Taitung, Taiwan

I find myself back in Taitung - on the East coast of Taiwan - for the first time since August, 2009.

It's winter here, of course. But that means it's only marginally cooler than Cape Town in the summer. The locals think it's cold, though. Ergo, beach to ourselves. What's really astounding is the amount of driftwood - perhaps, the term doesn't quite cover it - still on the beach after Typhoon Morakot. And huge amounts have already been removed.

And this is the infamous hotel/timeshare facility that was apparently constructed illegally on a public beach. (In addition, the beach was closed to local residents.) After much protesting construction was halted and now here it stands...

How did this construction get this far? Some kind of skulduggery, methinks. Somebody better do something about it soon, too. Right now it's only good for filming low budget supernatural thrillers or Urban COIN training.