More than a dozen groups yesterday morning performed as part of the Double Ten National Day ceremony in front the Presidential Office Building in Taipei, including dancers, drummers and marching bands from the US and Japan.
The 112th annual ceremony, themed “2023 Taiwan National Day — Celebrating Taiwan’s Democracy and Enduring Resilience,” started at 8:53am with the Taipei Municipal Chien Kuo High School Marching Band performing Home Is Where the Heart Is.
They were followed by a series of performances by a drum troupe, dancers and combat demonstrations by the Republic of China (ROC) Armed Forces and Army Academy. Also featured were a traditional folk performance and lion dance performance by the National Center for Traditional Arts, before a military honor guard and marching band performance ended the opening section.
Photo: Peter Lo, Taipei Times
After honored foreign guests left the Presidential Office Building to attend the ceremony, the second section of the ceremony began with the ROC national flag being carried overhead by a CH-47 Chinook medium transport helicopter, escorted by two Black Hawk helicopters, as attendees stood for the national anthem.
The anthem was performed by six CPBL baseball players and the National Magong High School choir, while livestream video showed naval officers of the ROCS Yushan, an amphibious transport dock, in Kaohsiung’s Toshien harbor (左營軍港).
After addresses by Legislative Speaker You Si-kun (游錫?) and an overseas Taiwanese representative, the National Day praise this year was performed in Hoklo (also known as Taiwanese), which included a poetry recitation about the difficulties in achieving democracy and freedom in Taiwan, and a song called Taiwan Always Exist, which called for Taiwanese to support each other.
Photo: AP
President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) delivered her National Day address titled “A calm and confident Taiwan: Moving our country forward, making the world a better place.”
The third section of the ceremony included a special performance by the Emerald Knights marching band from Tokyo University of Agriculture’s Second High School, which played theme songs from Japanese anime, such as One Piece, Chibi Maruko-chan and Slam Dunk.
The University of California, Los Angeles’ Bruin Marching Band also performed, playing Baila Esta Cumbia by late US Tejano singer Selena.
Photo: AP
Toward the end of the ceremony, National Taiwan Sport University students performed a martial arts demonstration, followed by recognition for national athletes who won medals at the FISU University Games in Chengdu, China, in July and August, the U-18 Baseball World Cup in Taiwan last month and the recently completed Asian Games in Hangzhou, China.
The finale was a flyover by six AT-3 trainer jets of the air force’s Thunder Tiger Aerobatics Team that left trails of blue, red and white smoke, representing the colors of the national flag, over the Presidential Office Building.
Photo: AP
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