Foreign netizens get a kick out of photo that includes scooter, bubble tea, and Taiwan dog

Taiwan News
Date: 2020/09/26
By: Keoni Everington, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Last week, foreign residents of Taiwan discovered the ultimate photograph that sums up life for many in Taiwan with a man on a scooter, an indigenous Taiwanese dog, and bubble tea to go.

The photo is part of a series of photos that first appeared on the Facebook page Kato Army (加藤軍台灣粉絲團 2.0) in April of 2019, showing various angled shots of a black dog perched on a scooter while holding a plastic bag with a cup of bubble tea in its mouth. On Sept. 18, a user of the social media site Reddit posted a photo of the dog with the caption, "Doesn't get anymore Taiwanese than this…"

In the photo posted on Reddit, a man wearing a motorcycle helmet can be seen sitting on a scooter while a black dog is sitting behind him with his head facing backwards as he uses his mouth to dutifully grip the bag containing the precious pearl milk tea inside. Based on additional photos posted on Dcard, netizens concluded the photos were taken near the Jiantan MRT Station in Taipei City's Shilin District, an area well known for its night markets, and naturally, boba tea.

The general consensus is that bubble tea started in Taiwan in the 1980s. However, there is some dispute as to whether it first started at the Chun Shui Tang (春水堂人文茶館) tea shop in Taichung or its rival, the Hanlin Tea Room (翰林茶館) in Tainan.    [FULL  STORY]