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Category Archives: Islands

Top 10 millionaires' paradise islands: where the rich and famous go to get away from it all

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1. Necker Island, British Virgin Islands, Sir Richard Branson The Virgin entrepreneur bought his 74-acre private paradise for $180,000 (113,000) in 1978 and, as a condition of sale, agreed to build a luxury resort. It now sleeps 28 people in 10 rooms, and rents for $62,000 (39,000) a day. For that, guests can enjoy two private beaches, pools, tennis courts, a personal chef and team of 60 staff.

2. Blackadore Caye, Belize, Leonardo DiCaprio Bought by the Wolf of Wall Street and Titanic star in 2005 for $1.75 million (1.1 million), DiCaprio, a keen environmentalist, is planning to build an eco-friendly resort on the 104 acre island near the famous barrier reef off the coast of Belize. He has said the resort will be open to the public as an example of sustainable tourism, complete with eco-tours of the island.

3. Little Halls Pond, Bahamas, Johnny Depp The actor is said to have paid $3.6 million for the 45-acre island in 2004 and renamed it after his daughter, Lily Rose. The island has six beaches and uses solar power for its energy supply. In 2009, Depp told Vanity Fair: I dont think Id ever seen any place so pure and beautiful. You can feel your pulse rate drop about 20 beats. Its instant freedom.

4. Musha Cay and the Islands of Copperfield Bay, Bahamas, David Copperfield One private island not enough for you? How about a whole chain. Magician David Copperfield owns a string of 11 islands including the largest, Musha Cay, 85 miles from Nassau in the Bahamas. A favourite with celebrities including Oprah Winfrey and Bill Gates, up to 24 guests can be accommodated at a time. Penelope Cruz and Javier Bardem were married there in 2010.

Celine Dion's island chteau

5. Ile Gagnon, Quebec, Celine Dion Situated on the Iles River, in her home state of Quebec in Canada, the singer had a stone mansion custom built for her on the 19-acre island in 2001. Ile Gagnon was put on the market for $29.6 Canadian dollars (18.6) two years ago but has yet to find a buyer.

6. St Phillips Island, South Carolina, Ted Turner Bought by the media mogul for $2 million (1.3 million) in 1979, the year before he launched CNN, the 5,000-acre St Phillips Island has two miles of beaches, maritime forests and lagoons. He also owns a 298-acre landing area on the neighbouring St Helena island.

7. Mago Island, Fiji, Mel Gibson At 8.5 square miles, Mago is one of the largest private islands in the South Pacific. It was bought by the actor for $15 million (9.4 million) in 2005 from a Japanese company. Descendants of the native inhabitants, who were relocated in the 19th century, have protested about his ownership.

8. Rooster Cay, Bahamas, Eddie Murphy The comedian paid $15 million (9.4 million) for the 15 acre island situated five minutes off the coast Nassau in 2007. He had previously owned another cay in the Bahamas, Pearl Island.

Hulopoe & Manele Bay, Lanai (Alamy)

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Top 10 millionaires' paradise islands: where the rich and famous go to get away from it all

News VietNamNet

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VietNamNet Bridge - Former Deputy Minister of Defence, Lieutenant General Nguyen Van Rinh, confirmed that Chinas construction activities on islands in Vietnams Truong Sa Archipelago (Spratly Islands) aim at military targets, laying the foundation for implementation of the "China dream".

China is turning Johnson South Reef into an artificial island. Photo: DSPL

China is building artificial islands in order to change the status quo of the Gac Ma (Johnson South) Reef and some areas in the Spratly Islands of Vietnam. What do you think about Chinas latest moves?

Former Deputy Minister of Defence, Lieutenant General Nguyen Van Rinh: Johnson South is actually a reef of the Sinh Ton (Sin Cowe) Island in the Spratly Islands of Vietnam. This is a brown reef, surrounded by a white coral belt. Only a few stones float on the sea and most of the reef is underwater. The Johnson South Reef is over 3km southeast of Vietnams Co Lin (Collins) Reef and marks the southwestern tip of Sin Cowe Island. In 1988, China used force to illegally seize Johnson South Reef of Vietnam.

Chinas declaration of improving the reef to serve people's lives is ridiculous because this is the new island, which is still under construction so it is it impossible to have civil activities there. According to satellite images, the building activities on the reef are on a large scale to form a floating island. In my opinion, the main goal of China still aims at military goals.

This is part of the long-term strategy: claiming Hoang Sa (Paracel) and Truong Sa (Spratly) Islands of China and laying the groundwork for the next steps, which is extremely dangerous to realize the "China Dream" and the U-shaped line claim.

Why does China choose Johnson South Reef to build a floating island and what threat will it pose?

Rinh: According to the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), countries cannot claim sovereignty over underwater reefs and "the reefs that do not sustain human settlements or do not have economic life will not have the exclusive economic zone or the continental shelf." Chinas new moves in the East Sea aim to turn the Johnson South Reef into an inhabited island to claim sovereignty.

On the other hand, the position of Johnson South Reef is very important for defense and military. If a military base is built there, it will control the entire military operations in the Spratly Islands of Vietnam. It is a threat to peace and security not only in the East Sea but also the entire Asia - Pacific.

