Yahoo奇摩新聞 年輕女孩勇闖拉丁美洲！將手工編織藝術溫度傳遞到台灣
The photo collage shows Jamie Huang (right) and a Latin American woman weaving. (Courtesy of Jamie Huang/黃麗仰)
【看CP學英文】旅行能為人生帶來很大的轉變，改變人一生的志向，甚至找到生命的意義與熱情所在。黃麗仰 (Jamie) 就是其中之一，她從冒險旅行中找到熱情，並將其延續帶回國內，期盼讓更多人感受到遠方國度拉丁美洲的編織藝術與源源不絕的熱情。
Travel can make a big difference in a person’s life, changing his or her ambition and even finding a passion in life. Jamie Huang is one of them. The young Taiwanese has a passion for adventurous travel and she hopes that more people will enjoy the art of weaving and discover the energy of Latin Americans.
「在深入旅行及短居當地後，完全愛上這個富有濃厚民族氣息的拉丁美洲民族，她也有著堅韌的生命力和包容力。」今年27歲，PIÑA COLADA 拉丁美洲手工編織包創辦人Jamie特別與The China Post分享道。
“After traveling and living in the region for a short time, I fell in love with Latin America, which is rich in ethnicity and has a strong sense of vitality and tolerance,” Jamie, 27, told The China Post. She is the co-founder of PIÑA COLADA.
PIÑA COLADA這個品牌，販售從拉丁美洲遠道而來的手工編織藝品，他們直接與不同國家的工作坊及小型生產商合作，一個個都是當地居民一針一線的心血，有著屬於它獨一無二的迷人故事。
PIÑA COLADA features a collection of accessories inspired by Latin American culture and art. It works directly with small producers or small distributors of different countries to bring unique handmade products to Taiwanese people.
回想3年前，她與來自西班牙的Urda都厭倦了辦公室工作，毅然決然辭職，志同道合的兩人隨機選擇前往彼此都不曾去過的拉丁美洲冒險，那時，在他們心中拉丁美洲聽起來遙遠又神秘，是相當陌生的國度。
Three years ago, Jamie and Urda from Spain both got tired of their office jobs and resigned. The two of them randomly chose to venture to Latin America, where neither of them had been before.
At that time, Latin America sounded distant and mysterious in their minds.
「在還未拜訪前，我其實也與多數人一樣擔憂，害怕治安不好，有搶劫、偷竊、槍殺、毒品氾濫、太落後等等，」她續道，「那時深受媒體負面報導的影響，帶有偏見地去看自己一點都不了解的國家。」
“Before I visited, I was as worried as most people expressed some concerns, fearing for our safety, for robberies, thefts, shootings, drug abuse, undervelopement and more,” she said, adding that she was deeply influenced by the negative media coverage.
“I was biased to see a country I did not understand at all,” Jamie said.
2016年，兩人抵達墨西哥，買了一台二手摩托車，從墨西哥市出發，一路經過瓜地馬拉、尼加拉瓜、薩爾瓦多、宏都拉斯，再到哥斯大黎加。
In 2016, Jamie and Urda arrived in Mexico; they bought a second-hand motorbike and traveled from Mexico City through Guatemala, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Honduras, and then Costa Rica.
第一次來到地球另一端的Jamie，對於周遭一切感到好奇，「整個北中美洲都有種說不出的魔力，古色古香的殖民建築，充滿繽紛色彩，自己像被施了魔法般不願離開。」
Jamie, who went to the other side of the world for the first time, was curious about everything around her.
“Central America has an indescribable magic, with ancient colonial architecture and colorful buildings,” she said. “I didn’t want to leave and it’s like I have been enchanted.”
旅行結束回台，Jamie與Urda決定創立品牌，秉持著初心，不只為了營利，也希望將旅行時的感動、所見所聞分享給大家。
After returning to Taiwan from their trip, Jamie and Urda decided to establish their brand, not only to make increase their revenue but also to share their feelings and insights from the trip.
談到為何選擇中南美洲「手工編織」作為主要商品，Jamie解釋道，手工編織是當地文化及生活中不可或缺的， 它在每個族群裡都是扮演著極重要的角色。
When it comes to the reasons why they have decided to sell hand knitting accessories, Jamie explained that hand-knitting is indispensable to the local culture and life, and it plays a very important role in every community.
「不僅因為代代相傳，也因為編織在不同族群中，都體現了當地文化的一部分。」她侃侃談道，並提到目前也會在台灣原住民祭典裡擺攤，讓更多人認識PIÑA COLADA。
“It is not only because it has been passed down from generation to generation, but also because the art of weaving embodies a part of the local culture in different groups,” she said.
She added that they would set up a booth at Taiwan indigenous festival to let more people know about PIÑA COLADA.
然而，創業初期也碰上不少問題，其一是合作廠商規模小，又在偏遠地區，進口較為困難；另一方面則是語言溝通問題，雖然夥伴母語是西文，但與拉丁美洲又有些不同，因此有時溝通上需多花點時間。
However, they encountered difficulty in the early stage of the business, one of which was the small scale of the partner company.
Besides, the companies were located in a remote area, which made importing more difficult.
On the other hand, they had difficulty in communication. Although Urda’s mother tongue is Spanish, it is a bit different from Latin American, so sometimes it takes a little more time to communicate.
而那時之所以將品牌命名為PIÑA COLADA，Jamie表示，旅行時她很常點這杯調酒，而這也代表他們對拉丁美洲的熱愛，期望人們能透過當地人親自製作的手工編織藝品感受拉美人的熱情。
Speaking of the reason why the brand is named PIÑA COLADA, Jamie said she often ordered this drink when she traveled, and it also represents their love for Latin America.
They hope that people can feel the passion of Latin Americans through the handmade weaving artworks inspired and made by the local people.
了解更多關於PIÑA COLADA，請看官網 | For more information about , visit PIÑA COLADA website
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