Dinosaur Spotting on the Island of Kauai
By Nick on August 16, 2008
Have you ever wondered where the movie Jurassic Park was filmed? Do you remember those mountains, tropical forests, open plains and sandy beaches? If it weren’t for a few disgruntled, man-eating dinosaurs, that island would be paradise on Earth, well, at least after Kiribati has gone.
I did a little searching on Google and paid a second visit to Hawaii (the first was to Waikiki beach), this time for a virtual tour of Kauai, the oldest of the main Hawaiian islands.
Kauai is a mountainous island, and is home to one of the wettest spots on earth, which, according to Wikipedia, “has eroded deep valleys in the central mountains, carving out canyons with many scenic waterfalls.”
It certainly sounds like the place for a few Hollywood movies. In fact, as well as Jurassic Park, such titles as South Pacific, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Six Days Seven Nights, King Kong and Outbreak also used Kauai as a movie location. For a complete list of movies dating back to 1934, take a look at the Kauai Film Commission.
There might not be any real dinosaurs on Kauai, but that doesn’t make you any safer. You still have to watch out for the chickens! Apparently, one of the ethnic groups that live on Kauai are the Filipinos. When they moved to Hawaii, they brought along their fighting chickens. Sadly…
1992’s Hurricane Iniki may have caused an indirect change in KauaŹ»i’s ecosystem. Some say a chicken farm was destroyed, causing all of the chickens to roam free that one may see today. (Wikipedia)
Now, without any natural predators, the chickens are numbering in their thousands! Where are those dinosaurs when you need them?
Posted in World | 4 Comments
Lively Liverpool the city from Mersey
By Mark on August 14, 2008
Liverpool is a city and seaport in the English county of Merseyside next to the river Mersey in the north-west of England. It’s port trading started in the 17th century and unfortunately it became a very successful import centre of the slave traffic from Africa to the West Indies, and then very successful later in the textile industry, importing cotton and other materials to the United states of America and exporting textiles of different types from the counties of Lancashire and Yorkshire. Liverpool’s successful times as a shipbuilding industry and engineering as now come to an end, but the port still remains one of the main Atlantic ports in Europe. The city has two cathedrals, one of which is of modern design, they are both Roman catholic. Oswell as the mighty Cavern club, the Beatles and the Anfield football stadium, Liverpool is also renowned for her two university the university of Liverpool founded in 1903 and the John Moore’s University established in 1992. The population of Liverpool in between 2005 and 2006 was Metropolitan borough & City 436,100.
This is a picture taken from Google Earth of Liverpool in the United Kingdom.
This is a satellite picture taken by me from Google Earth of Liverpool.
Liverpool is well known for many things, but one of the main things the city is well known for is actually Liverpool F.C, now they don’t actually play in Liverpool, they play in Anfield which is within the borough of Liverpool. With all the success of the past and even the present whether winning trophies or just doing well in the Premiership, Liverpool really are a great team and being a Brighton and Hove Albion supporter, we had our times with Liverpool, times for us seagull fans to never forget, but Liverpool in my eyes is the best British football around and yes I believe the football is played better then Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester United. Other famous things are of course the Beatles with John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Star, probably the most success pop band of all time and especially in the sixties. Ferry cross the Mersey, The song was recorded by Gerry & the Pacemakers and released in late 1964 in the UK and in 1965 in the US. It was a hit on both sides of the Atlantic, reaching #6 in the US and charting twice in the UK.
This is a picture taken from panoramio of the front gates of Anfield Stadium with the quote “You Will Never Walk Alone”.
This is a picture taken from me on Google Earth of Anfield stadium.
This is a picture taken from panoramio of Liverpool Football Club’s Anfield Stadium from the air.
Liverpool is a very large city with alot of life going, during the day there are museums, cathedrals, parks, shops, cinemas, libraries, cafe’s and bars and great shows and plays. And in the evening alot of the above are still working, but the night clubs and pubs start raving as well as wine bars. There is so much to do in the city, that you will never get bored. Liverpool is surrounded by plenty of places to visit i.e. Birkenhead, Bootle, St.Helen’s, Ellesmere port, Warrington and Widnes, as well as the cities of Chester and Manchester not to far away from the city. And even oversea trips to Douglas, Isle of Man and Belfast in Northern Ireland. And which such a variety of different cultures it is the city to visit, so go and enjoy.
