國立教育廣播電臺

Hope:

Wow! This place is packed.

Joey:

對呀! 好多人哦! 都不用上班嗎?

Hope:

Perhaps they are like us, just wanting to grab something cool to beat the heat.

Joey:

對. To beat the heat! 消暑! I can’t wait to order.

Hope:

What toppings are you getting, Joey?

Joey:

Definitely the traditional ones! I’ll have taro, red beans, mung beans, and some 黑糖粿，粉粿，

and 粉圓. They are my favorites!

Hope:

So classic! You really go for those rich, chewy textures.

Joey:

Chewy textures? QQ的口感嗎?

Hope:

That’s right.

Joey:

Yes, I love classic toppings and chewy textures. What about you, Hope? What are you going to get?

Hope:

I am more into fruity stuff, so I’ll get some diced pineapple, watermelon, banana, some preserved plums,

and some chewy candies….and lots of condensed milk on top.

Joey:

Yum! That sounds super refreshing. You are making me want to try a bite.

Hope:

You should. Speaking of which, you know some foreigners might be shocked when they hear that we eat red beans as a dessert.

Joey:

No way! What do they do with red beans then?

Hope:

They only cook them in savory dishes like with rice or in stews.

Joey:

In savory dishes? That sounds strange to me.

Hope:

Well, to them, sweet red beans or ice with red beans can be puzzling, too.

Joey:

Ha-ha! That’s interesting. I had a similar experience. A friend from Europe didn’t understand why I liked putting taro in ice.

He said it felt like putting a root vegetable in dessert.

Hope:

A root vegetable? That’s too cute. But I think that is the beauty of culture—we can always learn from each other.

Joey:

Totally agree with you. And once they try it, they often fall in love. I mean, who can resist a huge bowl of shaved ice on such a blazing summer day?

Hope:

Absolutely!

Joey:

By the way, Hope, I have some foreign friends. If I want to treat them to have shaved ice in Taiwan.

I am not sure how to describe our traditional toppings such as黑糖粿，粉粿，and 粉圓 in English. What can we call them?

Hope:

I think 黑糖粿 can be called brown sugar jelly.

Joey:

What about 粉粿?

Hope:

粉粿can be called sweet starch jelly.

Joey:

What about 粉圓?

Hope:

粉圓are just tapioca pearls, like the ones in bubble tea.

Joey:

Ah! Perfect! I should remember these expressions.

Hope:

Now, let’s dig in.

Joey:

Okay. 開吃!