Tuvalu

Once known as the Ellice Islands, Tuvalu is one of the most remote places on the planet. Tuvalu is located in the Pacific Ocean and is an island group consisting of nine coral atolls. The islands are low lying and narrow. They have suffered severe deforestation and as for water, only rain water is of use because there are no rivers on the islands.

The original inhabitants of Tuvalu arrived about 2000 B C from the islands of Samoa and Tonga. One of the most interesting aspects of Tuvalu involves its early inhabitants. The the Caves of Nanumanga, if proven legitimation would be one of the oldest archaeology sites in Oceania and would radically alter the chronology of Oceania's history. In 1986, two scuba divers found a cave beneath the water which showed possible burns. The most likely explanation for such burns would be fire by people. Dated to around 9000 B C it is an earth shattering discovery for the region. This site is difficult to access as it is underwater but highlights an example of the importance of the burgeoning field of Underwater Archaeology.


Tuvalu is not highly developed and the population is 10,472 spread across the islands. The future of Tuvalu and her people is uncertain, like MOST of Oceania. What is known, is that it is one of the last corners of the earth and might remain so forever.

Tasmania, Australia

Tasmania is located off the coast of Australia. It struck me that in some ways Tasmania is similar to Ceylon (Sri Lanka) in size and position off the mainland (of Australia and India respectively). Like many islands such as Ceylon, Madagascar or Socotra (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ed4BNecPiiM) Tasmania is a very unique place. It has a surreal quality about it and is one of the most isolated, last reached places on earth.

I also find its original inhabitants to be very interesting. Not only is mainland Australia remote but Tasmania is still further south than mainland Australia's southernmost point and a good deal off the mainland at that (over 100 miles). The Aborigonies who settled Tasmania were truely one of the most isolated people in the world, similar to the Maori of New Zealand in isolation. While recorded history of much more populated places went about in other parts of the world, the people of Tasmania were entirely removed from it and lived their own life. When Brutus killed Julius in Rome, the people of Tasmania were 10,171 miles (16.367 k) away. At Acamapichtli's coronation in Tenochtitlan, the people of Tasmania were 8,308 miles (13.369 k) away. And while Laozi and Confucius wrote books in China, the people of Tasmania were 6,000 miles (9728 k) away.

Tasmanias largest city is Hobart. The second largest city is Launceston and the third largest is Burnie-Devonport, Tasmania. Most of the time, Tasmania is cool but hot tempuratures are possible. Of all the places on earth, Tasmania would have to be near the top of the list as most interesting and unique.




Styx valley. In the valley of the Styx grow the Eucalyptus regnans, the tallest of all flowering plants. There are also ancient tree ferns and 1,000 year old myrtles. The Eucalypts are useful for wood pulp and the forest is being systematically clearfelled. Photo: TTaylor



Mount Wellington from Lindisfarne, Hobart. Photo: tubagooba



North Esk River from a bridge in Launceston. North Esk River, Launceston. The North Esk River, the boundary between Cornwall and Dorset. Photo:  Kyle sb.


Huon River in Tasmania, Australia. Photo of the confluence of the Huon with the Picton river. Photo taken from the Tahune Airwalk run by forestry Tasmania in mid summer 2003. Photo: Peripitus




The peak of Frenchmans Cap in Western Tasmania, Australia from near Lake Tahune Hut. Photo: Bourgeois



Lauderdale Canal, Tasmania. Photo: Sge


Cradle Mountain covered with could and Dove lake in the foreground Photo: Peripitus

Hellyer Gorge, Tasmania Photo: anyaka

Photo: J J Harrison.

City Profile 004: Doha, Qatar

CITY PROFILE 004: Doha, Qatar

Coordinates: 25°17′12″N 51°32′0″E
Elevation: 0
Daily Mean Temp: 80 fahrenheit
Metro Population: 1,723,064
Estimated 2050 Metro Population: ?
Risks: Miserably hot, unstable general area (Middle East), water issues, highest water using place in the world, reliant on costly and energy-intensive thermal desalination, pollution. 
Advantages: Booming economy, one of the wealthiest cities in the world, high HDI, high GDP, busy port.
Resources: Immediate: Port. Regional:  Oil and natural gas.
Other: Currently a trendy world location (as are neighbouring Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Manama), Al Jazeera is located in Doha.  


