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進入《TAIPEI TIMES 焦點》 Record visitor gets royal welcome
US visitors Christopher Manuele and his wife, Tina, yesterday pose with tourism posters and lion dancers in Taipei as he was welcomed as Taiwan’s 10 millionth international visitor this year. Photo: Yao Kai-shiou, Taipei Times
‘A BIG SURPRISE’: A California man yesterday received various gifts valued at about NT$1 million as he became the 10 millionth international visitor to arrive this year
By Shelley Shan / Staff reporter
A software engineer from California was yesterday showered with about 100 gifts from the Tourism Bureau as he became the nation’s 10 millionth international visitor this year.
The bureau said that Christopher Manuele, 34, is on his first visit to Taiwan, and that he and his wife, Tina, came at the invitation of Tina’s grandmother, who lives in Kaohsiung.
They arrived at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport at 5:08am on a China Airlines flight and were greeted by bureau representatives and a lion dance performance.
“It’s a big surprise,” he said.
Manuele said he and his wife would take a sightseeing tour and visit her relatives, adding that they would like to try some stinky tofu and pineapple cakes.
The bureau said Manuele received various gifts valued at about NT$1 million （US$30,196）, including a foldable bike provided by Giant （巨大集團）, an Asustek （華碩） tablet computer, round-trip business-class tickets from Taiwan to any destination in the world from China Airlines （中華航空） and EVA Airways （長榮航空）, as well as free accommodation at six five-star hotels.
Twenty-two counties and cities nationwide also provided 66 souvenirs for the lucky visitor.
Because it was an important milestone for the nation, the bureau also hosted a ceremony yesterday afternoon celebrating the special occasion at the Taipei Guest House, which was attended by President Ma Ying-jeou （馬英九）.
Ma took credit for the milestone.
“The year is not over yet. We should be able to add another 300,000 international visitors to the tally. If the number hits 10.3 million, which is our target this year, then the number of international visitors, as well as the tourism revenue they created, would be five times more than that in the previous administration,” Ma said.
He said the nation did not reach the 1 millionth overseas visitor milestone until 1976, adding that the 2 millionth visitor milestone was reached in 1989.
It was not until 2005 that the nation arrived at the 3 millionth visitor milestone, he added.
“When I became the president in 2008, the nation had only received 3.84 million visitors, 130,000 more than the previous year. However, the number quickly jumped to 4.39 million in 2009, 5.56 million in 2010, 6.08 million in 2011, 7.31 million in 2012 and 8.02 million in 2013. The number went up to 9.91 million last year. This year, the number exceeded 10 million. We succeeded in growing at a rate of 1 million international visitors per year, which in the past required at least 13 years to accomplish,” he said.
Ma said that the increase in visitors had benefited boat operators at Sun Moon Lake （日月潭）, as well as other small business owners in the area, adding that many international visitors were impressed by the sincerity, friendliness and creativity of Taiwanese.
However, he dismissed the allegation that a massive influx of Chinese tourists caused the rapid growth in international tourist numbers, adding that Chinese tourists only account for about 40 percent of overseas visitors.
The majority of international visitors are from Southeast Asia, Northeast Asia and Europe, he said.
新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES
