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Taiwan is a country in limbo- caught between the old and the new, the completely traditional and the frenetically modern. A country with some of the most breathtakingly beautiful mountain panoramas in the world, Taiwan is also a country whose nightlife is loud and brash enough to appeal to hardcore enthusiasts. Part of China - and yet not, Taiwan, undoubtedly is an interesting place to visit - very Chinese in some ways yet with an individuality all its own.

Taipei 101 is the tallest building in the world. Standing tall at 518 mts, the lift takes a mere 39 seconds to reach the 89th floor which is the observatory. Snake Alley in Taipei is a very interesting street and a very well known one at that. If you are brave and adventurous enough to want to sample some snake dishes this is the place to come to - snake meat, snake soup and snake blood! Snake blood is considered a delicacy in Taiwan and served with liquor. Not for the faint hearted!

Historically Speaking

When the Chinese first arrived in the 1400s, the island of Taiwan was already occupied by immigrants from the Pacific Islands The next century saw the Europeans make landfall. The Portuguese came in 1517 and named it Ilha Formosa (`Beautiful Island’), then came the Dutch, followed by the Spanish. By the 1660s, the Chinese put in a re-appearance- they ousted the Dutch who controlled the island at the time and took control of Formosa. In 1895, the Japanese invaded Formosa but could only hold on to it till the end of the World War II, when it was ceded to China. The communist revolution in China caused major political upheavals- General Chaing Kai-Shek and his `Kuomintang’ supporters fled to Formosa, along with a sizeable chunk of the Chinese population. Since then, even though half a century has elapsed, Taiwan’s status remains rather uncertain- separate from China, yet not quite independent of it. China still claims Taiwan as part of its territories and does not recognize it as a sovereign nation nor will it allow any country to do so without demur, meantime Taiwan stubbornly proclaims that it’s an independent country. To

confuse matters even more, voices on both sides urge re-unification between the two countries.

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Habitat

The 78 islands that make up Taiwan lie in the Pacific Ocean about 160 km offshore from the south- eastern coast of the Chinese mainland, including Penghu (formerly the Pescadores), Liuchiu, Green, Wuchiu etc are part of Taiwan. The main island of Taiwan is located approximately between Korea and Japan to the north and Hong Kong and the Philippines to the south. The island is shaped roughly like a broad leaf, with a mountain range bisecting it from north to south. Most of the island is mountainous and covered with forests – the central mountain ranges cover almost 75% of the entire landmass; Yu Shan or the Jade Mountain at 3950m is the country’s highest point; the rest of Taiwan is made up of alluvial plains on the coastal strip, lowlands and foothills. Flora & Fauna Much of Taiwan, especially its alpine areas, is thickly forested, and the predominant vegetation is cypress and camphor. These forests are home to quite a large number of species, including some rare endemic ones like the Formosa landlocked salmon, the Formosa Sika deer and the Formosan black bear. Many of these, over the years, have fallen prey to Taiwan’s

industrialisation and urbanisation. Recently, however, the country seems to have woken to the fact that its environment is in a bad shape; pretty strict environmental laws have been enforced, and 67 reserves (including 6 national parks) have been created.

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