Latest posts
Click on each of our profiles above to read through our individual stories, or scroll down below to browse a collection of the group’s latest posts.
- See you next time, Taiwan.by Juliette HCHelloooo, everyone, and welcome, sadly, to my last blog :,) These past few six weeks have been the absolute best, with new experiences and new friends! My previous blog was written just before the new year, so I have a lot more to talk about within this one, including the New Year! (Welcome to 2023, by the way 🤩). The last three weeks in Taiwan were definitely jam-packed with lots of…Continue Reading See you next time, Taiwan.
- Living the real exchange student lifeby Juliette HCWelcome back to my page, everyone; I’m terribly sorry for taking so long to upload this blog! It’s been quite hectic since moving into the dorms and getting into the nitty gritty of university life here. I want to focus this blog more on these last 1-2 weeks of December, so I can give everyone a thorough update on how it’s been here (PS, this is future Juliette from February,…Continue Reading Living the real exchange student life
- Some final takeawaysby HineI have now been back in our beautiful Aotearoa for a few weeks and have finally been able to wrap my head around my thoughts to write this final reflection. Coming back was not as much of a culture shock as I expected. It was almost as if I had never left. I was lucky enough that I was going down to the Waikato area straight after arriving in Aotearoa,…Continue Reading Some final takeaways
- Visiting 台北 and return to 纽西兰by HineHello, and welcome to my final blog! The last time we left off, I had managed to visit the dentist in 台湾。 That is no easy feat. Afterwards, we were lucky enough to be able to visit an Indigenous Elementary School in the mountains. This was an amazing experience, where we were able to teach them about New Zealand and, in turn, learn more about the Paiwan (Taiwanese indigenous) culture. We got…Continue Reading Visiting 台北 and return to 纽西兰
- Cultural classes in Tainanby FinleyWe’re nearing the end of our time in Tainan; less than ten days left. It feels bittersweet. We look forward to seeing our families, but we’ve become accustomed to living here, and we’ve all felt very welcomed. I will miss Tainan when I’m back in Auckland. The Chinese language centre at Cheung Kong University has been incredibly generous to us, particularly in our four cultural classes. I’ve previously written about…Continue Reading Cultural classes in Tainan
- Highs and Lowsby sfer099During this trip, I kept a journal where I made a note of daily highs and lows. Here are a few that sum up some of my favorite memories from my program and some of the learning curbs I encountered. The most reoccurring high… FOOD Low: Large university workload Although I often mention all the fun stuff I did during this program, there was still a lot of Chinese homework….Continue Reading Highs and Lows
- My first Christmas & New Years away from homeby sfer099This was one part of my trip I both looked forward to and was worried about. I have always spent Christmas with family and New Year’s with close friends; I hoped that being in a totally new country with a new group of friends wasn’t going to make me too homesick! Christmas in the Park My Christmas day started with many phone calls back home to family and friends- so…Continue Reading My first Christmas & New Years away from home
- A Whole New World (in Taipei)by acai663I thought I’d have a detailed itinerary for Taipei. I have landmarks to visit, from Maokong Gondolas (gondolas which fly over the expanse of lush, green forestry to the south of Taipei) to Houtong Cat Village (the attraction is in the name!). However, thanks to Bonnie and Rachel’s influence, I’ve learnt that rough plans are necessary when travelling. Still, too many details create unnecessary mental blocks that prevent you from…Continue Reading A Whole New World (in Taipei)
- Familiar Places, New Beginnings, Same Me.by acai663University in Tainan has plunged me into the kind of growth I’d never experienced in New Zealand. Who celebrates their 21st with friends they’d only met two weeks prior? Who tries yoga for the first time soundtracked to Taylor Swift at the university park? Who else has had the pleasure of learning cup music with Taiwanese elders? I’ve learned so much about myself and the way the world works. I’ve…Continue Reading Familiar Places, New Beginnings, Same Me.
