Falangaw Tribe blesses site of National Day fireworks show

Falangaw Tribe blesses site of National Day fireworks show

2026-10-09

Taitung is hosting the National Day fireworks display for the first time in nine years. The pyrotechnic extravaganza will take place on Saturday night, along the Taitung International Landmark on the Seashore park and along the Beinan River.

The launch sites lie within the traditional territory of the Amis Falangaw Tribe, and include an important location where the annual ocean worship ceremony is held. Ahead of the fireworks show, tribal elders gathered at the site on Friday for a blessing ritual. They set out offerings and sang traditional songs to pay tribute to their ancestors. As part of the ceremony, they also pounded millet grains to create a representation of the sun and the moon, to ensure the display goes ahead without a hitch. Taitung Commissioner Yao Ching-ling joined the ceremony to pray for success, and extended an invitation for everyone in Taiwan to visit Taitung and celebrate National Day together.

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#taitung #fireworks #display #nationalday #pyrotechnics

國慶焰火睽違9年重返台東明晚海濱公園.卑南溪璀璨登場

2026-10-09

睽違9年再度回到台東施放的國慶焰火，週六晚間將在海濱公園國際地標，及卑南溪出海口璀璨登場。

由於施放場地，是屬於阿美族馬蘭部落傳統領域，也是族人每年舉辦海祭的重要地點，因此部落耆老，週五特別舉行傳統祈福儀式，準備豐盛祭品、吟唱傳統歌謠，向東方敬拜祖靈，並搗製象徵太陽與月亮的小米，祈求國慶焰火活動平安順利。台東縣長饒慶鈴，也率縣府一級主管共同參與祈福，祈願活動順利圓滿，邀請全國民眾到台東共襄盛舉。

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Radish master pickles radishes the old-fashioned way

We live in a society that values efficiency and rapid production. But occasionally, we find someone who takes the time to cultivate flavor. Known as the "Radish Master," Liu Mei-hsia has devoted years of her life to an old-fashioned way of pickling radishes. Her insistence on the traditional method is also a philosophy of life; most of her products are not sold but shared with friends and relatives, reflecting her deep affection for ingredients and the land.

The knife cuts a radish that’s been pickled for many years. These thin slices reveal layers of amber-colored texture. With each cut, you can practically taste the radish’s resilience and chewiness, the result of being preserved over the years.

These giant earthenware jars fill a large area of the outdoor space. There’s roughly six or seven hundred jars of radishes, slowly ripening quietly in the sunlight and mist. These are the fruits of Liu Mei-hsia’s years of hard work as a pickling expert.

Liu Mei-hsia
Pickled radish master
I fell ill in 1996 and started searching for food. Every time I bought food, I would buy a lot of it and pickle it. The main reason was that I made these pickled products as gifts.

Without peeling or cutting them, Liu Mei-hsia insists on putting whole radishes into the jars, preserving their original constitution. She adds salt to soften them and sugar to ferment them, and the rest she relies on time and sunlight to slowly transform their flavor.

Liu Mei-hsia
Pickled radish master
You can look at every kind of food as a living organism: how you look at its life form, what it needs from us, and what we can give it in return. Ultimately, it’s about treating it gently and providing it with a good environment. Then it will thrive.

Time is the key to fermentation. Radishes that have been preserved for five years have the best flavor. Those preserved for ten years have an even stronger flavor, and there are even radishes that have been preserved for 30 years. For the first three years, the jars need to be opened periodically for inspection.

Chien Pei-ling
Mei-hsia’s friend
She has many skills that are different from our traditional methods of making fermented foods, so we really want to learn from her those techniques.

Liu Mei-hsia doesn’t give lessons, doesn’t mass produce her foods. She only concentrates on the changes that are happening within her jars of radishes. To her, this isn’t just preserving food, but it’s her way of putting into practice what it means to coexist with time, and her philosophy of sharing good health and good flavors with others.

#pickles #itsalive #radish #homestead

For more Taiwan news, tune in:
Mon to Fri at 9:30 pm on Channel 152
Tue to Sat at 1 am on Channel 53

2026-10-09

Military police share secret behind perfect Presidential Office flag

Have you ever noticed that the national flag on top of the Presidential Office’s 11-story tower always seems to be flying perfectly, no matter how harsh the wind or rain? The Military Police’s 211th Battalion is responsible for this invisible task. They swap the battered flag out every month, threading wires through the fabric by hand to secure it. It seems easy, but it requires a team of four or five people working together to pull it off.

The Presidential Office Building stands proud along Chongqing South Road, the national flag fluttering elegantly under blue skies.

Lin Yen-chun
FTV reporter
Looking up behind me, you can see the national flag flying 11 stories high on top of the Presidential Office tower. It looks to be fluttering easily in the breeze. But what’s the secret to keeping it that way?

Inside the tower—an area off-limits to the public—officers with the Military Police’s 211th Battalion assemble once a month to change the flag. To keep it from ripping or tangling in high winds, they forego the standard ropes in favor of more sturdy wires along the edges.

