Tourists from Taiwan get a taste of Onam

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The city hosted a special ‘thiruvathirakali’ performance on Thiruvonam on Wednesday. There were some special guests –– a group of tourists from Taiwan –– who witnessed Kerala’s indigenous dance form and got hooked. Moreover, they were more than enthusiastic to get their act right with the dance form and sprang some surprise for the locals who were watching.
“Is my posture correct?” reconfirmed Chou Yu Chih while trying to recollect the steps taught to her. “Keep your right hand up,” corrected Gayathri Subramaniam, who was the dance tutor for the visitors. Gayathri found the Taiwanese tourists to be good learners. “I am happy that they picked up the steps so fast. They really looked awesome in the traditional wear and it was very memorable watching them perform thiruvathira,” she said.
The 11-member group had decided to go backpacking to Kerala when Jeffry Wu, Founder of Taipei-India Music and Culture Organisation, told them about the Onam extravaganza that was to be hosted in the city. Jeffry Wu, who had visited Kerala thrice, knew that Onam was the best time to visit Kerala to witness its culture and traditional art forms. The group, comprising five men, three women and two children along with Jeffry Wu, flew down to the state for a nine-day package.
Marking the beginning of the Thiruvonam celebrations, the Taiwanese sported the traditional attire with the men in mundu and women in the set-mundu. Tsao Chien Hsiang, one of the tourists, was so impressed with the mundu that he pledged only to wear a mundu during his stay in Kerala. “This is a wonderful experience. I like the overall smell of Onam festival and love the hospitality of Kerala,” added Tsao. The women joined the host family in preparing the ‘pookkalam’ followed by thiruvathira in the courtyard of the house.
The Indian spices tickled the taste buds of the visitors with a scrumptious sadya served to them in the afternoon. Post-lunch, the team went to the Kanakakunnu Palace. It was a dream-come-true for the visitors when they saw the Indian elephants there for the first time in their lives.