It's hard to believe I'm only 2km away from mainland China, yet I am in Taiwan. And this place feels very different. It is very charming in an old school sort of way. It is neither developed nor undeveloped. Not much tackiness to speak of. The only hint of globalization is the 7-11 stores found commonly throughout the island, but even those seem to fit well with the atmosphere. Blue skies, hardly any traffic, few buildings taller than 3 stories, and clean. Even poorer people don't look as miserable.
I arrived here via a large ferry boat, took a bus to the closest town and found it as I said earlier: charming. I got a bike and took off toward the beach and when I got there, not a soul was around. Just an abandoned tank and military gunning post. Indeed this island was the site of many a ferocious battle between Communists and Nationalists back in the day. Now it is a Taiwanese military island with high-security bases all over and warnings of landmines. Still, it is very peaceful. The beach was clean and the waters warm, so I went for a good swim in the ocean and continued along on my bike journey through deserted roads. Other than that, the story has been stopping off for food and the like and discovering that people here are very friendly. All in all, I very much like this place...
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