A Trip to Tanaiku
2023 . 5 . 20
I attended a course called Tribal Economic Development this semester. Our teacher was from Seediq, so he wanted us to go to his tribe to experience the exact tribe it was. However, the school budget was going to be cut again this year. Originally, we could have a two-day trip to the Seediq tribe, and we only had a one-day trip to Tanaiku. It was a little pity that Tanaiku tended to be like a tourist attraction rather than the original tribe. But I was still delighted that I had the chance to have a trip with my classmates.
This plant was called Formosan Sugar Palm. The guide said that he tied the plant in a slipknot to catch shrimps when he was a child. When the shrimps were scared, they would move back rather than go ahead. Therefore, the only thing you needed to do was put the trap ahead of the shrimps, and you could catch them. It sounded really interesting! My father also liked to catch the shrimps. His tip to catch them was muddying the water, and used the net to catch the shrimps when they could not clearly see my father's net. He called the tip"混水摸魚". Next time, maybe he could use Formosan Sugar Palm to catch shrimps.
Tanaiku was famous for the achievements in the recovery of Taiwan shoveljaw carps, so it also called “The native habitat of Taiwan shoveljaw carps”. To make us see Taiwan shoveljaw carps, the guide sprinkled fish feed. The fish sounded really hungry for a long time, so it engaged in a food competition. The guide explained the fish would eat riverbank moss while no humans fed it.
This plant was called Formosan Sugar Palm. The guide said that he tied the plant in a slipknot to catch shrimps when he was a child. When the shrimps were scared, they would move back rather than go ahead. Therefore, the only thing you needed to do was put the trap ahead of the shrimps, and you could catch them. It sounded really interesting! My father also liked to catch the shrimps. His tip to catch them was muddying the water, and used the net to catch the shrimps when they could not clearly see my father's net. He called the tip"混水摸魚". Next time, maybe he could use Formosan Sugar Palm to catch shrimps.
As the rain was getting heavier, the guide hurried us to go across the bamboo bridge. However, the bridge seemed not sturdy enough to carry us, so it could only bear the weight of three people at a time. When I walked on it, the stream beneath my feet was extremely turbulent, and I felt like I could be swept away at any moment. While I passed the bridge, I thought I would not forget the exciting experience forever because once it rained heavily, normal people might keep away from the stream instead of staying by the side of the stream. But we believed the experienced Zou warrior, he was very familiar with the stream.
Subsequently, the Zou warrior took us to Tanaiku Bridge. Along the way, we climbed up and down, like real warriors advancing with firm strides. The scene reminded me of a previous hiking experience in the rain. I was also completely drenched by the rain at that time, but the situation was even worse then, with rainwater almost covering the path. I had to rely on the shadows created by the flowing water to determine where to step next. Moreover, I had to say I was a visionary person. I wore shorts, a short-sleeved shirt, and sandals this time. I expected that it might rain because the weather on the mountain was very unpredictable, especially in the afternoon. As we arrived at the observatory, the valley and Tanaiku Bridge in the rain were also incredibly dreamlike, like a rendered ink painting.