Taiwan is an island in East Asia, but the term is also used to refer to the area under the jurisdiction of the government of the Republic of China. The island groups of Taiwan and Penghu are administered as Taiwan Province. The main island of Taiwan is off the coast of china, southwest of the main island of Japan and north-northwest of the Philippines. The Pacific Ocean is to the east, the South China Sea and the Luzon Strait to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the west, and the East China Sea to the East.
The island of Taiwan is 394 km long and 144 km wide, and consists of steep mountains covered by tropical and subtropical vegetation. The population is in the order of 23 million, 98% of them of Han ethnicity. The climate of Taiwan is marine tropical, to the north the monsoon rainy season extends from January to late March, the entire island will be hot and humid for the period June to September, whilst October to December can be the most pleasant times of year, though there may be extended rain in the middle and southern parts of the island.