved in water to make winter melon punch.)
Belgian brewers have traditionally added
sugars to their brews. In earlier times trans
portation was difficult, so they used the lo
cally available beet sugar. This is the source
of the sweetness Belgian beers are known for.
Now, half a world and a couple of centuries
away, these Taiwanese brewers have similarly
utilized a local source of sweetness, making
oldfashioned winter melon punch cake their
goto choice.
Where Start of Summer is marked by a
crisp flavor full of personality that people tend
to either love or hate, Grain Full is more in
the traditional style of Belgian specialty ales,
with a touch of the familiar flavor of winter
melon on top.
Beer is traditionally considered cold in
nature, and so when winter rolls around, the
beer market tends to start its low season. Tai
wan Head Brewers, though, are determined

to swim against the current with winter beers

like Start of Winter and Minor Cold.
Taiwan Head Brewers most iconic beers so
far, Start of Summer and Grain Rain, both
Putting out more seasonal beers to match
pair their beer with seasonally appropriate the changing weather is an old tradition in
Taiwanese oolong. (lower photo courtesy of
Taiwan Head Brewers) the West. For Minor Cold, Taiwan Head

41


Craft beer is on the rise in Taiwan, and Taiwan Head Brewers
have not only launched several of their own craft beers, but also
opened a bar, Mikkeller, in the Dadaocheng area of Taipei.

Triumph6


32

2008

2015

3

32014
3


242424
24


New Hope

42 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1


Brewers chose to pair a Britishstyle stout
a common winter beerwith cocoa beans
from Pingtung to produce a wintery beer that
mixes East and West.
As the Solar Term Series beers continue
to roll out with the changing seasons and
flavors, already they have begun winning
awards. Their first award-winner was Start
of Summer, which took a silver medal at the
2015 International Beer Cup in Yoko hama,
Japan. But in contrast to the many flavored
beers in the series, this brew relied purely
on the basic ingredients of beer: malt, hops,
yeast, and water.
Simplicity and purity are at the core of
Sung, Duan, and Yehs plan for the Solar Term
Series. Not only do they want these beers to
be accessible, they also hope each beer will
satisfy their collective desire as brewers to
stick to the more pure brewing methods.
That Start of Summer so rapidly won
international acclaim was a huge source of
encouragement for the trio.
Rise of the craft brewing movement
By day, Sung is an engineer for computer
makers MSI, while Duan is head brewmas
ter for North Taiwan Brewing. Yeh became
Taiwan Head Brewers sales specialist after
finishing his military service. Between them,
they represent the growing homebrew move
ment among children of the 70s, 80s, and 90s.
Sungs love affair with beer started with
a surprise during a family trip just before he
returned to Taiwan from studying overseas.
Studying toward a degree in electrical en
gineering in the US, he took a trip to a small
town in Pennsylvania where he dined at the
restaurant of Triumph Brewing Company, a
brewery over a century old. There he tried six
beers, each with their own distinctive, complex
tastes, and, bowled over, he decided to begin
exploring the world of craft beer.
In his senior year of college, the now32
yearold Jay Duan started working parttime at
North Taiwan Brewing, where his uncle Duan
Kowjen worked as a consultant, beginning
43


11



Incorporating local crops like oolong, jasmine, and
Pingtung cocoa into their Solar Term Series beers
has helped Taiwan Head Brewers show their love for
their homeland.




3 3
3

20
100
100

3

2
l

44 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1

his journey into the craft beer world. After
finishing school and completing his military
service, Duan was confronted by a pessimistic
economic outlook as the financial crisis of 2008
unfurled. He decided to travel to far-off Aus
tralia and do seasonal work to get by, visiting
some 40 or 50 Australian breweries along the
way. Since returning to Taiwan, he has not only
continued to explore the world of beer, but also
become a multiple award winner for his work
as North Taiwan Brewings head brewmaster.
The youngest of the team, Leo Yeh, first got
involved in home brewing after meeting Duan
Kowjen, known as the godfather of Taiwanese
craft beer. While still in school, Yeh founded
Taiwans first liquid yeast company, Yehs
Yeast Company.
Passionate about cooking, Yeh taught him
self how to bake, enamored with the feeling
that came with watching each item come to
gether from scratch. However, after dining at a
few restaurants he came to see cooking as tak
ing ingredients from life to death, whereas
brewing beer is precisely the opposite: After
you add the yeast and hops, you can watch as
the beer comes alive over time.
These three beer lovers already knew each
other through their shared passion before going
into business together, meeting often through
gettogethers organized by groups like the Tai
wan Craft Beer Club and Taiwan Homebrew
Maniacs. Each time they met, they would ex
citedly share their latest discoveries, all while
quietly harboring their own ideas about going
into business.
One night in 2014, while idly chatting, the
three decided to pool their resources and make a
move, forming Taiwan Head Brewers and start
ing their journey with the Solar Term Series.
With 24 solar terms, that meant coming
up with 24 different beers. While picking 24
different beers from the hundreds of varieties
wouldnt be a difficult task, instead we made
the ballsier choice, basically like stepping up to
the plate and pointing way into the outfield like
were going to hit a home run, says Sung.
Their first beers,
Grain Rain and Start
of Summer, immediately got rave
reviews and flew off the shelves.
The three figured they had
passed their big test, never
expecting that it would
be with their third beer, Summer
Solstice, that they would start
running into trouble.
The company responsible for producing the
beer for Taiwan Head Brewers made a mistake
when setting the saccharification temperature,
which decides the quality of the body and the
sharpness of the beer. That meant that the body
and taste werent what theyd expected, and all
that was left to do was dump two tons of fully
brewed beer.
So far, Taiwan Head Brewers have launched
11 of their 24 Solar Terms beers. Were not
halfway done yet, laughs Sung, so theres still
time to turn back. However, in the year and
change that they have been in operation, the
reception theyve gotten has been beyond all
expectationsinitially theyd expected to sell
out of all their beers by the end of the year, but
sales have been far, far faster than that. They
also began racking up international plaudits,
including at Japans International Beer Cup, the
Australian International Beer Awards, the Asia
Beer Cup in Japan, and the World Beer Awards.
While the international recognition has been
nice, the trio behind Taiwan Head Brewers are
more interested in the future of craft beer in
Taiwan. As they state on their website, their
goal is to create great and unique beer with
local ingredients, creativity, love, and passion.
With local ingredients like whitetip oolong
tea, tieguanyin tea, Pingtung cocoa and jas
mine flowers from Changhua, the Solar Term
Series beers are a reflection of the out-of-the-
box thinking of these three beer geeks, and
their hope that beer lovers will be able to enjoy
a taste of Taiwan in every sip. l
(Liu Yingfeng/photos by Lin Min-hsuan/
tr. by Geof Aberhart)
45
 T erms
The 24 Solar

Like From the Wizarding World
A Colorful New Take on the 24 Solar Terms

46 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1

W inter, spring, summer, fall, Start
of Spring, Awakening of Insects,
Frosts Descent, Winter Solstice the
four seasons and the 24 solar terms of the
Chinese calendar accompany the land through
its cycles. The illustrator Cinyee Chiu, who is
still in her 20s, has employed rich creativity
and skillful technique to put an entirely new
spin on these seasonal periods.
Under her brush, the 24 solar terms appear
as magical creatures that have escaped from
a spirit world. Behold the Clear and Bright
Fox, the Limit of Heat Hedgehog, the Major
Heat Snake.

Now living in the United States and a recent

graduate of the Maryland Institute College of
Art (MICA), Cinyee Chiu created her 24 Solar
Terms Project for her portfolio when applying
to art schools in 2014. Thanks to Facebook, the

art
illustrations have since garnered a lot of atten-
tion online.
Theyre so beautiful! Like from the wizard-

by Henry Wang
ing world! Many have expressed sincere and
unabashed praise upon seeing Chius creations.
New takes on old seasons
Drawing on animals such as foxes, ele-
phants, rabbits and goats, Chius carefully
rendered magical images corresponding to the
24 solar terms are deftly rendered and inge-
niously arranged.
For instance, a deer that seems to have run
out from the wizarding world represents the
last solar term of spring: Grain Rain.

Start of Autumn Squirrel, Frosts Descent Goat, Major

Cold Eagle The illustrator Cinyee Chiu has put a
creatively beautiful and magical new take on the 24
solar terms of the traditional Chinese calendar.

47


72










72



72

Chiu takes great joy in bringing to life the creative

visions in her mind, one stroke at a time.
72





4



 Tawny in real life, here the deer is light
pink, with antlers shaped like peonies. The
beautiful, magical style of design was inspired
by a story describing the legend of Grain
Rain that Chiu just happened to read. In the
legend, there was a young person known as
Grain Rain, who was a very good swimmer.
When the floods came, he saved a peony.
Later, the peony turned into a fairy who ex-
pressed her gratitude, and he fell in love with
her. One day, Grain Rain died attempting to
save his true love. So now, every year at that
time, rains fall from heaven, and peonies
bloom. The peony fairy of the story became
the inspiration for Chius Grain Rain Deer.
Chiu embellishes the painting with images
of turmeric, which is harvested during Grain
Rain and is used in Chinese medicine as an
antipyretic and a diuretic.
Chiu has captured Start of Autumn,
when the heat of summer abates, with an im-
age of a squirrel.
She ignored the description of Start of
Autumn that is found in Shixun Jie, a
chapter of the Yi Zhou Shu (Lost Book of
inspiration from a passage in Yi Zhou Shu: At
After graduating from the Maryland Institute
College of Art, Chiu decided to pursue work as an
illustrator for periodicals, a highly competitive field.
Zhou). Instead, she picked a
squirrel to play the leading role
for fall. Squirrels are suggestive of
pine cones in Chinese since they are
literally known as pine rodents.
She has added an image of the Asian
fruit longan, whose translucent flesh, black
pit and brown peel set the paintings visual
tone. Start of Autumn Squirrel was thus born.
In contrast to the bleakness of falls arrival
depicted in Start of Autumn Squirrel, Chiu de-
picts the heat of Summer Solstice with reds,
yellows and greens. Cicadas, whose songs fill
summer days, are an obvious choice to take
the leading role in depicting that solar term.
Cicadas and watermelons, two things
associated with summer, are the principal
elements of her composition on the Summer
Solstice solar term. But because there is also
a mention of deer antlers in the Yi Zhou Shus
description of that period, Chius illustration
Summer Cicada, in addition to featuring the
deep greens of watermelons, also has an im-
age of deer antlers that can be found within
the delicate patterns of the cicadas wings.
For Major Cold, which conveys a sense
of the year coming to an end, Chiu created
the illustration Major Cold Eagle, which draws
Major Cold, waterfowl start laying eggs. Later,
falcons hunt prey and rivers freeze over.
A soaring eagle is the image that Chiu
chose to use for the solar term Major Cold.
The deep blue and purple coloration and the
images of frozen rivers found in its plumage
convey a sense of winter s bitter cold. The
work has a striking elegance, and close in-
spection reveals that Chiu adopted daikon
radish leaves for the eagles tail, since the
radishes are harvested during the winter.
Coming after Minor Cold Pigeon, Ma-
jor Cold Eagle is the last of the 24
solar terms and the final one to
receive its own animal represen-
tation. Without having previously
49











1988





YouTube3D
Project 10
32014

Stone of Youth
Even though Chiu had at one point set aside her
brushes and pens, she is still young and now certain
of her choice to pursue artistic creation. Shown here,
Chius picture book Stone of Youth.

