五寮尖

Sanxia Loyal Spirit Monument (三峽忠魂碑)

Over the years I’ve written quite a bit about Taiwan’s period of Japanese rule here on this website. I’ve gone into great detail about some of the remaining Shinto Shrines, Martial Arts Halls, Police Dormitories, Teachers Dormitories, Civic buildings, etc.

I’ve talked a lot about how the Japanese helped to develop and shape Taiwan into the beautiful country that it is today, and how things certainly wouldn’t be the same now if it wasn’t for their influence. Admittedly though, while talking about all of the good things that happened during the half-century of Japanese rule, I’ve glossed over some of the really dark moments of that history.

I’m going to attempt to rectify some of that today with this blog post. 

This post probably isn’t for the faint of heart, but I’ll be introducing a little known destination and a history that not too many people talk about.

To start, I’m going to have to go back in time before the Japanese took control of Taiwan. 

The thing about Taiwanese history over the past four or five centuries is that it is full of would-be colonizers coming here to reap the benefits of this treasure trove of an island. Prior to the arrival of the Japanese, the Dutch, the Spanish and the Chinese all attempted to exert control over the island, but each of these attempts turned out to be short-lived, rather unsuccessful and each time ended badly. After several attempts by those mentioned above, the Japanese arrived and were the first to be able to exert administrative control over the entirety of the island. 

Why is it that up until the arrival of the Japanese that no one could actually control Taiwan? 

Well, the answer is simple - Taiwan was already home to groups of indigenous people and they didn’t take too kindly to all of the colonizers arriving on their shores. 

During the 17th Century, Europeans started arriving in Taiwan and set up small outposts around the island in order to engage in trade with the indigenous people. However, when they attempted to do what the European colonial powers were notorious for, namely subjugating and oppressing the local population, things took a turn for the worse and resulted in violent uprisings that forced the Europeans out. 

Then, when the Qing started taking an interest in Taiwan in the late 17th Century, waves of Chinese settlers started arriving on the island, mostly from provinces in Southern China. Possibly having learned from the mistakes of the Europeans, the Chinese instituted administrative policies that restricted migrants from settling in the mountainous areas, which were mainly settled by the indigenous people. 

Interestingly, immigration at the time was tightly controlled and the settlers who came to Taiwan were predominately male. One of the conditions for coming to Taiwan was that they were not permitted to bring with them a wife or children. The intention was to control the population of settlers in Taiwan, but it was thought that interactions between the Chinese settlers and indigenous people would be easier if they started to inter-marry. 

In truth, inter-marriage allowed for a certain level of protection and better business opportunities for many of the settlers, but like the Europeans before them, people started to bend the rules and infringe upon indigenous lands, which frequently resulted in conflicts.

It wasn’t until the final days of Qing rule over Taiwan that the ban on entering the mountains was lifted, but by then it was already too late as the Chinese were being embarrassed at home in their war with the Japanese. Ultimately, the threat of decapitation wandering too close to indigenous territories was enough to deter many of the early Chinese immigrants from making the same mistakes that the Europeans did. 

You’ll often hear the Chinese government make bold claims like “Taiwan is an inherent part of China’s sovereign territory”. But the problem with these claims is that from 1683 - 1895, the Qing were only able to control pockets of the western coast of the island and like the Europeans before them were powerless to exert total control over the island.

Then the Japanese arrived, and they had no intention on limiting their control over the island in the same way that the Qing did.

They wanted it all. 

In 1871, decades prior to the official start of the colonial era, fifty-four Ryukyuan sailors shipwrecked in southwestern Taiwan and were massacred by the Paiwan (排灣族) in an infamous event referred to as the Mudan Incident (牡丹社事件).

The reaction to this massacre resulted in the Taiwan Expedition (台灣出兵) of 1874, which was the first overseas deployment of the Japanese Imperial Army and Navy. The success of the military expedition, which sought revenge for the massacred Ryukyuans, would ultimately have geo-political ramifications that would shape events in Asia over the next few decades.

Link: 1874 Japanese Invasion of Taiwan (Wiki) 

One of the takeaways of the expedition was the conclusion that Taiwan’s indigenous people were “vicious, violent and cruel” and that any future plans for Taiwan would first require the complete submission of the indigenous “barbarians,” which as I’m sure you can imagine shaped a brutal policy of subjugation over the subsequent five decades of colonial rule.

