Chapter 9 Section 2 Living habits, similar to Fujian and Guangdong

Due to the changes of the times, the living habits of the people in Taiwan, such as clothing, food, housing, and transportation, have undergone great changes compared with the past; with the development of economy and culture, the improvement of social affluence, the quality of life of the people of Taiwan has been continuously improved .However, no matter how the times change and the quality of life improves, in Taiwan (especially in rural areas), people's basic life style still retains the ancient style of Fujian and Guangdong; It also has its strong local characteristics. In the past, Taiwanese people liked to wear "Taiwan shirts". "Taiwan shirt" is actually an old-fashioned clothing popular among the people in the Fujian and Guangdong regions of the mainland.It is divided into two types: one is that the buttons are arranged in the middle of the gown, which is called "double cardigan shirt"; the other is that the buttons are arranged next to the shirt, which is called "big coat".The shirt body is longer.Most people wear long trousers, farmers and workers often wear "short water trousers" for the convenience of work; women often wear "big shirts", and like to wear long shirts or short shirts and trousers, and wear skirts when going out; babies generally wear "monk shirts". ", "breast-pressing shirt", four-month-old children began to wear "belly pants" (commonly known as "open-leg pants" or "crotch-open pants"), and they did not change to ordinary "pants" until they were six or seven years old.

Up to now, in the area of ​​Laonong River in the south, there are still many Cantonese-Hakka old women wearing this Cantonese-style "Taiwanese shirt": the blue "big coat" is long to the knees, and the black trousers are worn to the top of the feet, and the trousers are very wide. , much like the "bell-bottom pants" that were once popular in the West.Hakka women in Meinong Township also have a rather peculiar traditional custom: when they wash clothes in the stream, they must face the bank of the stream.It is said that this is because the early immigrants who crossed Taiwan to make a living often had conflicts with the local aborigines. Women washed their clothes in the stream and faced the bank of the stream to increase vigilance and prevent accidents, so this custom came into being.

In Taiwan, the clothing styles of Penghu women are the most special.Because Penghu is an island, the "burning wind" is very strong, and the skin is easily dry and cracked by the wind. Therefore, in order to protect their skin, women in Penghu wrap their heads with headscarves when they go out of the house, wrap a towel around their necks, and tie their calves. Leggings (or with boots tucked into the boots).If it is windy, you should also cover your face with a long scarf, leaving only your eyes; you should wear gloves on your hands.Even if the weather is fine, Penghu women also use this traditional attire to dress themselves up.

The architectural styles of Taiwanese farmhouses are most prominently expressed in the Fujian and Cantonese styles.Nowadays, if people stroll through the villages of Taiwan or the old blocks of many towns, it is not difficult to find that the "old houses" still exist. The old streets and alleys paved with stone slabs are no different from those in Quanzhou, Fujian. "Green grass grows between the stones, and the brick walls face the setting sun". Brilliant and poetic.Even the newly-built farmhouses still mostly follow the southern Fujian-style "old houses" masonry buildings, that is, usually built in the shape of a (concave character turned upside down) courtyard, the upper middle is the hall, the two sides are rooms, and the left and right sides face each other. "Dragon guard" (that is, the wing room) has a wide courtyard in the middle, and the house is surrounded by earth, brick or stone walls.In the south along the Laonong River, especially in Meinong Township and its surrounding villages, the Cantonese Hakka people live in concentrated areas. Therefore, the farmhouses are all Cantonese-style courtyard houses, which are brick and wood buildings.Standing in the countryside of Taiwan, seeing the Fujian and Cantonese-style farmhouses and hearing Hokkien and Cantonese dialects, you will really forget whether you are in Taiwan or the mainland!

People in Fujian and Guangdong have the custom of "food tonic", while Taiwanese people pay more attention to "food tonic" than Fujian and Guangdong.Chinese traditional Chinese medicine calls yam, gorgon, lotus seeds, and poria cocos as "four ministers". The folks mistakenly call "four ministers" "four gods". Drinking decoction of four ministers is said to have the effect of strengthening the spleen and nourishing the stomach.Taiwanese folks often use "Sishen Soup" as a nourishing drink. During the busy months, farmers use pork belly, small intestines, or chicken, duck, and pigeon with "Sichen" and simmer it slowly as a tonic for the main labor force in the family. It has become a common custom to add Korean ginseng if nourishing after illness.There are also stalls in cities and towns selling "Sishen Soup", which is a famous nourishing snack in Taiwan.

There is another famous nourishing snack in Taiwan called "Danggui Duck", which is famous for its nourishing nutrition.Usually the whole root of angelica is stewed with duck meat. The duck meat must be stewed until the medicinal flavor of angelica permeates it. It is said that only in this way can it receive the food effect of strengthening bones and promoting blood circulation.Nowadays, vendors who sell angelica duck usually put a little noodle (thin noodles or vermicelli) in the bowl to absorb the greasy and increase appetite. The folks in Taiwan attach great importance to nourishing the "Lidong" day, commonly known as "replenishing winter" and "nourishing winter".On this day, every household slaughters chicken and boils meat to serve as a meal, or eats mutton fried with sesame seeds and served with "oily rice" (cooked with fried glutinous rice, meat, shrimp, shiitake mushrooms, etc.), or eats brocade snake soup. Tonic on the day of "Lidong" is believed to be able to withstand the cold, so as to enrich the physical strength to resist the winter.This custom comes from southern Fujian, but the recipe is different.

