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Sitting with my heart in my mouth on an incredibly shaky and unsteady rubber kayak at Ko Hong in the Phang Nga Bay, in the middle of the Andaman Sea just off the island of Phuket, I turned with some difficulty to catch a glimpse of this sight. For a while I thought that the pillar rock (called a 'stack' in geological terms) in the centre was the one at James Bond Island which appeared in the Bond film The Man with the Golden Gun. No, this isn't - it only looks like that- the one next to James Bond tapers narrowly downwards, just the opposite of this. We will get there later. I am on the James Bond Islands tour and this is our second stop on the tour, for a spot of sea kayaking. I have behind me a totally obnoxious and selfish blogger from Lebanon who kept pushing his two feet into my back and not backing off despite me pushing him away several times. Indeed, it takes all kinds, including some totally obnoxious and selfish folk I guess. (Phuket, Thailand, Oct/ Nov. 2019)
Bohemian Switzerland - Bohemian Switzerland is the czech part of the Elbe Sandstone Mountains in northern Bohemia. The landscape of Bohemian Switzerland has for centuries fascinated geologists, sport climbers and the romantic souls of artists. Most of the nature reserve is blanketed by forest.
Die Böhmische Schweiz liegt im Nordwesten von Tschechien. Diese Landschaft ist voll von geheimen Orten mit einer sehr interessanten Geschichte. Die Region wird auch sächsisch-böhmische Schweiz genannt, denn geologisch ist die sächsisch-tschechische Grenzregion einheitlich und den meisten Besuchern unter dem oft als synonym verwendeten Begriff Elbsandsteingebirge bekannt.
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A selfie during the jungle walk- I should have worn green. This is in the village of Sauraha, bordering the Chitwan National Park in Nepal. Detailed notes about Sauraha and the Chitwan National Park appeared earlier in this album. (see previous pictures). On this walk, we spotted wild Rhino tracks. captive elephant tracks, a wild Rhino and her calf wallowing in water and taken in the sights and smells of a walking safari. It was rather unnerving that my solitary guide was not carrying even a stick, let alone a rifle, but it was fun and the sighting of the Rhino pair in the water- albeit far away and in very poor light- was the icing on the cake. (see previous pictures earlier in this album). (Sauraha, Chitwan, Nepal, Oct/ Nov. 2019)
Artisanal and small scale mining in Gabon. Learn more about mining incursions into protected areas and critical ecosystems: www.profor.info/knowledge/impact-artisanal-and-small-scal...
It is Located 60 south of Wadi EL-Rian in El-Fayoum oasis. This is around 150 km southwest of Cairo. The site today is a reserve area and a natural Heritage Site
It is an area of fossils; considered as an open museum which dates back to 40 million years and contains petrified primitive whales skeletons, shark teeth, shells and roots of Mangroves preserved in soft rocks.
It is also home to 15 species of desert plants, sand dunes and about 15 types of wild mammals including the white deer the Egyptian deer and the red fox.
UNESCO said the value of Wadi Al-Hitan lies in the fact that it is evidence as one of the major stages of evolution: the transformation of the whale from a land to mammal. It is believed that whales once had feet that enabled them to walk on shore before getting into the water, moving easily between land and sea.
The floating homes on Koh Panyi Moslem fishing village come into view. I am on the Ao Phang Nga National Park speedboat tour, known more commonly as the James Bond Islands tour, and we have now reached this floating village, which will be our lunch stop on the tour. When the Moslem Indonesian fishermen came by looking for a place to settle, they found the seas around the island rich with fish. The sheltered bay also provided the fishermen a safe place to build a village on stilts with wooden huts over the shallow waters. Although there are still fishermen here, tourism has become a more important source of income for local people. There are now several seafood restaurants and souvenir shops on the island. Notes about the Ao Phang Nga National Park appeared earlier in this album. (see previous pictures). (Phuket, Thailand, Oct/ Nov. 2019)
A pile of cut and dried grass along with growing grass inside the Okhla Bird Sanctuary in Noida, in the state of Uttar Pradesh in India. There are some electric transmission towers in the distance, not clear in the slight haze in the morning along with the view of a few buildings. The river Yamuna is very close by, lapping on the edges of the sanctuary.
