Friday 8th December: An early morning trip to the local beach to look at the result of plate tectonic activity on the drop-cliffs and to hunt for local stones (jade, rose quartz etc) before visiting a further placement setting - a craft training centre for aborignal/indigenous women who were out of work - the craft work involves hand-weaving large and small objects in traditional designs and the centre also serves as a setting that helps to promote the traditions of the local communities. All that was before catching the train back to Taipei to meet Soochow colleagues for a wonderful lunch. Then a few hours of free time for last minute shopping in Taipei 101 (see above) before Cath headed off to the airport hotel ready for tomorrow's flight and Lisa headed south to visit her family for the weekend.

Thursday 7th December: Today we explored Hualien and the nearby beautiful Toroko national park after first visiting a placement. The organisation we visited provides mobile karaoke and social support via outreach work to older people living in rural locations. Those attending took part in craft sessions and enjoyed some drinks and snacks whilst socialising with each other and the staff and volunteers.

Wednesday 6th December: After Cath's teaching (at 8.30am!) we visited a placement in Taipei used by Soochow University students. One part of it was this great 'Elderly University' where those who were not able to attend university when younger now have the chance to do so, whilst the centre also provides basic health and well being information and support. We also visited the dementia day care centre in the same location. Later that day had a train ride to Hualien on the East coast of Taiwan. We arrived at 6.45pm and were collected by Jimmy and Tracy, two PG SW students and practitioners who took us to Dong Hwa university for us to give our lectures. We finished just after 10pm but the students remained until gone midnight in tutorials!

Monday 5th December After a very brief visit to meet the new head of social work at NTU, we spent the morning with Professor Mo Li LI, Dean of the faculty at Soochow Univesity and then were treated to a welcome lunch with colleagues from the social work department on campus.... Lovely restaurant facility. after lunch we visited a placement where a former Soochow professor runs an organisation where diffent workers work with the women, children and men where there has been domestic violence or other difficulties but not where the woman is in need or wishes protective housing. Lots of interesting discussions about short term and insecure funding. Then late afternoon in the hot springs where Cath fell asleep on the hot stones and dinner with Lisa's Aunt.



Lovely poster made for Lisa

 Tuesday 6th Lisa (Dr Henglien Lisa Chen) gave her lecture this morning to undergraduate students at Soochow. Great posters made for us announcing our topics etc and pictures of these will follow soon! Lecture followed by visit to writer's previous residence in the mountains and then back to campus for banquet lunch with lovely hosts. More pictures of that to follow too. The afternoon was spent meeting with the social work department at Soochow exoploring UK social work education context as well as future collaboration possibilities.

Welcome

Welcome to the blog that Cath (Cath Holmstrom, Lecturer in Social Work, see http://www.sussex.ac.uk/esw/internal/people/socialwork/person/118300) and Lisa (Dr Henglien Lisa Chen, Lecturer in Social Work, see http://www.sussex.ac.uk/esw/internal/people/socialwork/person/252307) will be using to share the learning from their trip to Taiwan in December 2011.

The trip will incorporate a lecture tour at two different universities and visits to a third as well as visits to placements and meetings with research colleagues at both universities.

We will endeavour to upload interesting facts, pictures and experiences here so that we capture our learning as we go along in true reflective practice style.