Each year one of our programs focuses on a foreign country or place. We learn a little about their location, history, culture, and food. This year it was “Taiwan – The Other China.” Taiwan, formerly Formosa (Portuguese for “beautiful”), is the largest island of an archipelago 100 miles off the southwestern coast of China. The island is yam-shaped and people there often refer to themselves as “children of the sweet potato.”

One of Taiwan’s main attractions is the National Palace Museum. It contains a large collection of Chinese bronze, jade, paintings, writings, and porcelain. It was moved from the mainland in 1949 with the Nationalist party.

Eating and food preparation are very important to the Chinese. Dining is a gala occasion and is meant to be a merry and joyous experience. Some restaurants offer up to 400 choices.

Eating is not limited to mealtimes, as the Chinese enjoy snacking and there are many tea rooms and “dim sum” shops. Dim sum means “dot the heart.”

When we study a foreign place, we like to sample the cuisine, so we forego our usual sandwich lunch and prepare some of the local dishes. We started out with Crab Rangoon and Curry Dumplings. This was followed by a Beef Stew Noodle Soup (Taiwan comfort food). Dessert was Banana Turnovers and a wonderful Shaved Ice with Fruits.

We can’t wait to see what country we will be exploring next year.

Our next meeting is the Spring Workshop, which will be held on Saturday, April 27, at Andover Elementary/Middle School.

For more information about meetings, call 735-5493.