The most unique among Taiwanese folk customs of "food tonic" is the so-called "half a year tonic".That is, on the first day of the sixth month of the lunar calendar every year, every family uses rice flour to knead balls and make sweet 粢 [zizi] balls, some with sugar fillings and some without fillings. It is said that eating this food on this day can get rid of inflammation Disease, called "half a year tonic".On that day, the golden drums of the neighborhoods in various villages and towns in Taiwan sounded in unison, and the noise was abnormal, just like the New Year.This custom is not found in Fujian and Guangdong, but is unique to Taiwan. When did it begin? Bigger than money. Jiaoer and idiot are always happy. Golden drums and Dingdong are making summer."

Tea is a healthy drink.my country is the origin of tea. It is recorded in "Shen Nong's Materia Medica" more than two thousand years ago: "Shen Nong tasted a hundred herbs, encountered seventy-two poisons every day, and got tea to cure them." According to research, it was as early as about 1,000 BC During the Western Zhou Dynasty in the early Western Zhou Dynasty, drinking tea was quite common among Chinese people. Taiwan's soil and climate are suitable for growing tea, and it is one of the famous tea-producing areas in my country.The "Oolong tea" produced in Taiwan not only has various varieties, but also has a special aroma, so it has a long-standing reputation and is sold all over the world.Taiwanese tea was introduced from Fujian in the Qing Dynasty, and the custom of drinking tea among the people is exactly the same as that in Fujian.The following is a dialect "Drinking Tea Song" spread in Fujian and Taiwan: "Drinking tea can keep fit, save money and benefit more; green onion tea cures colds, sugar tea nourishes the liver and spleen; tea after meals to relieve food, drink tea to relieve drunkenness "Afternoon tea can refresh you, but evening tea can make you sleepy; tea on an empty stomach can make you nervous, and overnight tea hurts your stomach; too much tea makes you thin, and mild tea refreshes you." This song sang the benefits of drinking tea and the things you should pay attention to. It's clear.

Like the Fujianese, Taiwanese like to drink tea from pots, and they are very particular about the exquisite tea set and brewing method.In the history of Taiwan, there have been several famous purple sand pots such as Gongchun, Qiupu, and Panhu, which are firm, heat-resistant, and elegant in appearance.Among the teapots currently available on the market, small red pottery pots are the best. In addition, after the resumption of economic and trade exchanges between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait in recent years, Taiwanese tea merchants specially made custom-made purple sand pots in Yixing, Jiangsu, China.The method of brewing tea is similar to making "Kung Fu tea" in southern Fujian: put 70% to 80% tea leaves in the pot, pour boiling water into the teapot and teacup to make them very hot; The first tea in the teapot is poured to rinse the teacup again.At this time, a fragrance came from the empty teacup.The second boiling water is poured into the teapot, the leaves are tender when the water is boiled, and they boil immediately after soaking.Pour it into a cup again, and you can see the tea is golden and gorgeous, with an elegant aroma, which is very attractive. Take a small sip and hold it on the bottom of your tongue, and you will feel the rich and mellow fragrance, like fine nectar, with endless aftertaste!What's more, the tea should be poured high until it overflows, which means that the universe is brewing in the pot; , The euphemistic name is: "Han Xin orders troops".Drinking tea in this way is called "drinking Anle tea" among Fujian and Taiwan folks.

Drinking tea is closely related to the life of common people in Fujian and Taiwan.The daughter is already engaged, so it is said that she "had the tea ceremony from the man's house".Because it is very difficult for tea trees to survive after being transplanted, tea trees have another name of "not moving", and tea has the meaning of "marriage forever".Therefore, the first thing for a bride to do when she goes through the door is to serve tea to Wenggu, and then invite relatives to drink tea.When the bride returns to her natal home for the first time, the son-in-law brings half a catty of good tea, and the parents-in-law will happily invite relatives and neighbors to taste "Qinmu tea" together.Some friends come uninvited, which is called asking for a cup of "bridal tea"; relatives and friends go out to make a living, and tea is indispensable in the gift of "sending the wind". It is hoped that relatives and friends who go out to make a living will not forget the meaning of ancestors and hometown; while overseas relatives and friends remit money back to their hometowns during the New Year and holidays, it is called "tea money"; "Apology"; before the banquet, "polite tea" should be served first, which is called "cleaning the intestines with tea first, and then drinking and delicacies"; rich businessmen, dignitaries and dignitaries often treat guests with tea. Announcing "watching tea", the servants heard it, and immediately put away the tea set. At this time, even if the guests still have a lot to say, they must leave with knowledge.

In recent years, Taiwan's tea custom has developed again. Tea is not only used for brewing, but through the painstaking research of tea farmers, all kinds of authentic "tea meals" are quietly emerging in Pingcun Township, the hometown of Taiwan's tea. .For example, tea leaves are ground into powder, a large amount of flour is added, and the buns and steamed buns are made into dark green buns and steamed buns in the traditional way of "rubbing" steamed buns. It is said that the taste is very good. Wonderful!In addition, there are those who steam trout with tea leaves, those who use tea powder and taro sandbags to make tea taro, and those who stew with a small amount of tea greens and chicken, especially "tea chicken", whose soup is pure and not oily. It is not greasy, and the chicken has absorbed the essence of tea leaves, and it tastes endless aftertaste, which is better than ordinary chicken soup.