Flint (AE 32) - Naval Cruise Book

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Busy Fleet Street, where sailors learn the art of haggling. FLINT Visits Kaohsiung Walk down a street in Kaohsiung, past noisy factory shops, the sound of smithy ' s hammer over- whelmed by the horns of cabs and the whine of motor bikes. Everyone seems busy and quite unconcerned with you until you stop to look at an item in a store window. The owner comes out smiling, and chances are his English is better than your Chinese. You point and he barks out a price you both know is too high. No way, no way , you say with your head and hands and start away but change your mind and quote a price much lower than his. Now it ' s his turn, gesturing about how unreason- able you are and coming down from his original price. You grab your chin, looking thoughtful, but think better of it and name a figure not far from his. It ' s up to him to split the difference and close the deal. If it happened any other way, someone would lose face. A sailor on liberty learns by meeting people. He sees the contrast between cultures and if he ' s wise, he doesn ' t compare them but tries to understand. Many of us were thoughtful as we left Kaohsiung. We ' d shopped and walked and seen as much as we could. But there ' s always so much more to learn.

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(LEFT) FLINT crewmen on liberty in Sasebo. Notice the spotless streets, typical of , Japan. (BELOW) Picking up a few things on the way home. A Japanese sailor flirts with some schoolgirls. A group of boys im- provise on a torn-down set of monkey bars. When they ' re young, Japanese children have more freedom than their American peers. 45

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(ABOVE) Kaohsiung lies on one of the busiest sealanes in the Orient. In its harbor mingle ornate junks and modern super tankers. (LEFT) The men of 01 Division at Quarters for entering port. The harbor entrance is so narrow you think you can reach out and touch it while passing through. (ABOVE) A group of schoolchildren on their way home. Note the uniform for boys and girls. The school day is long, from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m., and discipline is exacting. (RIGHT) Taiwan is modern in many respects, but it is still China, preserving traditional modes of dress and lifestyle. The Taiwanese are very industrious and often find it simpler to use people power instead of machines.