About three to five typhoons will hit Taiwan each year, especially on the East and North sides of the island. Can you guess why the East side is more vulnerable to typhoons?
Luckily, I live on the West side of the island. There is a big mountain range in the middle of Taiwan that largely protects the West side from getting the worst of the storms. Typhoons bring serious wind and rain, which can trigger flash floods and landslides. My city has already flooded once since I was here, and that wasn't even from a typhoon. A lot of people here drive motorcycles, which is very dangerous in heavy wind or rain. So, a typhoon will often close down schools and businesses for a day.
Even though I am on the West side and more protected from typhoons, I was planning on going to the South of Taiwan for a beach vacation this weekend! The typhoon will surely impact my plans of sitting on a sunny beach and snorkeling because they make the water very rough.
