Taiwanese kites are drawing attention at an ongoing French kite-flying festival, which has brought together participants from 38 countries to show off their kite flying and craft skills, a Taiwanese kite maker said on Monday.
The eight-day Dieppe International Kite Festival, which opened in the northern French port town of Dieppe on Saturday, is one of the oldest kite-flying festivals in Europe and features kites of traditional and contemporary designs from all over the world.
The biennial event is also the world’s premier venue for the display of kite-making skills.
PHOTO: CNA
At the invitation of Dieppe Mayor Sebastien Jumel, Taiwan’s representative to France, Michel Lu (呂慶龍), greeted participants during the festival’s opening ceremony.
At the Taiwanese pavilion, set up by the Taiwan Yunlin Kite Association, a bright red fish-shaped kite caught the attention of Jumel and a group of Dieppe City councilors. The kite was presented to Jumel as a memento by Tsai Wen-fu (蔡文福), a kite-making master from the association.
The eye-catching fish kite was created through the joint efforts of members of the association, who set up the pavilion to display a wide range of new and unique Taiwanese kites.
The fish shape is a symbol of good luck in Taiwanese culture.
Tsai said the festival allowed people from other countries to gain better insight into the skills of Taiwanese kite makers and gave participants from Taiwan a chance to exchange views with kite aficionados from other countries.
Tsai said he had learned a lot from his discussions with international kite makers.
Various demonstrations, competitions and exhibitions are being held at the festival, including a world cup kite fighting contest and an artistic kite competition.
ENTERTAINERS IN CHINA: Taiwanese generally back the government being firm on infiltration and ‘united front’ work,’ the Asia-Pacific Elite Interchange Association said Most people support the government probing Taiwanese entertainers for allegedly “amplifying” the Chinese Communist Party’s propaganda, a survey conducted by the Asia-Pacific Elite Interchange Association showed on Friday. Public support stood at 56.4 percent for action by the Mainland Affairs Council and the Ministry of Culture to enhance scrutiny on Taiwanese performers and artists who have developed careers in China while allegedly adhering to the narrative of Beijing’s propaganda that denigrates or harms Taiwanese sovereignty, the poll showed. Thirty-three percent did not support the action, it showed. The poll showed that 51.5 percent of respondents supported the government’s investigation into Taiwanese who have
South Korean K-pop girl group Blackpink are to make Kaohsiung the first stop on their Asia tour when they perform at Kaohsiung National Stadium on Oct. 18 and 19, the event organizer said yesterday. The upcoming performances will also make Blackpink the first girl group ever to perform twice at the stadium. It will be the group’s third visit to Taiwan to stage a concert. The last time Blackpink held a concert in the city was in March 2023. Their first concert in Taiwan was on March 3, 2019, at NTSU Arena (Linkou Arena). The group’s 2022-2023 “Born Pink” tour set a
A Philippine official has denied allegations of mistreatment of crew members during Philippine authorities’ boarding of a Taiwanese fishing vessel on Monday. Philippine Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) spokesman Nazario Briguera on Friday said that BFAR law enforcement officers “observed the proper boarding protocols” when they boarded the Taiwanese vessel Sheng Yu Feng (昇漁豐號) and towed it to Basco Port in the Philippines. Briguera’s comments came a day after the Taiwanese captain of the Sheng Yu Feng, Chen Tsung-tun (陳宗頓), held a news conference in Pingtung County and accused the Philippine authorities of mistreatment during the boarding of
88.2 PERCENT INCREASE: The variants driving the current outbreak are not causing more severe symptoms, but are ‘more contagious’ than previous variants, an expert said Number of COVID-19 cases in the nation is surging, with the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) describing the ongoing wave of infections as “rapid and intense,” and projecting that the outbreak would continue through the end of July. A total of 19,097 outpatient and emergency visits related to COVID-19 were reported from May 11 to Saturday last week, an 88.2 percent increase from the previous week’s 10,149 visits, CDC data showed. The nearly 90 percent surge in case numbers also marks the sixth consecutive weekly increase, although the total remains below the 23,778 recorded during the same period last year,
RSS