Taiwan 2024 - Northeast Coast, Beach Lookout Tower

Our daughter and soon-to-be son-in-law both love the beach, so we built some time in at one up on the northeast coast of the island.  What passes for a beach in Taiwan is very different from what we think of in most other parts of the world, however.  Generally they are not places where you can freely swim or grab a board and surf; they are usually rocky and pretty dangerous.  But it was nice for them to be able to actually be at a beach where there is (that day very strong) wind in your face with a view of lapping waves against the rocks.  The building above was evidently built to do just that - provide a good view of the ocean and surf.

Taiwan 2024 - Northeast Coast, Pastel Housing

Probably a bookmark somewhere in this pic, which was snapped looking out of our hotel window.  Original below:

Taiwan 2024 - Northeast Coast, Rice Paddy Heron

Driving through the rural roads, both between and within the small towns along the East Coast, we saw scenes like this many times - a heron or other wading bird walking slowly through the rice patties in search of food.  Finally got the chance to snap one that I had in mind.

Much wider composition of same photo below:

Taiwan 2024 - Northeast Coast, Stardream Statue

When I saw this thing I could hardly believe my eyes - indeed, I was shocked.  What is it...a bench, an art installation, a slam on America?  Still don't know what to make of it, but it sure grabs your attention.  Wish I knew its origins and purpose.

Taiwan 2024 - Northeast Coast, Stardream Zoo Animals

Animals - yes, this is a zoo so there are animals.  These are a few that caught our eye for one reason or another.  Since the sun was shining bright overhead it was hard to get decent shots but here they are:

Below is the only halfway-decent shot of the animal that most fascinated our daughter Allison - the capybaras.  These giant rodents were wondering freely amongst the zoo goers, and would approach for a handout just like deer or a dog.  We concluded that they might even make decent pets.

Taiwan 2024 - Northeast Coast, Stardream Zoo Greeting Piece

Debated about this one since the sunshine made it uneven right-to-left, but the colors were there so decided to keep it for the blog.  This was what greeted visitors upon entering the main part of the "zoo", which underscores that fact that the place was designed for small kids.

Yet the concept of "kids" is a little different in Taiwan.  While American grownups our age would balk at patronizing such a place (unless they had small kids), this kind of venue is equally enjoyed by Taiwanese "kids" up to age 30 or so.  Indeed, in that country a person is still considered a kid if not married no matter how old they are.  And "kids" of even that age continue to live with their parents.  By contrast, the typical American leaves the nest as soon as practically possible to seek independence, and leaves this kind of stuff far behind once in his or her teen years.  I, for one, was forced to make very adult decisions at that age and never looked back as of my first day of college.