This is a picture taken from panoramio of the front entrance to the Cavern Club in Liverpool.
This is a picture taken from panoramio of the Cavern Club in Liverpool.
This is a picture of Bold Street in Liverpool with the St.Luke’s Church at the far end of the picture.
This is a picture taken from panoramio of St.Luke’s Church top of Bold Street, Liverpool.
- Learn about Liverpool on wikipedia
- Learn about Anfield Stadium on wikipedia
- Learn about the Cavern Club on wikipedia
- Learn about St.Luke’s Church on wikipedia
- Find Liverpool on Google Maps
Posted in Europe | 3 Comments
Beijing 2008 Summer Games in Google Earth
By Nick on August 12, 2008
Google has released a fantastic tour of the Beijing Olympics in Google Earth. You can explore it in 2D, but for the 3D buildings, you’ll need to download them from the official 2008 Summer Games by Google page. I found it quite tricky to get all the 3D stuff working, but if your computer can handle it, it’s worth the hassle.
Flying over Beijing during the Olympics reveals a red square with a the symbol of the Olympic torch in it…
Clicking that torch brings up an invitation to “Explore the Summer Games”…
Clicking the link zooms you out high above Beijing, and shows a box with Today’s Events, Calendar, Events and Venues…
Today’s Events, as expected, lists upcoming events along with times and participating teams or athletes. When you click on one of the events, you zoom in to see that building. Here’s where the men’s handball tournament is taking place.
Clicking on the “Summer Games 2008 ” link in the “Places” menu brings up the main menu again, and if you click on “Venues”, you’ll see over thirty venues to look at. Here’s the velodrome:
This one is the Beijing Institute of Technology Gymnasium:
And of course, the National Stadium where that spectacular opening ceremony took place:
Flying and zooming around the vennues in Google Earth is pretty exciting, but it is quite demanding on your computer. An easier way to see all the venues is to go to the 2008 Summer Games by Google page I mentioned earlier:
From there, you can check out and learn more about each individual venue and find other buildings in the various 3D collections:
So if you can’t get to the Olympics for real, and watching it on TV doesn’t do it for you, why not swing by Beijiing in Google Earth and get quite a unique overview of the Beijing Olympics. I’m glad I did!
The Caucasus country of Georgia
By Mark on August 12, 2008
Georgia is a small country in the northwest Caucasus area of southwest Asia. The country is on borders of Europe and Asia, and faces the black sea, and is separated from Russia, by the Caucasus mountains. And with all the problems going on there this beautiful little country is suffering. About one third of the country is forest, and the climate is subtropical with cool winters and hot summers, very wet in the east and dry in the west. On the coast the country has fruit trees, palms and eucalyptus flourish, where as in the east is treeless grassland, but very rich in minerals.
This is a picture taken from Google Earth of the Caucasus country of Georgia.
This is a satellite image of the capital city of T’blisi in Georgia taken from Google Earth.
The first ever Georgian state with around 2,500 years ago. But for most of the history of Georgia, the country has been ruled by many different conquerors and Christianity was founded in the country around 33oAD. In the 11th and 12th centuries Georgia managed to free herself from foreign rule, but yet again in the 13th century the Mongols attacked and took over the country and from the 16th to 18th centuries Iran and Turkish Ottoman Empire struggled to hold on to control and by the late 18th century Georgia joined Russia for protection. And by the 19th century Georgia was part of the Russian empire. After the Russian revolution in 1917, Georgia claimed independance, but Russia invaded making the country apart of the Russian regime. And in 1991 Georgia declared herself and independent state, it became a separate country when the Soviet Union was dissolved in that year.
This is a picture taken from the capital city of T’bilisi, Georgia on panoramio.
This is another part of the city of T’blisi taken from panoramio.
The capital city of Tblisi lyes on the river Kura, between the Caspian and the black seas. Founded in the 5th century and made a the capital city in the 6th century. The population of the city taken in 2005 was 1,093,000, Tblisi was developed in ancient times as a trading centre for Europe and the East and is supposingly one of the worlds oldest cities. And it has a reasonably good industry with the selling of petroleum products, chemicals, machine tools, locomotives and electrical equipment.
