A savory snack called Kuai Kuai is seen as a good luck charm in many work fields in Taiwan. Formding a special “Kuai Kuai” culture in Taiwan.
This special culture in Taiwan also gained international attention. An BBC article discussed about the lucky charm of Kuai Kuai , titled “In Taiwan, coconut-flavoured corn crisps are seen as good-luck charms that ensure high-tech machines co-operate. But why?”
According to BBC, people see these crisps as amulets – or good luck charms – that, if used properly, will ensure that technology behaves well and doesn’t break down. They place bags of this humble snack, known as ‘Kuai Kuai’ (or 'Guai Guai'), on or around vital machines in many of the island’s laboratories, banks and even hospitals to ensure the machines continue to do their jobs.
According to Taipei Times, green bags of coconut butter-flavored Kuaikuai (乖乖) are the go-to prophylactic because they possess magical power that ensures machines won’t break down.
The belief that coconut-butter flavored bags of Kuaikuai can protect everything from ATMs to hard drives offers an interesting window into how magic continues to thrive in the technologically-advanced nation.
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More than just a meme, passing fad or good luck charm, the belief that the snack keeps tech running smoothly and provides protection offers a window into how folk traditions dating back to antiquity continue to evolve in technologically-advanced Taiwan. In fact, the product resonates so strongly as a talisman, there are now knock-offs such as “Especially Kuai” (特別乖).
Taipei Times explains, Taiwanese share a common belief that Chinese characters possess magical power, which influences a person’s fate. Billions of dollars are spent on the practice every year, with experts drawing on ancient wisdom to improve a person’s fate so as to ensure good health and prosperity. The character for guai possesses this kind of magical property.
And Green is associated with traffic lights or the green light on a computer, signifying that everything is flowing smoothly. An amber light, of course, signifies that the computer is in sleep mode or, worryingly, might soon crash, which is why bags of red and yellow Kuaikuai are kept far away from computers (though bags of yellow and red Kuaikuai are used in different contexts for, respectively, wealth and love).
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