Come to Luliao Village for a completely different kind of Valentine’s Day

Have you heard the legendary love story of the Stone God(石爺) and Stone Goddess (石娘)? The story originates from two giant rocks in Luliao Keng River(鹿寮坑溪) in Hsinchu(新竹) which local citizens began worshipping. According to legend, the Stone God travels in the rain of night, and in the early morning arrives back at the river to snuggle up beside the Stone Goddess. However, some years ago Typhoon Nari washed the Stone Goddess ten meters downstream. Luliao Keng Villagers got together and sought permission from the Gods to move the Stone God and Goddess to beside the community activity center where they could oversee village weddings. From that day on, Luliao celebrates a special kind of Valentines Day.

The activity takes around six months of planning and on the day, there are a variety of live performances and traditional Hakka cuisine on offer, as well as the highlight of the day – the unveiling of the Stone God and Goddess, the new cultural image of the village. Another exciting activity is the Wulong Elementary School(五龍國小) straw dragon performance. Coming down to Luliao Village you will not only have an opportunity to experience Hakka culture, but also enjoy the wonderfully pristine environment in what will be Taiwan’s first environmental trust area, Nature Valley(自然谷). In the future, the area is set to become an important platform for the development of ecological education and Hakka culture.

PeoPo 公民新聞

Come to Luliao Village for a completely different kind of Valentine’s Day

URL:

http://www.peopo.org/portal.php?op=viewPost&articleId=99860

(以下是中文對照)

來鹿寮坑過一個不一樣的情人節 ( 台灣孔明車 ) 

照片

你聽過石爺、石娘的傳奇愛情故事嗎？原本相依在新竹鹿寮坑溪的兩塊巨石，當地居民供奉為石爺、石娘。相傳石爺會在雨天夜裡出遊，清晨又回到溪邊依偎在石娘身旁。但是多年前納莉颱風將石娘沖到下游十多公尺處，從此石爺石娘相隔兩地，鹿寮坑村民經過討論和請示，決定將石爺、石娘遷移到社區活動中心旁，並為祂們舉辦盛大婚禮。從此鹿寮坑有了屬於自己的情人節。當天有許多表演活動，現場還有客家傳統美食，當天還有另一項重頭戲，就是為新的鹿寮坑意象揭牌。這次活動籌劃半年時間，當地的五龍國小同學還帶來禾稈龍的表演，來到鹿寮坑不僅可以體驗客家文化，這裡的自然生態也相當豐富，台灣第一個環境信託『自然谷』便座落於此，未來這裡將成為致力發展生態教育與客家文化的重要平台。

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