|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| LaurelC-19’s Wanderings on Planet Earth: Monterrico, Guatemala |
|
|
|
by LaurelC-19 , 25 August 2010
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| LaurelC-19’s Wanderings on Planet Earth: A Zanzibari Misunderstanding |
|
|
|
by LaurelC-19, 31 March 2010
Zanzibar is a beautiful island off the coast of Tanzania. Every bit as magical and mythical as it sounds, it is a place rich in history and culture with a past as a former trading port where ships from all corners of the globe crossed paths.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| ValerieW-17 on "The Unwestern Western Restaurant" |
|
|
|
by ValerieW-17, 23 February 2010
Bluntly put, the place I went to for dinner last night exemplified everything I hate about most “Western” restaurants in Hong Kong.
The tacky decor, the clichéd music selection (think forever love songs or something similar...on repeat), their typo-ridden menu...grammar Nazi tendencies aside, something about the place just screamed “no” to me. Granted, the food was surprisingly decent, but I’ve always thought a little ambience goes a long way.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| LaurelC-19's Wanderings on Planet Earth: An Encounter in Tanzania |
|
|
|
by LaurelC-19, 14 January 2010
In Tanzania stands Mount Kilimanjaro: a magnificent snow-capped mountain, the highest point on the African continent, and the subject of dreamers and poets including Hemingway himself. I was in a very random and a very small town at the base of Kilimanjaro, desperately trying to register for university courses at an Internet café. Of course, that is when the power went out. Surrendering to my circumstances, I walked over to my friends who kindly were waiting for me.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| LaurelC-19's Wanderings on Planet Earth: The Makgadikgadi Pan |
|
|
|
by LaurelC-19, 28 December 2009
One night in Botswana, we drove out to the middle of absolutely nowhere to the famous salt flats. It is called the Makgadikgadi Pan, the remnants of a long-vanished lake. While the salt flats in Bolivia are the world's single largest, this one is the world's largest complex of salt flats. The salt was not as piercingly white as Bolivia’s, and nor were there the cool hexagon-shaped lines in the cracked ground. But what was most stunning here was that all around, all 360 degrees of your view, was just white salt. The Makgadikgadi was a place where you could perfectly understand why people once thought the earth was flat, because after all, with white nothingness stretched out in front of you as far as you can see no matter in which direction you spun--it simply looked like one huge flat disc.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| iCUBED.us Cares! Global Warming Watch, Sustainable Eating and Environment & Pollution Updates! |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Warming Globe Watch: GARGANTUAN "Nomura" JELLYFISHES DESTROYING FISHERMEN's LIVELIHOODS |
|
|
|
by !Baha, 30 November 2009
Weighing in at upwards of 200 kilograms each, the giant Nomura jellyfish have wreaked havoc in the waters around Japan this year. Of the most extreme stories, on November 2nd a Japanese fishing trawler capsized, after netting a dozen or more of the giant jellyfish, throwing its three man crew into the calm waters to await rescue.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| WARMING-GLOBE WATCH: Downsized Expectations for December '09 "COP15" Climate Meeting |
|
|
|
by !Baha, 16 November 2009
Today world leaders meeting at ASEAN announced to the I-told-you-so chorus of Greenies around the world that there would NOT be "a full international legally binding agreement" to be expected as a result of the earth summit in Copenhagen beginning the first week of December. Instead, they are opting for a two-step approach, with a first step in December of coming to a "politically binding" agreement between all member nations, with the intention to later amend with hard numbers and legal obligations to reduce climate change.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| ValerieW-16 on "A MOSAIC IDENTITY" |
|
|
|
by ValerieW-16, 30 October 2009
The other day, my friends and I were talking about our first impressions of each other, and whether or not they’d changed over the years. When it was my turn, one of my friends told me she’d initially thought I was English Canadian. Another friend immediately piped up, saying she’d had the impression that I was Japanese at first, while someone else confessed that she’d always thought I was mixed. Evidently, I am, shall we say, ethnically ambiguous.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| LaurelC-19's Wanderings on Planet Earth: Mozambique |
|
|
|
by LaurelC-19, 17 Sept 2009
From Swaziland we went to Maputo, the capital of Mozambique. Strangely, it had a European/Latin American/Caribbean feel. It reminded me very much of Brazil, also a former Portuguese colony. We spent two nights there, and had a little civilized fun at the casino (I came out even!!), the club and at the mall. We then headed on yet another long drive to Tofu beach. It was a cramped, 8-hour bus ride with no room spared; our legs curled up on top of our backpacks.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| LaurelC-19 's Wanderings on Planet Earth: Kachumbe |
|
|
|
by LaurelC-19, 18 August 2009