VS.

50 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1


received professional training, Chiu thus cre-
ated her careers first series of illustrations.
I just want to paint!
Full of color and beautiful magical style,
the series kicked off Chius career as an illus-
trator. Using it as her portfolio, she applied
to the Maryland Institute College of Art and
three other art schools in the United States
with the intention of becoming a professional
artist. She had previously believed that only
very fortunate people would be able to de-
vote their lives to artistic creation.
Born in 1988, Chiu began to create art in
junior high school. Mainstream Japanese and
Korean anime was a major influence. She
temporarily set aside her passion when she
enrolled in college. It wasnt until her last
semester that her passion was reawakened
during an Innovation and Entrepreneur-
ship class. Students from a variety of majors
formed groups and divided up work for
their project. Though an economics student,
Chiu got the task of handling the art design
for a report. As a consequence, Cheng Ande,
a fellow team member who was her junior,
discovered her talent. After graduating she
joined his Project 10, a 4D projection map-
ping project, handling art work.
Returning to creative work after having set
it aside several years before, Chiu felt under a
lot of pressure. She had forgotten the joy she
took from artistic creation, but upon finishing
the project, she says, I became convinced
that I wanted to pursue art as a career.
Cheng, who had worked side by side
with her on the project, pushed her. When
he saw Chiu goofing off, he would urge her
to regain her focus on the art. The reminders
highlighted an irony: Previously, when I
spent too much time on my art, it meant that
I was neglecting my studies. Yet now, when
I wasnt spending enough time illustrating, I
was goofing off!
Yet it wasnt as if Chiu never harbored any
doubts about pursuing art as a career before
she decided to attend art school. She had tried
the kind of jobs that economics graduates typ-
ically get: executive-track jobs in finance firms
or at foreign companies. Even if she knew that
business management work wasnt something
51

Behance




3







l

Whether her series of illustrations on the 24 solar
terms or pieces created for class, Chius artworks
often display childlike whimsy.

52 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1


that she loved, Chiu wasnt rejecting those
jobs out of hand. Perhaps in her mind she was
regarding that sort of work as simply a way to
make ends meet, knowing full well that few
people in the world are so lucky as to be able
to make a career from their passion and joy.
Economic sense vs. artistic sensibility
After Chiu graduated from National Tai-
wan University with a degree in economics,
her life took a big turn toward artistic cre-
ation, but her personal style and modus ope-
randi still bore much of the rationalism of an
economics student.
Her first job doing artwork for a video
game company was a result of that rational-
ism: To use the economics term, it was an
example of risk aversion. I wanted to avoid
exposing myself to potential loss. Even if she
had earlier contemplated the idea of going
abroad to attend an art school, Chiu deeply
understood that her technical mastery was
insufficient, so that she need to prepare better
before leaving for foreign study.
She selected a gaming company to start her
career. Her work was to illustrate the leading
character in a game, and it gave her lots of op-
portunities to practice. After three years at the
company, Chiu applied to MICA in 2013, pre-
paring to study art formally for the first time.
As opposed to how she had lived in Tai-
wan, at MICA Chiu began to spend her days
fully devoted to creating art. After her classes
let out, she would often draw and paint late
into the night. But she didnt regard that devo-
tion of her time as exhausting. To the contrary,
producing art had become quite addictive.
During her first year in the United States,
Chiu attained a stable, recognizable style for
her computer-created works. But she boldly
discarded it, and began instead creating new
works on paper. With computer illustrations,
color, line and rendering effects can all be cal-
culated exactly, but thats not the case at all
for works created by hand. Its like youre
starting all over again and are a total novice
who doesnt know how to draw, Chiu says.
Nevertheless, she found herself captivated by
the warmth of handmade illustrations.
Even if she is still groping her way toward
a better command of this new genre, Chiu,
who has been in America for more than two
years, is looking closely at various career
options as an illustrator. In Taiwan, illus-
trating is typically regarded as a fun leisure
pursuit that doesnt provide a reliable means
for making a living. But in the United States,
the market for illustrations is quite mature
a fact that is reflected not only in the fields
wages but also in the breadth of employment
options. Illustrators there can make a living
both in packaging design and in the publish-
ing industry. Chiu has chosen to work in the
highly competitive field of illustrating for
periodicals. Creating illustrations for text is
particularly challenging, she says, having
already accepted her first commission for a
local American publication.
As she takes the first steps in her career, the
illustrations of the 24 solar terms that she cre-
ated to apply to art school three years ago are
garnering new attention online. Chiu hasnt
let herself get too excited about the renewed
interest, but she has taken advantage of the
opportunity to reorganize the works and put a
statement online about the artistic conceptions
behind them. Furthermore, she has taken the
two-dimensional representations found in
Start of Spring Fish, Cold Dew Duck and others,
and turned them into animations.
After completing the animation of Greater
Cold Eagle, the last of the 24 solar terms, Chiu
has brought her work on the series to a close.
Dont worry, Ill soon start illustrating an-
other of these series! she has told readers
on her Facebook page. To her as an artist, the
24 solar terms resemble a gift from the ever-
revolving cycle of seasonsone that keeps on
giving, with ever new creative possibilities. l
(Liu Yingfeng/images courtesy of Cinyee
Chiu/tr. by Jonathan Barnard)
53


19 8 4







19 9 6

1 9 8 6
1987
199 6



1 9 8 4

192919531010

19 9 6

40 - 41

1945

19 4 8 11

19 8 4




( )


19 67

55


1999619

19 97.10



2 0 1 6 8 2 1


2 0 0 4 1 2 1 5
1916 2 0 0 4






2 0 07.7
825

56 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1



Critique Gntique

L a

C o u r n e u v e

57
 19 9 5

1991

1114

19 9 5

1961126

B o b b e a t

D y l a n generation

58 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1

 b e a t n i k Wo o d y G u t h r i e

D i n k y t o w n

h i p s t e r

F e r l i n g h e t t i

1959

b e a t

b e a t C o r s o

F e r l i n g h e t t i

h i p s t e r

Gaslight

59
Dylan

B r i n g i n g I t
A l l B a c k H o m eH i g h w a y 61 1 9 6 5
RevisitedBlonde on Blonde
S u b t e r r a n e a n H o m e s i c k
B l u e s1958
A H a r d R a i n s G o n n a T h e S u b t e r r a n e a n
F a l l

O n t h e R o a d A g a i n
19 6 3
B r i n g i n g I t A l l
B a c k H o m e1965 D e s o l a t i o n A n g e l s

19 6 5 D e s o l a t i o n R o w
1 9 6 4 d e s o l a t i o n

D e s o l a t i o n R o wJ u s t
19 6 5 19 6 6 Like Tom Thumbs Blues

60 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1



h i g h

19 61

1022

61


62 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1

 no bra

63
LIVING HISTORY


Our Good Neighbor at 120

Chunghwa Post Adapts to a New Era

65


120

1896120











10
2

The designer Aaron Nieh (left)
adopted a simple pixelated style for
his stamps commemorating the ROC
presidential inauguration, turning the
small space of a stamp into a platform
for artistic expression.

66 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1


2016
featuring various mailboxes, delivery vehicles and so
Chunghwa Post hosted the 2016 PhilaTaipei World Stamp
Championship Exhibition, spotlighting the themes of legacy
and innovation. The exhibition brought attendees on journeys
to the past and to the future.
W ith the prevalence of email and instant mes-
saging apps, people dont write letters as
often as they used to. But with the postal delivery
of products sold by online retailers, with postal
savings accounts and remittance services, and with
the friendly hellos from the aunties and uncles
behind the counters, Taiwans post offices seem a
safe bet to remain a part of peoples lives and collec-
tive memories. Established for 120 years, Chunghwa
Post has long been acting as a friendly neighbor.
Chunghwa Post was first established in 1896, so this
year marks its 120th anniversary (though it has recently
moved from being a government agency to a govern-
ment-owned corporation). It handles an increasingly
wide variety of products and services: postal services,
savings deposits and accounts, life insurance, philatelic
products, and property rentals, among others. It even
serves as an agent for sales of retail products.
PhilaTaipei 2016
At the end of October 2016, Chunghwa Post held the
2016 PhilaTaipei World Stamp Championship Exhibi-
tion after two years of preparations. It had worked very
hard to get the rights to host the exhibition on behalf of
the Fdration Internationale de Philatlie for the first
time. Some 80 nations were invited to attend and dis-
play their precious stamps and other philatelic products
for collectors from around the world.
Stamps, which have long provided necessary enu-
merations of postage and have gone with letters to
locations around the world, offer a glimpse of history or
culture within their tiny frames. They serve as the name
cards of their nations. Food, nature, ancient artifacts and
paintings, as well as images of famous persons, typically
provide their themes.
The Taiwans Scenic Beauty stamp set features
colorfully lined images of sky lanterns, dragon boats,
Yushan (Mt. Jade) and Sun Moon Lake. Chunghwa Post
120, on the other hand, ingeniously commemorates the
post offices history with a series of small illustrations
forth that have been used in different eras. Commemo-
rative stamps of ROC presidential inaugurations began
with the ninth president and previously featured tradi-
tional portraits of the president and vice president. For
the inauguration of the 14th president and vice president
in 2016, designer Aaron Nieh took a fun digital-age spin
on the portraits, creating simple pixelated illustrations
that left their eyes as single dots. Over time, these series
of commemorative stamps have become platforms for
showing off Taiwans design abilities, where artists can
both highlight their talents and promote a love for philat-
ely among young people.
New mailboxes with special Aboriginal flavors were
also unveiled at the exhibition. They too represent a
bright spot of innovation in the history of ROC postal ser-
vices. Chunghwa Post commissioned the Aboriginal artist
Lavuras Matilin to design mailboxes that draw on images
symbolic of various tribes, including colorful representa-
tions of the lilies of the Rukai, the flying fish and wooden
canoes of the Tao, and the Mayasvi Festival of the Tsou.
Chunghwa Post has consulted with various town-
ships about where to install these special mailboxes. For
instance, Paiwan-themed mailboxes will be installed in
Shizi and Taiwu in Pingtung County, and Atayal-themed
mailboxes are being sent to Hsinchu Countys Jianshi
and Yilan Countys Nanao. Meanwhile, there are plans
for an island-wide activity that will encourage people
to put photos of themselves next to these special mail-
boxes on Facebook in the hope of deepening the publics
understanding of Aboriginal culture and spurring local
tourism.
67