Wang Kun-huang
Battalion sergeant
After some testing, we found that if the wire is too thick, the holes it leaves in the fabric are too large. When the winds are strong, it actually wears out the flag faster. If they’re too light, they rust easily in the wind and rain, causing them to break.

To seamlessly fuse together the flag and wire, they must use pliers to twist them tightly. They must also be flush with the fabric so that when a flag bearer runs a gloved hand over the joint, it won’t catch on the fabric. It may seem simple, but it takes four to five officers all working in tandem.

Huang Wei-ting
Battalion flag bearer
The hardest part is threading the wire through the halyard, because the rope is incredibly stiff. There’s no need for us to rush. Our only priority is making sure that every wire is affixed well.

It’s not just the officers’ skill that ensures the flag flies perfectly. The four corners are also extra thick and reinforced with double stitching to prevent tearing. For this elite group of officers, even a single tear is unacceptable. They take pride in ensuring that the nation’s greatest symbol of honor flies high and proud.

For more Taiwan news, tune in:
Mon to Fri at 9:30 pm on Channel 152
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#nationalflag #PresidentialOffice #militarypolice #flagbearer #honor

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Worshippers flock to Chiayi as Baishatun Mazu attends anniversary

Thousands of worshippers flocked to Chiayi as the famous pink supercar of the goddess Mazu rolled into town! The iconic Baishatun Mazu turned the streets into a sea of devotees to celebrate the Dafuxing Temple’s 260th anniversary. Some worshippers knelt on the ground to receive the goddess’s blessings as her sedan passed over them. And the crowds aren’t just coming out of faith; they’re also here for the festivities. Locals are pulling out all the stops, handing out free food to welcome the masses.

The Baishatun Mazu arrives in her famous pink supercar, trailed by thousands of worshippers. The streets of Chiayi City were packed to the brim.

People took advantage of the opportunity to get blessings from the goddess, crouching on the ground while her palanquin passed over them.

- I’ve been following her for 10 years now. I was so excited I cried.

Worshipper
Visiting Chiayi for Mazu
I came with a group of friends. We did the Baishatun pilgrimage together. We’re from all over, Changhua, the North, Caotun in Nantou…

Believers from all over Taiwan flocked to Chiayi. Locals set up stands to hand out freebies for the worshippers, turning the city into a bustling festival ground.

- We ran out of vermicelli and cold noodles.
- They’re all gone?
- Yes, we only have fried noodles now.

- I’ve been queuing since before daybreak.
- We came at around 2. We’ve got corn and taiyaki.

The occasion for Mazu’s visit is the 360th anniversary of Chiayi’s Dafuxing Temple. She arrived on Friday to bless the city with her presence for two days.

Huang Min-hui
Chiayi Mayor
It’s a huge religious event. Everyone is here. Chiayi is really packed with people.

Tseng Tung-ben
Dafuxing Temple
We’re thrilled to be celebrating 360 years since our temple’s foundation. We invited the Baishatun Mazu to visit us and offer us her blessings in this special occasion.

Hung Wen-hua
Baishatun Mazu Temple
Wealth and riches for everyone, and of course, peace and protection for everyone.

The Baishatun Mazu will stay at Dafuxing Temple on Oct. 9 and 10, with song and dance performances to be held in the temple square in the evenings. The temple encourages everyone to join the festivities during this long weekend.

For more Taiwan news, tune in:
Mon to Fri at 9:30 pm on Channel 152
Tue to Sat at 1 am on Channel 53

#temple #mazu #blessed #supercar #pink

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Local in shock after local chief’s husband eats moldy cake in one bite

A moldy cake gave way to a bizarre shouting match at a borough warden’s office in Hsinchu. It all started after the local borough warden handed out Double Ninth cash gifts for elders, alongside campaign materials for a KMT candidate and a delectable slice of traditional sponge cake. The sweet gesture seemed nice, but it turns out that the cake had black dots of what appeared to be mold all over the surface. A concerned local took the cake back to the warden’s office, only for her husband to swallow it up in one go and insisting it was safe to eat. But locals wonder whether he was actually just trying to destroy the evidence. Let’s watch how it went down.

- It’s moldy.
- They were baked last night.
- Regardless, it’s moldy.
It doesn’t matter when it was made.
- Why did you eat it?
What was that for!
Why would you eat it!
What’s the goal here?

Niece
Saw moldy cake
I took it out, and saw it was moldy. I told my aunt, “You can’t eat this.” Then, everyone told me to fetch the borough warden, since she gave it out. When I did, her husband straight-up took a bite of the cake claiming it wasn’t moldy, and that it was fine to eat. He ate it up in one go! I was flabbergasted! He gulped it down, and then told me to go get the cake tested. So you’re telling me you gave out 10 or 20 cake pieces and only mine was moldy? What about food safety and hygiene? The cake didn’t bear a manufacturing date or an expiry date. It wasn’t vacuum packed. Did they expect us to just eat food waste?

