The 7th Yellow Butterfly Festival (美濃黃蝶祭) will be held this weekend in Meinung township (), Kaohsiung County. The festival is a three-day event during which visitors can ride a bicycle across a butterfly-filled valley, stroll past picturesque rice paddies and take in Hakka culture in the village of Meinung.
The festival is designed to call attention to environmental and ecological conservation, as well as to the preservation of Meinung’s unique Hakka culture.
Butterfly Valley, near Meinung, is famous for the millions of butterfly that used to call it home, especially in May and September, when they are out in the largest numbers. Construction of a dam spanning the valley was halted when President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) came into office, but not before deforestation caused drastic in the number of butterflies in the valley.
According to the festival’s organizer, the Meinung People’s Association (美濃愛鄉協進會), there are still thousands of butterflies in the valley thanks largely to the efforts of local environmentalists.
The two main features of the event will be a concert by the band Labor Exchange (交工樂團) tomorrow evening and a Butterfly Worship Ceremony, a traditional Hakka ritual, which will take place in the valley on Sunday morning. Labor Exchange’s music is a unique combination of Hakka folk songs and rock ‘n’ roll and has drawn acclaim from their appearances at folk festivals around the world.
Events this evening include a blue dye exhibition, featuring traditional Hakka blue-dyed dresses. Saturday, participants will be taught to make their own blue-dyed shirts at a workshop. Later on Saturday will be a swimming race in the Meinung canal and a guided bike trip around the town. Labor Exchange will play in the plaza of the Meinung Hakka Culture Hall (美濃客家文物館). There is also a Hakka food fair on Sunday, which features rice-based cuisines and desserts, as well as Southeast Asian food.
All events are free.
Transportation: Buses to Meinung leave from the Kaohsiung train station. The trip to Meinung takes about an hour and a half.
Accommodation: There are more than six local hostels and temples available for accommodation, with prices raging from NT$250 to NT$600 per person per night. For more information, call the Meinung People’s Association at (07) 681-9900, or (07) 681-0469.
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