120

9

14

68 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1


computerized take-a-number systems and seated wait-
ing areas. The facilities are brighter with a better sense
120
of style. The traditional image of the post office has
Chunghwa Post chairman Philip Ong (far left,
photo courtesy of Chunghwa Post) is looking to
innovate and raise the quality of service so that
the post office moves beyond its traditional image.
The middle photo shows the historic Beimen post
office after renovations. Above: Stamps issued by
Chunghwa Post in commemoration of its 120th
anniversary (courtesy of Chunghwa Post).
A changing post office
Over the past few years, Chunghwa Post has been
sparing no effort at refurbishing its facilities in the hope
of giving the public a comfortable postal environment,
as well as providing outstanding service.
After being appointed Chung hwa Post chairman,
Philip Ong toured post offices in various locations and
discovered that many of them were showing their age.
Facing the decline of industry in Taiwan over the next
decade, Ong says, he realized that aging facilities needed
to be renovated so that local township post offices can
become extensions of peoples living rooms and young
people can be enticed to enter them. Giving post office
branches a younger and more community-minded ori-
entation starts with attention to appearances.
The post office on Renai Road in Taipei, originally
built over 50 years ago, was among the first wave of
renovations. The counters have been lowered in height.
Interactive computers allow customers to purchase
many postal products. Lines have been replaced with
been overhauled, while the public has been provided
with even more efficient and professional service.
The Renai Road post office was chosen as the pilot
branch for the project, and renovations have followed
elsewhere with the addition of local elements, such as
traditional eastern-Fujian-style architecture at the Matsu
branch and images of Mt. Alis sea of clouds and its
narrow-gauge railway in the palace-style architecture of
Chiayi Countys Alishan branch. Chunghwa Post hopes
to incorporate local elements so that post office branches
will become part of their locales collective memories.
The Fangshan branch in Pingtung, which has been
redesigned as one gigantic flat-rate shipping carton, rep-
resents another amazing breakthrough. The post office
in Ping tung hired a design team to think about how
to redesign the packaging of the post offices flat-rate
boxes to have some local panache: Carrier pigeons were
replaced with shrikes, and the sides of the boxes were
festooned with colorful representations of onions and

The Fangshan post office

in Pingtung County
was turned into a huge
locally themed flat-rate
shipping box, featuring
images of local crops
and wildlife, such as
onions, mangoes and
shrikes. Its an excellent
example of local postal
innovation. (courtesy of
Chunghwa Post)

69










JP Tower







368




l

70 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1


cooperation with National Taipei University of Technol-
Under the leadership of Philip Ong (in green in the photo at
left), the post office is emphasizing public-service work, helping
elderly people who are living alone and assisting small farmers in
marketing their fruit. (courtesy of Chunghwa Post).
mangoes, both local crops. Then the outside of the local
branch was transformed to appear as one huge such
box. Even the mailboxes were adorned with images of
shrikes and mail carriers. Rooftop solar panels supply
both the facility and the grid with power. Fangshan is on
the way to Kenting, but tourists used to just pass right
through it. Now it has become an attraction itself.
The peoples considerate friend
All of Taiwans cities and townships, including those
on its outer islands, have post office branches, and mail
carriers can be found carrying out their duties every-
where in Taiwan. It used to be that mail carriers would
get to know the lonely old people of their routes while
delivering mail. In recent years Ong has led the way
on public service efforts, once
even accompanying mail carriers
to deliver care packages to low-
income households. He has also
encouraged mail carriers, as they
deliver mail, to deliver rice and
For 120 years, the green-uniformed
mail carriers of the post office have
been accompanying us through our
lives. (photo by Chin Hung-hao)
medicine to seniors who are living alone, as
well as to offer them warm greetings. They
can thus provide a social service as they per-
form their professional duties.
Some say that mail carriers resemble
Santas elves in their green clothing. Apart
from bearing gifts for seniors living alone,
they have also helped small farmers sell
fruit. By making use of its own online sales
platform, Chunghwa Post has helped small
farmers expand their sales channels. In
ogys Department of Cultural Vocation Development, it
has also designed some culturally creative packaging
that makes various plays on words involving fruit.
With high-quality services, Ong says, business
revenues will naturally follow. After Chung hwa
Post began to help small farmers sell their fruit, some
branches deposits actually increased. It turned out that
small farmers transferred savings that they had origi-
nally kept at farmers associations or credit cooperatives
to the local post office branch. Consequently, the Dashu
branch in Kaohsiung climbed one grade in Chunghwa
Posts internal classifications.
Chunghwa Post has thrown itself into raising quality
and improving its image. Casting off the shackles of
being a government agency, Chunghwa Post is creating
a new corporate structure and working hard to act as a
good neighbor and provide far-reaching services that
can accompany us through our lives. l
(Chen Chun-fang/photos by Lin Min-hsuan/
tr. by Jonathan Barnard)
71
LIVING HISTORY

1959

The International
In the half-century since
Taiwan dispatched
its first agricultural

Cooperation and
aid mission in 1959,
government and NGO
foreign assistance

Development Fund
efforts have marched
steadily forward. Aid
efforts have left their

20 Years On
mark on Haiti, Nauru,
and other countries on
five continents.

20
1996

72 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1



F

Countries like Nauru and
or the last two decades, the International Cooperation and Develop- Kiribati, where the climate
ment Fund has shouldered the important responsibility of conducting makes it difficult to grow
fruit and vegetables, have
Taiwans foreign assistance programs. Since its founding in 1996, the made use of the assistance
of ICDF technical teams to
ICDF has undertaken agricultural, medical, and humanitarian programs get better harvests.
in all corners of the Earthfrom Africa to Central and South America to
the AsiaPacific region. And through its initiatives it has closed the dis-
tance between Taiwan and the wider world.

73
20

At the ICDFs 20th anniversary celebration, Secretary General Weber V.B. Shih expressed his
hopes that Taiwans aid programs would help share the Taiwan experience with the rest of the
world. (photo by Lin Min-hsuan)

1959
1950

2000
1996

20






1996

74 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1

 The year 1959 marked a major shift in Taiwans interna-
tional status. After a decade of US aid, a mature and prosper-
ous Taiwan reached the point where it could, in turn, lend a
helping hand to the rest of the world. Taiwans transition
from aid recipient to aid donor constitutes a rare historical
achievement, says Weber V.B. Shih, secretary general of the
International Cooperation and Development Fund (ICDF).
More than a half century after Taiwan dispatched its first
agricultural team to Saigon, Vietnam, governmental and
nongovernmental foreign assistance has marched steadily
forward. From the earliest work in the African nation of
Liberia, initiatives have since crisscrossed the Middle East,
Central and South America, and the AsiaPacific, address-
ing various needs from agriculture and fishery techniques
to irrigation projects and disease prevention. Indeed, there
seem to be few regions receiving foreign aid that have not
felt the presence of Taiwans assistance.
In 1996, the ICDF inherited the foreign aid responsibil-
ities of two earlier government bodiesthe Committee of
International Technical Cooperation and the International
Economic Cooperation Development Fund. In the 20 years
since, the ICDF has brought Taiwan closer to the global
community by implementing effective agricultural, medi-
cal, educational, and other programs both in countries that
maintain formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan and in
those that dont.
Changing with the times
Today, international cooperation programs directed
at improving agriculture and public health are still an
important part of the ICDFs work. Yet, from early agri-
cultural missions to todays technical assistance teams, the
ICDFs foreign assistance has continued to change with
the needs of recipients. Initiatives have become more com-
prehensive and more detailed, and today cover a broader
range of aid programs, including information and com-
munications, the environment, and education. As a result,
foreign assistance is producing more tangible results.
In the agricultural sector, for example, the ICDF in coor-
dination with its technical teams established So Tom and
Prncipes first multifunctional agricultural center, which
incorporates a farmers market and wholesale distribution.
In the past, famers sold their crops by the roadside after the
harvest, but this resulted in wildly fluctuating prices and
exploitation by wholesalers. After learning the lessons in-
troduced by the technical teams and combining wholesale
and retail strategies, the farmers saw a rise in income as the
public proved to be keen buyers for their produce.
Other ICDF assistance programs have rivaled agricul-
tural programs in importance, and none so much as the
numerous medical aid initiatives that have saved count-
less lives.
In 1962, several decades before the ICDFs founding,
Volunteers with a medical
mission to Guatemala, a
diplomatic ally of Taiwan,
provide free clinics for
local residents who have
limited access to medical
treatment.
75
 2005

2014
E
WTO


1962 21Taiwan
International Cooperation Alliance35

1516



Koudougou

2005

2

2011

Aside from the well-known agricultural
and medical assistance, information
and communications technology and
environmental programs are today
important facets of the ICDFs work.

