Under a glowing June sun, President Lee Teng-hui traveled to the United States on a private visit. This was the first time an incumbent ROC president ever set foot on American soil. His visit generated a rare moment of consensus in Taiwan among all parties, factions, and ethnic groups, among all citizens regardless of gender or age. In delivering Cornell University's Olin Lecture, he mildly yet firmly detailed Taiwan's growth in all areas and the hopes of the 21 million people on Taiwan. His address and, especially, his determination when declaring "God bless the Republic of China," left all the Chinese people of Taiwan speechless with emotion.

Nevertheless, besides being moving and exciting, if we think about the visit carefully, what did this trip of the president's really accomplish? How should we expand our international space? How can we make a breakthrough in cross-strait relations? Where does Taiwan go from here? We have gathered together the views of the local media and scholars in a "News in Focus" section to give readers some food for thought from a variety of different viewpoints and critical perspectives .

Just as the president was returning to Taiwan, Premier Lien Chan took off on a completely unannounced visit to Europe. He visited the three Central European nations of Austria, Hungary, and the Czech Republic. These three nations have strong foundations and have made great achievements in many areas, including culture, education, democratic reform, and heavy industry. There are many areas in which we could learn from them.

Taiwan's own accomplishments have been something to be proud of, and Taiwan has become a model for political and economic reform for developing nations. But as we share our experience with others, we sometimes forget that we can also learn from them. Besides being another diplomatic advance, Premier Lien's trip also provided citizens with an opportunity to better understand the beauty of these ancient nations' arts and culture, the depth of their history, the tribulations of their democratization, and their industrial development. What we got out of these summer trips by national leaders were very precious opportunities to engage in information and cultural exchange.

In this era of interchange and communication, we can only progress, enrich ourselves, and benefit others through the constant "give and take" of exchanging, sharing, and learning. It is only through constant comparison and selection from the dialogues between East and West, between the countries of the North and those of the South, and even between the ancient and contemporary, that we as members of the "global village" can mature and be fulfilled. In this month's cover story, we present articles on tea, which bring together old and new, East and West. We look at how Chinese tea made its journey to the West, how it became the national drink of England, and at how many aphorisms and customs were given to us by tea. We end by seeing how the circle has become complete with the adaptation in Taiwan of "afternoon tea." What form does this custom take when it is back here?

Even as the fragrance of tea lingers on, another entrancing journey gets underway. It offers blue seas and magnificent coral, with dazzling tropical fish exceeding in diversity of color even the broadest of palettes. Enter the mysterious world of the ocean floor. Perhaps our more fortunate readers will be able to take a trip to Green Island themselves, but if you can't, at least you can do what we have here at our desks: follow our reporter, who has become a diving devotee since her visit, on a trip to this wonderland.

When it comes to summer topics, there can never be too many stories revolving around the ocean. So, besides letting you "dance with coral," we have also prepared reports on the turtles of the Spratly Islands and on the mysterious sunken ships of Penghu. But what do we have for those who prefer mountains? A melancholy tale of modern civilization by the central characters in Yellow Butterfly Valley.

Returning to life's more pragmatic concerns, one of the most important practical problems people worry about is a possible shortage of electricity. As the weather heats up, people begin to worry, "Will there be a power outage today?" So what's really going on in our consumption of electricity? How serious is the power shortage? Should there be power rationing? Should new power sources be developed? What are the answers to these problems, which are of concern to people all around the world? With the help of observations by experts, we explore these one by one. But the real solution is up to ourselves, and whether a consensus can take shape depends on you!