The Wild East Magazine

Orchid Island’s rocky history, Part 3/4

May 31, 2012October 4, 2026Trista di Genovaaboriginal cultures in Taiwan, aboriginal history, Austronesian language and cultures, Badaiwan Diving in Hengtou, cheap travel tour package deals, flying fox (Taiwanese fruit bat) or birdwing butterflies, formosa indigenous peoples, nuclear dumping on Orchid Island, Orchid Island Lanyu 蘭嶼, outdoor adventures, Scops owl, snorkeling and diving, Taipower, Taiwan eco-tourism, Taiwan travel, Tao tribe Yami 達悟族

Traditional boats on the beach of Hengtou. Photo: Trista di Genova Part One here; and Part 2 If the Tao people of Taiwan’s Orchid Island can overcome some modern-day challenges while celebrating and sharing their rich heritage, the future looks bright for this amazing but remote haven Check out this link at Travel & Culture…

Orchid Island’s rocky history, Part 2/4

Beautiful Island History

May 29, 2012October 4, 2026Trista di Genovaaboriginal cultures in Taiwan, Austronesian creation myths, formosa indigenous peoples, King of the Flying Fish, Orchid Island Lanyu 蘭嶼, Tao boatmaking skills, teknonymy

Boat symbolism: Traditionally, boats like these were painted using crushed giant clamshells, kono for white, ashes for black, and red clay for crimson (Hengtou Village’s name ‘Red Head’ comes from the red-topped mountain nearby, a clay source). Until oil-based paint from Taiwan became available in the island’s first Government Store in 1954, these colors would…

Fr. Barry Martinson on his new novel, ‘Ghost Friends’

Expat literature Religion and Spirituality

July 9, 2011October 4, 2026Trista di Genovaaboriginal culture in Taiwan, aboriginal cultures in Taiwan, aboriginal Taiwan, Barry Martinson, expat writers, Hermann Hesse's Steppenwolf, indigenous peoples, writers

Review: Trista di Genova, The Wild East [Edit: Links and images to Bangkok Books no longer works 2015/1/15] This deeply metaphysical adventure picks up where Steppenwolf leaves off, reading as if Hermann Hesse himself had spent a few decades of his life as a Jesuit priest in a remote aboriginal mountain village. The scope of…