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Avid Explorer of Our Globe's Cultures Jasmine Huggins, Ambassador of Saint Christopher and Nevis to the Republic of China (Taiwan) (TAIPEI QUARTERLY 2018 SPRING Vol.11)

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Post date:2018-03-19

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Avid Explorer of Our Globe’s Cultures

Jasmine Huggins, Ambassador of Saint Christopher and Nevis to the Republic of China (Taiwan)

Article     Rick Charette

Photos     Chia-Ying Yang



 

Here’s a test. Sit yourself down before a map of the world. You now have 5 seconds to bring your finger down on the proud country of Saint Kitts and Nevis. Success is surely proof that you were the teacher’s favorite pupil in your high-school geography class.

 

Jasmine Huggins needs nary a second, for this Lilliputian island nation of 50,000 people is her homeland. Huggins is an individual from an exceedingly small place who is leading an unusually big life. Hard work and timely doses of serendipity, the latter taken full advantage of, have brought her much change over the years, with long life chapters written in far-flung places. From St. Kitts to a long period in New York, from New York to a long period in Washington, D.C., and now the latest long chapter, being written in Taipei, Taiwan and entailing a shift from the world of the Atlantic to the world of the Pacific.

 

Jasmine Huggins of petite Basseterre, population 13,000-plus, is now “Her Excellency Jasmine Elise Huggins, Ambassador of Saint Christopher and Nevis to the Republic of China (Taiwan).” Being from a nation of islanders where pretentious airs are given little space, for this interview with TAIPEI magazine she agreed to use of the highfalutin “Her Excellency” just once. Attentive readers will have noticed it has already been used twice. Mea culpa, Ambassador.

 

The Journey to Taipei

 

My first years were spent in Basseterre, but I like to say that my hometown is an even smaller place, my grandparents’ village on the north coast of St. Kitts. When still quite young my family moved to New Rochelle, New York. I then moved to Brooklyn, then to New Jersey, and my studies thereafter brought me to Washington, where out of the blue I was given the opportunity to enter diplomatic service. After 10 years with the Saint Kitts and Nevis embassy in Washington, I answered the call to travel to Taiwan to open our embassy here in 2008, and have been here since.”

 

The Saint Kitts and Nevis/Huggins Mission

 

The mission of our embassy team here is quite straightforward. First, we attend to the interests of Saint Kitts and Nevis citizens who are here in Taiwan. The majority are students who are here on special scholarship exchange programs. In the larger sense, our role is to expand and deepen ties between Taiwan and Saint Kitts and Nevis, especially in the trade and tourism sectors. Tourism is a key in our economy, and a primary goal here in Taiwan is to promote awareness and understanding of our unique culture and the travel opportunities available.”

 

Impressions – Then and Now

 

Huggins had visited Taiwan one time, on a short visit, prior to her Taiwan embassy assignment. “Like many new arrivals, I was struck by the number of scooters, how busy the city was, and how people lived in such close proximity with each other. Yet at the same time, despite what you might expect under such circumstances, everyone was – is – so comfortable, relaxed, and friendly with each other, and there is order. In the different areas of Taipei City there is a distinct neighborhood feel. ”

 

One of the clearest changes I’ve seen in my time here is the increasing sophistication, the internationalization, of the people. There is ever-deepening knowledge of other peoples and cultures, and the people of Taipei and all of Taiwan are very open. You can see how elements of different cultures are observed and willingly incorporated into people’s lives if they find them attractive. I believe that one factor behind this is the comfortable mixing of the receptive local community and the international expatriate community, in both informal and formal settings – in the latter category, events like promotional food fairs and cultural events.” Another possibility, she agrees, is the exposure that comes with steadily increasing overseas travel by the Taiwanese, avid international explorers.

 

Let me give you an example. When I first came here Christmas was a struggle. I had never spent the season without family and close friends, without the traditional celebrations. The local Christmas season was expressed in sprinklings of lights here and there, some public parties... but the essence was not there. Today all is completely different, with brilliant, exuberant lighting everywhere, and everyone seeming to look for ways to express joy and sharing, which is how I understand Christmas. Since Taiwan is not a Christian country, of course the religious aspects are not there, but the soaring spirit, the shared sense of happiness and revelry in life’s gifts, most definitely are. The diplomatic corps is regularly invited to participate in the big tree-lighting ceremonies, etc., and I look forward to these times.”

▲Located in the West Indies, Saint Kitts and Nevis is the Western Hemisphere’s smallest sovereign state. (Photo: Chia-Ying Yang)
 

Embassy Initiatives

 

We engage in a wide array of initiatives that promote better understanding of our country and also promote, especially, tourism, which as said earlier is a key for our economy. I am quite excited about our recent participation in the 2018 Taipei Lantern Festival, where we participated with the Taipei City Government to offer a wonderfully attractive theme lantern in the International Lantern Area in the image of one of our major tourist attractions, Brimstone Hill Fortress (a UNESCO World Heritage Site), accompanied by background detail.

 

Among our other initiatives are annual participation in the Taipei International Travel Fair, promotions on the local bus network, notably Taipei’s double-decker sightseeing buses, and dance/music-based cultural performances (staged by home-country students living in Taiwan), with the Latin American and Caribbean Cultural Festival as a special highlight. Another initiative I am especially excited about right now is bringing a steel-pan band to Taiwan, to tour the country, something rare that I think will create great interest. We are aiming for autumn this year.”

 

Free-Time Pursuits

 

What I enjoy more than anything else is hiking, and the Taipei region is very inviting, so mountainous and with a very good network of trails of different grades. I head out as often as I can with friends, exploring new trails and re-exploring familiar ones. Among my favorite outings are the trails in Yangmingshan National Park (陽明山國家公園), especially the various options up Qixingshan (七星山). The park takes up the higher reaches of the Yangmingshan massif, a mountain cluster between Taipei Basin and the ocean to the north.

 

I also very much enjoy the local food. Chinese cuisine has endless variety to explore. If you ask me what I like best, I’d have to offer some of the simpler dishes – dishes based on ingredients I had never heard of before coming to Taiwan, or had never thought of as edible. A prime example is sweet-potato leaves, which are wok-fried with just a bit of garlic. ”

 

And I have a special passion for Taiwan’s indigenous cuisine, perhaps because of the similarities with the hearty fare of Saints Kitts and Nevis. Many people do not know this, but the Taipei metropolitan area has some very good indigenous restaurants, with native owners. Of the many choices, I really enjoy the bamboo-tube rice and the roast boar.”

 

The Taipei/Taiwan Tourism Experience – Adding Value

 

If I could suggest anything, it would be more public English information. I understand that English is not an official language, but the common denominator with the ever-increasing number of international visitors is some understanding of English. Even for me, someone who has been here a decade now and is comfortable moving about on my own – more English to help me navigate would be very welcome. Of course I should also make a greater effort to learn Mandarin Chinese.

 

On another front, something that would positively add to local internationalization efforts would be for the international diplomatic community to more systematically reach out into local neighborhoods, such as at schools and during community events, to present our respective lands and cultures with formal presentations and cultural performances. I am sure people will be receptive to this, and positive long-term results will be built on the foundation laid.” 

 

 

 

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