To their credit, the Japanese ending up doing some extensive anthropological study of Taiwan’s indigenous groups during their years here. That research forms the basis of much of the taxonomy that is used by the Taiwanese government to classify the various groups of indigenous peoples today. The positives however pale in comparison to the long list of ‘rebellions’, ‘uprisings’ and ‘incidents’ that took place around the island that ended up resulting in massacres and the oppression of the indigenous people. 

Further Reading: Xincheng Incident (新城事件), Beipu Uprising (北浦事件), Truku War (太魯閣戰爭), Tapani Incident (噍吧哖事件), Musha Incident (霧社事件)

Unlike the Qing, the Japanese weren’t interested in policies that gave the indigenous people space and as colonial rule progressed, the Japanese moved as far inland as possible to continue their extraction of natural resources which were instrumental in fueling the hunger of the ever-expanding empire. 

Resistance to Japanese rule lasted for decades, but the violence eventually settled down as the Japanese developed the island and acted as agents of modernity. Providing health care and education to the local people, improving their quality of life and providing them with new opportunities. Surprisingly, even though the memory of colonial rule remains painful for many of Taiwan’s indigenous groups, you’ll find that there is a lingering affinity among some for the ‘good old days’, which is often contrast with yet another period of racism and oppression that came with the subsequent decades of authoritarian dictatorship of the Chinese Nationalists.

For most, its difficult to fathom how decades of atrocities and suppression could result in assimilation, but when the Second World War spread to the Pacific, Taiwan’s indigenous military, the ‘Takasago Volunteers’ (高砂兵) were some of the fiercest warriors the empire ever produced and their legendary bravery and loyalty continues to be celebrated in Japan today, with many of them honored at the Yasukuni Shinto Shrine in Tokyo. 

Nevertheless, it should go without saying that no matter how some might feel about the period of Japanese rule, it has been a rough couple of centuries for the indigenous people of Taiwan, who have called this land home for thousands of years. The situation has only started to improve with better recognition of Taiwan’s indigenous peoples as an integral part of the Taiwanese national identity. The cultural shifts and forced assimilation brought on by subsequent colonial powers over the past few centuries however has inflicted irreparable damage to indigenous cultural identities and the loss of their languages.

This is a subject that deserves considerable more attention and effort than I’m able to get into here with this brief summary. Fortunately, there are an increasing number of researchers who specialize in this topic, and the story of Taiwan’s indigenous peoples, and their fight to save their languages and their cultures is starting to attract the attention it deserves. 

Today I’m going to be introducing one of the lesser known ‘incidents’ that took place during the colonial era and an even lesser known memorial that exists in its honour. In most cases, the tragic events linked above, such as the Musha Incident, were major events in Taiwanese history and are covered extensively in the education system and in the media. Even though the ‘Dabao Incident’ is lesser known, it is yet another one of the tragic events that took place during the early years of the occupation, and set a precedent for years to come. 

Dabao Incident (大豹社事件)

A small waterfall hiding behind a cliff on the Dabao River

When the Japanese took control of Taiwan, they wasted no time in their attempts to pacify the island, which would allow them to quickly take control of not just the people living here but the precious resources that were suddenly made available to the fledgling empire. One of the most precious of those resources was camphor, which was instrumental for the production of celluloid, pharmaceuticals and industrial chemicals - and for which Taiwan was a veritable treasure trove.

The only problem was that Taiwan’s rich camphor resources were predominately located within indigenous lands, resulting in the Japanese army, with its advanced weaponry, forcibly displacing tens of thousands of indigenous people, burning their villages to the ground and murdering any of those who had the audacity to fight back. 

Starting in 1900 (明治33年), the Office of the Governor General opened up Taiwan’s mountainous regions for the extraction of camphor trees (樟腦樹), and other precious resources. The decision would start an almost two-decade long period of resistance to Japanese rule by Taiwan’s indigenous people, loosely referred to as ‘the Camphor Wars’ and resulting in the deaths of an estimated 10,000 members of the Japanese Armed Forces and countless indigenous lives. 

The Dabao River flowing down into Sanxia

One of the first military campaigns into the mountains took place that same year in the mountains near Sanxia (三峽), located in the mountains in the south of New Taipei City (新北市). The military campaign resulted in what is known as the Dabao Incident (大豹社事件), which as I mentioned above is one of the lesser known incidents and unfortunately hasn’t really been covered very well in the English language - or in Chinese for that matter.

