Taipei skyline at twilight
Welcome back to our UO global gifting year-end countdown! Today’s gifting suggestions come to us from Taiwan via Athena Todd, BFA ’03 (Multimedia Design) and current Business Administration student Roger Cheng. Following their personal gift picks, Athena and Roger have also shared some information about popular gifting holidays in Taiwan.
After earning her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the UO, Athena Todd had successful careers in business networking and real estate operations. She noticed that many of her colleagues and client community members were struggling with unpacking and expressing cross-cultural identities; career planning and searching; and working well with people from different backgrounds. Although she had been personally consulting for over a decade, this year, Athena decided to make a career out of it. She recently started her own cross-cultural life coaching practice to help people connect different cultural backgrounds and create success in their careers.
Roger Cheng is a first year student who has been taking classes in Business and Global Studies from his home in Taiwan. He can’t wait to get to Oregon to continue his studies while enjoying all of his favorite things: outdoor activities, sports, and traveling! Roger is a recipient of the Global Corners Award, which provides tuition support to new and continuing international students who contribute to campus diversity and internationalization
Athena Todd, BFA ’03
Eugene-based cross-cultural life coach
Top gifts: Trends and traditions
Pineapple cake
Pineapple cake is one of the most common lunar new year’s traditions. Pineapple is a symbol of good fortune and prosperity. So, we give this delicious treat to invite good fortune for the coming year! If you want to try making pineapple cake the Taiwanese way, you can see this recipe!
Handcrafted ceramics
Handcrafted ceramics are a favorite item for gifting! Yingge Old Street in Taipei has hundreds of shops selling handcrafted ceramics!
Fine leaf tea
Taiwan grows and enjoys several varieties of Oolong tea; producers take part in seasonal tea competitions to earn high ratings, with top teas earning bronze, silver, ad gold medals. Bao Zhong (an oolong tea) from Taoyuan County was a gold medal winner this year. Ruby #18 is one of the few famous black teas from Taiwan.
Top gifts: Personal picks
Flowers
Flowers are always a beautiful gift that can really make a person feel special. My favorites are purple roses!
Movie tickets
While people are going to the movies less these days, we should still support the movie theatres when it is once again safe to do so. Going to the movies is such a fun outing!
A donation to the International Cultural Service Program Scholarship Fund
Ever since I left Taiwan at the age of 20 to study in the U.S. I have been involved in cross-cultural work and now I have become a cross-cultural educator myself! It is challenging to overestimate the importance of programs that support intercultural learning in such a diverse way as this great program at the UO does!
Roger Cheng
Current UO business administration student and sport enthusiast
My top gifts: Trends and traditions
Wind-up music boxes
I have been seeing a lot of wind-up music boxes being given as gifts. These can be a very nice, personal gift; both the design and the tune played can be chosen to suit the person to whom you are gifting!
Fresh fruit
Delicious, fresh fruit is always a welcome gift! Some fruits that are common in Taiwan and not seen as much in the U.S. include persimmons; star fruit; wax apples; mangoes; papayas; leechee; pomelo; passion fruit; jujube, and durian.
NIan Gao
A sticky rice cake with coconut and sesame, nian gao is lunar new year tradition for bringing success and good luck. Fried nian gao is also very popular and tasted great! You can try making it yourself with this recipe.
My top gifts: Personal picks
Books on Investing
As a business student, I am eager to build my knowledge in as many areas as possible. Right now, I am most interested in investing.
University of Oregon Gear
I am a sports fan and a proud Duck, so Ducks gear is a top gift pick for me for sure!
Tickets to a sporting event
I love attending sporting events and the fun thing about receiving tickets is that you get to share the fun! I can’t wait to reach Eugene and start attending events…..Go Ducks!
Gifting in Taiwan
Similar to a number of East Asian countries, Lunar New Year (or Chinese New Year) is the most important holiday. The holiday is to honor household and heavenly deities as well as ancestors. It is also a time to bring all the family together for feasting. Red envelopes will be given by parents, grandparents, or relatives for children. Once children reach adulthood, they will give the red envelope to parents and grandparents.
Taiwan also celebrates the Autumn Moon Festival on the fifteenth day of the eighth lunar month. This is when the moon appears the most full, bright, and round. The day marks the end of the harvest season for rice and other crops. People buy and gift moon cakes with different fillings, have outdoor cookouts, and enjoy gazing at the moon. Children makes hats from the skin/rind of the pomelo fruit.