Laurel took a year off before heading to university. Read about her here
For the "past 6 weeks" I've been living in a village called Kachumbe, which is beyond a larger village called Nancholi, which is on the outskirts of Blantyre, which is a city in Malawi, which is somewhere in Central/Southern Africa. I'm guessing most of you haven't heard of Malawi, let alone Blantyre, but it's okay because most people from Blantyre haven't even heard of Nancholi, let alone Kachumbe. In other words, I am most definitely in the middle of nowhere.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Appreciating your hometown - Tai Lo Sai Wan- Sai Kung, Hong Kong |
|
|
|
10 August 2009, by !Baha
Tai Lo Sai Wan, is Hong Kong's version of those majestic National Parks in America. Tai Lo Sai Wan is facing the Pacific Ocean and that accounts for the name “Tai Long” (which means “big wave” in Chinese). The wonderful shoreline has been shaded against the big waves, wind and rain for thousands of years. The sea is unpolluted and the sand is white and very fine. The rhythm of the waves, the cool sea breeze soothe your mind and release you from stressful city life.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| LaurelC-19 's Wanderings on Planet Earth - Part 3 of 3 : Rwanda |
|
|
|
by LaurelC-19, 31 July 2009
Laurel took a year off before heading to university. Read about her here
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| LaurelC-19's Wanderings on Planet Earth - Part 2 of 3 : Uganda |
|
|
|
by LaurelC-19, 28 July 2009
Laurel took a year off before heading to university. Read about her here
In Uganda we visited Ngamba island, which was basically one huge chimpanzee rehabilitation center. It was impeccably run and well-organized. Most memorably, its residents were hilarious.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| LaurelC-19's Wanderings on Planet Earth - Part 1 of 3 : NAMIBIA |
|
|
|
by LaurelC-19, 24 July 2009
Laurel took a year off before heading to university. Read about her here
A NIGHT IN THE SLUMS OF NAMIBIA
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| THE PLASTIC VORTEX: What's more important? OCEANS or TRASH HEAPS FOR HUMANS, or OCEANS 'AS' TRASH HEAPS! |
|
|
|
by AmyZ-16, 19 May 2009
Ever since I was a child, I have been fascinated with the ocean. It seemed like such a mystifying realm; what I saw from the surface was only a glimmer of the enormous range of life within. I have been snorkeling in the waters of Thailand and Malaysia since I was 8 years old, and the pleasures of seeing strange, vividly colored creatures in the underwater world made me believe that the ocean was truly something spectacular. The colors and designs of the creatures down there were so intricate, like each fish or coral was a work of art.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| TRAVEL BLOG: Bratislava – Slovakia! |
|
|
|
By Nomadic Chris, 13 May 2009
One of the best things in life is travel!
It challenges perceptions of peoples and places and expands your own horizons.
I - Nomadic Chris - had another opportunity for a trip so off I went, with friends ready for an adventure! In keeping with our interest in the road less traveled and reasonable budgets, the ever resourceful 'V' was given the option of choosing a destination.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| ANTARCTICA: Why does every country want a piece of the cold barren South Pole ? |
|
|
|
by COOLcat, 24 April 2009
In 1961 a treaty was established on the ownership of Antarctica. 45 countries (¾ of the world population) have signed the treaty to agree on the claims and the treatment of Antarctica. This treaty is one of the only international 20th century agreements to have succeeded.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| SylviaW-17 on "Shanghai Barbie" |
|
|
|
by SylviaW-17, 2 April 2009
In the middle of Shanghais trendy Huaihai Road, stands a colossal pink building, which from a distance, almost looks slightly out of place. On the night of March 7, the first Barbie flagship store was finally ready. Just in time for global toy conglomerate 'Mattel's 50th anniversary. So it was only natural that they hosted a launch party to celebrate their favourite blonde bombshell's birthday.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Zaragoza- The Heart of Aragon, Spain! |
|
|
|
By Nomadic Chris, 3 February 2009
‘Zaragoza!* I exclaimed!
I had allowed my friend to choose a budget airline destination in Spain. Deadlines were looming and he had slightly more time than I to pick and chose. Criteria for holiday destination:
Not Madrid or Barcelona as we wanted to go off the beaten track.
Cheap! &40 to 50 pounds or less for a return flight! Yes, carbon footprint guilt does afflict me sometimes.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| THE POWER OF INFORMATION ... COOL WEBSITE FOR FINDING OUT WHAT's HAPPENING ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD |
|
|
|
by !Baha (a recommendation from SLy, our Senior Writer in Residence), 30 January 2009
For those of us who don't yet have a SIXTH SENSE ... here's a cool news-website that will whet your appetite - READ ON:
Are you going on holiday to some exotic locale and want to know what's going on before you arrive? Or perhaps you're researching current events in another country. Or you simply enjoy reading several newspapers at a time... simply because ... .. KNOWLEDGE IS POWER.