Photo: Abdulrahman

The Legend Of Boggy Creek

There are so many reasons the movie 'The Legend Of Boggy Creek' is relevant to this blog. First, it is a great piece of 70's film with a retro feel (and I like blogging about retro things like old shopping malls and deadmalls). Second, it is about cryptozoology which is always interesting (but lacking in proof) and overlaps with Geography in some ways. Third, the movie has many wildlife and geographic scenes in it. It talks about real, obscure places and real geographic features, like 'Boggy Creek'. Is southwestern Arkansas the Grand Canyon? No. But most people live in more average places like SW Arkansas, the middle of Denmark or Melbourne, Australia, than grand places such as Mount Everest or the Sahara Desert.

So today I am screening 'The Legend Of Boggy Creek'. Enjoy.



















'The Legend Of Boggy Creek' Streaming. 'The Legend Of Boggy Creek' Free Streaming. 'The Legend of Boggy Creek' Full Movie.

New Zealand

With a capital in Wellington, North Island and the largest city of Auckland, New Zealand is home to abundant resources and vast wilderness. Christchurch is the largest city on the South Island and Dunedin, NZ is the second largest on the South Island.


Dunedin


Photo taken by Steffen Hillebrand, near Totaranui, Abel Tasman National Park, NZ.



New Zealand's Milford Sound


Mount Cook, Photo: Jonathan Keelty


A view from Knight's Point, West Coast, New Zealand


Ducks on pond, Ashburton Domain, Ashburton, NZ, Photo: Greg O'Beirne


Panorama of Lake Taupo, North Island, New Zealand Photo: Nydhogg



The central business district of Gisborne viewed from Kaiti hill, Photo: Richard Grevers


Historic Kerikeri buildings -- Stone Store, St James, and Kemp House


A vineyard in the Hawke's Bay region of New Zealand, taken in autumn, Photo: HuttyMcphoo


A Photo of the canyon in the Huka Falls in Taupo, NZ, Photo: Antilived




Boat on Lake Karapiro, New Zealand, Photo: Floyd Wilde

City Profile 003: Shanghai, China

CITY PROFILE 003: SHANGHAI, CHINA


Coordinates: 31°12′N 121°30′E / 31.2°N 121.5°E / 31.2; 121.
Elevation: 4 m (13 ft)
Daily Mean Temp: 16.55 celcius (61.8 fahrenheit)
Metro Population: 22,210,000
Estimated 2050 Metro Population: 50,000,000
Risks: Gigantic population, housing problems, traffic problems, political unrest, military unrest, demographic challenges, censorship, smog, environmental issues.
Advantages: Booming economy, one of the wealthiest cities in China, abundant water, busy port.
Resources: Immediate: Port. Regional: Offshore oil, offshore natural gas.
Other:

