almost an island paradise

After a work-filled semester and summer, it looked I was finally going to get a break - relaxing on the beach, admiring the stars while bathing in hot springs, snorkeling, scootering and hiking around Green Island, a local popular vacation destination. Unfortunately, Typhoon Sepat brewing in the Pacific off the coast of the Philippines had other plans. After carefully watching the weather report for a few days (since typhoons often switch courses unexpectedly), my friends Andrew, Nick and I were forced to face the reality that Typhoon Sepat (category 4) was indeed heading for the eastern coast of Taiwan. So, our island paradise getaway got shortened to just over 24 hours in the idyllic environs of Hualien, where Andrew lives (and near where the eye of the storm is currently predicted to hit). We had fun tooling around the coastline for a couple of days. Day one took us south of Hualien to Cow Mountain, where Andrew and I dipped our feet in the Pacific. Nick kept a good distance from the water, what with this being ghost month and all. (Taiwanese believe that ghosts roam the earth during this time, the spirits lingering in water, lying in wait to pull unsuspecting swimmers under.) The beach was part of an aboriginal tourist attraction which also boasted unique and odd wood carvings boasting exaggerated gentilia - think large phalluses and hanging breasts, so it seemed only appropriate that our visit included witnessing two dogs going at it. Although I don't know if getting stuck from doing it factored into the aboriginal sense of sensuality, but that proved to be the case for these two unfortunate canines.

Day two took us up to Qi Xing beach, just north of Hualien, on a pristine, sunny summer day. Despite all the talk about the typhoon, it was hard to believe that such a colossal storm lay it wait off the coast judging from the pure azure skies. The waves, however, did provide some indication as we could see them growing bigger and the ocean growing rougher as the afternoon progressed, not that you can tell from the picture, though.
Come evening time, though, it was time for Nick and I to retreat back to Taipei and to leave Andrew to face the full effects of the typhoon on his own. So much for our special island paradise getaway.