The incident happened in Xinpu in Hsinchu County. Xinpu’s mayor distributed the Double Ninth Festival cash gifts through local borough wardens, one of which decided to sweeten the deal with traditional sponge cake she’d received from a friend. Unfortunately, the treat came with a side of mold. The warden, Wu Kuei-hsiang, has kept quiet, reportedly insisting in private that the suspicious spots were just ink stains. Her husband’s one-bite showdown ultimately stole the show, leaving residents scratching their heads over what exactly they just witnessed.

For more Taiwan news, tune in:
Mon to Fri at 9:30 pm on Channel 152
Tue to Sat at 1 am on Channel 53

#cake #moldy #gift #taiwan #bizarre

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Outrage after Shoushan Zoo visitor hits macaque with umbrella

A group visiting Shoushan Zoo in Kaohsiung recently got into trouble for provoking macaques resting by the side of the path. One man swung his bag toward an animal, as another used his umbrella to whack it in the head. Footage of the incident generated heated condemnation online, slamming the visitors as setting a terrible example for the children with them. The Kaohsiung Animal Protection Office also mentioned that such behavior is against the law.

A group approaches some macaques ambling down the same path. A man chases after one, pretending he’s about to kick so that it runs away. But that wasn’t the worst of it.

One man swings his bag in the direction of a macaque to provoke it, while another strikes it hard on the head with his umbrella, causing it to leap aside in fear.

Member of public
Other zoo patron
You shouldn’t hit them. If you hit them, they might get angrier and more likely to attack people.

This incident happened at Shoushan Zoo in Kaohsiung. The animals clearly weren’t showing aggression toward the group, but they harassed them anyway. Footage of the encounter drew backlash online.

Member of public
Animal lover
It sets a terrible example. Their kids were right there. We should be kind to animals.

Member of public
Zoo patron
You should keep your distance and avoid interacting with them, because they sometimes attack regular visitors.

Visiting a zoo to see animals while treating the wild animals there with such hostility is unacceptable. An expert also noted that hitting a macaque with an umbrella is likely against the law.

Lin Mei-yin
Taiwan Macaque Coexistence Promotion Association
The macaque in the video wasn’t trying to grab anything or attack, but the visitor used his umbrella to strike it. This potentially constitutes animal abuse, as regulated under the Wildlife Conservation Act.

Regardless of whether he was trying to protect the children near him or not, such misconduct sets the worst kind of example for the next generation.

For more Taiwan news, tune in:
Mon to Fri at 9:30 pm on Channel 152
Tue to Sat at 1 am on Channel 53

#animalabuse #ShoushanZoo #macaque #parenting #animalwelfare

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Doctors urge immediate medical care for ruptured cerebral aneurysms

A Hong Kong tourist who visited Taiwan two years ago suddenly experienced severe headaches and neck pain, almost fainting. After being rushed to the hospital, it was found she had suffered a ruptured cerebral aneurysm combined with a stroke. Doctors are highlighting this condition. Although only 3 out of 100 people may experience this, there is a relatively high mortality rate and only one third who survive are able to live independently afterwards. They are urging people with these symptoms to get medical attention as soon as possible. Let’s find out more:

Ms. Sze, from Hong Kong, was visiting Jiufen two years ago when she suddenly experienced severe headaches and neck pain, almost fainting. She initially thought it was heatstroke, but after being taken to the hospital, it was discovered that she had suffered a ruptured cerebral aneurysm combined with a stroke.

Ms. Sze’s family member
Describing the incident
She suddenly said she had severe neck pain, then she couldn’t move her lower body, and she felt very cold and kept vomiting. She said she needed to call an ambulance. We waited for about 30 minutes before the ambulance finally arrived. At that time, every minute felt like an eternity, and we were very scared.

Fortunately, through a minimally invasive clipping procedure, the doctor avoided having to remove a large area of the skull. With just a 2 to 3-centimeter incision, a metal clip was used to secure the cerebral aneurysm and prevent further bleeding.

Yan Jiun-lin
Keelung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital
Out of 100 people, only about 3 have aneurysms. Most people don’t have aneurysms and they typically give us no trouble. But if they rupture accidentally, it can cause serious brain hemorrhage. That’s why we have to pay so much attention to this disease. It’s because once it ruptures, there is an extremely high mortality rate of 15% to 20%. Only a small percentage of those who survive are able to live independently.

After a ruptured cerebral aneurysm, only one-third of patients are able to live independently. Doctors urge that if a family member has a cerebral aneurysm, it is best to quit smoking and drinking, maintain a regular lifestyle, and seek medical attention as soon as possible.

For more Taiwan news, tune in:
Mon to Fri at 9:30 pm on Channel 152
Tue to Sat at 1 am on Channel 53

#cerebralaneurysims #strokes #neckpain #headaches #Taiwanhealth

2026-10-09