For our first trip out of town we thought me might head to the big beach tourist destination.
Kenting is a National Park established by the Japanese during their fifty year occupation of the island in the first half of the twentieth century.
There is a forest attached to, what was, some amazing beaches.
We only got as far as the main beach, just to get the vibe.
The Chinese are not a great ocean going people.
Swimming usually involves rolling up the trouser legs.
If you go in past your knees the life guard comes out and tells you to come in.
The same protector of the beach then flicks a ciggie butt onto the sand...
The main street is awash with beach fashions, none of which seem to make it to the beach.
Later in the evening we strolled out of our (quiet expensive) room to find ourselves trapped in a sea of market stalls - indulging the local passion for consumption.
Next time we will be sure to head further into the Park.
2 comments:
you keep saying CHINESE CHINESE CHINESE for Taiwan people, they are NOT CHINESE , this is Taiwan, the people are called TAIWANESE....are you still called English? No, stop calling the Taiwanese people CHINESE...they are NOT CHINESE...They are CHINESE, just as you as not Brit anymore but Australian....go it? TAIWANESE is the correct word, sir. wake up and smell the cho dofu!
Thank you for your response to my blog. You seem quite agitated in your comments and I would like to start my assuring you that my choice of words was not intended to offend.
I see your point regarding the terminology of Chinese versus Taiwanese and it has been a conscious decision to use the term Chinese.
There are a couple of points supporting this decision:
1. When I arrived in the country, they put a stamp in my passport saying "Republic of China"
2. "The Republic of China (ROC), now only constituting the island of Taiwan and a few smaller islands, is currently recognized by 24 states, including the Holy See of Vatican City. Therefore the course of the foreign relations of the Republic of China is dominated by maintaining ties with these countries, as well as diplomatic relations with other countries via its de-facto embassies and consulates. The political status of Taiwan is still being debated."
From: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foreign_relations_of_the_Republic_of_China
According to The United Nations, as well as 169 other countries around the world - "The Republic of China" is a rouge province of China. Who am I to disagree with them?
Not that I am trying to demean Taiwan's efforts towards sovereignty. In my opinion Taiwan should have declared it's independence a long time ago. Maybe you could shed some light on why this has not happened?
3. According to the CIA World Fact Book, the ethnic groups of Taiwan include: "Taiwanese (including Hakka) 84%, mainland Chinese 14%, indigenous 2%"
From: https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/tw.html
Of the Taiwanese:
"The composite category of "Taiwanese people" is often reputed by many Taiwanese to include a significant population of at least four constituent ethnic groups: the Hoklo (70%), the Hakka (15%), Mainlander (13%), and Taiwanese aborigines (2%) (Copper 2003:12-13);(Hsiao 2004:105)."
Of Hoklo:
"As a branch of Han Chinese, Hoklo commonly refers to those Taiwanese people who claim ancestry from the southern part of Fujian province of China."
From:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoklo_people
The majority of the population of the island therefore, is from China - thus Chinese.
From my point of view the only people who could rightly call themselves Taiwanese are the aboriginal people who are the only rightful custodians of the land. They however, may not wish to identify as Taiwanese. I’m not sure – maybe you can tell us?
4. Taiwanese culturally identify with Chinese customs; in terms of religion and belief structures. Happy Mid-Autumn Moon Festival, by the way.
5. The Taiwanese language is best described as a dialect of Mainland Chinese.
"Taiwanese is a variant of Amoy Min Nan. It is often seen as a Chinese dialect within a larger Chinese language. On the other hand, it may also be seen as a language in the Sino-Tibetan family. As with most "language/dialect" distinctions, how one describes Taiwanese depends largely on one's political views..."
From: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taiwanese_language#Classification
In addition, Taiwan chose to adopt the written form of Traditional Chinese instead of changing to Simplified Chinese with the rest of China.
For these reasons, I choose to use the word Chinese instead of Taiwanese.
Whether you wish to identify yourself as either or both makes no difference to me and would support you in your decision.
According to on of my friends from Taiwan she says:
"I'm not all that proud to call myself Taiwanese. Why should I throw away 6 000 years of the most civilised culture on earth for a history of only fifty years?"
This aspect of national identity is one that must be addressed by the people and government of Taiwan over the coming generations.
I would also support you in your efforts towards sovereignty and membership of the United Nations, however, this support would come from far away, as I don't want to be here when China invades. How was your National Service?
Finally, to clarify your comments regarding my nationality - I am a British citizen and passport holder. I also hold valid citizenship and passports for Australia and Ireland.
Just as Taiwan is going through its struggle for national identity, so too did Australia, which only became a country in 1900.
Even until the 1950's, second and third generation Australians referred to England as "home", even though they had never been there.
Unlike Taiwan, which has only four major ethno-cultural groups, Australia is a multicultural society. This means that many people from diverse backgrounds retain their own cultural identity yet live in harmony with each other.
That is the theory, but it doesn't always work out like that.
In my neighbourhood growing up there were: Egyptians next door, Korean on the other side, English behind us, Greeks next to them and Slavs over the road. All these people identify as Australian but would retain their own cultural customs.
When I'm pressed for my nationality I just say I'm Australian, because it's easier. However, I identify as Irish Australian (I keep the English bit quiet) as Australia is where I was born and raised but my cultural background is Irish.
All of this is a moot point however. My personal belief is that Nationalism is a blight on the human race. The sooner we get over this identity based on imaginary lines on the ground the sooner we will evolve - as you may have noticed from my post: "Parting Thoughts..."
From: http://theozodyssey.blogspot.com/
My personal opinion is the only people who can rightfully call themselves “Australian” are the aboriginal people, from whom the land was stolen. Many Aboriginals however, prefer to give their national identity as being one of the 600 nations that were around before European invasion.
So dear sir, I hope my response to your comments assures you that I am fully "awake" and would be more than willing to continue this dialogue - hopefully in the ethos of enlightened discussion rather than YELLING AT PEOPLE.
Till then, thanks again for your comments. I'm glad that someone is reading this.
All the best,
Aluishus
References:
Copper, John (2003). Taiwan: Nation State or Province? (Fourth Edition). Boulder, CO: Westview press
Hsiao, A-Chin (2004). Contemporary Taiwanese Cultural Nationalism. London: Routledge Press.
PS: You can keep the stinky tofu.
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