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Emily Luo (she/her), Changhua 2021, brown sugar milk tea with boba !

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Emily Luo (she/her), Changhua 2021, brown sugar milk tea with boba !

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I'm Chinese-American, born and raised in Tampa, FL! To me, my ethnicity and heritage made up a substantial chunk of my personal identity. I can speak conversational Chinese, but I know my reading and writing abilities have a lot to be desired. I have never been to Taiwan before, but I'm very excited to eat amazing food, meet new people, and learn more about (and experience) how race and ethnicity are viewed/treated similiarly from an Eastern perspective.

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Taiwanese American, Amercian Born Taiwanese (ABT).

My grandparents and parents came to the US while they were older. I grew up speaking Chinese at home and went to Chinese school for 3 years.

I have been to Taiwan many times since I still have family living in Taipei. I also have visited Japan

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Taiwanese American, Amercian Born Taiwanese (ABT).

My grandparents and parents came to the US while they were older. I grew up speaking Chinese at home and went to Chinese school for 3 years.

I have been to Taiwan many times since I still have family living in Taipei. I also have visited Japan

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Mahli Knutson, she/her, New Taipei City 2021

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Mahli Knutson, she/her, New Taipei City 2021

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Red beans in my milk tea! I was born in China and adopted to the US. Have studied in northeast China and Japan. I visited Taiwan briefly and wanted to learn more!

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Emily Lam, she/her/hers, NTC passion fruit tea with lychee jelly

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Emily Lam, she/her/hers, NTC passion fruit tea with lychee jelly

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I love being cantonese-American. I grew up in the bay area around a lot of other Chinese people. I don’t speak Cantonese that well, but I’m trying to re-learn it. I feel like the AAPI community includes so many groups of people that it takes a lot of work to make sure everyone is included as has their perspectives heard. I was involved in the a/pi student alliance in college, and I learned a lot about the different struggles that south-east asians and pacific islanders face in the US.

I’ve been to taiwan before to visit family friends and I love it!! I learned mandarin in high school and want to get better at it. mandarin is not my family’s native language, but I like learning it

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Henry Li (he/his) New Taipei City Oolong Milk tea 10% sugar, less ice, less boba

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Henry Li (he/his) New Taipei City Oolong Milk tea 10% sugar, less ice, less boba

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I am Cantonese American, emigrated from GuangDong/Hong Kong. I always feel weird talking about race and identity.

I have been to about 15 or so countries in Asia. Taiwan felt natural to me because of its openness and culture.

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	Andrew Tsai (he/him/his), Yilan 2021, Winter melon tea	

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	Andrew Tsai (he/him/his), Yilan 2021, Winter melon tea	

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I am a Taiwanese-American and have lived my whole life on the east coast, spending most of my time in Maryland. Having a large family network living close to me, I feel fortunate to have grown up learning about my Taiwanese heritage. Since it was always a private occasion for me outside of my school life, I was excited to take East Asian courses in college and discuss the Asian American experience, although it did feel like a general Asian/Asian-American experience that we were able to connect on. Navigating the Taiwanese-American experience has been a bit more difficult, and it seems that life in America creates a space for 'Asian-American' to persist as a subculture. I have been to China and Vietnam for summer programs and felt those were great for adjusting to spaces given my current perceptions of my identity, and I wanted to live in Taiwan for an extended period of time to further discover my heritage and 'Taiwanese/American' upbringing.

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Jennifer Tam, she/her/hers, Hualien 2nd year, jasmine milk tea with taro balls (KQTEA!) half sugar half ice

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Jennifer Tam, she/her/hers, Hualien 2nd year, jasmine milk tea with taro balls (KQTEA!) half sugar half ice

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-Grew up speaking Cantonese (parents from HK/Guangzhou), attended a Taiwanese-sponsored Chinese weekend school in NYC (learning Cantonese) and then self-taught Mandarin through dramas and music haha before taking it in high school and minor in college
-second year in Hualien/Taiwan, been to China/HK/Macau to visit family/travel/study, studied for a summer in Seoul
-born and raised in Brooklyn, NY but always identified more as Asian (Chinese) than American

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Tina Liang (she/her/hers); anything matcha

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Tina Liang (she/her/hers); anything matcha

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connection to a culture that originated from the Asian countries. for me, this means Taiwan. My dad's side of the family comes from China, and my mom's side from Taiwan, but I was born and raised in America.

my experience as an AAPI in the States was definitely different pre and post pandemic. I identify as

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Kai Ward (he/him/his), New Taipei City 2021, coffee milk tea 

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Kai Ward (he/him/his), New Taipei City 2021, coffee milk tea 

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When I hear “AAPI,” I think about what the acronym stands for and my own personal experiences. Since AAPI stands for Asian American Pacific Islander, this label encompasses a wide range of cultures, ethnicities, and nationalities, signifying how diverse of a group I belong to. Furthermore, as a half Japanese & half white American, I feel a connection to the AAPI community like I’m part of a larger story than myself.

