When I was in Beijing saw two things that I thought were amazing. One of the many great things I saw in China was the Water Cube and Birds Nest. These buildings are where they held the 2008 Olympic Games. The Water Cube is a pool used for all the water actives in the games. The Birds Nest is where they held the opening and closing ceremony it is also used for the track and field in the games.
I also traveled from Beijing to the Great Wall of China. This wall was built to prevent nomads from attacking the Chinese. It as well marked there territory. The wall stretches more than 5000 km from the seacoast to the east. The Great wall is one of the great 7 wonders of the world. I thought the wall was very hard to walk on because it was very steep and the steps were very high off the ground. Over all in my trip to China I had a pretty great trip.
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Japan by Adam Boyle
If you ever get the chance to go to Japan, TAKE IT. Japan is a wonderful place, very, very clean, and the people are over the top nice. I never saw a piece of garbage anywhere, or graffiti on any buildings or walls. The people would help you out everywhere even if they didn’t speak English.
In our time in Japan we went to two places, Osaka and Hiroshima. In Osaka we took the subway to Kyoto, which was the capital of Japan from 794-1869. Also Kyoto was known as Heiankyo before its name was changed. In Kyoto we went to the Golden Pavilion, which was something that looked like a house, but part of it was made from gold! In addition to this we saw a shoguns palace called Nijojo Castle. Unfortunately, we couldn’t take pictures inside the palace but we got to take pictures outside and in the gardens, which were very well kept. During our time in Kyoto we spotted some sprouting cherry blossoms but due to the time of year they weren’t blooming. Just before I got back to the ship I bought a kimona. Kimonos are for women and kimonas are for men.
In Hiroshima, a U.S B-29 bomber by the name of Enola Gay released the first nuclear bomb on August 6th 1945. This horrific explosion killed over 200,000 people and demonstrated the enormous power of nuclear weaponry. The most deaths in this tragedy were caused by the radiation left over by the bomb. When I was visiting, I took a trolley train to the Peace memorial park where I saw numerous monuments dedicated to world peace. One of the memorials was the peace flame, a flame that will only be extinguished when all nuclear weaponry on the planet is eliminated. Including the memorials and monuments, I saw the Atomic dome. The Atomic dome is a building that was destroyed by the atomic blast of the bomb because it was almost exactly at the point on the ground where the bomb exploded (Ground zero). All that remains of the structure is a few hunks of metal and concrete chunks and dust.
If I ever get another chance to go to Japan I would love to see Tokyo and to ride a bullet train!
In our time in Japan we went to two places, Osaka and Hiroshima. In Osaka we took the subway to Kyoto, which was the capital of Japan from 794-1869. Also Kyoto was known as Heiankyo before its name was changed. In Kyoto we went to the Golden Pavilion, which was something that looked like a house, but part of it was made from gold! In addition to this we saw a shoguns palace called Nijojo Castle. Unfortunately, we couldn’t take pictures inside the palace but we got to take pictures outside and in the gardens, which were very well kept. During our time in Kyoto we spotted some sprouting cherry blossoms but due to the time of year they weren’t blooming. Just before I got back to the ship I bought a kimona. Kimonos are for women and kimonas are for men.
In Hiroshima, a U.S B-29 bomber by the name of Enola Gay released the first nuclear bomb on August 6th 1945. This horrific explosion killed over 200,000 people and demonstrated the enormous power of nuclear weaponry. The most deaths in this tragedy were caused by the radiation left over by the bomb. When I was visiting, I took a trolley train to the Peace memorial park where I saw numerous monuments dedicated to world peace. One of the memorials was the peace flame, a flame that will only be extinguished when all nuclear weaponry on the planet is eliminated. Including the memorials and monuments, I saw the Atomic dome. The Atomic dome is a building that was destroyed by the atomic blast of the bomb because it was almost exactly at the point on the ground where the bomb exploded (Ground zero). All that remains of the structure is a few hunks of metal and concrete chunks and dust.
If I ever get another chance to go to Japan I would love to see Tokyo and to ride a bullet train!