76 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1

Taiwan dispatched military
doctors to Libya to offer med-
ical assistance. Subsequent
army medical teams were sent
to Saudi Arabia, Liberia, and
Kiribati. And for many years,
Taiwan has provided medical
aid to the West African nation of
Burkina Faso. This long-lasting
aid mission epitomizes Tai-
wans commitment to the world
of international assistance.
Just after its formal establish-
ment, the ICDF dispatched a
medical aid team to the Friend-
ship Hospital, located in Kou-
dougou, Burkina Fasos third
largest city, where it offered
emergency medical services to
local residents. Aside from treat- Children in St. Lucia attend classes provided by
volunteers from the ICDFs Overseas Services Corps.
ing patients at the hospital, the
Burkina Faso medical mission
traveled to country villages some 40 or 50 kilometers Taiwan International Cooperation Alliance, which co-
from Koudougou, where they provided a mobile medi- ordinates an international scholarship program with 21
cal clinic every two months. participating Taiwanese educational institutions. To date,
Aside from treating patients directly, ICDF personnel 35 courses have been set up to meet the needs of stu-
also sought to address local deficiencies at a more basic dents and their employers. Short-term training courses,
level by training local medical personnel. As a result, in fields such as business management and ICT, are also
the overall quality of the areas medical treatment im- on offer for nationals from both diplomatic and non-dip-
proved. In 2011, for example, ICDF medical staff taught lomatic partners.
local students basic medical procedures, such as how to The increasing diversity and complexity of its assis-
administer first aid and provide checkups for pregnant tance programs notwithstanding, the ICDF has not wa-
women. And in 2005 the ICDF launched the Healthcare vered from its commitment to the spirit of the OECDs
Personnel Training Program, which instructs frontline Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness. Localization,
medical personnel at hospitals in Taiwan. Since then, the consistency, coordination, a focus on results, mutual co-
program has trained more than 300 healthcare workers operation and trust are all guiding principles for the inter-
from more than 30 countries. national cooperation programs undertaken by the ICDF,
Meeting local needs Shih explains. Our programs are not intended to deliver
In terms of information and communications tech- aid blindly. In each case, the remedy must fit the problem.
nology, the ICDF is currently engaged in various joint IT Belize, for example, originally sought help controlling
initiatives. Generally, this entails helping local govern- kidney disease. After a medical team was dispatched to
ments implement e-government projects. During this investigate, it discovered that the incidence of kidney
years annual WTO trade facilitation workshop, an ICDF disease was extremely high and that late-stage treatment
initiative intended to streamline the collection of customs was no substitute for early prevention and public edu-
duties in Belize was presented as a successful case study. cation. Thus, the medical aid program was fine-tuned in
In the field of education, the ICDF has established the response to suggestions from the ICDF specialists.

77
 Getting rich by
giving

2014Hugo
Roger Martnez Bonilla
Taiwan has a long history of assistance to El Salvador, a
diplomatic ally, including aid programs for aquaculture and
agriculture. Pictured here, Hugo Roger Martnez Bonilla, foreign

minister of El Salvador, meets with Weber V.B. Shih, ICDF
secretary general, in Taiwan in 2014.
720
39




33


20




l

An ICDF technical team and local partners build a tourism farm

from scratch in St. Kitts and Nevis.

78 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1

 Technical missions and the Taiwan experience
The ICDFs assistance programs have not only
substantially improved local economic and living con-
ditions, they have also introduced the diet, culture and
lifestyle of Taiwan, bit by bit, into the societies of the aid
recipients. A good example is the farmers market estab-
lished by the ICDF in So Tom and Prncipe.
Weber Shih, the IDCF secretary general, points out that
because of the geographic and climatic conditions in So
Tom and Prncipe, there were only potatoes and other
root and tuber crops in the market in the past. But walking
through the market now, one can find green beans, leeks,
and other leafy green Taiwanese vegetables. And in Papua
New Guinea, the haggling over prices during market
weeks carries a strong Taiwanese flavor. Without realizing
it, you feel like you are back in a traditional market in Tai-
wan, Shih says with a smile.
In both the Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea,
fruit and vegetables were once rare sights in traditional mar-
kets due to the local climate. Yet after the ICDF established
a presence in the countries, fruit and vegetables become a
regular offering, signifying not only the successful devel-
opment of new crops but also the acceptance of Taiwanese
dietary habits into the daily life of the local population.
The ICDF has dispatched agricultural and public health aid teams to Tuvalu, Kiribati, and
other nations in the South Pacific. Shown here, children in Kiribati dash about playfully.
Each humanitarian and public health assistance
initiative strengthens the bonds of friendship between
Taiwan and other countries, whether they are formal
diplomatic allies or not. And behind the scenes, it is the
blood, toil, tears and sweat of the frontline personnel
that make this possible.
At a banquet celebrating the ICDFs 20th anniver-
sary, attendees stopped to remember 39 colleagues who
have perished in the field. The aid organization is most
active in developing countries, in which conditions can
be hazardous. For technical teams stationed abroad
and manning the frontlines of aid work, hardship is
commonplace. Difficult conditions, however, will not
prevent this important work from being carried out.
Over 100 of the ICDFs frontline aid workers are active
in 33 countries today, working tirelessly to improve the
lives of local people.
After reaching its 20th anniversary, the ICDF will
continue to open up new opportunities for interna-
tional assistance. Shih hopes that through each of its
international aid initiatives Taiwan will be able to share
its own unique experience with the rest of the world. l
(Liu Yingfeng/photos courtesy of ICDF/
tr. by Robert Green)
79
TEA

The Golden Age of Taiwanese Tea Exports

Located on the banks of the Danshui River, Taipeis Dadaocheng area was once a hub for Taiwanese
tea exports. The more than 200 tea merchants who used to operate here were the beating heart of the
industry in its glorious heyday. (courtesy of Sin Hong Choon)

Top-quality soybeans bring excellent flavor to Hsin


1920
Formosa Oolong Tea
Oriental Beauty
Tea

T aiwanese tea enjoyed a star turn in the late 19th and early 20th
centuries with domestic tea merchants and foreign traders ex-
porting it around the globe. Formosa Oolong Tea was the first of
Taiwans teas to claim international recognition, but others soon
followed. Britains Queen Victoria was so taken with the unique fla-
vor of a particular Taiwanese oolong tea that she named it Oriental
Beauty. Nearer to home, for a time black tea grown in Guanxi Town-
ship was selected for the use of the Japanese imperial household.

n Lai Yuans white soy sauce.



16

1918

1934

1 0 0

1890

1937

Formosa Tea
Formosa Tea was Taiwans first internationally recognized
brand.

82 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1


(above) Women stemming tea in Dadaocheng. (courtesy of Wang Tea)
(above, right) Wang Tea and Sin Hong Choon were once major exporters of Taiwanese pouchong tea to Southeast Asia.
Taiwans tea industry was one of the islands early ex-
port sectors and an important source of foreign exchange
earnings. It helped Taipei flourish, and was integral to the
northward migration of Taiwanese business. The more
than 200 tea merchants based in Tai peis Dadaocheng
area during the industrys most prosperous period were a
potent force driving Taiwans booming tea exports.
Dadaochengs century of tea
Though no longer in business, the Sin Hong Choon
Trade Company was once one of Taipeis largest tea mer-
chants and occupied three adjacent three-story buildings
along Taipeis Minsheng West Road. Its founder, Wang
Lianhe, immigrated to Taiwan from Fujian Province with
his father Wang Fangqun at the age of 16. Wang and his
father bought and processed raw tea leaves before re-
selling them to Southeast Asia. The Wang family bought
land and built Sin Hong Choons facilities in 1934.
Those facilities became a waystation for tea-industry
workers and entrepreneurs who had just immigrated to
Taiwan to make their fortunes, a place they could enjoy
a meal and a break before leaping back into the fray. In
its heyday, the company would go through a sack of
rice [about 60 kg] every three days.... [Formosa Plastics
founder] Wang Yung-chings father often used to come
by to sell us rice, recalls Wang Lianhes son Wang Guo-
zhong, who is now in his eighties.
Wang Tea founder Wang Jinghui was also Fujianese.
One of many natives of Anxi, the home of tieguanyin
tea, to relocate to Taiwan during Taiwanese teas export
heyday, he opened Wang Tea in Dadaocheng in 1890.
Now run by his fifth-generation descendant, Jason
Wang, Wang Tea is still in business today.
83


3
2~3

24

84 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1


Wang Teas roasting bins have seen hard use over the years.

(left) Grading and tasting raw tea leaves. (courtesy of Wang Tea)

(below, left) Sin Hong Choons roasting room delivers a new media experience in a very old space,
with screenings of a film in which Wang Guozhong explains the roasting process.

The Luo family pooled its resources to found the
Formosa Black Tea Company in 1937, to address a
problem particular to Hsinchus Guanxi Township. The
township had a long history of making tea, but its farm-
ers struggled to profit from their labors because the area
lacked its own export channels. The Formosa Black Tea
Company integrated Guanxis tea-leaf production, then
arranged to export leaves directly to buyers in the US
and Europe.
Producing fine teas
In the old days, tea merchants purchased raw tea
leaves, then processed them prior to export. This process-
ing involved a number of steps, from grading, stemming,
and roasting, to blending, winnowing, and packaging.
Tea experts and merchants sampled and tasted the tea
leaves purchased from each growing area, then graded
them based on their shape, scent, and flavor. Wang Guo-
zhong says: The evaluation process was taken very se-
riously. Only a few people were allowed near the tasting
table.
The next step was stemming, which involved re-
moving stems and other unwanted debris from the raw
leaves. After that came roasting, which reduced the
water content, aided preservation, and created a sweeter-
tasting beverage when the leaves were ultimately brewed.
It was a fine art, in which a master roasters control over
the time and temperature of the roast was critical to the
teas flavor. The old roasting rooms used by Sin Hong
Choon and Wang Tea still exist, packed with double rows
of roasting ovensdepressions set 60 centimeters deep
in brick. The roasting bins were woven from bamboo.
Roughly cylindrical in shape, they also had a slight waist
in the middle. Workers packed tea leaves on top of a filter
seated inside the bins to keep the leaves from direct con-
tact with the heat source.
Anxi tea makers began their traditional roasting pro-
cess by packing their ovens with roughly 60 kilograms
of charcoal, which was broken into small chunks to min-
imize the space between pieces. They then placed a layer
of previously cooked rice husks on top of the charcoal,

