From February 16-23, 2024, we once again took a party of Tokyo University and Kyushu University students to Taiwan on a one-week field trip. Organised in collaboration with Prof. Tomoko Ako of Tokyo University, and with generous assistance from many Taiwanese partners, this year’s field trip took students to the east coast city of Hualien as well as to Taipei. In Hualien, we visited indigenous communities of the Atayal (泰雅族) and Taroko (太魯閣) tribes, and heard very different stories concerning their folk memory of the Japanese colonial period. In Taipei, students were offered a choice of several parallel guided itineraries over three days - with themes including public history / heritage; architecture; civil society activism and more. Partners at National Taiwan Normal University and National Taiwan University generously lent the use of their facilities, and students and/or faculty from both institutions joined one or two of our activities. The field trip culminated with presentations by the students sharing the insights gained from their experience in Taiwan.
Students practice archery at an Atayal village near Hualien
Monkeys in Taroko Gorge
Students share their reflections on the visit to Taroko Gorge
Changing the guard at the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial, Taipei
With students at the National Palace Museum, Taipei