Day 4: NTNU Cultural Class and HTC

 

   The class started the day by going to NTNU for a cultural class on Chinese traditional medicine. Our Mandarin teacher from the day before had told us that the lecturer would be trying acupuncture on us and on the train ride to class most of the class swore they wouldn't participate in that aspect.

   The class began with an overview of different characteristics of foods and what they were used for. The fascinating part for me is that many of the traditional "cures" contain natural chemicals that are close to those found in prescription drugs for the same purpose.

   After that we started talking about stretches and meditation being good for the body, something proven by multiple studies.Then the topic of acupuncture came up. The modern needles used today are are small and come individually wrapped in sanitary packets. Once everyone saw the needles people relaxed a lot and in the end everyone participated.

  Once the class was finished we went on a tour of the NTNU campus.

   From there we took a charter bus to HTC for a tour. The first impression upon entering the company was a huge wash of whiteness that was almost painful.

   Naturally the pose of the statue lead to some joking around.

   We were given a standard short tour of the cafeteria (with free food and no waiting because they'll send a text when your food is ready) and the fitness center (that you can use anytime even during work hours). I wasn't surprised that we didn't see more, especially since HTC rarely allows visitors of any kind let alone foreigners. After that we got a standard company lecture and a marketing pitch and got to play with the newest phone for a few minutes.