- A Reflection on my time in Tainanby eske505We have safely made it back to New Zealand, landing in Auckland just before the International Airport was completely flooded; so very grateful for that! Being back at home has been great, getting to catch up with friends and family and tell them all about the incredible time I had in Taiwan. All of the conversations I’ve had talking about my trip has also made writing this blog post easier…Continue Reading A Reflection on my time in Tainan
- Taiwan: Week sevenby Henry FitzgeraldMonday 23 January–Friday 27 January Fulong Beach I hadn’t seen the ocean since landing in Taipei. My initial desire had been to train to a beach on the east coast with friends in the early hours of the Gregorian new year to see the first sunrise of 2023 emerge from the ocean, the same sun shining on and ocean surrounding Selle, family, and home thousands of kilometres away. I read…Continue Reading Taiwan: Week seven
- Taiwan: Week sixby Henry FitzgeraldMonday 16 January–Sunday 22 January The final day of class Monday, 16 January, was my final day of class. I gave a final presentation on some differences between the US and New Zealand before saying 再見 (goodbye) to my teachers 許老師 and 林老師, and my classmates, Noah, Ashleigh, Takahiro, Nicole, Araceli, Daryll, Yung and Asuka for the last time. It was a moving experience, as I will likely never see some of them again. But I’m…Continue Reading Taiwan: Week six
- 101 Things to do in Taipeiby ZaraComing to Taipei during Lunar New Year’s is probably the best and worst time to come to Taipei. Because Lunar New Year’s is such a major celebration here, everything is closed! Trying to find a non-fast food meal is like Mission impossible! I also needed to find a suitcase to bring all my favourite snacks here back to NZ, which was a second mission in itself (thankfully, mission accomplished, much…Continue Reading 101 Things to do in Taipei
- New Year, new post！by ZaraThe final week of our exchange here in Tainan has arrived so quickly. To finish up our last week and a half, we continued our packed schedule. I managed to head to a new night market with my language buddy Ariel and her roommate in an effort to cram in all the foods I had managed to miss thus far- including but not limited to spring onion pancake, watermelon juice,…Continue Reading New Year, new post！
- A rollercoaster of a week!by Zara好久不见！ I believe Tainan was recently voted the world’s flattest city (by myself). However, this Saturday was full of ups and downs at the Janfusan Fancy world theme park in the Yunlin County area of Taiwan. Whilst a small mission to get onto the packed-full train to Douliu, then a Taxi to the park, before taking the bus back to the train station and train back to campus at the…Continue Reading A rollercoaster of a week!
- 忘不了。by Charlie Matthews忘不了, unforgettable. That is the one word I can think of to adequately describe this trip. Sure, there have been ups and downs, but it is an experience firmly etched into my memory. The uniqueness of this experience dawned on me more and more as the trip came closer to a close. Like an impending dread, I realised I would not experience these precious moments again. Sure, I will go…Continue Reading 忘不了。
- Taiwan: Week threeby Henry FitzgeraldMonday 26 December–Sunday 1 January Visiting a tea house NCKU organised a trip to a picturesque tea house in Anping for us. The owner showed us the traditional method of serving tea to guests. The ritual welcomes a guest to your home and allows each participant to demonstrate their urbanity or lack thereof, as in my case. More prosaically, the point is to enjoy good tea. There are two teapots,…Continue Reading Taiwan: Week three
- Taiwan update：20th January 2023by loh761Kia ora whānau, My apologies for the late post; this trip has been incredibly busy! My experience under the 360 programme in Taiwan has been and continues to be jam-packed full of culture, study, and new experiences. It is hard to believe that it is nearly over! As it has been a while since my previous post, I thought what I would do is bring to light the key moments,…Continue Reading Taiwan update：20th January 2023
- Taiwan: Week fourby Henry FitzgeraldMonday 2 January–Sunday 8 January Seal cutting NCKU organised an expert to show us to cut a traditional seal. Seal cutting is an ancient art first practised in China over three thousand years ago. We learnt how emperors and public officials commissioned artisans to carve intricate characters onto bone, bronze, pottery and stone. Leaders would then use the cut seals with deep red ink to stamp documents, projecting their power…Continue Reading Taiwan: Week four
- Taiwan: Week fiveby Henry FitzgeraldMonday 9 January–Sunday 15 January Boys’ picnic at Chimei Museum Park This week was a busy time in class, with many tests to complete. But the three guys on the trip, Charlie, Fin and I, managed to find time to get together with our language partners, Jerry, Craig and Sky, respectively, for a boys’ picnic. The NCKU guys took us to the park surrounding Chimei Museum, an institution famous for…Continue Reading Taiwan: Week five