I used to visit my family in Japan every summer. I also had a teaching internship in Hong Kong for two months during the summer of 2018. I chose Taiwan because I have never been here before and am fascinated by its unique position in modern history.

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Emily Kwon, she/her/hers, Yunlin 2021, passion fruit green tea with lychee jelly, light ice, light sugar

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Emily Kwon, she/her/hers, Yunlin 2021, passion fruit green tea with lychee jelly, light ice, light sugar

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I'm Korean American, born and raised in central New Jersey. My parents immigrated from South Korea when they were children.

I’ve been to China 3x, South Korea 3x, and this is my first time in Taiwan. I chose to come to Taiwan because I wanted to improve my Mandarin Chinese, I love traveling and exploring in Asia, and I had a wonderful experience teaching English summer camps in China and wanted to teach more!

For me, being Korean American has meant constantly traversing back and forth between the different aspects, customs, beliefs, etc. of the cultures I was born and raised in. Though in some ways it can feel difficult not seeming to belong to any “one side,” over the years I’ve come to appreciate my heritage and the values I’ve come to hold.

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Jenna Yoo (they/she), Taitung 2021, iced americano

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Jenna Yoo (they/she), Taitung 2021, iced americano

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I’m Korean American, and I grew up speaking Korean at home. I’ve been to China, Taiwan, and Japan for study abroad. I’ve been to Korea a few times to visit relatives, but my parents and sister could not go with me (I’m the only one born in the states).

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Vivian Lam (she/her), 1st year Taitung, anything at a cat cafe

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Vivian Lam (she/her), 1st year Taitung, anything at a cat cafe

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What does “being” “AAPI” mean to you?

Solidarity with Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders against white supremacy in the United States. The pandemic is a reminder...

Do you have any experiences in Asia? Which countries?

I have been to China (Xi’An, Dunhuang, Shanghai) and Japan (Osaka, Kyoto).

Why did you choose to come to Taiwan?

My family speaks TeoChew and Cantonese. I was going to apply to an ETA position for professors in Hong Kong, but this changed due to protests. Taiwan also uses the traditional writing system, and Taiwanese and TeoChew are similar dialects!

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Esther Lee, (she/her), Kinmen 1st year, milk tea 50% sugar light ice

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Esther Lee, (she/her), Kinmen 1st year, milk tea 50% sugar light ice

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Taiwanese American, American Born Taiwanese (ABT).

My grandparents and parents came to the US while they were older. I grew up speaking Chinese at home and went to Chinese school for 3 years.

I have been to Taiwan many times since I still have family living in Taipei. I also have visited Japan

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Harmony (she/her/hers), Taitung, oolong milk tea

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Harmony (she/her/hers), Taitung, oolong milk tea

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I identify as Taiwanese American and Chinese American. My mom is from Chiayi and my dad is from Beijing. Being AAPI has been a crucial part of my identity, especially growing up in a predominantly Asian American community in NYC. Attending a PWI institution was definitely a struggle to adjust to, but I was extremely grateful for the Asian American community at my school. I studied abroad in Shanghai during the spring of 2020 and have been back in forth between mainland China, Taiwan, and the US to visit relatives.

I worked for an Asian American politician in Chinatown during the pandemic and really saw how xenophobia had a direct effect on the small family-owned businesses in Chinatown. However, it's been great to see how our community came together in light of all of this to support small businesses and combat the racism that arose with the pandemic.

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Erin Tang (she/her), Taichung 21, jasmine milk tea no sugar :) 

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Erin Tang (she/her), Taichung 21, jasmine milk tea no sugar :) 

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I’m Cantonese American; ABC

My parents are immigrants from Hong Kong, and I spoke Canto and English at home. I grew up in a very small community in Texas with very few other Asians, so I've always had a hyper-awareness of my race. I didn’t feel truly able to embrace my heritage until college.

I visited HK with family during summer vacations and sometimes felt more at home there than I did where I grew up. I chose Taiwan because I've always heard about the welcoming and friendly culture and want to get immersed and experience a lot of the Chinese heritage things I didn't have growing up.