Photo:FASTILY

List Of Every Country Capital

COUNTRY CAPITAL LIST


Afganistan - Kabul
Albania - Tirane
Algeria - Algiers
Andorra - Andorra la Vella
Angola - Luanda
Antigua and Barbuda - Saint John's
Argentina - Buenos Aires
Armenia - Yerevan
Australia - Canberra
Austria - Vienna
Azerbaijan - Baku
The Bahamas - Nassau
Bahrain - Manama
Bangladesh - Dhaka
Barbados - Bridgetown
Belarus - Minsk
Belgium - Brussels
Belize - Belmopan
Benin - Porto-Novo
Bhutan - Thimphu
Bolivia - La Paz (administrative); Sucre (judicial)
Bosnia and Herzegovina - Sarajevo
Botswana - Gaborone
Brazil - Brasilia
Brunei - Bandar Seri Begawan
Bulgaria - Sofia
Burkina Faso - Ouagadougou
Burundi - Bujumbura
Cambodia - Phnom Penh
Cameroon - Yaounde
Canada - Ottawa
Cape Verde - Praia
Central African Republic - Bangui
Chad - N'Djamena
Chile - Santiago
China - Beijing
Colombia - Bogota
Comoros - Moroni
Congo, Republic of the - Brazzaville
Congo, Democratic Republic of the - Kinshasa
Costa Rica - San Jose
Cote d'Ivoire - Yamoussoukro (official); Abidjan (de facto)
Crotia- Zagreb
Cuba - Havana
Cyprus - Nicosia
Czech Republic - Prague
Denmark - Copenhagen
Djibouti - Djibouti
Dominica - Roseau
Dominican Republic - Santo Domingo
East Timor (Timor-Leste) - Dili
Ecuador - Quito
Egypt - Cairo
El Salvador - San Salvador
Equatorial Guinea - Malabo
Eritrea - Asmara
Estonia - Tallinn
Ethiopia - Addis Ababa
Fiji - Suva
Finland - Helsinki
France - Paris
Gabon - Libreville
The Gambia - Banjul
Georgia - Tbilisi
Germany - Berlin
Ghana - Accra
Greece - Athens
Grenada - Saint George's
Guatemala - Guatemala City
Guinea - Conakry
Guinea-Bissau - Bissau
Guyana - Georgetown
Haiti - Port-au-Prince
Honduras - Tegucigalpa
Hungary - Budapest
Iceland - Reykjavik
India - New Delhi
Indonesia - Jakarta
Iran - Tehran
Iraq - Baghdad
Ireland - Dublin
Israel - Jerusalem
Italy - Rome
Jamaica - Kingston
Japan - Tokyo
Jordan - Amman
Kazakhstan - Astana
Kenya - Nairobi
Kiribati - Tarawa Atoll
Korea, North - Pyongyang
Korea, South - Seoul
Kosovo - Pristina
Kuwait - Kuwait City
Kyrgyzstan - Bishkek
Laos - Vientiane
Latvia - Riga
Lebanon - Beirut
Lesotho - Maseru
Liberia - Monrovia
Libya - Tripoli
Liechtenstein - Vaduz
Lithuania - Vilnius
Luxembourg - Luxembourg
Macedonia - Skopje
Madagascar - Antananarivo
Malawi - Lilongwe
Malaysia - Kuala Lumpur
Maldives - Male
Mali - Bamako
Malta - Valletta
Marshall Islands - Majuro
Mauritania - Nouakchott
Mauritius - Port Louis
Mexico - Mexico City
Micronesia, Federated States of - Palikir
Moldova - Chisinau
Monaco - Monaco
Mongolia - Ulaanbaatar
Montenegro - Podgorica
Morocco - Rabat
Mozambique - Maputo
Myanmar (Burma) - Rangoon (Yangon); Naypyidaw or Nay Pyi Taw (administrative)
Namibia - Windhoek
Nauru - no official capital; government offices in Yaren District
Nepal - Kathmandu
Netherlands - Amsterdam; The Hague (seat of government)
New Zealand - Wellington
Nicaragua - Managua
Niger - Niamey
Nigeria - Abuja
Norway - Oslo
Oman - Muscat
Pakistan - Islamabad
Palau - Melekeok
Panama - Panama City
Papua New Guinea - Port Moresby
Paraguay - Asuncion
Peru - Lima
Philippines - Manila
Poland - Warsaw
Portugal - Lisbon
Qatar - Doha
Romania - Bucharest
Russia - Moscow
Rwanda - Kigali
Saint Kitts and Nevis - Basseterre
Saint Lucia - Castries
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines - Kingstown
Samoa - Apia
San Marino - San Marino
Sao Tome and Principe - Sao Tome
Saudi Arabia - Riyadh
Senegal - Dakar
Serbia - Belgrade
Seychelles - Victoria
Sierra Leone - Freetown
Singapore - Singapore
Slovakia - Bratislava
Slovenia - Ljubljana
Solomon Islands - Honiara
Somalia - Mogadishu
South Africa - Pretoria (administrative); Cape Town (legislative); Bloemfontein (judiciary)
Spain - Madrid
Sri Lanka - Colombo; Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte (legislative)
Sudan - Khartoum
Suriname - Paramaribo
Swaziland - Mbabane
Sweden - Stockholm
Switzerland - Bern
Syria - Damascus
Taiwan - Taipei
Tajikistan - Dushanbe
Tanzania - Dar es Salaam; Dodoma (legislative)
Thailand - Bangkok
Togo - Lome
Tonga - Nuku'alofa
Trinidad and Tobago - Port-of-Spain
Tunisia - Tunis
Turkey - Ankara
Turkmenistan - Ashgabat
Tuvalu - Vaiaku village, Funafuti province
Uganda - Kampala
Ukraine - Kyiv
United Arab Emirates - Abu Dhabi
United Kingdom - London
United States of America - Washington D.C.
Uruguay - Montevideo
Uzbekistan - Tashkent
Vanuatu - Port-Vila
Vatican City (Holy See) - Vatican City
Venezuela - Caracas
Vietnam - Hanoi
Yemen - Sanaa
Zambia - Lusaka
Zimbabwe - Harare