Check this out:
http://www.newseum.org/todaysfrontpages/flash/
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Mags as TOURIST ... TRAPPED, SKIN FLINTED, and FLABBERGASTED |
|
|
|
by Mags, 22 January 2009
Part of the joy of traveling abroad is certainly the chance to do things you never do in your own city, but when those things involve having to "help" clean a fridge and cabinets full of roach droppings and many tens-of-tens, maybe even hundreds, of those brown crunchy critters parading around like they own YOUR space, well, you know you're not off to a good start to your holiday! : )))
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| SylviaW-16 on "Massive Halloween Extravaganza in Hong Kong" |
|
|
|
by SylviaS-16, 1 November 2008
In what was recorded to be the biggest turn out in HK history, Lan Kwai Fong’s annual Halloween extravaganza attracted over 40,000 people.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| JiaH-18 on EXTINCTION: OUR DYING COUSINS |
|
|
|
By JiaH-18, 19 August 2008
No Time to Lose
According to www.rain-tree.com, a website providing information on rainforests conservation, experts estimate that more than 100 species of plants and animals go extinct every single day! With much of the environmental focus on global warming, it is seldom that we hear about the plight of species which face the threat of extinction.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| CHINA TRAVEL: A Four-part Series on Hangzhou, Shanghai, and Suzhou (PART FOUR: Suzhou) |
|
|
|
by JiaH-18, 8 August 2008
PART FOUR: Suzhou
SZ is another ancient city; it has a crater on Mars named after it. It’s about an hour’s ride by train from SH. Please buy your ticket a day before – or you’ll have to wait for trains with ONLY available seats; this is almost impossible on weekends. We waited five hours for our train.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| CHINA TRAVEL: A Four-part Series on Hangzhou, Shanghai, and Suzhou (PART THREE: Shanghai) |
|
|
|
by JiaH-18, 8 August 2008
PART THREE: Shanghai
There’s a rapid train from HZ to Shanghai which costs 64 yuan. It moves at 150km/h (can’t beat Shanghai’s Maglev at 400 km/h) and gets you to SH in less than two hours. Very comfy. Very convenient. Shanghai is not so much of a problem in terms of getting around and getting information. The government has set up information booths, denoted by an ‘i’ on a blue background, which provides excellent brochures and an Internet connection for you to get info quickly.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| CHINA TRAVEL: A Four-part Series on Hangzhou, Shanghai, and Suzhou (PART TWO: Hangzhou) |
|
|
|
by JiaH-18, 8 August 2008
PART TWO: Hangzhou
Sunset on Westlake
It’s one of the more beautiful cities in China, being at one time China’s ancient capital city. The West Lake area is lovely for its scenic and historical sites, some dating back more than a thousand years.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| CHINA TRAVEL: A Four-part Series on Hangzhou, Shanghai, and Suzhou (PART ONE: China-prep) |
|
|
|
by JiaH-18, 8 August 2008
Today - 8 August 2008 – is the first day of the Olympics in Beijing!
In honor of this celebration, we at iCUBED.us are presenting a four-part series that offers a quick glance at traveling in China – including tips before you travel…
PART ONE: Intro to Traveling in China
Along the Grand Canal – by land
Jing’an Temple, Shanghai
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| RobB-17 on THE DIS-ORDER OF CANADA |
|
|
|
by RobB-17, 1 August 2008
I love the fact that Canada is a free country. Free in the sense that we are free to say what we want and have the right to be heard. Signs have been sighted in many major intersections with the words:
“MORGENTALER
The Dis-Order
of Canada”
This comes in light of the recent appointment of Dr Henry Morgentaler, Canada’s leading activist for the legalization of abortion. Earlier this week, he received an Order of Canada. His clinics have - for the past four decades - provided women safe, guided and healthy abortions.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| JP-16 muses, “What’s in a name?” |
|
|
|
by JP-16, 5 July 2008
If any of you have ever been to China, you probably have, by happy coincidence, encountered the interesting (and occasionally inappropriate) direct translations of certain Chinese characters. For example, in a recent trip to Beijing, I couldn’t help but laugh after seeing a sign “注意安全 坡道路滑”, which can be translated into “be careful, slippery slope” but instead the translation read, “To take notice of safe: The slippery are very crafty.”
In fact, you could look on here for some more:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
Delicious
Digg
reddit
Facebook
StumbleUpon