This is a picture taken from panoramio of a beautiful looking park in city of Batumi, southwest of Georgia.
This is a picture taken from panoramio of a sunset in the city of Sukhumi.
What I have learn’t about Georgia is it is a very beautiful looking country when it is not involved in dangerous conflict, but as the history goes this country has spent alot of her life fighting to gain independance. But the problems between them and Russia will probably always occur as the two countries do not always get on well with each other even though the Georgians do alot of trading with Russia. Lets hope that this conflict over South Ossetia which I have just heard on the news Russia have stopped fighting will end soon and that the Georgian and South Ossetian people can get back to their everyday normal life, but i expect it will take time to rebuild some of the building’s and shocking memories.
- Learn about Georgia on wikipedia:
- Learn about T’bilisi on wikipedia:
- Learn about Batumi on wikipedia:
- Learn about Sukhumi on wikipedia:
- Find Georgia on Google Earth:
- Find T’bilisi on Google Earth:
- Find Batumi on Google Earth:
- Find Sukhumi on Google Earth:
Posted in Asia | 2 Comments
A north eastern country, Poland the great.
By Mark on August 10, 2008
Poland is a country on the north eastern side of Europe, between Germany and the Czech Republic to the west, Slovakia to the south and the Baltic states of Belarus, Lithuania and the Ukraine to the east. The Oder(Odra) and the Vistula(Wisla) rivers delta dominate the coast, and inland most of the country is low-lying with woods and lakes. In the south of Poland the land rises to the Sudeten mountains and the western part of the Carpathian mountains which provides the borders of Poland to the Czech Republic and Slovakia. The climate in Poland is very continental with a wide range of temperatures. The north European plain is sandy places, marshy in other places and requires careful cultivation.
This is a satellite image of Poland taken from Google Earth.
This is a satellite image of the capital city of Poland, Warsaw taken from google Earth.
I have never been to Poland, but it is definitely the type of country that I would like to visit, being close to the Baltic states, I would expect Poland to have alot of history, especially religious history, but it would have alot of her own history. For example Poland became a kingdom in 9th century and was Christianized under Meizko I (962-992). Unity of the country was imposed by Ladislas I (1305-33) and then Casimir the great who brought the administration, and the country’s defenses and encouraged trade and industry. In 1386-1572 Poland was under the Jagiellon rule which lead to a brief time of Protestantism. In the 16th century Poland was at her largest when the country Incorporated with Lithuania. After some time problems began and the country was reduced by Russia and Sweden. And in the 18th century Poland lost her independancy during the northern war and the war of the Polish succession. The countries of Austria, Prussia and Russia gained. During the Saxony times Napoleon created the Grand Duchy of Warsaw, under the king of Saxony. Repression arrived in 1864 in Poland due to revolutions between Russian and Prussian Poland. After world war one Poland gained full independancy and became a republic. And during world war two Poland lost quite alot of territory to Germany and Russia, after the war the Germans left Poland for the federal republic of Germany and the Poles moved back into places that the Russians and Germans left. But the Russians were still involved in Poland. A Polish uprising occurred and the Polish government had to be protected by Russia’s red army. To join the Russian states. Poland stayed within Russia’s until 1994, when the last Russians troops left and Poland was now a fully independant country. Poland joined the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in 1999 and on the 1st May Poland became a member of the European Union.
This is a picture taken from panoramio of the capital city of Poland, Warsaw.
This is a picture taken from panoramio of the Royal Castle and Zygmunts column in Warsaw.
This is a picture taken from panoramio of a garden on the roof of a library in Warsaw.
I have really enjoyed reading and learning about Poland, My love for different countries, cultures, lifestyles etc gives me the enthusiasm to do these blogs and I thank you all for reading them, and I do hope that I give you enough information to help you on your journey’s around Virtual Tripping.
- Learn about Poland on wikipedia:
- Learn about Warsaw on wikipedia:
- Find Poland on Google Maps:
- Find Warsaw on Google Maps:
Posted in Europe | 4 Comments