85



18

s h i p p i n g
m a r k







19371938




85

Wang Guozhong lived through the glory days of Taiwanese tea. Although his familys Sin Hong Choon tea company has
closed, its facilities have been preserved. Now renovated, they tell the story of Taiwanese tea. (photo by Chuang Kung-ju)

and set the charcoal alight. The husks and charcoal were
burned down to ash, which helped moderate the tempera-
ture of the roast, and then the tea leaves were packed into
the bins, placed on top of the ash, and turned every three
hours to ensure that they cooked evenly. This roasting
process was integral to the development of the teas flavor.
During blending, master tea makers applied their
skills and senses to eliminating the peculiarities of indi-
vidual batches of tea leaves, mixing them to match the tea
merchants own flavor profiles. Jason Wang says this was
necessary because Taiwanese tea growers had small plan-
tations, and merchants were unable to source their leaves
from a single grower. Merchants also used the roasting
and blending processes to create their own signature fla-
vors and differentiate their products from those of other
merchants.
Tea exporters had to be able to produce reliable quan-
tities at a given quality, and the blending and roasting
processes were at the heart of their quality control efforts.
Their ability to produce tea of consistent quality helped
usher in a golden age of Taiwanese tea exports.
A photo showing a truck
filled with crates of tea,
from the collection of the
Formosa Tea Industry and
Culture Gallery.
85
(far left) Luo Ching-shih
says proudly that Formosa
Black Tea has exported
its products to some 85
international ports.
(left) Jason Wang, the
fifth-generation head of
Wang Tea, has applied the
creativity of youth to the
task of revitalizing the old
brand.
A golden age
In the late 18th century, mainland Chinese merchants
dominated the Southeast-Asian export market for pao-
chong tea. In an effort to claim some of that market for
his company, Jason Wangs grandfather Wang Cheng-
qing, the third-generation head of Wang Tea, processed
tea leaves in Taiwan, then sold them to his own father,
Wang Xiaojin, in Thailand, where Xiaojin was attempt-
ing to develop the local market.
Sin Hong Choon utilized a similar model, with Wang
Lianhe handling the familys business in Thailand when
he was in his 20s. When his father, Wang Fang qun,
came across a particularly good batch of tea, he roasted
it and sent it to Lianhe to sell. The tea was of such good
quality that Lianhe was able to negotiate an exclusive
deal with Thailands largest tea merchant, and begin the
spread of Taiwanese paochong tea through Thailand.
Luo Ching-shih, the elegant and aristocratic-looking
managing director of the Formosa Black Tea Company,
leads us to the second floor of the companys produc-
tion facility. Among the first things we see there are
87

The second floor of the Sin Hong Choon
building includes an exhibit on the historic
structures restoration.

The Formosa Tea Industry and Culture

Gallery is a converted warehouse that now
displays many precious historical photos.

R E P U B L I C O F C H I N A 1976
TAIWAN FREE CHINA


R O C

2005






1982

88 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1


The interior of the Sin Hong Choon building includes an atrium that lets in light and air. (photo by Chuang Kung-ju)
hundreds of metal stencils covering one wall. Luo
explains that these are the stencils with which the com-
pany printed export information onto the sides of the
wooden crates in which it shipped its tea.
We may be a small company, but weve exported
to 85 ports. And thats just our company, not all of Tai-
wans tea merchants, says Luo with a hint of pride in
his voice.
Three of the stencils on the wall highlight the
changes to Taiwans international status over the years:
Republic of China, Taiwan Free China, and, in Chi-
nese, Made in Taiwan, ROC. After Taiwan withdrew
from the United Nations, the company could no lon-
ger print ROC on exports destined for nations with
which Taiwan did not have formal diplomatic relations.
But government regulations stated that export products
had to be clearly marked with the location at which
they were produced. Luo says that the company used a
workaround: meeting the ROC governments require-
ment in Chinese, which officials in the destination ports
were unable to read.
New ideas
But the heyday of the international tea trade even-
tually came to an end. Changes to the business climate
and to Taiwans own tea industry, together with the
governments 1982 withdrawal of its regulations gov-
erning tea manufacturers, led to small farmers process-
ing their tea leaves themselves. This had the dual effect
of making it much harder for tea merchants to obtain
raw tea and removing them from their central position
in the industry. When the tea merchants went into de-
cline, the golden age of Taiwanese tea ended.
Wang Tea saw the writing on the wall. It opened its
first retail outlet on Taipeis Jinan Road in 1976 in an
effort to raise its profile and begin a transition from ex-
ports to domestic sales. My father personally drove a
small delivery van to markets to sell our tea. He ran it
something like a modern-day coffee truck, says Jason
Wang. Wang Teas efforts happened to coincide with
the rise of Taiwans economy and teas emergence as an
everyday beverage, enabling the company to establish a
solid footing in the new market.
The Formosa Black Tea Company responded to the
changes differently. Recognizing that the companys
black tea production was no longer competitive with
that of major international manufacturers, Luo shifted
its focus to Japan in the 1970s. He imported Japanese
sencha processing techniques and equipment, and began
selling tea there. Luo also developed his own process
for making green tea powder: steaming the tea flushes,
baking them dry, then crushing them into a powder
that is mixed with water and drunk. The tea contains
89


The family shrine on the third floor of the Sin Hong Choon
building includes the Wang familys ancestral tablets in the
center, with deities on either side. (photo by Chuang Kung-ju)

Even though Taiwans tea industry has declined, it has become

an integral part of our culture. Local tea farmers, processors, and
retailers continue to work tirelessly to bring us each cup of our
beloved beverage.

1970 4






921

80



1970
3
1934
2004
2009

l

90 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1

catechin, a powerful antioxidant, and is marketed as a
health drink.
Formosa Black Tea recently rebuilt its old factory to
repair damage suffered in the Jiji Earthquake of 1999
and to get out of the way of a road widening project.
It also took advantage of the reconstruction to convert
some of its floor space into the Formosa Tea Industry
and Culture Gallery and house precious portions of the
factorys 80-year history there.
Sin Hong Choon was less fortunate than either
Wang Tea or Formosa Black Tea. Although the com-
pany avoided physical damage during World War II, it
couldnt adapt to the decline in Taiwans tea industry
and closed in 2004.
After designating Sin Hong Choons facilities a
historic site in 2009, the Taipei City Government used
a transfer of development rights to preserve its main
building, and hired a construction company to restore it.
Four years of renovation work transformed the Sin
Hong Choon building back into the gorgeous and fre-
quently visited hotspot it had once been. The city gov-
ernment commemorated its reopening with a special Sin
Hong Choon exhibition on the first floor that recaptured
Dadaochengs glory days and enabled visitors to experi-
ence the old companys magnificence for themselves.
The Wang family ancestral shrine was moved back
into the building just a few days before we met with
Wang Guozhong to talk about Sin Hong Choon. In fact,
he had to first run up to the shrine on the third floor
to light some incense in front of the ancestral tablets
before we spoke. He explained that he had been doing
this routinely for years in a different location, but was
pleased to see the tablets returned to the site of the
family business because now his ancestors can continue
protecting their descendants.
Just as Sin Hong Choons history has been preserved,
we too can continue to pass along the wonders of Tai-
wanese tea. For all that the heyday of Taiwanese tea
exports has ended and we now import roughly 30,000
tons of tea per year, we are fortunate to still have with
us many old tea merchants who remember and are will-
ing to share the story of how things used to be. The next
time you enjoy a cup of tea, savor the taste, but also
take a moment to reflect on the glory days of yore. l
(Cathy Teng/photos by Jimmy Lin/
tr. by Scott Williams)
91
TEA

Fragrant Spaces
Daxi Tea Factory

T ea makers in the Daxi Tea Factory start
work early. Leaves that were picked only
yesterday have already been through a series of

processes: withering, fixation, rolling, and drying.

Various aromas infiltrate the air depending on the
process under way at any time, ranging from the
deliciously fresh fragrance of newly picked leaves
to the stronger aromas of the tea after drying.
 Driving up the main road toward the mountains
in Taoyuans Daxi District, when we turn into an al-
ley off Fuxing Road, a tall building with many large

windows appears: the Daxi Tea Factory. In 1899, a

Japanese firm named Mitsui came to Taiwan to cul-

1899
tivate tea; then in 1926, they built a tea processing
1926 planttodays Daxi Tea Factorybeside Mt. Jiaoban
(Jiaobanshan), opening a new page in the history of
black tea in Taiwan.

Fusion architecture
1895 Taiwans black tea cultivation and production

flourished under Japanese rule after 1895. While

oolong tea exports were dominated by Western com-

panies and pouchong tea was controlled by Taiwans

local tea merchants, black tea gained increasing pop-

ularity under Japanese management. Mitsui was a
leader in this area in Taiwan, establishing the Nittoh
Black Tea brand, which it sold into the US and Eu-
8 rope. The company owned a number of plantations
19286 and tea factories throughout Northern Taiwan, so
in fact the Jiaobanshan Tea Factory was only one of

eight. The plant boasted the most up-to-date tech-

nology of the time, using the latest machinery for

5,000600
processing. In 1928, the factory introduced six British
Jackson tea leaf rolling machines and began mass

Located in the mountains of Taoyuan, the Daxi Tea Factory
integrates British, Japanese, and Chinese architectural styles.
The main structure with its very high ceilings is based on a tea
plant in Assam, India. The interior layout was commissioned to a
Japanese designer, and the building was constructed by Taiwan
army engineers.


These Jackson rolling machines, more than 80 years old, are still
soldiering on, producing quality black tea.

The blue paintwork of the old cast-iron processing machines
1946 echoes the green-blue of the new sales area.

