Qimei
Language: English
Part of speech: name
Etymology: From the Hanyu Pinyin romanization of the Mandarin 七美 (Qīměi).
Senses: examples: text: My next trip, by private fishing boat, was to the island of Qimei, some 25 miles from Magong harbor. My companions on the trip out included a pig, a goat, several chickens, and a wide assortment of foods, household articles, and building supplies. This was because almost everything used in the outer islands has to be shipped in from Magong and Taiwan. Qimei, which means literally "Seven Beauties," is the southernmost island of the Pescadores. Two miles long by 2 miles wides^([sic – meaning wide]), it has a population of about 5,500 people living in its six villages. A few days before I arrived there, a refugee boat from mainland China had landed on Qimei. In such cases, the government usually gives the people a propaganda tour of Taiwan and, if they decide to stay, settles them in Magong or Taipei.
ref: 1979 July, Cornelius C. Kubler, “Life in the Pescadores”, in The Asia Mail, page 12, column 4:
text: Debuting on Friday last week across the nation, the Penghu County Government hopes the movie All You Need is Love (落跑吧愛情), with 98 percent of the film shot in the county, taking in the scenery of Qimei Island (七美), fishing villages and the required romance movie scene — sunset on a beach — can kickstart a dismal tourism season.
ref: 2015 September 9, Liu Yu-ching, Jake Chung, “Penghu hopes movie will kickstart tourism season”, in Taipei Times, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 28 Sep 2015, Taiwan News, page 3:
text: The majority of tourists, particularly those who visit during the peak summer months of July and August, reach Qimei by boat. Typically they arrive on pleasure craft that sail from Magong around 9 o’clock in the morning, stopping first at Wangan Island.
These ferry excursions are such a finely developed tourist institution that it is usually possible to buy tickets that include the use of a Vespa-type scooter on both Wangan and Qimei, or if you would rather not trouble yourself with matters of parking and navigation, you can purchase tickets that include bus tours around both islands. Those weighing the former option should know there is hardly any traffic on Qimei, the roads are well maintained, and getting lost is pretty difficult.
The tours allow visitors around two hours to explore Wangan and a similar amount of time on Qimei, and are back in Magong for dinner.
ref: 2018 July 3, “Sailing to Taiwan’s Island of Seven Beauties”, in American Chamber of Commerce in Taipei, archived from the original on 01 Oct 2020:
text: The meet, which runs until Thursday evening (April 29), was co-organized by eight elementary and middle schools on the two tiny islands of Wang-an and Qimei.[…]
Ou Der-shiaw (歐德孝), principal of Qimei's Shuanghu Elementary School, billed the event as a major celebration for the two islands.[…]
Meanwhile, the Penghu Public Transport Management Office said it had arranged a number of ferries to carry people from Wang-an to the venue on Qimei during the two-day period.
ref: 2021 April 29, “Rural schools on Taiwan's Penghu Islands hold rare sports meet”, in Taiwan News, archived from the original on 14 May 2021, Sports & Entertainment:
glosses: Alternative form of Cimei (island)