A few days ago, an activity was held at the NIA Chiayi City Service Center of the Southern District Affairs Brigade, inviting new immigrants from Vietnam, Japan, Paraguay, Thailand, and other nations to share how they celebrate the Dragon Boat Festival and experience making Vietnamese rice dumplings.
NIA Chiayi City Service Center invites new immigrants to share the custom of making rice dumplings in their home country.Photo provided by National Immigration Agency
Vietnamese new immigrant (范紅豔), who has lived in Taiwan for almost 20 years, claimed that, unlike Taiwan, Vietnamese rice dumplings are made during the Spring Festival to honor ancestors rather than during the Dragon Boat Festival.
NIA Chiayi City Service Center invites new immigrants to share the custom of making rice dumplings in their home country.Photo provided by National Immigration Agency
Vietnamese rice dumplings are split into square northern rice dumplings and round southern rice dumplings, according to Vietnamese new immigrant (范紅豔). Vietnamese rice dumplings are made with glutinous rice, pickled pork, and mung beans; sweet rice dumplings are made with bananas. Vietnamese dumplings tend to be huge, so often, family and friends share one together.
NIA Chiayi City Service Center invites new immigrants to share the custom of making rice dumplings in their home country.Photo provided by National Immigration Agency
Read more: Overstayers self-report for reduced penalty! Let NIA help you home!
A Japanese new immigrant (小緒里) said that rice dumplings, which are made of sticky rice and stuffed with red beans, are another common food eaten by Japanese youngsters. The husband of a new immigrant (紅青) from Vietnam who has been in Taiwan for more than two months, agreed that the events put on by National Immigration Agency are a very important way for him to learn about the culture of his wife's home country. A couple from Paraguay also mentioned that, in contrast to Taiwan, rice dumplings there are flavored with maize.
According to the director (黃艷薰) of NIA Chiayi City Service Center, the participation of the friends in the activities would help them comprehend the many national and cultural practices, which will help them respect diversity and value individual differences. NIA would like to remind new immigrants and migrant workers that it is against the law to bring or send in pork products from countries with African swine fever. If they are seized, they might face a NT$1 million penalties.