1956

4

90

94 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1

production. To meet the demand, the factory operated
three shifts with machines running around the clock,
processing an annual output of up to 6 million pounds
of tea. This was the black gold era of Taiwan tea.
The Jiaobanshan Tea Factory was renamed the Daxi
Tea Factory in 1946, its tea exports continuing to earn
valuable foreign exchange for Taiwan after the islands
return to Chinese rule. The good times didnt last for
long, however. In 1956, the factory was destroyed by
fire. But as luck would have it, on the way to his coun-
try villa on Mt. Jiaoban, then-president Chiang Kai-shek
was disappointed to see that the familiar tea factory
had disappeared. After finding out what had happened,
Chiang ordered that the factory should be rebuilt.
The reconstructed tea factory is of brick with a cy-
press frame, the design based on an Indian Assam tea
plant with very high ceilings. The interior layout was
commissioned to a Japanese designer, and the build-
ing constructed by Taiwan army engineers. So the new
building was a fusion of English, Japanese and Chinese
cultures, says Tammy Liu, vice president of Taiwan Tea
Corporation.
Green architecture
Unusually for its day, the Daxi Tea Factory cleverly

brings nature into its indoor spaces. This building was
well ahead of its time with this concept of green archi- Although the Daxi Tea Factory is more than 80 years old, it is still
in the business of making tea. The photo shows the withering
tecture, says Liu. process, wherein the tea leaves are carefully layered in bamboo
Because tea production had entered the era of mass baskets to allow moisture to evaporate.

production, the enormous quantities of leaf that were

needed could not be dried naturally in the sun, so the
second floor was used for withering while the first
(ground) floor was a warehouse and processing area.
Using the principle that hot air rises, when machines
like driers were operating on the lower level, the heat
they generated rose to the second floor and accelerated
the withering process.
And this was not the only aid to withering. The
northern and southern walls of the second-level wither-
ing area were equipped with four ventilation fans, while
the windows facing east and west could be opened to
bring in fresh air, maintaining optimum temperature
and moisture levels. Its an example of how the factory
used natural processes to aid production.
The withered leaves passed through hoppers directly
down to the Jackson rolling machines on the first floor,
a design that saved a lot of time and labor.
From these details, its clear how effectively the
Japanese designers integrated nature into the design
of the building. Later, the business was taken over by
the Taiwan Tea Corporation, eventually closing down
for around 15 years. Then in 2010, renovations began
and the factory was revived: Our companys English
name is Taiwan Tea Corporation, which gives us some
responsibility for the countrys tea industry. We had
a sense of mission, and our aim was to refurbish the
brand, says Liu.
Rebuilding the glory
In 2013, the old tea factory was re-opened. Renovation

95


15
2010

TAIWAN TEA CORPORATION

2013

96 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1


90 served, enabling people to ruminate on the past of the
tea factory. The gift shop manager at the factory, Wan
The east and west walls on the second floor feature
large windows which can be opened or closed to
control ventilation, an example of how the factory
uses natural processes to enhance efficiency.
The ceiling of the withering area on the second floor
work was carried out by architect Divooe Zein, who spe-
cializes in integrating architecture with nature. Reviving
the past glories of the old factory was the focus for the
design, but it was also considered important to retain
the basic structure and style of the old building.
The main color used was a low-key gray-blue. The
inspiration for this decision came from the gray-blue
lattice windows on the second floor, revealing a sense
of the ages. The tea processing machines also featured
cast-iron frames that were painted blue. The wall be-
hind the sales counter was painted green-blue, set off
with filament bulbs hanging from the roof on red wir-
ing. Under the dim lighting, the low-key color scheme
imbues a feeling of subdued luxury.
Many details of the old building have been pre-
Guangjiu, points to the polished stone floor and tells us,
The parts of the floor covered with cement were where
the tea processing machines were located. Looking up,
one notices the blackened ceiling, resulting from the
heat of the three dryers working hard over many de-
cades. The use of steel shelves in the gift shop and book
caf areas was inspired by the iron racks which were
used in the past to dry tea leaves in the sun. The shelves
create a sense of openness, and also reinforce the link to
the history of the old factory.
The space outside the book caf was originally the
warehouse. The architect removed its roof in the ren-
ovations, and set up a long rectangular water feature
surrounded by a walking area. This innovation has
brought natural light into the building, integrating the
sky and clouds, plant life and water into the book caf.

was also removed, exposing the original 151 timber

roof trusses. They were the work of the army engineers,
The blackened ceiling is the result of the heat from the
three dryers working hard over many decades. The who demonstrated their building skills using mortice
withering area on the second floor uses the principle and tenon joints to create an intertwined fantasy space,
that hot air rises. The dryers and other machinery on
the lower level generate heat which accelerates the presenting a stunning sight to those below. Light comes
withering process on the upper.
in through the long rows of old blue lattice windows
according to the weather and seasons; nearby, several
round stools are placed, helping to create a place of re-
flection where time seems to stand still.

(left) The old tea processing section has been A new soul
transformed into a modern gift shop area. Filament The tea factory is still operating according to the so-
bulbs hang from the ceiling on red wires, creating a
low-key environment with a feeling of subdued luxury. lar terms of the traditional Chinese calendar. Tea leaves

97
737
The wall of the tea room is decorated with 737 black and white Pu-erh tea bricks, exuding an atmosphere of timeless stability.

737

151





l

98 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1

 are picked soon after the Qing ming Festival (Tomb
Sweeping Day), green tea is produced in spring and
(top) The colored metal chairs bought from Java
match the light-industrial atmosphere of the tea fall, and black tea in summer.
factory.
Enjoyment of a good cup of tea has always been the
primary goal of the tea factory. Today, they emphasize
products from their own plantations, with organic teas
151
cultivated, picked and processed by the factory. They

also connect with the local community, inviting local

(above) After removal of the ceiling in the second-
floor withering area, the original 151 timber roof
trusses were exposed. These were the work
of army engineers who demonstrated their
woodworking skills with the many mortice and
tenon joints, creating an interwoven fantasy space.
Its a stunning sight when seen from below.
organic farmers to sell their produce in the tea factorys
sales area, and they run a vegetarian buffet on the
premises, emphasizing the use of fresh local ingredients
in season.
How would one describe the Daxi Tea Factory in a
few words? An old tea factory with a new soul! says
Tammy Liu, pouring a cup of teaand enjoying a sip. l
(Cathy Teng/photos by Jimmy Lin/
tr. by Geoff Hegarty and Sophia Chen)

99
TEA

Tea
Your Way to Happiness

The Seven Bowls of Tea is about lifelong tea-aholic Lu Tongs
sensations while drinking seven successive bowls of tea.

O ver the past century, Taiwanese peoples lives
have progressed from meeting basic needs for
food and drink to the pursuit of a refined, soulful,

aesthetic, emotive and spiritually uplifting lifestyle

of superior taste. The way of tea has made progress,

too. Traditionally, drinking tea has been a social,

artistic, and ritual activity that is also a form of
personal cultivation, but now the way of tea is also
infused with diverse aesthetic elements derived from
modern technology, installation art, philosophy and
religion, brewing up a superb new style with a Tai-

wanese flavor.

The progress in the Taiwanese way of tea can be

attributed to teas long history in Taiwan and to the in-

stillation of Japanese, American and European culture,
including Dutch and Spanish. Today, in the National
Palace Museum, you can see Chinese tea sets made a
millennium ago, material evidence of Chinas ancient
tea culture. Taiwan is one of the few countries in the
world capable of producing unfermented, partially fer-
mented, and fermented teas, which it exports to over

130 countries and which have gained Taiwan a world-

wide reputation for quality.

Song of the Seven Bowls of Tea
What is tea? Upon first discovering tea, people only
knew it as a medicinal infusion. As human wisdom
worked upon it, tea was domesticated into an everyday
beverage. But when tea flows into the human body,
it produces a feeling of harmony with Nature that

Tang-Dynasty poet Lu Tong celebrated in his Song of


A bowl of cozy-warm security in hand, you engage in an exercise
in mental discipline.

102 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1

the Seven Bowls of Tea, a poem that has remained pop-
ular for over a thousand years, from the Tang through
the Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing, until today, and is as
famous as Lu Yus The Classic of Tea.
Lu Tong was a tea-aholic. The Seven Bowls
describes the gradual changes in the taste of tea over
seven steepings.
Tea master Chao Kun-hsiu, who has studied the
way of tea for more than 20 years, is the director of
Peaceland Art Studio, which has held a number of
major international art festivals in Taiwan. For Chao,
tea is a vocation. For her, inward contemplation is
the beginning, while the way is the idea that tea only
releases its perfume in a peaceful heart. The culmina-
tion is peace and harmony in communication. With a
commitment to aesthetics and artistry, Chao devotes
herself to the development of Taiwanese tea culture
while promoting international artistic exchange.
To show us the way of tea, Chao held a solemn tea
ceremony in which she elaborated on all things tea. The
reason why Ive spent so much time studying the way
of tea is because my heart was like a seed burst from
Having studied the way of tea for over 20 years, taking tea as her
vocation, Master Chao Kun-hsiu strives to develop Taiwans tea
culture and promote international artistic exchange.
the fruit that began to sprout upon my first encounter.
Since then that seedling has grown tall and strong, and
I feel blessed, as if Ive been at the right place at the
right time with the right people, who helped me along
the way of my spiritual journey. Chou has a deep un-
derstanding of the truth that the seed of the way of tea
can only sprout in a happy heart and grow in one who
seeks fulfillment through cultivation in the realm of tea.
In the beginning
The first bowl in The Seven Bowls steadies the
heart. The first bowl only moistens lips and throat.
People are usually unprepared for the
first bowl. Drinking a tea of high
quality, they just think it tastes
good. Unenlightened ob-
servers often wonder why
the way of tea requires so


A solemn tea ceremony is an invitation to enter upon the happy
way of tea. (photo by Lin Ming-lung)

