Taiwan's Islands

Kinmen Island: overcoming 40 years of solitude

There's nothing like decades of martial law to make a community long for the good times. For the residents of Kinmen Island, a frontline in the defence against a communist invasion of Taiwan, those were the days of handsome brick villages, a thickly forested landscape, raucous festivals to protective deities, and tens of kilometres of sandy beaches free of terrifying landmines.

However, recovery had to wait till 1995 - the year the island was turned into a national park - but the islanders have been largely successful in turning back the clock, and even giving it a good polish.