After good start to the day with a pair of Rhinos right behind my hotel room, followed by a rather uncomfortable canoe ride and a forest walk through slush and quagmire, and after falling once into a ditch while attempting to jump over it after developing cold feet over walkng across it on a single thin log (see previous pictures earlier in this album), the afternoon promised to be a bit more comfortable, This was a jeep ride into the Chitwan National Park- I opted for the jeep rather than the elephant as the duration of the jeep ride was longer, and at any rate it was a question of ethics. Humans constantly riding on elephants causes permanent damage to the elephant's spine, leaving the poor animal invalid for life. So please DO NOT ride elephants wherever in the world your travels might take you. This jeep ride was not without drama either- the guide tried to put me in the middle seat, trying to give the window to a group of Caucasian tourists. I told him to bugger off, pointing to my large dSLR camera saying I want to take photographs. I would have probably opted out of the ride had he forced me- he fortunately didn't- the other tourists didn't like it either and asked the guide to let me be. (Sauraha, Chitwan, Nepal, Oct/ Nov. 2019)
Overly commercialized Ban Pru Nai was the last stop on the Phi Phi Islands speedboat tour. Although there are food options on this island, it was a total tourist trap and not a pleasant place to be. This is a sign advertising mats for rent. Mats? Aawww, come on guys! Like many reviews on Tripadvisor and other travel websites said, this is stinky (both garbage and exhaust fumes from dozens of boats and seadoos (jet skis). Man Pru Nai is a total tourist trap. Other reviews on the net state that this island not worth a single minute. Usually you will get dropped off for 1 hr for a charge for 10 bhat from boats? But inside the island the only shade available is inside restaurants which rudely chase you out unless you pay 100 bhat for a chair or you buy their double priced juices/items. This place is so small and crowded to the neck and swimming place is quite small as well (picture 100s of people packed in 100 mtr stretch) . (yes, all that was from other reviews on the web- slightly edited for continuity but I let the reviews be in their original form- including semantic errors- as far as possible). (Phuket, Thailand, Oct/ Nov. 2019)
Here is another look at the wild One-horned Rhino grazing in the distance. Now here was a Rhino just feet away from us (see previous pictures earlier in the album), sitting, and yet, although this beast was much further away, this was the animal that was most thrilling for us. This was a true wild Rhino, in the bush, very dangerous, and very wild indeed. Well, so was the one right in front of us as well, but he did not have that air of being formidable as he was sitting peacefully and appeared to be a juvenile. Rhinos inhabit the alluvial flood-plain vegetation of sub-tropical climates where water and green grass is plentiful all year round. Many Rhinos now live within specific pockets of suitable Rhino habitat in the Chitwan National Park. Rhinos occurred in highest densities along the flood plain grasslands and riverine forests bordering the Rapti, Narayani, Reu, and Dhungre rivers, suggesting that flood plain grasslands dominated by 4-6 m tall Saccharum spontanium (a type of grass) are the single most critical habitat for these magnificent animals. Grasslands interspersed with patches of riverine forests together make about 30% of the area of the Chitwan National Park and have plenty of specific grass types (like the one I just mentioned above) which is the fundamental food resource for the Rhinos, comprising more than 60% of their diet. Sadly,ue to the flood and vegetation succession, the grassland may have decreased, but then, so has the Rhino population unfortunately, compared to earlier at least, so the surviving population still find plenty to eat in the Chitwan National Park. (Sauraha, Chitwan, Nepal, Oct/ Nov. 2019)
A final selfie before the Koh Tapu pillar rock (called a 'stack in geological terms) on Khao Phing Kan or James Bond island before we move on. This island was the shooting location for the 1974 Bond film The Man with the Golden Gun. Khao Phing Kan or James Bond Island is part of the Ao Phang Nga National Park. Detailed notes about the James Bond film as well as about the Ao Phang Nga park appeared earlier in this album. (see previous pictures), so I will save you any further commentary. (Phuket, Thailand, Oct/ Nov. 2019)
I am on the Phi Phi Islands tour just off Phuket, Thailand, and we have just made our first stop of the tour at Maya Bay, which was the location where the 1999 Hollywood movie The Beach was filmed. Sadly, the sheer crowds and the consequent over tourism after the movie was released led to much damage to the coral reefs around Maya Bay and the environment, so much so that the authorities have closed the beaches on Maya Bay to tourists till 2021 at least. That does not however stop scores of tour boats disgorging large numbers of tourists here for swimming and snorkeling- so much for environmental protection. I was frankly getting a tad bored here as the stop has been longer than I had bargained for, but as you can see most boats have been calling their passengers back. But there are still a handful of people splashing about, unconcerned about others on the boat. So inconsiderate of them- sad. Detailed notes about the Phi Phi Islands National Park appeared earlier in this album. (see previous pictures). (Phuket, Thailand, Oct/ Nov. 2019)(Phuket, Thailand, Oct/ Nov. 2019)
While I personally travel solo, and love the advantages of it, traveling solo can be a curse at times, especially if you are cursed to be paired with a very obnoxious individual. I am on the incredibly shaky and unstable rubber kayak on the Andaman sea for a ride through the caves here at Ko Hong. Sadly, I have been paired with a very selfish and inconsiderate blogger from Lebanon who kept pushing his feet into my back all the time- he was filming and talking to himself all the time and couldn't give a damn that he was inconveniencing someone eise. I pushed his feet away politely initially, then with some force later but the he started grumbling to the boatman that he wants to switch places with me- mid sea when the boat is already rocking? Fortunately the boatman told him to hold his guns till he came to a little beach a little further away. It takes all kinds, including totally obnoxious ones, to make up the world I guess. (Phuket, Thailand, Oct/ Nov. 2019)
The Community Baboon Sanctuary Women’s Conservation Group hosted a summer camp for children from seven local villages. The summer camp is a community educational outreach program that focuses on environmental awareness, conservation issues and academics. The Community Baboon Sanctuary Women’s Conservation Group was founded in 1998 and is responsible for Co Managing the Community Baboon Sanctuary. The Community Baboon Sanctuary (CBS) is a pioneering project in voluntary grassroots conservation. The goal is to sustain the habitat of the Black Howler Monkey (called 'baboon' in the local Creole dialect) while promoting the economic development of the participating communities. To learn more about this organization visit their website www.howlermonkeys.org/ and visit their profile at apamo.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&a...
