Following the drummer's beat, a group of international students have been seen rowing early in the morning at Dajia Wharf, practicing for almost two months for the Dragon Boat Festival races.
Many have found they learned more than they had expected.
“I learned the importance of team spirit, something you could not do alone, from this experience,” said Caline La Chon, from France.
PHOTO: CNA
She is now learning Mandarin at National Taiwan Normal University's Mandarin Training Center.
La Chon's brother, Christophe La Chon, is also part of the team.
“I have been waiting for this chance for a long time,” he said, adding that he and his sister heard about the language center from their brother, who studied there years ago.
The Dragon Boat Festival is one of three major festivals in Chinese culture. It takes place on the fifth day of the fifth month of the lunar calendar, which falls on June 16 this year, a public holiday in Taiwan.
During this time, dragon boat races will be held across the country.
Legend has it that the Dragon Boat Festival originates from the Warring States Period in ancient China. Qu Yuan (屈原), a poet and royal house official in the state of Chu, is said to have drowned himself in the Miluo River on the fifth day of the fifth month on the lunar calendar when his state was conquered by the state of Qin. A crowd gathered and beat the water with paddles and threw zongzi (粽子) in the river to stop the fish from eating Qu's body.
Pamela Maldonado from Honduras, who has lived in Taiwan for about eight months, said that after hearing the story of Qu Yuan and the Dragon Boat Festival, she felt that taking part in the races would be a good way to experience Taiwanese culture.
“Even though I have to get up very early, around 5:30am every morning, it is a commitment which made me believe I could do something if I really want to,” she said.
The team went from land training on the university's track to training in a swimming pool and then finally onto the Keelung River (基隆河) to actually paddle the boats, and learned that teamwork and synchronization are more important than strength. A stronger but less coordinated team will almost always lose to one with rowers that move in perfect harmony.
“I learned a lot about leadership from this, who can make a group maintain balance,” said Julie Tu, from the US, who returned to Taiwan to learn Mandarin and chose to re-enter the competition after a gap of 19 years.
Carlos Carter, also from the US, admitted that the first stage of training is a little painful — having to get up early and do a lot of exercise — but later he found that he had become addicted to it.
“I have learned a lot about my limits and how to conquer them,” he said, adding that he'd also picked up a few new Mandarin terms, such as jiaolian (教練, coach) and yubei (預備, get ready).
Married to a Taiwanese, Rebecca Huang from New Zealand is experiencing her first Dragon Boat Festival in Taiwan.
“Everything is so new and different to me,” she said, but by joining the team, she felt she could more easily assimilate into Taiwan's culture and lifestyle.
“I believe this will become the most important memory in my life,” she said.
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