TAIWAN: Two women are riding on the wave of the planking phenomenon by promoting various tourist spots

Record ID: 343424

  • Title: TAIWAN: Two women are riding on the wave of the planking phenomenon by promoting various tourist spots
  • Date: 27th May 2011
  • Summary: PHOTO OF KARREN PLANKING ON LAPTOP SCREEN JINYU LOOKING LAPTOP SCREEN VARIOUS OF FACEBOOK PROFILE SHOWING 3000 FRIEND REQUESTS
  • Embargoed: 11th June 2011 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Taiwan, Province of China
  • Country: Taiwan
  • Topics: Quirky,Light / Amusing / Unusual / Quirky,Travel / Tourism
  • Reuters ID: LVAEVIWP57GRI1JMPR87HRX1L0RS
  • Story Text: Lying face flat on the ground may not be the world's most glamorous photo pose but two Taiwanese "planking" women have made a name for themselves on the Internet - and hope to use the craze to spread positive social messages.
    Eschewing the dangerous behaviour that killed one man in Australia and left another seriously injured, Karren and Jinyu practice a safer version of the fast-growing global fad that involves lying face down stiff in often bizarre places for a photo op.
    In fact, they use it to promote causes, such as planking in famous tourist spots to promote Taiwan's tourism.
    Jinyu, 28, and Karren, 25, have been dubbed as the "Face Down on the Streets Girls" and their pictures peaked the interest of hundreds of thousands of netizens who follow them on social network sites, where they post most of their photos.
    Karren said they found planking a meaningful way to promote Taiwanese culture and tourism.
    "In the beginning it was only for fun, but we realized that we can give meaning to the photos, then we thought about introducing our homeland Taiwan, because this is where we grow up and we feel emotionally attached to it. If people from other parts of the world can learn more about Taiwan through these photos, then our photos become very meaningful," she said.
    Jingyu said she was surprised by the amount of attention they got.
    "Actually I was very surprised about the reaction to our pictures on the internet, because I thought that many people would have had seen similar pictures before. I also wonder how so many people are interested in those pictures, in the end they are just pictures. But when I thought about it a little more, I discovered that this could be a good opportunity to express some of the things that matter to us, for example the places and culture of Taiwan," she said.
    However, some people, like 23-year-old Hong Kong tourist Grace Wong, found the activity to be potentially hazardous.
    "When they are planking, they can't see their surroundings, they are not focused on it. So maybe it is dangerous," she said.
    While planking on the streets, the two received curious looks and some passers-by even recognized them and asked to take photos with them.
    Twenty-four-year-old student Chi-Yang Chang said he found the phenomenon interesting.
    "Usually in photos, you wouldn't get people lying face down on the streets. But just because of this special position, many people are attracted to the photo and want to know what is going on in the photo," he said.
    Jingyu and Karren's planking photos have garnered them a huge internet following, with Jingyu receiving about 3000 friend requests on Facebook.
    The internet phenomenon of "planking" has its origins in Australia where high school students first engaged in the past time of lying flat on the floor with their faces down known as the "Lying Down Game".
    This slowly turned into an activity with many participants all over the world, especially gaining pace with the creation of related groups on social network sites.
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