Bermuda

WARWICK LONG BAY, BERMUDA

Sent by Davis (TravBuddy) from Bermuda.

Bermuda /bɜrˈmjuːdə/, in full The Islands of Bermuda, also referred to as the Bermudas or the Somers Isles, is a British Overseas Territory in the North Atlantic Ocean, located off the east coast of the United States. Its nearest landmass is Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, about 1,030 kilometres (640 mi) to the west-northwest. It is about 1,239 kilometres (770 mi) south of Cape Sable Island, Nova Scotia, and 1,770 kilometres (1,100 mi) northeast of Miami. Its capital city is Hamilton.

Bermuda was discovered in 1505 by Spanish sea captain Juan de Bermúdez, after whom the islands are named. He claimed the apparently uninhabited islands for the Spanish Empire. Although he paid two visits to the archipelago, Bermúdez never landed on the islands because he did not want to risk crossing over the dangerous reef surrounding them. Subsequent Spanish or other visitors are believed to have released the feral pigs that were abundant on the island when European settlement began. In 1609, the Virginia Company, which had established Virginia and Jamestown on the American continent two years earlier, established a settlement, founded in the aftermath of a hurricane, when the crew of the sinking Sea Venture steered it on the reef so they could get ashore.

It was first administered as an extension of Virginia by the Company until 1614, before its successor, the Somers Isles Company, took over until 1684. At that time, the company's charter was revoked and the Crown took over administration. The islands became a British colony following the 1707 unification of the parliaments of Scotland and England, which created the Kingdom of Great Britain. After Newfoundland became part of Canada in 1949, Bermuda became the oldest (and, since the return of Hong Kong to China in 1997, the most populous) remaining British Overseas Territory. Its first capital, St. George's, was established in 1612. It is the oldest continuously inhabited English town in the New World.

Bermuda's economy is based on offshore insurance and reinsurance, and tourism; the two largest economic sectors. Bermuda had one of the world's highest GDP per capita for most of the 20th century and several years beyond. Recently, its economic status has been affected by the global recession. It has a subtropical climate. Bermuda is the northernmost point of the so-called Bermuda Triangle, a region of sea in which, according to legend, a number of aircraft and surface vessels have disappeared under supposedly unexplained or mysterious circumstances. The island is in the hurricane belt and prone to severe weather. (read further)

Montserrat

Montserrat, West Indies
Aerial of Montserrat from South of island.

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Montserrat /mɒntsəˈræt/ is a British Overseas Territory located in the Caribbean. The island is located in the Leeward Islands, part of the chain of islands known as the Lesser Antilles, in the West Indies. Montserrat measures approximately 16 km (9.9 mi) long and 11 km (6.8 mi) wide, with approximately 40 kilometres (25 mi) of coastline. Montserrat is nicknamedThe Emerald Isle of the Caribbean both for its resemblance to coastal Ireland and for the Irish ancestry of some of its inhabitants.

On 18 July 1995, the previously dormant Soufrière Hills volcano, in the southern part of the island, became active. Eruptions destroyed Montserrat's Georgian era capital city of Plymouth and two-thirds of the island's population was forced to flee. The volcanic activity continues, currently mostly affecting the vicinity of Plymouth, including its docking facilities, and the eastern side of the island around the former W. H. Bramble Airport, the remnants of which were buried by flows from volcanic activity on 11 February 2010.

An "exclusion zone" extending from the south coast of the island north to parts of the Belham Valley has been imposed because of the size of the existing volcanic dome and the resulting potential for pyroclastic activity. Visitors are generally not permitted entry into the exclusion zone, but an impressive view of the destruction of Plymouth can be seen from the top of Garibaldi Hill in Isles Bay. Relatively quiet since early 2010, the volcano continues to be closely monitored by the Montserrat Volcano Observatory.

A new town and port is currently being developed at Little Bay, which is on the northwest coast of the island. While this construction proceeds, the centre of government and businesses rests at Brades. (read further)

French Southern and Antarctic Lands (TAAF)

French Southern and Antarctic Lands
Port Alfred (Alfred-Faure)

Sent by Philippe, the Mail Manager of Crozet. Thanks to François ZABROT, the Chief District of Crozet for the arrangement.

