Novatek Volunteers Accompanied Visually Impaired Students to Emei, Hsinchu for an Ecological Field Trip to Experience Kiln-baked Food
Volunteer Service
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The sense of smell has long been a necessity in our lives, as it can be used to record life’s good memories. In addition to the natural aroma of plants, people can also easily remember the taste of food deep down in their minds. In December, Novatek volunteers accompanied visually impaired students to Emei Township again for a journey of memory through plants and food.
The main difference between this visit and one from six years ago is the newly opened “Taiwan Lily Workshop.” The Workshop has a large garden, mostly planted with endemic Taiwanese plants, and a one-story retro house surrounded by various flora. In addition to listening to the owner of the Workshop sharing about his commitment to the promotion of Taiwan’s native and unique species of lily, the students also learned about the characteristics of lilies through touch. Moreover, the Workshop also prepared Oriental Beauty Oolong tea for the students to try. Through professional tea brewing by the tea master, the students not only got to smell but also taste the charmingly sweet aroma of this famous oolong tea.
With the memories of the aromas of lilies and tea, the students then visited the Yeshantien Workshop to make home-made bread. When the baked bread came out of the wood-fired kiln, with its high temperature of over 500 degrees, the warm and delicious smell of bread slowly wafted throughout the air, adding a unique wood-burning aroma of kiln-baked bread to the students’ memories.
Finally, with the guidance of the instructor from the Workshop, Novatek volunteers assisted the students in making vanilla citrus jelly. Hot water was used to extract the aroma from vanilla plant essential oils. Whether roselle, marigold, or pandan leaves, the aroma extracted from these fresh and healthy plants gave the jelly refreshing smells. The freshly cooked citrus jam and konjac jelly powder were then added to make a unique jelly with a springy texture. The completed jellies exhibited multi-color visual effects, creating a satisfying and healing sensation!
Although the aroma of plants and the taste of food cannot be seen, heard, or touched, they can always bring back some of our deepest, fondest memories. In this one-day food and agriculture field trip, Novatek volunteers accompanied students in learning how to use smell to experience life and record beautiful moments.
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