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Libra Dolce (She/Her), Kinmen 2021, Jasmine Milk Tea with boba, light ice

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Libra Dolce (She/Her), Kinmen 2021, Jasmine Milk Tea with boba, light ice

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I was adopted from China was I was about 2 years old. Since I was adopted by a white family and grew up in a white area, my heritage has been a huge part of my life because I’ve always tried to connect with my culture. To me, AAPI encapsulates the general shared experiences, and in relation the issues that Asian Americans face in the U.S. I don’t have any prior experience to Taiwan, but I was an East Asian Studies major, studying Chinese relations and Japanese studies in college. I applied to this Fulbright to study Mandarin and learn more about Taiwanese and Chinese culture and history.

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Tiffany Xie (she/her) Changhua, mango green or jasmine w/ coconut jelly no ice light sugar

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Tiffany Xie (she/her) Changhua, mango green or jasmine w/ coconut jelly no ice light sugar

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Chinese American (2nd gen)

Went to weekend Chinese school until 11th grade (or so) and studied in Nanjing the summer after HS.

I didn't identify strongly w/ the AAPI community in college until my senior year, and recently talking more openly about AAPI issues w/ my parents. One thing I've been thinking about a lot is how the privilege I've enjoyed as a Chinese Am overshadows other AAPI experiences

One thing I'd like to ask is what it's like teaching English hear w/o necessarily "passing" as a foreigner~ will people consider me as a legitimate English teacher? As more American? or Chinese?

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Lillian Guo (she/her), Kinmen 1st year, peach black tea with boba

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Lillian Guo (she/her), Kinmen 1st year, peach black tea with boba

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I am Chinese American which has always been a very important part of who I am - However, I think being "Asian American" feels separate from my identity as "Chinese American" whereas one identity is more cultural, one is more political.
I have traveled to China many times to visit family - this is my second time in Taiwan. I chose to come to Taiwan because I want to better my Mandarin skills and I want to be in a country that I feel a sense of connection with.
Being here is a strange feeling because I am now a lot more aware of my ethnic identity than I used to be; in the US I pay more attention to who I am racially, but here I wonder whether, because of my lack of Mandarin (coming from a Canto speaking family), and my identity as Chinese in a country with a fraught history with China shapes how I'm perceived here.

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Emily Yu (she/her/hers); Yilan 1st yr, grapefruit tea!

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Emily Yu (she/her/hers); Yilan 1st yr, grapefruit tea!

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I am Chinese American! My parents are Chinese immigrants. A huge part of my identity is being an Asian-American teacher in the US, and this is something i am super passionate about, especially in the specific context of teaching mostly Black American students in an underserved community in Baltimore.

I reflect often about both the oppression and the privileges I hold in my identity and how this fluctuates with societal context. This past year I have definitely thought a lot about my financial and racial privileges while also recognizing the pain and harm that the US has inflicted upon Chinese people and Chinese Americans in the past year.

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Chantal Sengsourinho (she/her/hers) // Yilan 2021 // Mango green tea with boba, light ice no sugar

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Chantal Sengsourinho (she/her/hers) // Yilan 2021 // Mango green tea with boba, light ice no sugar

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I am half Taiwanese and half Laotian. I grew up with my Taiwanese grandparents and frequently visited my Laotian family. While growing up, I interacted more frequently with the Taiwanese side of my family and attended Chinese school on the weekends.

I have never been to Asia, although I have visited other countries. I chose to come to Taiwan because I wanted to embrace my Taiwanese heritage.

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Joanne Tran, (she/her/hers), Kaohsiung 1st year ETA, winter melon milk tea 50% sugar and light ice :)

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Joanne Tran, (she/her/hers), Kaohsiung 1st year ETA, winter melon milk tea 50% sugar and light ice :)

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Being AAPI is a core part of my identity. I am Chinese-Vietnamese-American. My grandparents were born in Guangdong, China, but had to flee China due to the war. As a result, my parents were born in Saigon/Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. This meant that I grew up speaking Chinese-Cantonese and a bit of Vietnamese.

Being AAPI in the States has changed dramatically for me. AAPI are often seen as the “model minority,” but the pandemic has really shed light on how a minority is still a minority. Seeing how politicians and media outlets portrayed COVID-19 as a “Chinese/Wuhan Virus” and how Asian-Americans were being discriminated against and even assaulted was very upsetting and unfair to me. I think there still is a lot of work that has to be done.

I have been to Japan and South Korea and I love both countries. On the other hand, I have never had the chance to visit Vietnam or China. I chose Taiwan because I wanted to polish my Chinese-Mandarin skills and learn more about the culture that my parents grew up with. I am super excited to learn more about Taiwan throughout my short time here!

