5月份見識之旅活動，於2023年5月20日由呂明澐小姐帶領21位祐生見習生及其家長們，至台南進行南科考古尋寶暨七股潟湖探索之旅。
For the study tour of May 20, 2023, Ms. Lu Ming-yun led 21 ARF interns and their parents on a discovery trip to Tainan Branch of the National Museum of Prehistory and Qigu Lagoon in Tainan.
行程首站來到國立台灣史前文化博物館南科考古館，其為搶救因開發台南科學園區所出土文物而設立之全台首座以考古學為主題的博物館。導覽老師帶領眾人穿過象徵時空隧道的玻璃方管，參訪動線以逆時針方式，由高至低，寓意眾人懷著向下探索的精神，回到過去見證南科先民所留下的足跡。館內常設展呈現南科地區各時期代表性文物，其中四百多年前西拉雅文化的骨骰，外觀和現行通用的六點骰子一模一樣，讓大家對其用途有諸多聯想。接著導覽老師帶領眾人走上鋪以強化玻璃的地面，觀察下方兩公尺乘兩公尺的正方形探坑，解說此為考古學家發掘遺址前將整個範圍規劃像棋盤狀的方格座標系統，方便學者進行記錄遺址的出土位置及樣貌，進而組合成完整的遺址空間樣貌。最後一站來到館內特別展示—博物館的密室，它是館內考古學家、分析、修復、典藏人員的工作後台，經由導覽老師說明，讓眾人進一步了解遺址從發掘現場進入博物館的程序，透過考古科普窺見數千年來曾在這片土地上生活過的人們，加深了見習生們對時間軸向的思考。
The study tour began with a visit to Museum of Archaeology, Tainan Branch of National Museum of Prehistory. As the first archaeology-themed museum in Taiwan, this institution has been established to preserve relics unearthed during the development of Tainan Science Park. The tour guide led everyone through a glass tube, symbolizing a time tunnel, in an anticlockwise direction from top to bottom. This implies that everyone embraced the spirit of exploration by venturing into the past to witness the footprints left by early inhabitants at prehistoric sites. In the museum, representative relics from different eras are showcased at the prehistoric site. In particular, the bone dice of the Siraya culture over 400 years ago looked exactly the same as the six-sided game dice we use today. This fact arouses curiosity about their previous applications. Then, the tour guide led everyone across a floor paved with reinforced glass. Looking through the glass, one could see an excavation pit measuring two meters by two meters. It is part of a grid system used in archaeology that delineates the entire site in squares, enabling archaeologists to easily record the locations of artifacts and eventually form a comprehensive understanding of the site. The final stop of the tour was a hidden chamber that housed special exhibits in the museum. It is the back end of the museum where archaeologists and specialists work on the analysis, restoration, and preservation. Through the tour guide's explanation, everyone gained a deeper understanding of how a prehistoric site begins as an excavation site and eventually becomes part of a museum. Archaeological science has also provided a glimpse into how people lived thousands of years ago and has given us food for thought regarding the concept of time.
下午前往七股海寮碼頭，搭乘龍海號進行潟湖生態導覽。見習生觀察到潟湖上有許多蚵架和定期巡視蚵仔生長情形的蚵農，導覽員藉此拿出蚵串，向眾人解說蚵農如何將蚵殼綁成蚵串，並放入海水中讓蚵苗附著在蚵殼上。航程途中，大家還登上屏障潟湖的三座沙洲之一的網仔寮汕，「汕」字本意即為魚游動貌，閩南語也稱這種沙洲為「鯤鯓」，因海水潮汐和泥沙堆積變化，看似一條不停游動的大魚。不過近二十年來，天災及水文環境改變使河沙補給減少，加上外海風浪的侵蝕，沙洲面積逐年縮小，海沙反而向內淤積，故人們在沙洲種植許多以防風、定沙為目的的植物，希望能延緩潟湖陸化的速度。再次搭乘龍海號返回碼頭休息片刻，隨即進行烤蚵體驗，透過品嚐當地名產加深了對七股潟湖的物候印象，也許沙洲有一天將會在地圖上消失，但見習生所習得的珍貴見聞仍能記憶傳述。至此，本日活動已近尾聲，大家一起合照留念後搭車返程，並期待於下次見識之旅再相見。
The afternoon's itinerary was a trip to Hailiao Pier in Qigu, where everyone would enjoy an eco-tour of the lagoon on the Ferry Longhai. Interns observed many oyster racks in the lagoon, and oyster farmers regularly patrolled to check on the growth of the oysters. Pulling out a rack of oyster, the tour guide explained how the farmers strung the oyster shells and put them in seawater to allow young oysters to attach on the shells. The tour included a stopover at Wangzailiao Sandbar. In Minnan dialect, a sandbar like this is known as "a large fish that keeps on swimming" because it constantly changes due to tides and sand deposits. However, over the past 20 years, not only have natural disasters and changes in the marine environment reduced the supply of river sand, but erosion caused by ocean waves has also led to a gradual decrease in its surface area. As a result, sand has been accumulating in the lagoon instead. Thus, plants have been cultivated on the sandbar to block the wind and stabilize the sand, with the aim of reducing sedimentation in the lagoon. After returning to the pier, followed by a short break, savoring the local delicacy deepened their impression of Qigu Lagoon. Even if the sandbars were to disappear from our map one day, interns would still cherish their precious memories. As the day's tour came to an end, everyone took a group photo before heading back home and looked forward to the next study tour.
