The Syuanwu (玄武) basalt cliffs in Penghu, a popular tourist destination, was defaced with a message of love written in large simplified Chinese characters on the cliff wall.
The 10-million-year-old rock formation on Penghu’s Siyu Islet (西嶼) draws visitors who climb its stair-like walls, as well as those who enjoy photographing its rock pillars, which are variously upright, horizontal and bent into arches with colors from gray and black to yellow and brown.
The cliff is often referred to as the Syuanwu Shower Cliff (玄武岩瀑) due to the rain-like phenomenon that occurs during the abalone breeding season when sea snails squirt water from the tops of the rock pillars.
Photo: Liu Yu-ching, Taipei Times
Netizen Jeff Chen yesterday posted a photograph on Facebook of the message that reads: “Ho Miao, I love you.”
“Before, it was researchers who climbed Syuanwu cliff, and now it’s tourists. Syuanwu is over 10 million years old, how can someone just use it as a place to profess their love?” Chen said on Facebook.
Netizens said they suspect the message was written by a Chinese tourist because it is written in simplified Chinese.
The Penghu National Scenic Area Administration office said that it would investigate the incident in accordance with Article 62 of the Act for the Development of Tourism (發展觀光條例), adding that the maximum fine for defacing a natural scenic site is NT$500,000.
The office said it would clean the rock face, but identifying the vandal would be difficult given the lack of surveillance cameras at the site.
POSITIVE DEVELOPMENT: Japan and the US are expected to hold in-depth discussions on Taiwan-related issues during the meeting next month, Japanese sources said The holding of a Japan-US leaders’ meeting ahead of US President Donald Trump’s visit to China is positive news for Taiwan, former Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association representative Hiroyasu Izumi said yesterday. After the Liberal Democratic Party’s landslide victory in Japan’s House of Representatives election, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is scheduled to visit the US next month, where she is to meet with Trump ahead of the US president’s planned visit to China from March 31 to April 2 for a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平). Japan and the US are expected to hold in-depth discussions on Taiwan-related issues during the
‘LIKE-MINDED PARTNER’: Tako van Popta said it would be inappropriate to delay signing the deal with Taiwan because of China, adding he would promote the issue Canadian senators have stressed Taiwan’s importance for international trade and expressed enthusiasm for ensuring the Taiwan-Canada trade cooperation framework agreement is implemented this year. Representative to Canada Harry Tseng (曾厚仁) in an interview with the Central News Agency (CNA) said he was increasingly uneasy about Ottawa’s delays in signing the agreement, especially as Ottawa has warmed toward Beijing. There are “no negotiations left. Not only [is it] initialed, we have three versions of the text ready: English, French and Mandarin,” Tseng said. “That tells you how close we are to the final signature.” Tseng said that he hoped Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney
President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday bestowed one of Taiwan’s highest honors on Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) Ambassador Andrea Clare Bowman in recognition of her contributions to bilateral ties. “By conferring the Order of Brilliant Star with Grand Cordon on Ambassador Bowman today, I want to sincerely thank her, on behalf of the Taiwanese people, for her outstanding contribution to deepening diplomatic ties between Taiwan and SVG,” Lai said at a ceremony held at the Presidential Office in Taipei. He noted that Bowman became SVG’s first ambassador to Taiwan in 2019 and
A man walks past elementary school artworks at the Taipei Lantern Festival in Ximen District yesterday, the first day of the event. The festival is to run from 5pm to 10pm through March 15.
RSS