The Dabao River (大豹溪) is one of New Taipei City’s most important rivers, sourced from high in the mountains and flowing down into Sanxia District (三峽區). Today the river is part of a popular recreation area where tourists can camp, bbq, fish and enjoy beautiful natural waterfalls like Yunsen Waterfall (雲森瀑布), among others. Originally home to the Takoham (大嵙崁), a tribe belonging to the Tayal Indigenous group (泰雅族), who made their homes along the river where they hunted, fished and farmed for their sustenance.

Prior to the arrival of the Japanese, the Qing under the leadership of Governor Liu Mingchuan (劉銘傳) entered the Takoham area in order to start the extraction of camphor resulting in the Takoham Incident (大嵙崁社事件), which took place between 1886 and 1892, just as the Qing cancelled its prohibition on entering Taiwan’s mountainous regions (開山撫番).

This incident was one of the first attempts by the Qing to enter the mountains and despite having relatively modern weaponry for the time, the various Tayal villages in the area banded together to resist and were relatively successful in repelling the Chinese from advancing into their territory. They did however suffer heavy losses, which would become an issue a few short years later when the Japanese took control of the island and set their eyes on the camphor in their territory.

Prior to the advance of the Japanese army, camphor stations were constructed in the Dabao River area near Sanxia. This met with indigenous resistance not only because the Japanese were entering their territory, but because some of the Japanese workers had captured Tayal women and used them as sex slaves. Using violent clashes as a justification, the colonial government sent the army marching into the mountains starting what would become the second bloody resistance in as many years. 

Guerrilla warfare between the Tayal people (and anti-Japanese Han residents) lasted for years with the Japanese suffering considerable losses and ultimately resulting in a truce. Unfortunately for the Takoham tribe, the losses were devastating and by 1921 (大正10年) the vast majority of them relocated higher in the mountains to Pyasan (比亞山), which is currently known as Taoyuan’s Fuxing District (復興區).

When the colonial era ended and the Chinese Nationalists took control of Taiwan, former residents of Takoham made an official request to the government for the return of the ancestral homeland. One such figure, Losing Watan (樂信·瓦旦 / 渡井三郎) was one of the most highly educated and vocal of the Tayal community through his capacity as a medical professional and later an elected member of the (defunct) Taiwan Provincial Consultative Council (臺灣省參議會).

Waterfall on the Dabao River

His fight for ethnic rights and representation within the “democratic” Republic of China came to an unfortunate end as he and several others who advocated for indigenous rights (and the return of their ancestral homeland), were charged with espionage and treason (高山族匪諜案) and executed. 

Link: Losing Watan Memorial Park (樂信瓦旦紀念公園)

Political control of Taiwan might have shifted from the Japanese to the Chinese Nationalists after the Second World War, but the death of someone as accomplished as Losing Watan and his compatriots is just another one of the sad events that took place during Taiwan’s White Terror (白色恐怖) period and ushered in another era of cruelty against Taiwan’s indigenous people. 

Sanxia Loyal Spirit Monument (三峽忠魂碑)

The Dabao Incident Monument was erected on a mountain deep within a beautiful bamboo forest along the Dabao River.

I’ve seen claims that the memorial was erected in a location where some of the violence took place, but historical records to that effect aren’t very well-documented, so it’s difficult to confirm. What we do know about the monument is that it was erected in 1930 (昭和5年) in honour of the fallen members of the Japanese Imperial Army who perished during the bloody incident. It has existed in obscurity for quite sometime as there are actually very few people who realize it even exists or know about its location, deep in a bamboo forest with little information to remind anyone that its there.

How it faded into obscurity shouldn’t really surprise anyone.

The Tayal residents who were most affected by the Dabao Incident moved deeper into the mountains and the Japanese who erected it left Taiwan when the war was over.

The memorial, which is literally a Loyal Spirit Monument (忠魂碑) is just one of many that were constructed throughout Taiwan during the colonial era dedicated to the ‘faithful who died in battle’, but is one of the few that actually remains standing and relatively unscathed after the regime change in the late 1940s. 

