Hi everybody, here's our latest episode of News Bites!

I'm Trevor Tortomasi…

And I'm Paz Bueno.

For today:

Chiayi County has too many lizards, a boy graduates high school very early, and Indonesians share their holiday snacks.

Let's check it out!

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嘉義縣教人怎麼抓綠鬣蜥

Chiayi County Teaches People How to Catch Iguanas

Woah, what is that animal in my garden? Is that Godzilla (哥吉拉)?

Hmmm… it looks like a big green lizard (蜥蜴).

Actually, it's an iguana (鬣蜥)!

Iguanas are not really a threat to safety (不會威脅安全).

They can bite, but they will only do that to defend themselves.

However, they do like to eat vegetables in gardens and on farms…

And gardeners and farmers don't like that!

So, local governments want to catch iguanas.

地方政府想抓綠鬣蜥。

There are a lot of these animals in the southern part of Taiwan.

Last year, in Pingtung County (屏東縣), people caught almost 20,000 iguanas.

And in Chiayi County (嘉義縣), there is a new course (一門新課程) that is teaching people how to catch iguanas.

Why do people need a course to learn this?

Because catching an iguana is not easy… they're not small lizards!

Iguanas can grow up to 150 centimeters long.

The county government wants to follow animal protection laws.

縣政府要遵守動物保護法。

So, only people who take the course are allowed to catch iguanas.

For every iguana they catch, the county government will pay them 50 NT.

If the iguana is bigger, the reward (報酬) will also be bigger, up to 550 NT.

So, if you see a big green lizard in your garden, don't worry… it's not Godzilla.

"Ah… thank goodness."

However, if you really want to catch iguanas, you should take the course to learn how!

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九歲男孩高中畢業

Nine-Year-Old Boy Graduates from High School

How old will you be when you graduate (畢業) from high school?

Most people graduate when they are around 18 years old.

Some students graduate even earlier, when they are 17, or even 16.

But have you heard about the boy who graduated at the age of nine?

David is from Philadelphia, a city in the US.

At nine years old, he is one of the youngest people to ever graduate from high school.

他是有史以來最年輕的高中畢業生之一。

David didn't actually sit in classes with other high school students.

Instead, he took classes and tests online.

That works for David, who is interested in science and computers.

He says that when he grows up, he wants to be an astrophysicist (天文物理學家).

That means he wants to be a scientist who studies outer space.

Now, David has already started taking college courses (大學課程).

His science teacher says David is an inspirational kid (鼓舞人心的孩子)!

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印尼小吃攤慶祝齋戒月

Indonesia's Snack Stalls Celebrate Ramadan

This month is an important time for Muslims (穆斯林，回教徒) around the world.

It's called Ramadan (齋月).

For every day of this holy month, Muslims don't eat any food from sun-up to sun-down.

穆斯林從日出到日落不吃任何食物。

But when the sun sets in the evening, everyone celebrates with delicious food.

In Indonesia (印尼), people like to celebrate by eating special snacks (小吃) called "takjil".

They can buy takjil from street vendors (小吃攤販).

During the COVID pandemic (瘟疫), people stayed inside, and the street vendors could not sell many snacks.

It was a hard time for street vendors!

This year, the pandemic is not as serious.

今年疫情沒那麼嚴重。

Lots of Indonesians are out on the street, and the street vendors are busy again.

For example, Naila and her cousin Dava work at their family's business.

They sell "takjil".

Like other Muslims in Indonesia, they don't eat for the whole day.

But, they are not resting! Naila and Dava are busy cooking.

They're getting ready to serve hungry customers (肚子餓的顧客) when the sun goes down.

Today, they are selling chocolate-covered bananas (巧克力香蕉).

Why is this kind of takjil so popular?

Naila says that when people have eaten nothing all day, they really want something sweet to eat.

Now the pandemic years are over, and people across Indonesia are happy to celebrate Ramadan with some tasty street food!

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So, in today's News Bites…

Chiayi County Government is holding a new kind of class.

This class will teach people how to catch the big green lizards called iguanas.

Recently, there have been too many iguanas in the south of Taiwan.

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And,

A nine-year-old boy has graduated from high school in Philadelphia.

The boy is named David, and he loves science and computers.

David is one of the youngest people to ever graduate from high school.

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And,

Muslims are celebrating the holy month of Ramadan.

In Indonesia, they celebrate with evening snacks called "takjil".

This year, the pandemic is less serious, which means street vendors can sell lots of delicious takjil snacks.

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That's all for today's episode of News Bites!