With a pained expression on his face, Mihara Keigo says the culinary “masterpiece” he has just eaten “represents an unfriendly Taiwan-Japan relationship.” Apparently, salmon sashimi does not pair well with minced pork belly and soy sauce.
The bizarre culinary combination was prepared as part of a YouTube video, Making Japanese Style Braised Pork, which was shot by Sanyuan Japan, a channel created in 2016 by Keigo, who goes by the YouTube moniker Sanyuan.
In 2018, Sanyuan was joined by Junya Murakami and Katsumasa Tomita, two of his friends respectively known as Jun and Tommy. Tommy fell in love with Mandarin after studying in Taiwan for a year, and Jun was impressed with Taiwanese hospitality during his travels. But Sanyuan is clearly the star, charming Taiwanese audiences through hard work and a healthy dose of self-deprecation.
Photo Grabs From YouTube
“I’m tall, but not much of a looker,” Sanyuan quips in one video. “Can I ever be an idol?”
From his hilarious reaction when he first tasted stinky tofu, his amazement when witnessing people casually sitting on the ground at Taipei Main Station, to his appreciation for the hospitality he has experienced here, Sanyuan’s videos attract Taiwanese audiences because they offer insight into how Japanese perceive Taiwanese culture.
Sanyuan’s story is as much about leaving Japan as it was coming to Taiwan.
Photo Grabs From YouTube
“My life [in Japan] felt unfulfilled because I was working a desk job and ignoring my penchant for filming videos and my dream to become an idol. When I came across YouTube, I decided to give it a shot,” he said. “So, I quit.”
And, if the numbers are anything to go by, he has pretty much achieved his dream, as he is one of a handful of YouTubers that have reached over 1 million subscribers in Taiwan.
Sanyuan says he chose Taiwan because he wants to enhance Taiwan-Japan friendship, and creates video content based on cultural differences between the two countries.
Photo Grab From YouTube
His failed attempt to turn braised pork into a Japanese cuisine may seem ridiculous, but it reveals distinct taste preferences in Japan and Taiwan; his song based on similar phonetics in Mandarin and Japanese does not make much sense, but it showcases interesting cognates between the two languages; his documentary of spending a night at a stranger’s home verifies Taiwan’s reputation for friendliness.
Today, Sanyuan calls Taiwan a second home.
“Making videos is my way to give back to Taiwan.”
Having heard multiple anecdotes about how his fans have decided to travel to Taiwan or Japan after watching his videos, Sanyuan seems confident when saying that his channel serves as a bridge between the two countries.
When asked about the future, Sanyuan said: “I came to Taiwan to pursue my dream of becoming an idol, so I hope to write a song with a positive message that lingers in the minds of Taiwanese people for a really long time.”
That US assistance was a model for Taiwan’s spectacular development success was early recognized by policymakers and analysts. In a report to the US Congress for the fiscal year 1962, former President John F. Kennedy noted Taiwan’s “rapid economic growth,” was “producing a substantial net gain in living.” Kennedy had a stake in Taiwan’s achievements and the US’ official development assistance (ODA) in general: In September 1961, his entreaty to make the 1960s a “decade of development,” and an accompanying proposal for dedicated legislation to this end, had been formalized by congressional passage of the Foreign Assistance Act. Two
March 31 to April 6 On May 13, 1950, National Taiwan University Hospital otolaryngologist Su You-peng (蘇友鵬) was summoned to the director’s office. He thought someone had complained about him practicing the violin at night, but when he entered the room, he knew something was terribly wrong. He saw several burly men who appeared to be government secret agents, and three other resident doctors: internist Hsu Chiang (許強), dermatologist Hu Pao-chen (胡寶珍) and ophthalmologist Hu Hsin-lin (胡鑫麟). They were handcuffed, herded onto two jeeps and taken to the Secrecy Bureau (保密局) for questioning. Su was still in his doctor’s robes at
Last week the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said that the budget cuts voted for by the China-aligned parties in the legislature, are intended to force the DPP to hike electricity rates. The public would then blame it for the rate hike. It’s fairly clear that the first part of that is correct. Slashing the budget of state-run Taiwan Power Co (Taipower, 台電) is a move intended to cause discontent with the DPP when electricity rates go up. Taipower’s debt, NT$422.9 billion (US$12.78 billion), is one of the numerous permanent crises created by the nation’s construction-industrial state and the developmentalist mentality it
Experts say that the devastating earthquake in Myanmar on Friday was likely the strongest to hit the country in decades, with disaster modeling suggesting thousands could be dead. Automatic assessments from the US Geological Survey (USGS) said the shallow 7.7-magnitude quake northwest of the central Myanmar city of Sagaing triggered a red alert for shaking-related fatalities and economic losses. “High casualties and extensive damage are probable and the disaster is likely widespread,” it said, locating the epicentre near the central Myanmar city of Mandalay, home to more than a million people. Myanmar’s ruling junta said on Saturday morning that the number killed had