The French Southern and Antarctic Lands (French: Terres australes et antarctiques françaises, TAAF), in full the Territory of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands (French: Territoire des Terres australes et antarctiques françaises) is an overseas territory (French: Territoire d'outre-mer or TOM) of France. It consists of:

1. Kerguelen (Archipel des Kerguelen), a group of volcanic islands in the southern Indian Ocean, southeast of Africa, approximately equidistant between Africa, Antarctica and Australia;
2. St. Paul and Amsterdam islands (Îles Saint Paul et Amsterdam), a group to the north of Kerguelen;
3. Crozet Islands (Îles Crozet), a group in the southern Indian Ocean, south of Madagascar;
4. Adélie Land (Terre Adélie), the French claim on the Antarctica continent;
5. the Scattered Islands (Îles Éparses), a dispersed group of islands around the coast of Madagascar.

The territory is also called the French Southern Lands (French: Terres australes françaises) or French Southern Territories. The latter excludes Adélie Land, where French sovereignty is not widely recognized. The lands are not connected to France Antarctique, a former French colony in Brazil.

The territory has no permanent civilian population. Those resident consist of visiting military personnel, officials, scientific researchers and support staff. (read further)

French Southern and Antarctic Lands (TAAF) - Crozet Islands

French Southern and Antarctic Lands

Crozet

King Penguins at Marin Bay. In the background is Marion Dufresne II.

Sent by Philippe, the Mail Manager of Crozet. Thanks to François ZABROT, the Chief District of Crozet for the arrangement.

The Crozet Islands (French: Îles Crozet; or, officially, Archipel Crozet) are a sub-antarctic archipelago of small islands in the southern Indian Ocean. They form one of the five administrative districts of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands.

Papua New Guinea - National Parliament House

PAPUA NEW GUINEA

National Parliament House

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The National Parliament of Papua New Guinea is the unicameral national legislature in Papua New Guinea. It was first created in 1964 as the House of Assembly of Papua and New Guinea, but gained its current name with the granting of independence in 1975.

The 109 members of the parliament all serve five-year terms. 89 members are elected from single-member "Open" electorates, which are sometimes referred to as "seats" but are officially known as constituencies. The remaining 20 are elected from single-member "Provincial" electorates, each covering a province-level division: the 18 provinces, the autonomous province of Bougainville (North Solomons), and the National Capital District. Each Provincial member becomes the Governor of the province, unless they take up a ministry, in which case the position of Governor passes to one of the Open members from the province.

From 1964 until 1977 an Optional Preferential Voting System was used. The first past the post system was used from 1977 until 2002. Electoral reforms introduced by former Prime Minister Mekere Morauta introduced Limited Preferential Voting, where voters number their first three preferred candidates. LPV was first used nationally in the 2007 election.

As in other Commonwealth Realms, the party or coalition with the most seats in the parliament is invited by the Governor-General to form a government, and their leader subsequently becomes Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea, with the Prime Minister then appointing his cabinet from fellow members of the parliament.

Papua New Guinea has a fractious political culture and no party in the history of the parliament has yet won majority government. This has meant that negotiations between several parties have been necessary for governments to be formed. New governments are protected by law from votes of no confidence for the first 18 months of their term and in the last 12 months before a national election. More recently, in a move aimed at further minimizing no-confidence motions, then-Prime Minister Mekere Morauta introduced changes that prevented members of the government of the day from voting in favour of such a motion.

There is universal franchise for all citizens over the age of 18, although voting is not compulsory. (Source)

St. Vincent & The Grenadines - Tobago Cays

St. Vincent & The Grenadines
Tobago Cays

Sent by Jay from St. Vincent & The Grenadines.

The Tobago Cays are an archipelago comprising five small uninhabited islands - Petit Rameau, Petit Bateau, Baradol, Petit Tobac and Jamesby - located in the Southern Grenadines. The Tobago Cays are now the key element of the Tobago Cays Marine Park, a national park and wildlife preserve run by the St.Vincent and the Grenadines government. The Tobago Cays Marine Park consists of a 1,400-acre (5.7 km²) sand-bottom lagoon which encompasses four uninhabited cays and the 4 km Horseshoe Reef. While the cays are uninhabited, they are surrounded by the three larger inhabited islands of Union Island, Mayreau and Canouan.