The more time and energy one spends on oneself by studying tea, the more inner strength one develops.
many complicated steps and aesthetic embellishments.
That is because the function of the first bowl of tea is
often just to quench peoples thirst, that is to say, to re-
lieve the human animals physiological need to drink. It
is only with the second bowl that one begins to appreci-
ate the aesthetic subtleties.
The second bowl can break ones loneliness. After
drinking the second bowl of tea, peoples bodies warm
up and relax, producing a sense of physical security.
They start to observe an ambiance in the surroundings
that is qualitatively different from that of ordinary daily
life. Their minds become quiet and clean.
As it is written in The Diamond Sutra, one should re-
alize this state of mind by abiding nowhere. Chao has
found that the way of tea is a truly gradual process of
settling down that begins with the body and proceeds
to the mind. Only when they feel settled, peaceful and
secure can people attain clear minds and resolute hearts.
The third bowl purifies my heart and mind, and
what remains is words of wisdom stored in all the books
Ive ever read. After drinking the third bowl, people
start to worry about the individual in relation to society.
Whither human society in a world without love, espe-
cially today? Without love, there will be no future. And
then there would literally be nowhere to abide. Thus,
how can a tea drinker who loves both self and society
remain indifferent to people and things around them?
The fourth bowl causes one to lightly sweat, flush-
ing doubts and troubles through the pores. Drinking
the fourth bowl, one realizes that to everything there is
a season, and there will always be ebb and flow in any
life, highs and lows in any land. You should therefore
change what you can and accept what you cant.
The fifth bowl purifies my flesh and bones. The
sixth bowl is communion with the saints. Drinking the
fifth and sixth bowls in a row boosts the bodys energy
and clears the mind, making you realize that the power
of love has a source, and that one can train the mind
105


The traditional way of tea was a social, artistic and ritual
activity, and a form of personal cultivation. Now its been given
a make-over as new aesthetic elements have been mixed in.
(middle photo by Lin Ming-lung)

106 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1

and settle oneself down by drinking tea. Via inward
contemplation, and continual, repeated training, one
can attain a sense of joy.
The seventh bowl I do not taste at all, I only feel a
wind beneath my wings. The seventh bowl is a chance
to enter a realm where one is touched by all the graces
of life. This is how drinking tea touches one, transform-
ing ones emotions and awareness. This is the source of
its power.
Subjective awareness and aesthetics
But what should people do to experience the same
sensations as Lu Tong? If youve never savored the
flavor of a bowl of tea, you will never know the pro-
fundity of feeling that lies within, says Chao Kun-
hsiu, almost intoxicated with the taste.
Awareness in the act of drinking tea is a way to
care for ones self. It takes time to master the materials
and attain a true tea sensibility. As one repeatedly
steeps tea, the flavor goes from fragrant to flat, from
sweet to insipid. The seven bowls are just like the
stages of life, from birth to age, sickness and death, as
the Buddhists sum up the sorrows of existence. Yet the
insight granted by successive steepings is the power of
the present moment.
Taiwans tea processing craft has undergone long
maturation and refinement. There are collectors of old
teas and antique tea sets from different eras, but there
are also laboratories where the way of tea is studied,
substantially enriching the way of tea. For instance,
selection of the bowl by the shape of its mouth, the era,
and the material can produce different mouthfeels
different textures in the mouthnot to mention teas of
different vintages and teapots from different dynasties.
After all, the way of tea is a study in the awareness of
the beautiful subtleties of life. Without these essential
emotive elements, the way of tea would be mere per-
formance and storytelling.
Taiwan, the place to go to gain profound insights
into the way of tea, can only be described as a happy
land of tea. l
(Lin Ming-lung/photos by Jimmy Lin/
tr. by Darryl Sterk)
107
TAIWANESE ABROAD

Dedicated to
Community Service:
World Taiwanese Chambers of Commerce President Jason Lin

108 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1


J ason Lin, the newly elected president of the World
Taiwanese Chambers of Commerce, has a schedule
packed with meeting after meeting, yet somehow

manages to smile sincerely and greet every attendee

in friendly Taiwanese. A native of rural Yun lin

County, Lin looks more like an amiable farmer than
a business leader, but he escaped the poverty of his
childhood through his own diligence, and used his
career as a shipping agent to see the world.

As a pre-teen from the hills of Lin nei Towship,

Yunlin County, Jason Lin spent more than two hours

walking to and from school every day. In the summer,

when afternoon downpours flooded the river valley,

he would have to wait another two hours for the water
level to fall to calf height before wading through and
continuing home. Once he got there, hed change into
his work clothes and begin
his chores as the eldest
son: feeding the pigs and

preparing his younger sib-
lings dinner.
Lin says: Taiwan is a maritime nation, which means figuring
out how to expand into the world outside. Shipping agents Lin was in the fifth
operate internationally. Working in the business connects grade when his family
you to the world and its major cities. He is convinced that
Taiwan must reach out to thrive. home finally got electric-
365 ity, and in middle school
when it got running wa-
ter. His parents worked

every day of the year, even

Lunar New Year s day.

Lin was in high school

before he learned how

different his classmates
lives were from his own
they played basketball and
marbles, whereas he didnt
know the meaning of the
word play.

Lin studied hard and

did well in school in

spite of his familys pov-

erty. When a supportive
homeroom teacher paid
his registration fees, he
became the only student

from his school to test into

109
23
Jason Lin (third from left) is the 23rd president of the World Taiwanese Chambers
of Commerce. (courtesy of Jason Lin)

32







1996



FOB
Free on Board

110 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1

Changhua Senior High School. Unfortunately, his fam- the Taiwan market, and persuaded Taiwanese firms to
ily had no money to pay for college after hed gradu- direct the selection of shippers themselves.
ated. Instead he moved to Taipei, where he worked and The nature of Lins work convinced him that Tai-
studied part time and gained admission to what is now wans future depended upon reaching out beyond the
the National Taiwan Ocean University. He then went island. Taiwan is a maritime nation, which means we
on to start a business of his own that worked with cli- have to figure out ways to expand into the world out-
ents all over the world. side. Shipping agents operate internationally. When
Reflecting on his journey from Yunlin to Taipei and you work in the business, you become connected to the
then on to Australia, Lin remarks a little ruefully, It world and its major cities.
was poverty that gave me the courage to try things. Lin founded his own company, MIT Chartering &
Venturing abroad Agency Co. Ltd., at age 32, after more than a decade
After getting into the university, Lin instituted his working in and around the industry. A business has
own three noes policy: no civil service work, no to make money, but thats not the only goal. Shipping
graduate school, and no study abroad. He resolved in- agencies must deliver a high level of service, but run-
stead to learn the ropes in the shipping industry. ning an agency well also requires fulfilling its corporate
He became a shipping agent, helping shippers with responsibilities, increasing employment opportunities,
importexport inspec- and attracting new
tions and customs people, says Lin with
clearance, in addition some pride.
to managing their ship In 1996, he took a
building, purchasing, friends advice and
and leasing needs. established an Aus-
The work also gave tralian subsidiary. A
him a good look at number of factors in-
the bulk carrier mar- fluenced the decision,
ket, which led to him including the strength
taking contracts as a of Australias mining
freight broker: helping industry, its abundant
clients find carriers for raw materials, and
their goods and ship Melbournes standing
owners find cargoes 32 as a global shipping

to carry.
hub. He also weighed
W h e n Ta i w a n s Jason Lin founded his company, MIT Chartering & Agency, at the age of 32. the educational oppor-
After moving to Melbourne, Australia, he became an active participant in
economy took off, im- civic affairs, going on to work on behalf of the overseas community and its tunities the country
ports of raw materials Taiwanese businesspeople as secretary general of the citys chapter of the offered his children,
Taiwanese Association of Australia and then president of the World Taiwanese
and exports of man- Chambers of Commerce. and chose to move his
ufactured goods be- entire family there.
came common. Taiwanese exporters generally sought to Divng into public affairs
keep things simple, and did most of their shipping free What prompted him to get involved in public affairs?
on board (FOB). Under these terms of sale, the sellers Lin heard old sayings like return a kindness ten-
responsibilities end with loading the cargo on a ship at fold and thank the trees for their fruit repeatedly as
the export port. Beyond that point, any transportation a boy, but didnt really get their deeper meaning until
fees and risks are the responsibility of the buyer. In this he was much older. It wasnt until I moved abroad
situation, the foreign buyers were choosing the ship- that I realized that Taiwans nurturing embrace was
pers and all the associated profits went to the foreign what made it possible for me to get into this business
agencies they employed. But Lin saw an opportunity in and move to Australia, explains Lin.

111







6
1840

Lin promises that the World Taiwanese Chambers of Commerce will support Taiwanese businesses,
serving as a platform through which they can communicate with local governments, and working with
them on Taiwans behalf.

6




23




3
6
l

112 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1

 When he saw an
article in the local Chi-
nese-language news-
paper about a Lunar
New Year s banquet
being arranged by the
Melbourne chapter of
the Taiwanese Asso-
ciation of Australia,
his gratitude towards
Taiwan prompted him
to phone the group
about participating. He
soon began attending
other TAA activities,
eventually becoming Jason Lin and family. (courtesy of Jason Lin)
the groups secretary
general and then its
chairman. Lin organized a variety of events aimed
at bringing the Taiwanese community together, and
made a point of inviting members of the national and
state parliaments, and the state premier, to attend as
well. He then encouraged local Taiwanese to offer
contributions and support to candidates for politi-
cal office as a means of developing the communitys
political clout and ensuring that local politicians rec-
ognized it. His years of participation in public affairs
eventually earned him an award from the premier of
Victoria for his contributions to cultural diversity.
Lins Christian faith encourages him to be an active
participant in events, make donations, and help out
his fellow Taiwanese when they are in need, while
never asking anything in return. He applied the same
principle to his six years as a commissioner on Tai-
wans Overseas Community Affairs Council (OCAC),
organizing Melbournes first Taiwanese Culture Fes-
tival to introduce more people to Taiwan and its cul-
ture, and working hard to be a bridge between the
overseas community and the government.
A bridge to Taiwan
When Lin decided to contend for the presidency
of the World Taiwanese Chambers of Commerce in
March of this year, he visited Taiwanese businesses
on six continents to gain a better understanding of
their situation. His overriding objective in running for
the office was to enhance the WTCCs standing, both
internationally and
within the overseas
compatriot commu-
nity, in order to win
local government
protections for the
in vest ment rights of
Taiwanese businesses.
Asked about Tai-
wans New South-
b o u n d P o l i c y, L i n
offers a positive take
on the potential of
Southeast-Asian mar-
kets, and says that
WTCC is planning to
help integrate person-
nel resources via the
launch of a platform that connects professionals resid-
ing in Southeast Asia or with an interest in the region.
Lin also suggests that Taiwanese businesses provide
scholarships, similar to the one that enabled him to
continue his own studies as a young man, to local
young people to cultivate new talent and enhance
businesses own image. Concerned about changes in
the global situation and about passing on the torch to
the younger generation, Lin wants to use his tenure
at WTCC to strengthen ties between the group and
its Junior Chapter ( WTCCJC), which was founded
six years ago. He also hopes to provide young entre-
preneurs in Taiwan with access to angel investors by
bringing them into contact with the WTCCJC.
Elected the 23rd president of the WTCC with the
support of Taiwanese businesspeople, Lin believes
that the actions of Taiwanese businesses can play an
important role in changing Taiwans international
situation. Taiwanese businesses around the world
ought to do their utmost to fulfill their corporate so-
cial responsibilities and build a positive image for
themselves, argues Lin. With that in mind, the WTCC
will offer support to Taiwanese businesses, serving as
a platform through which they can communicate with
local governments, and working with them on Tai-
wans behalf. l
(Cathy Teng/photos by Jimmy Lin/
tr. by Scott Williams)
113
SOUTHEAST ASIAN FOCUS

AsiaPacific Cultural

Festivals Take the Stage

in North and South

114 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1

 5
11

T aiwan has played host to scores of festivals celebrating the cultural

diversity of Southeast Asia and the larger AsiaPacific region. This year,
events such as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs fifth annual AsiaPacific
Culture Day and Chiayi Citys 2016 Immigrants Festival brightened Taiwans
cultural landscape with delicious foods and international dance performances.

