I’m extremely excited to have received a scholarship to be a student ambassador in Taiwan this summer! I will be gone from June to late August and look forward to sharing my experience living in Tainan, Taiwan’s the food and cultural capital. Following are some of the most common questions I’ve been getting about my upcoming study abroad experience.
1. Where on earth is Taiwan?
Taiwan is a small island located off of China’s southeast coast.
I’ll be staying in Tainan, often regarded as the food and culture capital of the island.
2. What’s the point of the scholarship?
Students serve as ambassadors to promote peace by establishing friendships and mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of Taiwan through cultural exchange and educational partnerships. These opportunities help people gain understanding, acquire knowledge and develop skills for living in a globally interdependent and culturally diverse world.
3. That sounds fancy. What exactly will you be doing there?
I’ll be attending National Cheng Kung University, one of Taiwan’s most prestigious universities. One of my main goals will be to work on my Mandarin language skills. Every day we will attend two hours of small-group language classes and one hour of 1-on-1 lessons. Time outside of class will be spent partly with my language partner and host family.
In addition to language classes, TUSA students will take part in a variety of classes designed to concentrate on certain aspects of Chinese art and culture. These classes include a wide-range of subjects such as Tai Chi, calligraphy, Chinese painting, Chinese pop songs, stamp engraving, tea ceremonies, paper cutting classes, etc.
I will also be using the resources at the NCKU library to continue work on my senior thesis project.
4. What are you most excited about?
Two things – Having the ability to immerse myself in Chinese and to try a new type of cuisine. The only Taiwanese snack I know personally is boba tea. I’m stoked to be headquartered in Taiwan’s oldest city and the food capital, Tainan.
Food writer Clarissa Wei recently got me excited for this summer experience with her CNN article titled, Around Taiwan’s Food Capital in 19 Dishes.
5. You’ve taken Mandarin classes for like over two years now. Are you fluent yet?
千里之行，始於足下 – A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.
That’s my fancy way of saying not quite.
I want to thank a number of groups and individuals for their support over the years. In particular, thank you to the individuals involved with the Naples Council on World Affairs, AFS/YES Abroad, the Taiwan-US Alliance, the Koleos family, and my awesome professors who were willing to help with the never-ending stream of letters of recommendations. I so look forward to this summer!