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kinmen 1st year, im really loving these brown sugar boba teas but i think its mostly just milk?

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Sabrina Huang (she/her/hers) Taipei 2021, mango green tea with mango jelly

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Sabrina Huang (she/her/hers) Taipei 2021, mango green tea with mango jelly

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My experience as an AAPI has changed in the US in light of recent events during the pandemic because it was kind of shocking to me to hear about all the discrimination/racism and subway attacks for just wearing a mask outside in light of the pandemic.

I have previously been to Taiwan, Japan, and South Korea!! I chose to come to Taiwan for Fulbright because my family is from Taiwan and even though I've been here a couple times when I was younger, I wanted to be able to explore the country on my own.

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Kinmen
Oolong milk tea, less ice, less sugar

Being AAPI for me is a uniting political identity with other AAPI-identifying people. It captures the history of many immigrant experiences and of AAPI activism. I look at my impact and change through my Asian identity. I also recognize that AAPI is not all-encapsulating and that the term itself functions (perhaps) to reinforce monolith stereotypes about “Asian” people.

I was born in China then adopted and also went once again. This is my first time in Taiwan. Because of language and culture, I feel somewhat disconnected. But through practice I am becoming more comfortable and seeing myself as an addition to the Asian/Asian American experience.

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Rochelle Du, she/her/hers, Yunlin 2021, Passion fruit tea with lychee jelly no ice 50% sugar

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Rochelle Du, she/her/hers, Yunlin 2021, Passion fruit tea with lychee jelly no ice 50% sugar

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My experience as an AAPI has changed in the US in that in light of recent discrimination/racism against Asians, it's hard to see my friends and their family's businesses shut down for good with no respite in sight. Hearing news of attacks against Asians has made me really question my American identity and how validated the Asian experience is in a western sphere.

I chose to come to Taiwan because I am Taiwanese American. My parents are Taiwanese immigrants and moved to America for education. I want to reconnect with my roots and experience aspects of my culture that I wouldn't get to experience fully in America.

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Anna Zhang (she/her/hers), Taichung 2021, Matcha

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Anna Zhang (she/her/hers), Taichung 2021, Matcha

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It has been difficult this past year to witness the xenophobic behavior facing AAPI in the States and seeing Chinatown suffer in my own communities. I’ve experienced more overt racism then before, including on my college campus during my last semester.

I’ve been to China (Shanghai and Anhui, Wuhu) to visit my parents’ families a few times growing up but I haven’t been since middle school. I chose to come to Taiwan to improve my Mandarin skills and get in touch with my Asian identity a little more.

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INTRO: Name, pronouns, site+year, favorite tea order 

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INTRO: Name, pronouns, site+year, favorite tea order 

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QUESTIONS
[Choose 2-3 and type in a separate doc. Attach to your post when done]

What does “being” “AAPI” mean to you?

Reflecting upon this past year, how has your experience as an AAPI in the States changed in light of the pandemic?

Do you have any experiences in Asia? Which countries? Why did you choose to come to Taiwan?

Other comments/ questions about this interest group or community building in general.

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Carol Sun (she/her/hers) // Hualien 2019-2021 // jasmine milk tea with boba, light ice light sugar thanks

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Carol Sun (she/her/hers) // Hualien 2019-2021 // jasmine milk tea with boba, light ice light sugar thanks

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Taiwanese American; Taiwanese-Chinese American; "American-born Chinese"

Parents born and raised in Taipei, Taiwan. Three of my grandparents are refugees from China and one is "Taiwanese" and Hakka/Hokkien.

I am first of my family to be born in the States.

My heritage affects every aspect of my life and I admit I can’t be separated from it. At the same time, I seek to create a sense of myself outside of this category. It’s a journey of madness.

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Crystal Lam (She, her, hers) Changhua & Hualien {2nd-year}                           Earl Grey Milk Tea, lite sugar no ice thx

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Crystal Lam (She, her, hers) Changhua & Hualien {2nd-year}                           Earl Grey Milk Tea, lite sugar no ice thx

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"Hong Konger American"
I grew up speaking Cantonese at home with my family. My parents are HK immigrants and rather traditional, so we celebrate most Chinese holidays and follow many family traditions. I attended a Taiwanese Chinese school until 6th grade and then continued learning Mandarin in college. In 2018, I took an intensive Mandarin course in Beijing and lived in China for the summer. This is my fourth time in Taiwan despite not having any family members here.