Language Note: “Loyal Spirit Monument” - 忠魂碑 (zhong hún bei) - ちゅうこんひ (chuukonhi)

Using local materials, the shrine is elevated off of the ground on a carved stone base and features an exquisitely decorated plaque with beautifully carved calligraphy. The architectural design of the memorial is thought to be representative of the 1930s, which certainly makes it representative of that era in Taiwan’s history, despite its debatably nefarious origins.

Similar to a smaller Shinto Shrine, surrounding the monument you’ll find an elevated stone pedestal with small stone pillars on each of its four corners. The 25 ping (坪) pedestal was constructed for the practical purpose of ensuring that it wouldn’t be overtaken by the bamboo forest that grows around it as well as giving those who came to pay their respects a place to pray.

There are photos of the shrine that were taken by other explorers a few years ago that show that it was nearly consumed by nature after several decades without any proper attention or grounds keeping.  

Recently however, it was recognized as a New Taipei City Historical Monument (市定古蹟) and has received some attention over the past year. This attention however has brought with it a debate about whether or not it should continue to exist, considering what it represents. Members of the Indigenous community have argued that it is representative of a dark period of history and is a bitter reminder of how the Tayal people have suffered through various atrocities.

The New Taipei City government on the other hand argues that the preservation and recognition of the memorial as a historical monument are a reminder of the past and how we should never make the same mistakes again. 

No matter what your stance on the subject is, the memorial remains to this day so obscure that few people actually realize it exists. It is a painful reminder of an era of history that doesn’t really get mentioned enough here in Taiwan, so maybe the fact that it is still around will allow people to carefully examine the history like I have and learn more about the plight of the Tayal and the other groups of Taiwan’s indigenous peoples who have suffered so much over the past few centuries of foreign rule. 

Getting There

 

So how is one to find this obscure war memorial? 

Well, it is located in the mountains near Sanxia Old Street (三峽老街) a few minutes up the road from the trailhead for Wuliaojian (五寮尖), one of the most popular hiking trails in northern Taiwan as well as being close to the beautiful Yunsen Waterfall (雲森瀑布) 

That being said, unless you have a car or a scooter, getting there can be difficult. 

The memorial is located on top of a small mountain that is on an obscure unmarked road off of the #114 North (北) highway that takes you to Manyueyuan National Forest Recreation Area (滿月圓國家森林遊樂園).

The road that takes you to the trailhead for the memorial is unmarked, so what you’ll want to keep in mind is that once you’ve passed by the trailhead for Wuliaojian and crossed the bridge on the 114, you’ll have to keep driving until you come across a lonely bus stop on the left side of the road. The bus stop, known as “Dayi Bridge” (大義橋) has an entrance to the steep mountain road that will bring you to the trailhead for the memorial on either side.

How will you know when you’ve reached the trailhead?

The best way is to look at the numbers on the telephone poles on the side of the road. Once you’ve reached #41, you’ve basically arrived. Next to the pole, you’ll find a run down pavilion that is probably used by the farmers who own the land, and the trailhead starts just beyond there.

This is the area where you’re going to want to watch for the mountain dogs, so be careful as they’re likely to start barking when they hear you coming. Given that they’re probably not used to many visitors coming around, they’re not really interested in your presence, so if you’re walking its probably a good idea to grab a stick somewhere along the road to protect yourself.

Once you’ve reached the trailhead, you’ll find an extremely unkept path that winds through a beautiful bamboo forest. If you actually visit, it will likely appear to that no one has really hiked the trail in a while, because not too many people actually know that it exists.

The hike should only take about ten to twenty minutes, depending on how fast you walk, but you’re going to have to be careful as the trail isn’t that stable in certain areas and there is a steep cliff that you could fall down while on the way up. Likewise, the trail isn’t very well marked and there are some twists and turns that could cause you to easily get lost. The fact that so few people are hiking the trail means that the path is likely to grow over quite easily, so pay attention! 

One last note: Something that you’ll probably want to remember to bring with you is some powerful mosquito repellent as it seems like the bamboo forest is a breeding ground for them. If you don’t have any repellent (like me), its likely that you’ll get eaten alive on the short hike (like I did).

The end of the quick hike.

It’s rather obvious that this little memorial isn’t exactly a major tourist attraction. By my estimation, I’d guess that its probably visited less than once or twice every couple of months.

That being said, its kind of amazing that it has been able to survive as long as it has given what it represents.