56

The recent fifth annual AsiaPacific Culture Day was a hit with the public. It featured
more than 50 booths offering information on the ROCs six diplomatic allies in the Asia
Pacific region, as well as the New Southbound Policy.

115

Vice President Chen Chien-jen and foreign minister David Lee are garlanded with flowers
as they make a stop at the booth of ROC diplomatic ally Tuvalu.

2012
5
6



2016

2012

2015

116 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1

 The Ministry of Foreign Affairs organized the first
AsiaPacific Culture Day in 2012 to promote cultural ex-
changes and greater understanding of our neighbors in
the AsiaPacific region.
This year marked the fifth annual APCD. Held in the
Taipei Railway Station, it featured more than 50 booths
providing information on the ROCs six formal diplomatic
allies in the region, as well as Japan, Korea, and nations tar-
geted by the New Southbound Policy. The festivities began
with a concert, but also included dance performances and
delicious foods highlighting the regions cultural diversity.

Cultural diplomacy
During a visit to the festival, Vice President Chen The New Southbound Policy will bring Taiwan closer to the world
by focusing on tangible cultural exchanges as well as trade and
Chien-jen delivered a speech in which he reminded lis- education.
teners: President Tsai Ing-wen has noted that culture is a
nations soul and a key driver of national progress. cultural diplomacy to bridge the distance between
The vice president then observed that Taiwan is itself Taiwan and the world beyond our shores.
culturally diverse, and that in recent years new migrants Minister of Foreign Affairs David Lee raised the cur-
have been further enriching our native soil with elements tain on the 2016 APCD by noting that it marked the fifth
from their own cultures. edition of the event since its 2012 inauguration, and
Taiwans South and Southeast Asia diplomacy used to observing that last years festivities had demonstrated
be dominated by trade and economics. But, recognizing Taiwans tolerance of and affection for diverse cultures
that culture is at the core of our relationships with our by attracting more than 100,000 visitors.
neighbors, the new government has put forward a New Lee stated further that such cultural exchanges not
Southbound Policy that addresses not just trade and eco- only enrich ones cultural experience, but also foster
nomics, but also education, tourism, science and technol- mutual understanding, reduce interpersonal and in-
ogy. The policy places particular emphasis on strength- ternational prejudice and conflict, and bring the global
ening these relationships through culture and tangible community together.

More than 20
nations taking
part in this years
APCD included
Kiribati, India, and
Malaysia. Booths
drew large crowds
with samples of
national cuisines and
fascinating dance
performances.

117

6+1


6

10E n d r i





6
E n d r i




Indomie

Endri


VR360

ROC diplomatic partner the Solomon Islands sent hand-carved

wooden sculptures all the way to Taiwan for the festival
so that attendees could experience the Hana
islands passion and culture for
themselves.

Endri10


Indonesian caregiver Endri has
been working in Taiwan for more
than a decade. She chose to
spend her day off at the APCD to
reimmerse herself in the flavors of
her homeland.

118 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1


City and county participation
This years APCD featured more than 50 nationally
themed information booths, including stalls set up by
overseas community organizations from Australia, Bru-
nei, and Fiji, as well as those from the six AsiaPacific
nations with which the ROC has formal diplomatic rela-
tionsKiribati, the Marshall Islands, Nauru, Palau, the
Solomon Islands, and Tuvalu).
This years APCD also featured exhibits on the lo-
cal cultures of Tai pei, Kao hsiung, Tai chung, Tai nan,
New Tai pei City, Tao yuan,
and Hsinchu County, all of
which have signed
sister-city agreements
or declarations of
friendship with mu-
2016
9
Chiayi Citys 2016
Immigrants Day
included an exhibition
of wedding wear from
nine nations, including
Vietnam and Nepal.
(courtesy of Chiayi
City Government)
nicipalities in the nations targeted by the New South-
bound Policy.
New Southbound nations
This wonderful cultural banquet attracted many
visitors, both domestic and foreign. Large numbers of
migrant workers and immigrants from Southeast Asia
also took advantage of the opportunity to enjoy a taste
of home.
Endri, an Indonesian woman who has been work-
ing in Taiwan for more than a decade, is a caregiver
in Xinzhuang, New Taipei City, who spent her day off
visiting the festival and sharing her culture with other
attendees. The Indonesian booth included a clothing
exhibit featuring traditional attire from the northern
Indonesian island of Sumatra. Endri told us that the ex-
amples on display were very different from those you
might see around her home in East Java, explaining
that each Indonesian island and ethnicity has its own
traditional clothing.
The rear of the booth also displayed examples of the
carefully crafted leather puppets used in the puppet
shows beloved by Indonesians. Endri noted that the
puppet shows given at weddings represent a distinc-
tively Indonesian cultural asset and that puppetry is
most common in central, eastern and western Java.
Another target nation of the New Southbound Policy,
India operated a booth that also exhibited traditional
handicraft items that highlighted some of the beauty
of its culture, and attracted still other visitors with the
enticing scent of Indian cuisine, an interactive virtual
119
 reality installation that let attendees try on tradi-

tional Indian clothing, and an artist who used natural

Hello, Taiwan. How are you? Representatives at the Nauru booth henna to draw traditional Indian motifs on their skin.
greeted Taiwanese visitors in Mandarin, English and Nauruan.
(courtesy of CNA) A Chiayi festival
In a bit of serendipity, the Chiayi City Government
also held its 2016 Immigrants Festival, an event cel-
ebrating the many cultures of new residents, shortly
after the APCD.

Noting that Taiwan is itself multicultural, Chiayi

2016 mayor Twu Shiing-jer remarked that the biggest dif-
ference between that citys Aborigines, long-estab-
lished ethnic Chinese residents, and new immigrants
2016 is merely when they arrived. Twu went on to state that
ethnic integration is the path to social progress.
In a new twist, this year s festival included both
Aboriginal- and new-resident-themed activities, and
highlighted another side of multiculturalism with an

eye-catching exhibition of wedding attire from nine

different countries, including Nepal, Ghana, Vietnam

and Japan.
The Chiayi festival was arranged into morning and
afternoon sessions, with the former focusing on the
many cultures of new residents, and the latter consist-
9 ing of a harvest celebration organized by Aborigines

living in the city.

A total of 4,780 new residents currently reside in

Chiayi City, and comprise 1.76% of its population of

4,78027
270,000. The citys annual Immigrants Festival is sure
1.76% to help all of its residents, new and old alike, get to
know one another. l
(Liu Yingfeng/photos by Lin Min-hsuan/
l tr. by Scott Williams)

120 Taiwan Panorama 2017/1


Taiwan Panorama The Order Form for
N.A. Area Only
Bringing Taiwan to the World

()
I want to subscribe to Taiwan Panorama:
New subscriber
Renewal/subscriber No.
1 yearUS$32
2 yearsUS$55
______________
Subscription to begin with__________(month)__________(year)
Name
Address

Tel.
As a gift for a friend
Gift card to read

Name
Address

Tel.

Charge my credit card

CARD TYPE:

Card No.
_________-_________-_________-_________-

(Please include the final three numbers found on the back of your card, near the signature bar)

Tel No.____________________________
Expiry date_____(month) ______(year)
Subscription date________________________
Total (including postage)
________________________________________________
Cardholders signature

_______________________________________________

I wish to purchase the book publications as checked overleaf.
Book Series (including postage)

Title Edition Price Quantity Ordered

Paperback US$11
Chinese Sayings Told in Pictures

Paperback US$11
Taiwans Extraordinary Plants and Animals

Paperback US$11
When West Meets East: International Sinology and Sinologists

Paperback US$11
Stories of Chinese Herbal Medicine

Paperback US$10
A New Age for Wildlife Conservation in Taiwan

Paperback US$13
Embrace Taiwan 100 Images of Contemporary Taiwan

2
Paperback US$13
Taiwan Revealed 100 Images of Contemporary Taiwan (2)

Paperback US$13
Hold that Note!Stories from Taiwans Stage

Paperback US$13
Call of the WildTaiwans Natural World

Paperback US$16
Shindigs and Solemnity in Taiwan

Paperback US$16
Days of Being Wild: Youth Culture in Taiwan

Paperback US$12
A Taste of Taiwan

Total

Prices include postage and handling

Kwang Hwa Publishing (USA), Inc.)
Payment enclosed (make checks payable to Kwang Hwa Publishing (USA), Inc.)

Please enclose this form with your remittance in an envelope and mail to Kwang Hwa
Publishing (USA), Inc.
3731 Wilshire Blvd 104, Los Angeles, CA 90010 USA. TEL: 1-888-829-3866 FAX: 1-213-389-0021

Please allow 2 weeks for your book or first issue to arrive.

 Fresh from

aiwan
TPanorama!

Three new editions

available in Vietnamese,
Indonesian, and Thai
2015 12
since December, 2015