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News VietNamNet

Hurricane Gonzalo gains strength in Caribbean as it nears Virgin Islands

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Published October 14, 2014

ST. JOHN'S, Antigua Hurricane Gonzalo formed in the Caribbean and was spinning early Tuesday on course to move out over open ocean after buffeting Antigua and nearby islands with heavy rain and dangerous wind.

Gonzalo passed near Antigua as a tropical storm, tearing roofs from people's homes and knocking down trees, then gathered enough force near the tiny territories of St. Martin and Anguilla to be reclassified as a hurricane.

"It's intensified at a pretty brisk pace since yesterday and we expect it to strengthen," said Michael Brennan, a senior hurricane specialist tracking the system from the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami.

The center of the strengthening hurricane was on track to pass northeast of the U.S. and British Virgin Islands. It was not expected to reach the U.S. mainland but forecasters said it could develop into a major hurricane over open ocean and pose a threat to Bermuda later in the week.

"It's certainly something that people in Bermuda will want to pay attention to," Brennan said.

As of 11 p.m. EDT, the center of Gonzalo was about 40 miles (65 kilometers) north-northwest of Anguilla. It had maximum sustained winds of 85 mph (140 kph) and was moving toward the northwest at 12 mph (19 kph).

Airports, government offices and school were shuttered in the British Virgin Islands as strengthening Gonzalo steamed toward the tiny territory of roughly 30,000 residents. Premier Orlando Smith called on people to secure their homes and businesses.

But Merlyn Brown, a resident of the British territory's 8-square -mile (20-square-kilometer) island of Virgin Gorda, said she had lived through many storms and hurricanes through the years and wasn't doing much to prepare for Gonzalo other than latching her windows and hoping for the best.

"I've been through a lot of these things so I just take them as then come. I don't get too worked up about the storms," said Brown, who works at a local gas station where more concerned residents were stocking up on fuel.

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Hurricane Gonzalo gains strength in Caribbean as it nears Virgin Islands

Hungary relieved to edge out Faroe Islands

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dm Szalai's first-half goal gives Hungary victory in Torshavn Captain Balzs Dzsudzsk relieved to leave with points in "difficult match" Lars Olsen "satisfied" with Faroe Islands display if not result Next games: Greece v Faroe Islands, Hungary v Finland (14 November)

Balzs Dzsudzsk, Hungary captainWe are happy with the result today, but not with our performance. It was a difficult match to play in. I'm happy with four points from our last two games and if we beat Finland at home we are in a good position.

Northern Ireland have surprised everyone in this group and I think it will be very interesting right to the last kick. I believe we can do it.

Lars Olsen, Faroe Islands coach I'm very satisfied with the performance. Of course, I'm not satisfied with the result. The better team lost today and that is the first time while I have been in the Faroe Islands that I have been able to say that.

I'm very pleased on behalf of the players that they made it work today. We have been working on playing the ball daring to play the ball through the centre and upfield. We succeeded fantastically with that today.

Unfortunately, we make some mistakes from time to time, and as I have said before, at this level that will be punished. In addition to the goal, which came from a corner, there is another high ball we don't clear properly, but that was actually the only thing we gave Hungary in addition to shots from distance. That's a fantastic performance just a couple of days after a really tough match in Northern Ireland.

Frdi Benjaminsen, Faroe Islands captain We have improved from match to match but still today was not enough for us to earn a point. We had good support from our fans. It is disappointing for us but we keep the faith and we believe it will happen soon. We had some young players in the team today and they did well. We're happy about that.

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Hungary relieved to edge out Faroe Islands

Cyclone alert in Andaman & Nicobar islands, heavy rains expected in next 48 hrs – Video

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Cyclone alert in Andaman Nicobar islands, heavy rains expected in next 48 hrs
The Meteorological Department has issued a warning against Cyclone Hudhud expected to hit parts of the country on 12 Oct. The department has also predicted heavy rains in various parts of the...

By: Headlines Today

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Cyclone alert in Andaman & Nicobar islands, heavy rains expected in next 48 hrs - Video

Typhoon Vongfong aims at Japans main islands

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WASHINGTON (MarketWatch)Typhoon Vongfong is heading toward Japans main islands after strong winds and heavy rains left more than 20 people injured in the southern Okinawan islands over the weekend.

Reports cited the Japan Meteorological Agency as saying the typhoon was due to make landfall on Japans Kyushu and Honshu islands as early as Monday morning.

The agencys chief forecaster, Hiroshi Sasaki, warned residents to take precautions including staying away from beaches or swollen rivers.

Tokyo and eastern Japan are expected to see strong rain and wind on Tuesday.

In Okinawa, Japans southernmost prefecture, local officials said at least 23 people were injured, including a 9-year-old girl who had her finger amputated after getting it caught in a door slammed shut by strong winds.

Vongfong comes a week after Japan was hit by typhoon Phanfone, which killed seven people, including three U.S. servicemen in Okinawa.

Meanwhile, a massive cyclone pounded southern India on Sunday morning, killing at least six people and damaging houses and crops.

Hundreds of thousands of people were forced to evacuate their homes, The Wall Street Journal reported. The storm, named Hudhud, hit the coast near a port city in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh at about 11:30 a.m. local time. The chief minister of the state said the extent of damage from the storm would become clear in a day or two after it subsided. He said Sunday evening at least 70% of communication had totally collapsed.

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Typhoon Vongfong aims at Japans main islands


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