Coral Reef, Cabo Pulmo National Park, UNESCO World Heritage Site, Sea of Cortez, Baja California, Mexico
American Robin is rare but regular on Herschel Island. This one was feeding along the edge of a retrogressive thaw slump.
I am on a morning jungle walk following a boat ride on the East Rapti river in the Chitwan National Park in Nepal. (see previous pictures earlier in this album). Well, a wet, muddy, slushy and waterlogged jungle walk and one nasty fall into a wet and muddy ditch later, we came across another boat ride. Yes, this was another of those really low canoes in which you had to literally squat on the floor- well, not literally, but the stool provided is barely a couple of inches high. We then end up here, at the Elephant Breeding and Training Centre in Khorsor, another part of the Chitwan National Park. We approach from the rear and have to walk around the elephant sheds to get here. This little elephant calf was walking around on his own and was giving us pretty nice photo ops. Pretty cute isn't he? (or a she- I couldn't really make out). (Sauraha, Chitwan, Nepal, Oct/ Nov. 2019)
A tag indicating a trap in the area, Yoko forest reserve 34 km from Kisangani, Democratic Republic of Congo.
Photo by Ollivier Girard/CIFOR
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Another halt in the Phi Phi island cluster to allow tourists time for a spot of snorkeling and swimming. I am on the speedboat our around the Phi Phi islands. What, another stop already? We've just had a pretty long halt at Maya Bay (see previous pictures earlier in this album). One again, I'm not 100% sure of the name of this stop but I think this is the Pi Leh Bay, also referred to as Pi Leh Cove or Pi Leh Lagoon. Pi Leh Bay is one of the most impressive sites in the Koh Phi Phi islands cluster. Pi Leh Bay or Ao Pileh is like a canyon, almost cutting Koh Phi Phi Leh in two. Located on the eastern side of the island, a few hundred metres south of Viking Cave, it takes about 30 minutes for a long-tail boat to get there from Tonsai Bay, the main arrival/departure pier on at Phuket, Thailand. This stop, again pretty crowded with speed boats and tourist vessels as you can see, has been offered as a snorkeling destination. The halt here was mercifully much shorter than the one we've just had at Maya Bay. (see previous pictures earlier in this album). (Phuket, Thailand, Oct/ Nov. 2019)
Hveravellir þar sem að litir eru magnaðir
Hveravellir Iceland
Speeding away from the Viking Cave with supposedly Western style paintings inside it, hence the cave's name. Of course we could not get off here, and this was a mere photo stop, meaning you had to shoot from the boat, which was almost impossible due to the high boat walls, ventilator like slit windows, a seat coming in the way, people on that side of the boat standing up to strain their eyes through the ventilator windows and the boat only slowing down a bit and not actually stopping. It was difficult to point your camera into that small cave under the circumstances. Part of the Phi Phi island cluster off Phuket island, Thailand and included in the Phi Phi Islands National Park, the Viking Cave is supposed to have some Western style line drawings inside (which I could not see for reasons explained above). Today the cave is used in season for collecting birds’ (swallow) nests which are used extensively as food in many countries in SE Asia. The props and ropes seen here are for that purpose. The Viking Cave is located at the bottom of a tall limestone cliff on the northeastern side of the island, Known as Tham Phaya Nak in Thai, Viking Cave owes its name to the paintings found on the eastern southern walls of the cave: they represent various types of boats, including what resembles a Scandinavian drakkar (Viking longship). These paintings are however believed by some to be certainly quite recent, and were probably done by sailors taking shelter in the cave during a storm. (Phuket, Thailand, Oct/ Nov. 2019)
Done with the jungle walks and a rather disappointing jeep safari where the guide tried to relegate me to the middle seat, my Chitwan trip is practically over now. After a few minutes to freshen up, it was time to go for the Tharu Culture Program at the theatre opposite to our hotel. Tharu are the original inhabitants of Sauraha village, and the cultural show is organized by Nepal tourism and several local hotels in the towns of Sauraha and Meghauli. Apart from entertaining visitors to the Chitwan National Park, after the day's safari activities, the Tharu cultural show also plays a significant role in introducing Tharu Culture and tradition to the visitors. Traditional Tharu dances like the Danda Nach (Stick Dance), Ago Nach (Fire Dance) Mayur Nach (Peacock Dance) etc. are some the popular highlights of the cultural show. This one seems to be the Danda Nach or Stick Dance. (we will get to the peacock and fire dances later as we go along in this album. (see subsequent pictures later in the album). The program starts any time around 18:00 to 20:00 every evening. Some hotels include dinner with the dances but this one was in a theatre and no food was available. I did have dinner provided by my resort though after the show was over. (Sauraha, Chitwan, Nepal, Oct/ Nov. 2019)