Kueishan/Turtle Island

Kueishan Island，known as Turtle Island, is an isolated volcanic islet on the Pacific Ocean, beside Toucheng, a town in I-lan. It is named for its strong resemblance to a sea turtle when viewed from a certain angle. Moreover,it could represent different things if you look at it from different angles. In my childhood, my brother and I once even had a dispute over whether it looked like a shoe or a ship, looking at KueishanIsland through the train window.

The distance between it and Taiwan makes swimming there a“mission impossible.”Therefore，the most proper way to land on Kueishan Island is to board a boat. During the sail, the boat is likely to be surrounded by a shoal of mischievous dolphins bounding up and down with vitality. With greeting and accompany by these cute animals，laughter burst out between blue sea and sky，creating a joyful atmosphere.

As an active volcano, Kueishan Island produces sulfur and hot springs. Interestingly, in order to survive, crabs living around the coast of the island have evolved to be able to tolerate hot water. The crabs are not the only special thing here. In the blooming season, visitors may see something spectacular when they take a walk in the island－tens of thousands of white lilies swaying gently in the wind with elegant fragrance.

I saw a rainbow hanging over Kueishan Island，and was deeply impressed and touched. In Chinese legends，rainbow is often a representation of a bridge up to Heaven. When it comes to legends, there is also a romantic story about Kueishan Island：Once upon the time，the Dragon King Of East Coast had a beautiful beloved daughter named princess Kavalan（噶瑪蘭）and a right-hand assistant called general Turtle. One day，they fell in love with each other and even made engagement without the king’s permission. However，they failed to keep the love affair a secret.Learning this news，the king felt betrayed and flew into a rage. As a consequence，the lovers got severely punished. General Turtle was changed into a rock on the sea. Therefore, the heartbroken princess Kavalan changed herself into a plain. They could never meet together but only gaze each other through the sea.

To people who live in I-lan，Kueishan Island has its importance in local culture. In the old days which television had not been invented，Kueishan Island played a big role on weather forecast. According to what my grandfather said，they usually made a judgement that there might be a typhoon coming soon when observing dark clouds intensively gathering above it . For a long time, I-lan has been a county that suffers from population decrease. Residents here often have no choice but leave their hometown in search of opportunities for jobs. Kueishan Island can be viewed in most of the places in I-lan，especially on a train. That is，Seeing Turtle Island means “here we are home！” On the contrary, if it is out of sight,people certainly know that themselves had already left . This is what makes Kueisha nIsland so special. “Kueishan” is much more than just a name of a place; it’s brings up the nostalgic feeling in people away from their hometown.That is why I determine to choose the topic for making an introduction.