Language & Cultural Immersion Trip to Taiwan: A Travel Log

The following is a travel log by trip leaders Emily Elsner, Outdoor Program Assistant, and Ethan Treadwell, MYP & DP Physics Teacher, of Riverstone’s language and cultural immersion trip to Taiwan over Spring Break.

3/16/2023

What a trip so far!!

After a long flight to Taiwan, we finally made it to our hospitable destination of Kang Chaio School. We got a good night’s sleep and the kids were partnered with a student buddy for a day of school in Taiwan! The welcoming ceremony went well and the school was so excited to have us there. The kids had a blast at the night market where they were able to try some local cuisine and maybe play a few games to win toys.

The next day was a full immersion day of school for the kids. They participated in everything the Kang Chiao kids did including lessons, clubs, P.E., and tests! The school was gracious enough to give the kids a martial arts lesson before they went to their extracurricular activities after school. It was a long day with study hall after that so they were very tired but excited for the rest of the trip. Many of them expressed how sad they were that they had to say goodbye to their student buddies and all the new friends they made so far.

The kids have been fantastic and Ethan and I have only heard good things from the other teachers about them in their classes.

3/17/2023

Today was very bittersweet, to say the least!

Today the kids were able to go to school as well as take part in a cooking class where we learned how to make sweet rice balls! They were so yummy and Ethan and I had fun learning alongside the kids. After lunch, the Kang Chiao students interviewed the kids about their experiences, then had a small farewell ceremony where gifts and hugs were exchanged while pictures were taken and numbers were exchanged. After a very heartfelt goodbye, we loaded up our luggage on the bus and we took off to Taipei City!

After dropping off our things and taking a little break we ventured to the local McDonald’s to try out the different menu there. All of the kids (and adults) ordered in mandarin which was fun! We then went to Ximending, the night market near our hotel which was MUCH bigger than the one near Kang Chiao. The kids had a blast shopping for souvenirs, watching the street performers, and sampling even more Taiwanese cuisine.

3/18/2023

It was another great day.

The weather was cooler up in Yangming mountain, we explored the misty forest as we hiked about 2.5 miles to Qingtiengang. It was foggy, so we didn’t get to see the Taiwan water buffaloes as they were all hiding I guess, but we had a great morning hike while we enjoyed the green shower of the Taiwanese indigenous cedar tree in the forest. For lunch, we went to eat at a Taiwanese Steak house.

In the afternoon they visited the geothermal valley and experienced one of the most popular white sulfur hot springs in Taiwan.

We then went to the Tamsui old street and met the YouTubers. They enjoyed trying the local foods, shopping, and overlooking the harbor and sunset view of Tamsui.

3/19/2023

We checked out of the YMCA early and moved to Chien-Tan Youth Hotel yesterday.

Students had the experience of being on Taipei Metro to get around. We visited the Grand Hotel (just across the road from where we live) and learned the history of this hotel and Taiwan. It was a very educational tour.

We enjoyed our lunch in the Grand hotel, one of the top-rated buffet restaurants in Taipei. Sushi bar, dim-sims, Chinese cuisine, Tempura, Seafood bar, Soup, Roast beef, dessert and ice cream, and so much more. We all enjoyed eating there.

Then we went to the Xing-Tien Temple, which was built and dedicated back in 1968. Our teacher Ting also shared some interesting facts with our group about this temple.

We went to the top of 101 observatory and skyline to see the view of the Taipei valley. Students had about 2 hours to shop with their buddies and eat dinner at the biggest food court in Taipei. They all learned to order food by themselves. Some had Ding-Tai-Feng dumplings for dinner since we will be doing hot pot instead for the farewell dinner.

We did a lot of walking for the last few days, so everyone was pretty exhausted.

3/20/2023

We had a wonderful day today.

We went to the presidential House for a guided tour to learn about Taiwan history, then we went to the Chiangmai, Kai-Shek memorial hall to see the guard changing ceremony. We then went to eat lunch at the palace museum and tried Taiwanese famous beef noodles. We then spent a couple of hours inside the museum.

Of course, we had to do another night of the night market. A few of Kang-Chiao kids came to join us at the night market to celebrate Noah’s birthday. He was also surprised with a birthday cake afterward in the hotel.