July 4th

Happy Birthday, America.

I know. I am a little bit late.

Celebrating a national holiday like the Fourth of July in another country can feel a little odd. 

Strange in the fact that no one else is celebrating. It's just another work day for them.

No parades. No family reunions. No Red, White, and Boom.

We celebrated by visiting this awesome beach.

The beach itself was government property. The land leading up to the beach, however, was privately owned. In this case, the owner was a retired Taiwanese businessman. So what does one to do when owning a terrific piece of land, with more than enough funds to improve the property, but the land is zoned agriculture?

You build a golf course, of course!

Not a full size golf course, just three holes, right on the edge of a cliff overlooking the Pacific Ocean with an in ground swimming pool. All that was needed, but will probably never happen, was a gorgeous beach side home.

 It was great getting to meet Fong Ge. When we arrived, he was already out on his sailboat, receiving his second sailing lesson from Chris Gant, our host. While this may not seem odd, let me add that he is 70 years old and never learned how to swim!

Before beginning his lesson, he unloaded his jet ski onto the beach.

For the next couple  hours, while Carl and I watched from shore, the kids took turns riding the jet ski.

The view behind us was just as beautiful as the ocean view.

This grove of palm trees is where our van was parked. Both Carl and I agreed it would be the perfect spot for a small retirement home.

It was here we performed the obligatory July 4th picnic.

While not the typical American celebration, it was beautiful and relaxing.