At Yeliou, at 26
I found some old photographs the other day that were totally new to me, of a natural rock formation that I don't remember ever visiting. This is very odd, because I'm usually extremely attentive of rocks and exceptional geological features in general, so I'm really quite amazed that I have no recollection whatsoever of having seen these sights in person before.
The place is Yeliou, on the north coast of Taiwan, and it's October, 1981.
Here's a dragon's head:
A "nipple" in stone, and neighbors:
But what was especially surprising to me is that among these unknown images, I found what I've quickly come to regard as THE best picture taken of me in all my young adult years. Photos from my mid-20s are extremely rare; less than two dozen exist that I know of. Anyway, this is Yours Truly, in the Republic of China on a business trip with my father, having just turned 26 the month before...
I've been trying to figure out what I've got in my shirt pocket there, and I think it's a slim pack of smokes that I bought in Hong Kong. I was a regular tobacco user in those days. *shrugs* It was a cheap and legal buzz; that's pretty much the reason I smoked. That and to cover the smell of the pot I was still toking by the pound back then. ;-) And I'm wearing that same watch today! (I got it in Hong Kong on a past business trip in '79.)
I think the reason I can't remember any of this is that I was totally preoccupied with my erratic heart during that trip. My heartbeat had always been a little irregular, but now I was experiencing some truly frightening arrhythmias that just went on and on and on. My heart was so off-kilter, I didn't understand why I wasn't already dead...
And finally, here I am with my host, Tu Ruey Kun, next to the most well-known attraction at Yeliou: the Queen's Head.
The place is Yeliou, on the north coast of Taiwan, and it's October, 1981.
Here's a dragon's head:
A "nipple" in stone, and neighbors:
But what was especially surprising to me is that among these unknown images, I found what I've quickly come to regard as THE best picture taken of me in all my young adult years. Photos from my mid-20s are extremely rare; less than two dozen exist that I know of. Anyway, this is Yours Truly, in the Republic of China on a business trip with my father, having just turned 26 the month before...
I've been trying to figure out what I've got in my shirt pocket there, and I think it's a slim pack of smokes that I bought in Hong Kong. I was a regular tobacco user in those days. *shrugs* It was a cheap and legal buzz; that's pretty much the reason I smoked. That and to cover the smell of the pot I was still toking by the pound back then. ;-) And I'm wearing that same watch today! (I got it in Hong Kong on a past business trip in '79.)
I think the reason I can't remember any of this is that I was totally preoccupied with my erratic heart during that trip. My heartbeat had always been a little irregular, but now I was experiencing some truly frightening arrhythmias that just went on and on and on. My heart was so off-kilter, I didn't understand why I wasn't already dead...
And finally, here I am with my host, Tu Ruey Kun, next to the most well-known attraction at Yeliou: the Queen's Head.