NextShark
Date: January 4, 2020

When Abigail Hing Wen was sent to Taiwan for a six-week-long summer program to learn Mandarin and more about her heritage, she did not expect the wild and crazy nights of friendship and romance.

Wen, who also works in Silicon Valley as a venture capitalist, captures the journey of self-discovery in her debut novel, “Loveboat, Taipei”.

The Overseas Compatriot Youth Formosa Study Tour in Taiwan, aka the “Love Boat” program named in honor of the 1970s sitcom, offered Chinese Americans and Canadians aged 18 to 23 language classes in the mornings as well as activities in subjects like calligraphy, ink painting, dancing, martial arts, learning Chinese musical instruments, and sightseeing around Taipei, according to SCMP.

Although the “study tours” were advertised as a cultural enrichment program, it became popular for being a great place to find romance.    [FULL  STORY]