With my sister Katherine and her friend Katherine visiting me in Taiwan, I have been blessed with the opportunity to see Taiwan with a fresh pair of eyes.
When I first arrived here, everything was new and exciting, but now that I am accustomed to life here, the little things that were once filled with wonder have become mundane, everyday occurrences.
The two Katherine's have been very curious, asking questions about EVERYTHING. Many of the questions I can answer, but there are still quite a few mysteries to be solved.
One such question was about this sign.
“Does it mean don’t eat your dog?” they asked.
At first glance I clearly assumed that it did not. I scoffed a bit at the idea, but many people have that thought that people eat dog in all of Asia. This is not the case for Taiwan, but it is so in Mainland China. So, it is a valid question being that
there is a pan on the pooches head.
I took matters into my own hands and sent the picture to
my friend Ian, who is from here, asking him the meaning of the sign. His response made everything make much more sense.
There are a lot of stray dogs in Taiwan and the sign tells
you not to abandon your pets. Many people adopt a puppy only to release it on the streets when it proves to be more of a chore and responsibility than they cared to take on.
Also, the symbolism of carrying someone’s black pan in Chinese culture means you are in a situation that you didn’t
sign up for.
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| This is Ian, a dashing pilot for Eva Air, and one of my favorites here. |
... and I leave you with another sign. I recently saw this while riding my bike to work.
I'll let you try and decifer the meaning of this one.
I give up.
ReplyDeleteWhat does it mean? dad