All Things Taiwanese

"lı́ hó bô? chiah-pá-bô?"

Taiwanese was the "secret" language that my parents used when my sister and I were growing up. While they spoke Mandarin Chinese to us, they spoke Taiwanese to each other all the time.

I still sound like a wako lang (foreigner) when I attempt to speak Taiwanese. However, my parents' plans for a secret language totally failed. Kids absorb languages like sponges, and we were no different. Surprisingly, though I never spoke a word of it growing up, I can actually understand quite a bit of Taiwanese. This proved to be quite useful many times in my life - talking with relatives in Taiwan, ordering Taiwanese food at restaurants, and just getting around in the streets of Taiwan.

Why all this focus on Taiwan all of a sudden?

I'm pleased to announce that TaiwaneseAmerican.Org, a foundation dedicated to all things Taiwanese American, has published an interview with Tiny Urban Kitchen today at their site. Check out the interview here!

As one who grew up relatively isolated from a large Asian American community, I think sites like these are great for helping fellow Taiwanese people connect and share the love of their country, heritage, and culture.

In the spirit of the interview, I've gathered all my Taiwanese content and put them together on a few pages dedicated to Taiwan. Definitely check out the recipes page (where you'll find mouthwatering recipes for Taiwanese classics such as bawan, lo ba bng, and batzhang), as well as the restaurants page, which describes Boston Taiwanese favorites as well as other restaurants I've visited in Taiwan and elsewhere.

Enjoy!