The abandoned UFO village in Wanli undoubtedly is one of the most fascinating places to visit in Taiwan. But how did the UFOs get there?
1/500s; 18mm; f/5.6; ISO 100The UFOs were not brought to Wanli by a bunch of outer-space aliens, but by a successful Taiwanese entrepreneur: Mr. Su Ming had the genius idea of producing soft drinks for American military forces stationed in Taiwan. For some reason, Westerners are seen as some kind of role model in large parts of Asia - in Taiwan, most of the models used in advertising are Caucasian. Seeing the Americans drinking Su Ming's soft drink, it quickly became a hit with the local population and Su Ming quite wealthy as a result.
1/2500s; 23mm; f/2.8; ISO 100Subsequently, Su Ming invested in various businesses, and then he had the idea to establish a beach resort in Wanli. Back then, the coast was off-limits to the local people since the Taiwanese government was still fearing being attacked by China, but Su Ming's government contacts enabled him to gain permission to open a beach resort in Wanli, so in the 1980s construction started. His approach was the same as for his soft drinks: If the Americans would love his beach resort, so would the locals, he hoped.
1/1000s; 11mm; f/4.8; ISO 100
1/400s; 16mm; f/5.3; ISO 100Su Ming had huge plans for Wanli and planned to build several large hotels and holiday homes. You might remember from the last post that the production of Futuro homes was discontinued in the 1970s already - well, Su Ming loved the futuristic design of the homes and it is not quite clear if he bought up the remainder of Futuros cheaply somewhere or if Wanli's Futuro homes are unauthorised copies.
1/320s; 20mm; f/4.5; ISO 100In the third and last part I will tell you the fate of Su Ming's beach resort and how to get to Wanli to see the UFO village for yourself.
1/400s; 10mm; f/7.1; ISO 100Main information source: https://www.goteamjosh.com/blog/wanufo