00:00Every spring, hundreds of thousands of people, record numbers, year after year, fill roads
00:05in central Taiwan.
00:06Joining one of two great processions celebrating the sea goddess, Matsu.
00:16Along the way, many will sleep rough in temples or by the road.
00:20It's a hard journey, but one that technology is making easier.
00:24We just got into Changhua HSR station, and the plan is to find a cab and go and find
00:30the sea goddess, Matsu.
00:32Now for much of a pilgrimage's history, this would have been quite a challenge.
00:36And that's because Matsu's route is not set and is in fact determined by divination.
00:41What that means is during the middle days at a pilgrimage, it used to be that you'd have
00:44to call a friend or ask around to find out where she was.
00:47But not anymore.
00:49Because of this app, there she is.
00:55Over the last decade, the Baishatan Matsu Tracker has changed how people go about this 160-year-old
01:00multi-day trek.
01:02With it, once you get to the right area, you can find Matsu by asking the pilgrims in their
01:07bright orange hats.
01:08I think it's very good, because we can follow where Matsu is going to go.
01:12And then we can stand by.
01:14We can stay here.
01:16We can stay here, we can stay here.
01:17We can stay here.
01:18Sometimes they cannot stay, sometimes they are going to be on the water.
01:20So we would be easier to find them and learn how Matsu is going to stay here and where
01:25to stay.
01:26At the same time, in 107 years, we can't be left.
01:30You can't be left.
01:31You can be left.
01:32You'll never be left.
01:34That's when you are left.
01:36You'll be right.
01:36You'll be right.
01:39Still, word of mouth remains important.
01:42These pilgrims say Mazu and her retinue
01:43were resting in a factory several kilometers north.
01:47So after using the app and a bit of driving,
01:49we found Mazu.
01:51And while the technology did make things easier,
01:53people here say it's devotion to the sea goddess
01:56that's driving record numbers.
01:58After all, Taiwan is an archipelago,
02:01and Mazu, a goddess that protects seafarers,
02:03is among its most revered deities.
02:05Why there will be more people?
02:08I think it's Mazu's魅力.
02:13Mazu's魅力, I think it's really
02:16to be able to walk alone and walk alone.
02:18Mazu will protect our whole family.
02:20And my work has been successful.
02:23Every year, every year has been successful.
02:26And the children,
02:28in their work, are very successful.
02:31450,000 people registered for this year's pilgrimage,
02:34and the GPS tracking app has become a key tool for many of them.
02:39But while tech may be helping guide pilgrims,
02:41the day-to-day experience still revolves around conversations
02:44with kind strangers, a strong sense of community,
02:47and deep devotion.
02:49Ryan Wu, Peachy Zhang, and Bryn Thomas for Taiwan Plus.
02:53The U.S.
02:54Let's go.
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