Day 13

The GSE team toured the legislature buildings, and viewed a presentation on the election process for this governing body. On Fridays, the Legislative Yuan of the Republic of China meets, and we were able to see a bill presented by Legislator Ling become law.

We went on to lunch at the Kuo Yuan Ye Cake & Pastry Company, which has been in existence for almost 150 years. While there, we learned how to make small filled cakes, and were given the opportunity to make some ourselves. While the cookies baked, we learned about how food is a part of the culture of Taiwan from birth (special food gifts and cakes) to marriage (engagement food gifts and wedding cakes). A few of the team tried on traditional Chinese wedding costumes just for fun.

In the afternoon we went to the Lin Liu-Hsin Puppet Theatre Museum to learn about puppetry in Taiwan. We saw traditional Taiwanese puppets and other types of puppets on display at the museum. The museum offers hands-on activities, which the team enjoyed.

The evening ended with a joint anniversary celebration by three Rotary clubs, Huakang, Hua-Yu, and Huapeng. Delicious food and fun presentations were followed by wonderful entertainment that included dancing by an Aboriginal childrens group.