Taiwan is a tropical island of 24 million people. It is surrounded by large bodies of water and has many mountain peaks, forests, and beaches. During colonization, the Dutch and Japanese exported many prized Taiwanese resources, including cypress trees and canned pineapples.
The geography of Taiwan is very mountainous and rocky. Around two-thirds of Taiwan consists of rugged mountain terrain. Jade Mountain, or Yu Shan is Taiwan's highest mountain peak, which stands at 12,966 feet, or 3952 meters above sea level. Taiwan sits on a volcanically active part of the world, known as the Rim of Fire, so earthquakes occur frequently. Typhoons, or "great winds" which are basically storms with heavy wind and rain are common between the months of July to October.
The rainy and humid climate in Taiwan makes it suitable for growing many types of vegetables and fruits, here. In fact, Taiwan is known as the "king of fruits." Some of my favorites include mangoes, pineapples, lychees, guava, wax apples and dragonfruits! Since fruits are so abundant and locally grown, here, prices are very cheap. For example, a medium-sized pinapple only costs 50NT, or roughly $1.5 USD. That is one reason you can find me eating fruits all day!
