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Toufen April 8th Hakka Cultural Festival: Thousand Bando Banquet to Honor Hakka Culture

2015/05/18

The Toufen April 8th Hakka Cultural Festival took place at the Toufen Hakka village during May 23-24. The traditional Hakka 12-dish bando banquet, consisting of four stews and four stir-fried dishes, was held at the Town Hall Square where thousands gathered to feast together and participate in the festivities.

Back in the age of agriculture when materials were scarce, April eighth was when annual celebrations took place at Toufen. Merchants and vendors would clutter town streets, temples would hold grand ceremonies, and all of the townspeople would prepare for family rituals in accordance to temple ceremonies. Most families would prepare rich feasts that varied from their usual dishes and invited friends and relatives from afar to stay as guests and watch performances. The entire town would be jubilant and busy preparing for that one day, forming a joyous and lively scene as the whole town eagerly awaited the beginning of the festivities.

Seeing the gradual decline of the traditional festive atmosphere in its modern industrial society, in 2004 the Toufen Township Office organized the resurgence of the April 8th Hakka Cultural Festival, hoping to preserve and sustain the historic event. Over the years, the event has added other activities, such as a Lantern Race and Market Fair, that not only bring more depth to the festival’s original content, but also enhance the cultural connotation of the regional lifestyle and social interaction.

This year's event activities involved lanterns, parades, and traditional bando catering, presenting one hundred tables of traditional Hakka cuisine at noon each day. Combined with a brilliant lantern show, parades composed of groups from various communities, associations and schools flooded the streets on the first night, with a Hakka Concert on the second night that presented Bobby Chen and the New Formosa Band, Cosmospeople, Drum Queen S. White, Cream Puffs Sister, Chao-Fang Zheng, Ocarina Azhi, Lo Yin Yin, and other artists.

Source: Miaoli County Toufen Township Office

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