Kaohsiung faces the strait, and cranes crisscross the mostly blue skies with paint-coated metal bars. Boats, ships, ferries, and the occasional coast guard patrol rip through the waters that have been the site of much staring down between will, fate, and destiny. Since the late seventeen hundreds, many from the eastern seaboard have made the journey across rough seas and dire straits. Some have come from Fujian, yet others from many other places on the long shore and the deep