As a result of the 12th World Bamboo Congress held in Taiwan April 18-22, many participants took part in a post-Congress tour sponsored by the Yunlin County government.Two bus loads of adventurous international tourists set out across the plains and into the mountains of Yunlin County. This wonderful experience earned the region the official designation of World Bamboo Landmark, thanks mostly to the hospitality of Magistrate Chang Li-Shan.
Yunlin is located in the south-central part of western Taiwan at the northern end of the Jianan Plain. Nantou County lies to the east and the Taiwan Strait to the west, the Beigang River and Chiayi County define the southern border, with the Zhuoshui River and Changhua County to the north. Plains account for nine-tenths of the county area, while mountainous areas make up the remaining 10 percent. The county has a subtropical climate and a year-round average temperature of 22.6 degrees centigrade. Administratively, it is divided into 20 townships and cities, all in flatland areas except for the three mountainous areas of Douliu City, Gukeng Township, and Linnei Township.
On April 23rd, participants to the 12th WBC were welcomed by Magistrate Chang Li-shan and her dedicated team. The friendly atmosphere and generous spirit of Magistrate Chang made way for an amazing dinner banquet, high in the hills of Gukeng (elevation 1,650m) among the vast Moso bamboo forests. The WBC tour group arrived to a covered dining room, adorned with flowers in bamboo vases, lit by lamps within bamboo baskets, and tables set with bamboo plates and service ware. Even the bar was set with bamboo cups!
Chef Zhang Binfu of Michelin-starred Tu Pang restaurant created an unforgettable meal for the enthusiastic bamboo crowd. He said, ""We want our guests from all over the world to know that Taiwan's Taiwanese style dishes such as ... green bamboo blades are doing very well, and we can also master the characteristics of local ingredients and make delicate dishes." Also the poet, he says,
"The mountains bring me
Entering the dream of bamboo
Linking mountain wind, bamboo forest, wilderness, quiet
Time to hear the bamboo forest flow on the plate."
Not only was the meal an unforgettable culinary delight, a local dance group performed amazing acts of dancing through bamboo rings of fire in an acrobatic style of daring agility. Municipal employees mingled with the WBC Congress participants in a truly international evening of bamboo camaraderie.
The next day, we enjoyed a morning hiking through the county-owned Moso forest of 560 hectares at Shibi. For years it had been unmanaged due to road closures caused by a devastating earthquake. Thanks to the commitment by Yunlin County to restore the forest, extensive thining and management practices are bringing the bamboo back to a healthy condition, and the area is being promoted to the public as a refuge for "clean health". It is thought that this Moso is approximately 60-80 years old, with the original forest being started by Japanese colonists. There is no record of flowering.
The next stop was in Douliu at the new Bamboo Structure Center which was designed by Taiwan Bamboo Society member Peter Kan and team. Once a sugar cane processing facility owned by the Taiwan Sugar Company, the site is subleased to the Yunlin County municipal government and is under renovation to accommodate the growing interest in bamboo as a construction material. This site will serve as a training and education center for anyone interested in participating in the growing field of bamboo construction, both from the traditional viewpoint for indigenous communities and those with contemporary application.
Another focus point for bamboo in Yunlin County is in the township of Huwei, is the home of the Yunlin Story House. Taiwan Bamboo Society founder and founding president Li Fang Tang (who is also a World Bamboo Ambassador) is the pulse of this community center.
For all of these reasons, the World Bamboo Organization has declared Yunlin Country as a World Bamboo Landmark. Our sincere gratitude to Magistrate Chang and the Yunlin County governent. We look forward to continued collaboration on all things bamboo.
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