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Where is surtsey?

            Surtsey is a volcanic island a few miles south-west of the West man Islands which are situated off the south coast of Iceland. The island appeared as a result of a volcanic activity on November 15, 1963. The Icelanders took the infant island into their care because it appeared in their territorial  waters.

            They called the volcanic vent Surtur, and the island Surtsey (island of Surtur): In Old Icelandic mythology Surtur was a giant who brought destructive fire from the south as a weapon in his fight with Frey, the god of fertility.

            During its early life there was doubt about the island’s chance of survival, and many thought it might disappear. A similar one did vanish in 1783 after erupting from sea 65 miles south-west of Reykjavik, the Icelandic capital. Survival and long life were assured when re­peated outpourings of thin flowing lava followed the first violent eruptions. The lava capped the volcano with a gently sloping regular dome which acted as a protective shield.

            The arrival of Surtsey was no real surprise. For the 10,000-mile Mid-Atlantic Ridge, of which Ice­land forms the largest above-sea land mass, had been active along its length for some years up to 1963, although since then things seem to have settled down, al­though further activity is always possible. The neighbouring West man Islands were produced by volcanic activity 8,000 years ago.

Picture credit: google

What is the Heligoland bight?

        The Heligoland Bight is an arm of the North Sea extending south and east of the red sandstone island of Heligoland. Heligoland is a small remote island of the German north Frisian group lying in the North Sea between the coast of Schleswig-Holstein and the estuaries of the Jade, Weser and Elbe. It is 5,249 feet long and 1,640 feet wide at its broadest point.

          In 1807 Heligoland was a Danish possession but it was seized by the English in 1814 and given to Germany in 1890. Before 1914 Germany developed it as a great naval base with an extensive harbor in the south-east. There was a network of underground fortifications and coastal batteries and it was known as the “Gibraltar of the north Sea”. The Heligoland Bight became famous as the scene of a naval battle between the British and the Germans on August 28th, 1914.

Heligoland became a strong hold again under the Nazis and the capital town of Heligoland was destroyed by Allied bombers. In 1947 the whole character of the island was changed by the destruction of the fortifications.

Picture credit: google

Where is the Gulf Stream?

          The Gulf Stream is in the Atlantic. It is a warm ocean current which flows steadily from the Gulf of Mexico north-eastwards. One branch reaches the Canary Islands, turns southwards and moves back across the south Atlantic. The other branch flows past the western coasts of northern Europe.

           This current, which is like a river in the sea, is 50 miles wide at its narrowest and nearly 2,000 feet deep. It sweeps along with it many forms of warm water life from the tropics, but these die before they reach the European coasts where the warm water mixes with cold water moving down from the Arctic.

      The Gulf Stream has a great effect on the weather of Britain and Norway. The prevailing south-westerly winds are warmed by it and collect moisture which turns into rain. In winter the warm water keeps open the cold northern ports, such as Hammerfest, in Norway, and Murmansk, in the Soviet Union, while harbours in the Baltic, many miles farther south, are blocked with ice. In summer it causes bright flowers to bloom on the West coast of Spitzbergen 500 miles north of Norway. In contrast, the east coast, cooled by arctic water, is bleak and colorless.

       In 1912 the United States congress was asked for money to build a jetty which, it was thought, would divert the Gulf Stream and make it flow up the east coast of the United States. Although this scheme was unlikely to be successful, it was just as well for Britain and Norway that it was never tried. Without the Gulf Stream, Britain’s winters would be very much longer and colder, and Norway’s harbours, which are vital to the country, would be frozen over for many months.

What makes the Mamanuca Islands a place to see?

           The Mamanuca Islands are a group of volcanic islands in Fiji that lie to the west of Nadi and south of the Yasawa Islands. Altogether the archipelago consists of 20 beautiful islands out of which only a few are inhabited.

          What makes the Mamanuca Island cluster a popular tourist destination is its coastal beauty. The sandy beaches, live coral reefs, and the crystal clear water together offer an amazing experience to the visitors of this serene archipelago.

          In addition, one can also engage in activities like swimming, diving, surfing and snorkelling in the waters here.

          The Namotu Island noted for luxury resorts, the Plantation Island or Malolo Lailai that offer water sports and the Castaway Island, or Qalito are some of the major tourist sites in Mamanuca.

 

What makes Faroe Island a tourist attraction?

