Perspectives of Indigenous Bridges

This Tao Tatala is the first to be utilized on the water in America. Photo by RC ChinWen Lai Another year is in the books for the Pacific Northwest Tribal Canoe Journey. "Our Journey VI/Elders Bless Tatala" was a major success. Our goals this year were to outfit our Tatala, do any repairs needed, give a blessing to honor our boat. We were then going to display it along the way. Things turned out a bit different. Once the blessing was completed on July 19th, our delegation made up of eight members from Lanyu and a member of the Paiwan tribe, eagerly started doing the repair work and informed me if all goes right, they will be able to utilize it during the journey. Hearing this gave us a lot of motivation. We were actually going to pull with the big canoes.  Here is the story of Our Journey VI as told by ATAYAL Director Gary Smoke... Delegation in Taiwan. After receiving our list of travelers from Tao Foundation COO Kai Limadjakan, we scheduled our first pre-arrival meeting and...

A local elder guided the delegation through an exploration of local culture and history The ATAYAL Organization worked with Sinopsis and the Bakala Foundation to provide a hands-on Indigenous cultural experience in Wulai District ( 烏來 區 ) of New Taipei City to a delegation of media reporters from the European Union. Instead of the typical "tourist" experiences of the closest Indigenous village to Taipei City, the volunteers of the ATAYAL Organization introduced the media members to Tranan Aboriginal Culture Camp . Local Atayal villagers introduced their culture, sharing the food, drink, customs and traditions, including a traditional barbecue of mountain boar. (Left to right) Our Taiwan organizer and volunteer interpreters After a morning of cultural activity, the delegation were introduced to dozens of local villagers who were participating in a holiday festival. The locals and the visitors were not apprehensive, and it wasn't long before they were playing some traditio...