It’s probably one of those things that only people like myself know about, but if you’ve read this far, you’ll know that it represents a dark period of history and one that I sincerely hope we have learned from.



Hiking Wuliaojian (五寮尖)

We have had some absolutely terrible weather in northern Taiwan over the past few weeks. Consecutive super typhoons will do that to you I guess. It has rained almost every day for a few weeks and despite the fact that it has cleared up a little bit, there are still some more typhoons forming out in the Pacific ocean which will probably bring more rain to the nation for the next little while.

The sad thing about all this rain is that Autumn in Taiwan is generally my favourite time to go out and get a lot of hiking done as the weather is usually quite comfortable. Although I am quite content with the fact that I got a good tan on the hikes I did do over the summer.

With the forecast looking really promising for the weekend, some friends and I decided we would take the opportunity to go hike Wuliaojian (五寮尖) which is probably one of my favourite hikes to go on and one that I've blogged about in the past.

I didn't plan on bringing my camera with me, but I often feel a bit naked without one, so I brought one with me and I'm glad I did. The weather turned out to be spectacular (albeit a bit hot) and we all got an amazing workout.

This time when we hiked up the mountain we decided to do a return trip which meant that we would hike the main trail and then return the same way rather than taking the much easier and faster exit.

Lotus flowers growing on high mountains. 

This made the hike a lot longer than normal, but was great exercise and meant that we got to enjoy the beautiful scenery along the hike twice in one day!

I did find out however that going down is a lot harder on the legs than going up which really surprised me.

The point of today's post is to just share a few photos. If you want to know more about the hike click here to read the blog I wrote about it which gives directions and more information about it.


Huang Di Dian (皇帝殿)

The Lunar New Year holiday was a terribly busy week that had me up and on the road early almost every day and back home to sleep in my bed every night! I had to take several day trips for work-related stuff but was still fortunate to manage having some free time to get in a couple of hikes on the days in between the stuff I was doing.

One of the hikes was one that I did a while ago and wanted to do a second time and the other - the one I'm writing about today is a hike that I've wanted to do for a long time and one that I'm sure I'll go back to quite often as it was really fun!

Huang Di Dian (皇帝殿) or the "Emperors Palace" is one of the most popular trails for avid hikers in northern Taiwan and is often compared with Wuliaojian (五寮尖) in terms of difficulty and of course the sense of accomplishment you feel when you reach the top. The hike is quite difficult and shouldn't be taken lightly - but if you are in relatively good shape then it shouldn't really be a problem!

I've hiked Wuliaojian more times than I can count and when I'm in need of a full body workout it is my go-to trail that gives me the exercise I so desperately need.

Some people compare the difficulty of these two hikes and will say that Huang Di Dian is JUST AS difficult or even more difficult than Wuliaojian. I can't really say that I agree with those assessments as Huang Di Dian seemed much easier than I was expecting and the day after the hike when I woke up I didn't feel like my body had died over night.

The difficulty (for most people) with Huang Di Dian really just depends on your method of transportation to the trailhead. If you are arriving by car or scooter then you will have a much easier experience than those who take the bus and have to hike to the trailhead.

If you arrive by car you can easily park by the trailhead and start the hike directly. If you are like most people (including myself) you probably will have arrived by means of public transport and that requires a long walk up a paved road to the trailhead.

The walk from the bus stop to the trailhead could add 20-40 minutes based on how fast you walk and can be just as difficult for some as the hike itself can be.

Small temple near the trailhead

Once you arrive at the trailhead there are two options and it's really important that you pay attention to this part - No matter which option you choose, you are going to come face-to-face with about 30-40 minutes worth of stairs which (If you just walked up that road from the bus stop) will be the worst part of the hike for the majority of people.

Now here's the important part: There are two trailhead markers and a map. The map will show you the trails and what the hike will look like. The trail beside the map leads to the East Peak (東峰) while the trail to the left takes you to the West Peak (西峰)

The trail going to the East Peak is the easier route but I don't recommend taking it - I recommend taking what's considered the more difficult route, not because it is more difficult but because you will get to enjoy much more scenery as you ascend and will be able to easily get to the Western Peak, a few other ridges and the East Peak in a short amount of time.

If you take this route, the walk down to the parking lot from the East Peak is much easier and is mostly covered by trees. This route is also a lot easier on your knees and once you reach the road you can walk slowly back down rather than descending a bunch of ridges, the mountain and a long set of stairs.