          Faroe Islands is a cluster of beautiful islands in the North Atlantic Ocean that lie between Iceland and Norway. It is a self-governing administrative division of Denmark. As many as 17 inhabited islands are part of this cluster, along with many islets and reefs.

          The Faroe Islands are said to be high and rugged due to their volcanic composition.

          The islands are largely treeless and the natural vegetation consists of moss, grass, and wetland. It also lacks indigenous mammals, reptiles and toads but is home to rats and hares. There are as well numerous sea birds on the island.

          The Faroese people are said to be mostly descendants of Norwegian Vikings who colonized the place in AD 800. Many of them depend on sheep rising for their livelihood. But the economy of the island primarily focuses on fishing and related industries. Faroese and Danish are the two official languages on the island. The former had a rich oral literature that was not written down until the 19th century.

Why is Lamu Island considered as a must visit place?

          One of the most attractive places in Africa, the Lamu Island, is a part of the Lamu Archipelago of Kenya. The island stands out for its beauty.

          Geographically, the island is composed of a town and three villages – Shela, Matondoni and Kipungani. When one reaches the land, one cannot wait for a taxi or any other motor vehicle, simply because there aren’t any on the island! Yes, that is one of the major features of Lamu that people use only non-motor modes of transportation like donkeys, bicycles etc.

          The most important part of the island is the Lamu Old Town, which was once a major trading centre in coastal East Africa. It is also a historically important centre of Swahili culture, as well as religion.

          Some of the historic sites here include the German Post Office and the Lamu Fort. Another sight that stirs wonder in the mind of any traveller is the use of coral stone and mangrove timber throughout the island, which is a Swahili feature.

 

Who discovered Australia?

          Australia is the smallest continent but the largest island (piece of land covered with water from all sides) of the world. Its total area is about 8,000,000 sq. km (3,000,000 sq. miles). People during the medieval times talked about the existence of a large continent in the Southern Hemisphere. No one had seen it and people wondered what it was like and whether it was inhabited at all. It was called the ‘unknown southern land’.

          During the 16th century, European countries had been seeking new lands in order to expand their commercial activities. In 1606 the Dutch were the first to visit Australia. Their ship called the ‘Dnyffkin’ anchored off the Northern coast of Australia. When some of its crew went ashore to refill their water casks, they were driven out by the fierce natives. The Dnyffkin sailed away without exploring any other part of the vast continent.

          In 1642 Captain Abel Tasman was sent by the Dutch to explore more about the continent. He sighted the west coast, which he called Van Diemen’s Land (Tasmania). Later he explored New Zealand. In 1770 the English Captain James Cook discovered the South Eastern coast of Australia and named it New South Wales. In 1788 the first English colony was established in the city of Sydney.

          Who, then, were the first inhabitants of Australia?

          Before the arrival of Europeans in the late 18th century the country was first inhabited by the Aborigines who reached Australia from Southern Asia about 20,000 years ago. In 1870 there were about 300,000 Aborigines in Australia. They arrived in two groups; the first group was eventually driven from the south-east into Tasmania; the second was racially quite different which occupied the rest of Australia.

          Today, Australia is among the highly developed countries of the world. Its inhabitants are self-sufficient in almost every respect. It has many distinctive features. Two-third of its land is a desert. It is, however, rich in minerals like gold, tungsten, manganese, cobalt, lead and zinc. Its unique wild life includes animals like kangaroo, koala and birds like emu, black swan. The plants like giant eucalyptus and bottle tree are found here in abundance.

 

What makes Singapore unique?

Singapore is the world’s only island city state. It consists of 63 islands that together form a global city, and a sovereign state.

 The island nation of the Republic of Singapore lies one degree north of the Equator in Southern Asia. Singapore was founded by Sir Stamford Raffles in 1819 as a trading post of the British East India Company.

 After the company collapsed, the British Government took over. Singapore became independent in 1963. Though physically small, Singapore is an economic giant. It has been Southeast Asia’s most modern city for over a century.

Singapore existed even before the founding of the trading post. According to local history, it was founded in 1324 by Sang Nila Utama, a Srivijayan prince from Palembang, or present day Indonesia.

 While hunting in the island of Temasek, he saw a strange animal with an orange body and black head. He was told that it probably was a lion. Believing it to be a good omen, he founded the city, and named it Singapura, which means Lion City.