The most extensive and well-developed coral reef complexes in St. Vincent & the Grenadines occur on shallow shelves around the windward sides of Mayreau and Union Islands and the Cays themselves. In addition, principal vegetation types include beach vegetation and dry forest. With the exception of a small mangrove in Petit Rameau and salt pond in Mayreau, there are no wetlands in the Cays.

Major users of the area include: cruise ships (an estimated 50,000 visitors each year of which 10,000 visit the Cays); yachts (an estimated 3,000 yachts anchor in the lagoon each year); day charters (from nearby hotels); sport divers and snorkelers; and fishing enthusiasts. (read further)

St. Vincent & The Grenadines - Owia Salt Pond

St. Vincent & The Grenadines
Owia Salt Pond

Sent by Jay from St. Vincent & The Grenadines.

Continuously refreshed by waves cascading over the volcanic rock formations that surround the pools, it feels as if you are bathing in an aquarium. Reef fish and even coral formations add colour and life to what is a unique, peaceful and very special natural phenomenon.

The Owia Salt Pond is located on the North Eastern Coast of St. Vincent in the village of Owia which is home to some of the indigenous people of St. Vincent and the Grenadines – the Black Caribs. The salt water pond is sheltered from the sea by the numerous volcanic boulders which surround it.

The two hour drive from Kingstown along the Eastern Coast takes you to this recreation site which occupies a fairly extensive area of well maintained grounds which leads down to the sea where the salt pond is situated. Traditionally, it has been used as a therapeutic bathing pond. (read further)

St. Vincent & The Grenadines - Baleine Falls

St.Vincent & The Grenadines
Baleine Falls

Sent by Jay from St. Vincent & The Grenadines. He is now working with the Ministry of Tourism and he used to live in Malaysia from 2007 till 2009. Terima kasih Jay.

South Korea - Hwaeomsa Temple

Gakhwangjeon (Hall) in Hwaeomsa Temple

Sent by Nurul from Jeju Island, South Korea. Terima kasih banyak-banyak.

Hwaeomsa (Sino-Korean: hwa-eom-sa 華嚴寺, literally "Flower Garland Temple") is a head temple of the Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism. It is located on the slopes of Jiri-san, in Masan-myeon, Gurye County, in the province of Jeollanam-do, South Korea. It was constructed under the Silla dynasty in 544, burned down during the Seven Year War in the 1590s, and rebuilt thereafter.

Four national treasures of South Korea are located within the temple. These include Gakhwangjeon Hall, an ancient stone lantern, and a three-storied stone pagoda supported by four stone lions. There are eight treasures of South Korea such as the Lion Pagoda in front of Wontongjeon Hall. (Source)

Portugal - Madeira - Laurisilva of Madeira

Levadas, Madeira

Sent by Andrew Zino, the CEO of Laurislva of Madeira.

The Laurisilva of Madeira consists of approximately 15,000 ha within the 27,000 ha Madeira Nature Reserve. The site conserves primary laurel forest (laurisilva), a vegetation type that is now confined to the Azores, Madeira and the Canary Islands. The laurisilva on Madeira is the largest area of laurel forest surviving and is in very good condition, with around 90% believed to be primary forest.

Fossil evidence shows that laurisilva flora once covered much of southern Europe in the Tertiary era, 15-40 million years ago, and what is now seen in Madeira is the largest surviving relict of a virtually extinct flora of great interest. As climate change brought about its demise on continental Europe, the ocean-moderated climate of the island groups of the Azores, Madeira and Canary Islands maintained relicts of this previously widespread forest type.

The laurel forest has great ecological value, playing an important role in maintaining the ecological balance of the island. It provides ecological services to the island by protecting the micro-climate and maintaining water supplies by collecting and retaining water. The forest completely covers a series of very steep, V-shaped valleys leading from the plateau and east-west ridge in the centre of the island to the north coast. Ancient trees in the valley bottoms, waterfalls and cliffs provide spectacular scenery. At the higher altitudes, arborescent plants in normally herbaceous genera such as sow-thistle cling to steep cliffs and in the valley bottom giant ferns abound.

The laurisilva of Madeira is notable for its biological diversity with at least 66 vascular plant species endemic to Madeira occurring in the site.

13 liverwort species and 20 moss species are listed as rare or threatened on a European scale; and endemic animals include a species of pigeon (Madeiran long-toed pigeon, which eats the laurel fruits); a lizard species; two species of bat; and endemic subspecies of chaffinch and fire-crest. (Source)