Cawi Aboriginal Village in Hualien | 花蓮靜浦部落

This is a trip I have been really looking forward to! I finally made a trip to an Aboriginal village in Hualien 花蓮, located in the eastern coast of Taiwan! Taiwan is a multicultural country and I have always been fascinated with the island's indigenous culture. This is why I previous visited the Taipei Museum of Formosan Aborigines (which is just across the very popular National Palace Museum). I always wanted to learn more about their culture and was looking for a way to enter an Aboriginal village in Taiwan, as some of them don't necessarily allow visitors. 

I joined this working holiday program in which we helped to paint the houses in the villages with bright colors such as orange and white and in turn, the volunteers from the Aboriginal village would take us to partake in different activities around the villages so that we would get a more deeper understanding of the village, their history, their culture, and what their goals are for the future. 

The Cawi village is inhabited by the Amis people and is referred to as the "Sun village." It's the southernmost village right at the end of Hualien county, not far from Taitung county. The village is absolutely stunning, and provides a scenic view of the ocean. Though, beware as it does tend to get quite hot during the day. 

On the first day, we got a chance to enjoy the scenic beauty of the village by cycling around and getting to know the place. I really liked the simplicity and calmness offered by the village. It was also great to just roam around and take pictures.

The village is also right beside the Xiuguluan River 秀姑巒溪, which means most turned to fishery to make a living. This is the reason why seafood is a staple in the Cawi village. On the second day, we got a chance to wake up early in the morning (around 3:00 AM) to observe the fishermen and actually go fishing with them! We had to walk out into the sea, throw out the net, and them pull it back up after the tide and check how many fish we had caught. The net also had a pipe-like structure at the bottom which allowed the fishermen to collect the fish they had caught. The Amis people were kind enough to show us how its done.

After we were done fishing, we enjoyed the fruits of our harvest by eating the baby fish we caught with a specific Aboriginal pickle. It was chili mixed with a bit of salt. Very interesting, it tasted much better than I thought it would. After that, there was an aboriginal traditional to gather around and sing traditional hymns until the sun came out. Just look at this spectacular sunrise! 

On the third day, we were treated to a traditional feast by the sea. Fish and shrimps were caught from the river and then directly cooked with rocks that had been cooked over a fire. The rocks were collected from the beach near the sea. 

Traditional bamboo and leaves were also used to create cutlery and serving plates. 

We also got to try our hand at archery, bamboo rafting, and even a wooden handle slingshot! 

On our last day, the Amis tribe gathered together, and performed songs and dances while wearing their traditional outfits. They also made us dance with them! I had a blast! They also treated us to traditional millet wine 糯米酒, which was sweeter than I thought it would be. 

Overall, I had a great time experiencing Aboriginal culture of the Amis people from the Cawi village. The people are very friendly and will gladly invite you into their village, not as a guest, but as a friend. Cawi village also holds their annual harvest festival at the same place in the third week of July. I hope a get a chance to attend the event next year.

How to get to there: There was a special shuttle bus that was arranged to take us from Hualien Train Station to Cawi village. However, I would recommend driving directly to the village.

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