Los Angeles, Jan. 2 (CNA) Braving low temperatures, members of the Taipei First Girls High School (TFGHS) Marching Band, Honor Guards and Color Guards on Monday dazzled the tens of thousands of people lined up to watch the 2023 Rose Parade in Pasadena, California.
The New Year's Day celebration, held in Pasadena since 1890, was held under sunny skies this year but in unusually cold 6-degree-Celsius weather that did not seem to affect the parade's performers.
Placed 58th in the parade's lineup, the TFGHS band was one of six international groups that took part in this year's Rose Parade and one of 76 elements (39 floats, 21 marching bands and 16 equestrian teams) appearing in the procession.
The 125 TFGHS girls were praised by anchors at KTLA, which broadcast the event, for how organized their formation was as they rounded a corner to march toward the event's main seating area.
"Look at them playing to the crowd here. How beautiful that is!" one of the anchors said of the marching band.
As the TFGHS girls were applauded by the gathered crowd, a woman was heard shouting: "Go, Taiwan!"
One of the members of the Honor Guards dropped her parade rifle but quickly recovered, keeping her composure all along, which won her compliments from one of the anchors, who called her a "professional."
"I hope they're very proud of themselves, what it took to get here, what it takes to march this distance," the anchor said.
Unlike at international sporting events overseen by the International Olympic Committee, Taiwan was addressed by the event's host by both its official name, the Republic of China (ROC), and Taiwan, the name it is known by internationally.
In the bleachers, Louis Huang (黃敏境), director-general of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Los Angeles, and several alumnae of the school brandished the ROC flag as they cheered for the TFGHS performers.
Honor guard Chiu Jo-an (邱若安) said that at the end of every segment she turned to wave at the crowd, which responded enthusiastically each time, leaving her feeling very touched.
The most memorable moment for her was when a member of the audience shouted in Mandarin: "Go! Taipei First Girls High School!"
This was the third time that the TGFHS Marching Band, Honor Guards and Color Guards was invited to perform at the Rose Parade after performances in 1996 and 2005.
Color guard Chen En-hsuan (陳恩瑄) said the audience at the Rose Parade seemed more passionate than audiences in Taiwan. People seated on both sides of the road kept screaming, cheering and waving, which was something she was not used to at home, she said.
Marching band member Ni Chin-wei (倪沁葳) said: "Hearing people shouting 'Taiwan' and waving the [ROC] flag, I could truly feel that this event brought Taiwan to the world."
