1. Islands

Category Archives: Islands

10 islands to love–none in the latest TripAdvisor list

Posted on by

The other day, when TripAdvisor listed the ten top islands in its new Travelers Choice poll, I decided I needed to get out more. Id been to only three.

Then I noticed what was missing.

So to Hellas (thats Greece) with their list. Since these things are just arbitrary conversation-starters anyway, Im pretending to be incensed and making my own. No crowd-sourced wisdom, just my memory.

I should admit it's been 20 years since I've laid eyes on some of these places, but I have seen them all. One of the reasons we love islands, I think, is that the way they hold onto their own cultures, even as the surrounding world changes by the day.

Also, these are not all swimsuit destinations. I don't blame East Coast folk for spending their February days imagining warm distant beaches, but out here in the hot, dry West, we're willing to fantasize about islands of all stripes.

Anyway, here (with photo gallery above) are 10 islands the Trip Advisor voters missed.

10. Krk, Croatia. Despite an appalling lack of vowels, this Adriatic island has a wealth of pebbly beaches, deep blue sea, low-key atmosphere and small-scale affordable lodgings. But be careful of the home brew. Plenty of islanders make it (fig schnapps, for instance), and many are so generous that theyll offer you some. You need to stop at one shot, if not sooner.

9. Moorea, French Polynesia. Glass-bottomed hotel rooms (not the whole floor, just a bit under the coffee table). An amazing array of fish that are easy to see, even if you snorkel on the surface. You can circle the island by bike in half a day. It was here that a waiter once beckoned my wife and me by saying: Live music tonight. American girl. Autoharp. Interesting.

8. Paros, Greece. Santorini and Mykonos get most of the attention, but their lazier neighbors in the Cyclades have much to offer. Naxos (beloved by the TripAdvisor people) is one, but I preferred the windmills and whitewashed walls of Paros.

7. Santa Cruz Island, California. This is part of Channel Islands national Park, off Ventura -- no restaurants, no hotels, no retail, just a raw reminder to kayakers and campers of what coastal California looked like 200 years ago. If you camp on a slow night, itll feel as though you have the island to yourself.

The rest is here:

10 islands to love--none in the latest TripAdvisor list

Deportation to cyclone-ravaged islands must stop – Sio

Posted on by

Immigration New Zealand must immediately stop deporting Tongan overstayers to the cyclone-ravaged islands of Haapai on humanitarian grounds, Labours Pacific Islands Affairs spokesperson Sua William Sio says.

"It is inhumane for immigration authorities to deport a Tongan woman with a heart and thyroid condition whose doctor has said she is unfit to fly.

"The woman, who doesnt want to be named, has told media the nearest hospital to her Haapai home doesnt have the facilities to treat people with heart problems.

"Immigration New Zealand is putting her life at risk.

"The Tongan Advisory Council has described the situation in the Ha'apai islands - where 5000 people were displaced and 800 homes destroyed by Cyclone Ian - as bleak.

"Island residents are surviving on donations from the New Zealand Tongan community which has sent 10 container loads of food and water.

"Pacific Islands Affairs Minister Sam Lotu-Iiga needs to step in and order Immigration New Zealand to call a temporary halt to deporting people back to the Ha'apai islands.

"When Labour first called for a halt to these deportations last week, the Minister said he needed genuine examples before he took action. He now has no excuse and should do the right thing," Sua William Sio says.

See the rest here:

Deportation to cyclone-ravaged islands must stop - Sio

Deportation to cyclone-ravaged islands must stop

Posted on by

Sua WilliamSIO

Pacific Islands Spokesperson

25 February 2014 MEDIA STATEMENT

Deportation to cyclone-ravaged islands must stop

Immigration New Zealand must immediately stop deporting Tongan overstayers to the cyclone-ravaged islands of Haapai on humanitarian grounds, Labours Pacific Islands Affairs spokesperson Sua William Sio says.

It is inhumane for immigration authorities to deport a Tongan woman with a heart and thyroid condition whose doctor has said she is unfit to fly.

The woman, who doesnt want to be named, has told media the nearest hospital to her Haapai home doesnt have the facilities to treat people with heart problems.

Immigration New Zealand is putting her life at risk.

The Tongan Advisory Council has described the situation in the Ha'apai islands where 5000 people were displaced and 800 homes destroyed by Cyclone Ian as bleak.

Island residents are surviving on donations from the New Zealand Tongan community which has sent 10 container loads of food and water.

Read the rest here:

Deportation to cyclone-ravaged islands must stop

The Andaman islands are under serious threat

Posted on by

Are the islands of Andaman and Nicobar potential terror hubs?

Yes, feels the administration of the Union Territory, which has said the possibility of left out LTTE cadre trying to make them a safe haven cannot be ruled out.

The administration has also conveyed to the government that foreigners from Myanmar, Bangladesh, Thailand and Sri Lanka often intrude into the archipelago.

The Home Ministry has told the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Home Affairs that according to the Union Territory Administration, Andaman and Nicobar Islands have settlers from Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Myanmar and possibility of these settlers being used "by elements from their erstwhile countries" cannot be ruled out.

"The UT government is of the view that left out LTTE cadre may look for safe havens in the near vicinity and may take advantage of our uninhabited islands for their temporary hideouts," the Home Ministry told the panel.

The Andaman and Nicobar Islands are situated in the Bay of Bengal at a distance of 1200 km from the mainland. These islands are spread over an area of 8249 sq km. This group comprises 572 islands of which only 38 are inhabited.

The island authority has conveyed that the local Tamil population in the islands, like other parts of the country, is also sympathetic to the cause of Sri Lankan Tamils.

Further, sympathy of Sri Lankan Tamil refugees who were brought and settled in these islands during 1960s and 1970s may be easily gained for abetting, aiding and assisting the LTTE outfit in providing temporary shelters under the thick forest covers in the islands.

"In fact the geographical locations and conditions make these islands an ideal place for providing safe havens for terrorist groups for jungle warfare training and even dumping grounds for arms and ammunition," the Standing Committee on Home Affairs has been informed.

Owing to its proximity to Myanmar (which is only 45 km from the northern most point of Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Indonesia is just 160 km from CampbellBay), Thailand and Indonesia, a large number of foreigners intrude into Indian territory for poaching of marine resources.

Go here to read the rest:

The Andaman islands are under serious threat

INVIZIMALS : The Lost Kingdom "walkthrough" #9 FLIGHT TO THE FLOATING ISLANDS – Video

Posted on by


INVIZIMALS : The Lost Kingdom "walkthrough" #9 FLIGHT TO THE FLOATING ISLANDS
INVIZIMALS : The Lost Kingdom, watch as i take the stage with this amazing game and see us switch into invizimals, powerful animals that will help us over co...

By: londontownn17

Excerpt from:

INVIZIMALS : The Lost Kingdom "walkthrough" #9 FLIGHT TO THE FLOATING ISLANDS - Video


  1. Islands