2024 Taipei Immersion Trip | Day 1

This September, I got the opportunity to embark on an immersion trip to Taipei with 19 other students. Through this trip, we hoped that we could improve our Chinese proficiency and learn more about Taipei’s culture.

We entered the plane and were eager and excited for the journey that awaits.

Day 1

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We finally reached Taipei! We were introduced to our tour guide after we cleared customs, and went to the tour bus, where we had our lunch – McChicken Burgers and bubble tea.

As we ate our lunch, we observed how Taipei city looks like.

四四南村

Our first stop is at 四四南村, a historical village. There, we learnt more about the lives of people who lived in that village, and how their homes looked like.

There were also different quotes that were on the walls of the exhibition, which promoted us to reflect on ourselves for personal growth.

From this visit to 四四南村, I come to realise that they lived a humble life, but they had a sense of community which pulled them together, and despite their uncertainties, they persevered.

中正纪念堂

We then went to Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall, which was built to commemorate Chiang Kai-shek, the former leader of Taiwan. Here, we watched the change of guards.

Afterwards, we walked up the 89 stairs towards the main hall, where a statue of Chaing Kai-shek stands. 2 walls of the main hall reads “生命的意義在創造宇宙繼起之生命，生活的目的在增進人類全體之生活。” The english translation of this is: The meaning of life is to create the life that will succeed the universe, and the purpose of life is to enhance the life of all human beings.

This made me reflect more about the purpose of my life, and remind myself to contribute to society instead of being individualistic.

We then visited the gift shop where many of my friends bought different gifts for their loved ones.

Dinner

After a long day of activities, we were famished and stopped by a restaurant for dinner. There was a wide variety of food, with different meat and vegetables.

As we ate, we also helped one another with the food, improving our group’s team spirit.

Finally, it was time to check into our hotels, where we had a break before commencing our sharing of reflections.

Overall, it was an enjoyable day especially since it’s our first day in Taipei. Although we were grouped with people of different classes, we got to know one another quickly.

Want to read more about my Taipei Immersion Trip Experience? Here are the other posts on it: