Food trucks dishing out free Filipino cuisine kick off tour of Taipei

Taipei, June 9 (CNA) Two Filipino food trucks dishing out free pork sisig and pork adobo along with San Miguel beers and mojitos have kicked off a two-week tour of Taipei to promote tourism in the Southeast Asian country.

The two trucks will be at Eslite Xinyi Store on Songgao Road between 6-8 p.m. Thursday-Friday, Songshan Cultural and Creative Park 2-6 p.m. June 11-12, the pedestrian walkway near East Metro Mall's No.12 exit 6-8 p.m. June 13-17, POPOP Taipei 2-6 p.m. June 18-19, and the pedestrian walkway near East Metro Mall's No.12 exit 6-8 p.m. June 20-21.

According to Hazel Habito Javier, director of the Philippine Department of Tourism in Taiwan, the trucks will dish out around 1,400 hot meals, which come served with garlic rice, salted eggs, atchara, and turon, to those who take a photo with the vehicles and upload it to social media and like the Philippine Department of Tourism in Taiwan's page on Facebook.

The promotion aims to heighten the awareness and appreciation of Filipino cuisine and attract potential Taiwanese holidaymakers to the country, which reopened its border to all fully vaccinated travelers on April 1, Javier said.

"For the Philippines, similar to Taiwan, food and drinks are an integral part of our history and identity. It has become a key element of our nation's brand image," Javier said.

"We hope that through this effort, the Taiwanese people will have a pleasant experience that will push them to pack their bags and travel to the Philippines."

According to Javier, Taiwan is one of the top five sources of tourists to the Philippines, with around 327,273 Taiwanese heading to the country in 2019.

Moreover, in 2019, Taiwanese tourists' total spending in the country has reached US$252.10 million (NT$7.46 billion), Javier added.

"These figures indicate sustained consumer interest and strong potential to expand further considering the accessibility and proximity of the Philippines and Taiwan," Javier said.

Manila Economic and Cultural Office Deputy Resident Representative Teodoro Luis B. Javelosa Jr. said the relationship between the Philippines and Taiwan is strong as Filipino workers drive industry growth for Taiwan.

"We are next-door neighbors. Tourism is important to the Philippines, which is why we are working hard to convince more Taiwanese to start traveling back to our islands," he added.