When we reached the trailhead a scooter pulled up beside us and dropped off an old woman. The old woman wasn't wearing hiking gear and didn't have a backpack so we asked where she was hiking? She replied that she was "going home' which kind of confused me. This is a popular hiking trail - What home? She went on to explain that her home was about 20 minutes up the hill and that she takes care of a temple up there. The interesting thing was that while we were taking a break, she passed us and gave us the normal '加油' (Go, Go, Go!) and once we made it to the temple she was there to greet us and asked us to sit down for a drink and to take a break.

She had water, snacks and gloves available to the hikers who were braving the trail and it got me thinking: How does she get this stuff up here? She would have had to carry it up herself. It amazed me that a woman of her age could carry that stuff up such a terrible set of stairs.

Senior citizens in Taiwan never cease to amaze me. They are battle-hardened war machines that put youth to shame and I love it!

Once we passed the temple we quickly rid ourselves of the annoying stairs and were into the climbing part of the hike. The path isn't as steep as the stairs but through the trees you can see some pretty awesome scenery. After about five minutes of climbing you come up to a cliff with a chain that you have to climb up. Truthfully you don't even need to use the chain. I had my camera in one hand and walked up the cliff easily enough.

After climbing up the ridge you get to the cool part of the hike, the part that everybody came for - the ridge walk. The ridge walk on this hike is actually a lot more beautiful than what you get at Wuliaojian and I found myself stopping for long periods of time to enjoy the view.

The western peak of this hike has great views and if you're brave enough you can climb up on the ridge, have a seat, eat a snack and enjoy 360 degree views of New Taipei City. On a clear day you can even see as far as Taipei 101!

After sitting on the ridge and finishing off a quick snack we moved on for the short hike to the East Peak - If you take the route I mentioned it should only be about a 15-20 minute hike to the East Peak although there is a bit of climbing involved.

The views from the East Peak are much better than the previous one and it can be a bit scary if you stand on top of the ridge and walk towards the edge. I stayed on the peak for a while but I was sweaty and the it got really windy so I decided it was time to head back to the parking lot.

We were unfortunately running out of time and didn't have time to continue on further past the East Peak. If you do have time though you can continue on past the East Peak to another cliff face and a bat cave. In the future, and time permitting I will update this post with photos from the bat cave as it seems like another pretty awesome place to visit on the hike. 

From the East Peak, the parking lot is a short walk down some tree covered stairs and if you take the route I mentioned it should be a bit more relaxing than your way up. Once back at the trailhead you'll be able to use the bathroom, throw out your trash (DON'T LITTER) and take a break on the benches.

If you took the bus you should be careful to check the bus times and be sure to make your way back to the bus station before the bus leaves - which brings me to the practicalities of this hike:

If you are taking the bus, you need to be careful. You need to take what other bloggers have termed "The Bus from Hell" (#666) from either Jingmei (景美站) or from Muzha MRT station (木柵捷運站) The problem is that bus #666 has several destinations. You need to make sure that you take the bus that goes either to "Huang Di Dian" or "Huafan University" (華梵大學) otherwise you are in for a long hike from Shiding Old Street (石碇老街.)

The best way to do this is to ask whatever friendly Taipei bus driver who is driving the bus where the bus is heading and whether or not he or she could drop you off at the bus stop. Likewise when you need to head back to Taipei you need to make sure what time the bus will arrive at the station to pick you up.

Remember to wear some hiking shoes, bring a raincoat (just in case) and bring some water and snacks. You could also plan pretty epic (or romantic) picnic with friends (or your loved one) on one of the ridges so bring whatever suits your needs!

This hike is now probably my second favourite hike in northern Taipei and if it weren't such a pain in the ass to get to, I'd hike it just as often as I hike Wuliaojian. The ridge walk is really fun and the scenery from the peaks is honestly a lot better.

Don't let people fool you that this hike is difficult - when I did the hike there were children, fathers, mothers and grandparents enjoying the beautiful scenery.

You CAN do this hike and you SHOULD do this hike!

It's a great time and an easy enough hike for the whole family or a group of friends to enjoy! Have fun and be safe!

If you have any questions, comments or criticisms don't be shy - comment below and I'll get back to you pretty quickly!