Friday, March 27, 2009
Saturday, March 21, 2009
Monday, March 9, 2009
Fuzzy Friends by Erin Boyle
(Cairns, Australia - March 1, 2009) In Australia I went to a koala sanctuary. When I was in the sanctuary I got the chance to hold a koala. So in my article I will be telling you about my experience with a koala.
If you are to look at a koala it would be grey with a white triangle below its neck, and it would also have lighter spots on it lower back, and it would have white ears. The koala that I held weighted about 20 pounds. The koala had not rough not to smooth but just the right texture for me to love. In Australia there are lots of wild koalas that are dangerous you so don’t go up to them if they are wild. But if you are in Australia go to a koala park and hold one. I loved it!!!
If you are to look at a koala it would be grey with a white triangle below its neck, and it would also have lighter spots on it lower back, and it would have white ears. The koala that I held weighted about 20 pounds. The koala had not rough not to smooth but just the right texture for me to love. In Australia there are lots of wild koalas that are dangerous you so don’t go up to them if they are wild. But if you are in Australia go to a koala park and hold one. I loved it!!!
New Guinea and Guam by Brad Boyle
We have just finished up a couple days near the equator with brief stops in New Guinea and Guam on our way from Australia to Japan. The New Guinea port of Rabaul was interesting for its active volcano with black smoke and small rocks constantly pouring out. In Guam we took a boat tour to see pods of dolphins playing in the ocean and another snorkeling trip to see different types of fish and coral in this area of the Pacific Ocean.
Land Down Under Is Over The Top by Brad Boyle
We have just finished up our six-day tour of the Australian mainland and it was amazing. We are running out of superlatives to describe some of the sites we have seen and adventures that we have experienced. We actually first set foot on Australian soil in Tasmania, a large island that is about 900 km south of Sydney. In Tasmania, we toured around countryside with rolling hills that looked similar to what we see in rural Alberta and the foothills, but with slightly different vegetation. We were able to visit a wildlife refuge that had wombats, wallabies, kangaroos, koalas and the notorious Tasmanian devil! The Tasmanian devil looks like a cuddly teddy bear but apparently attack like a badger or wolverine.
On the Australian mainland we docked in the beautiful Sydney harbour right by the opera house. Unfortunately we were not able to spend much time in Sydney before we boarded our flight to Ayers Rock and the giant red rock call Uluru by the native aboriginals. It was an amazing site and we spent our first night in Australia on the open dessert under a sky filled with more stars than any of us had seen in our lifetime. It was a site that you literally cannot find anywhere else in the world. The following day we were able to visit an aboriginal village, take numerous pictures of Uluru and the Ogres (a series of 37 large rock outcroppings), and stop for a camel ride on the bus trip to Alice Springs. After a night in Alice Springs we visited a dessert museum and zoo before our flight to Cairns where we stayed for the next three days.
On our first full day in Cairns we boarded a ferryboat for a 90-minute ride to a pontoon anchored to the Great Barrier Reef. To describe the Great Barrier Reef as breathtaking is an understatement. Adam and Erin spent most of the day snorkeling with thousands of fish, including a large parrotfish named Roxy that was much more like a pet puppy dog than a fish. After only a few minutes, Erin was able to make Roxy come on command and also to instruct Roxy to follow Erin around the coral reefs like a well-trained pet – you had to see it to believe it! Maggie and I also spent a couple of hours snorkeling around with a marine biologist who pointed out numerous varieties of coral, fish and mammals. We ended this phenomenal day with a helicopter ride over the Great Barrier Reef and rain forest back to Cairns.
The next day we rode an old railroad train through the Australian rainforest to the top of a mountain and returned to Cairns on a gondola that rose above the jungle. At the top, Erin and Adam visited a zoo where they were able to hold a koala and feed kangaroos. At the bottom of the gondola we visited an aboriginal culture centre that allowed us to learn how to throw boomerangs and spears. Adam and Erin had their faces painted like the natives and Adam received lessons from an aboriginal professional on how to play the didgeridoo that he had bought in Cairns. The kids were also given original aboriginal boomerangs to take home (Note to Self: Increase our home insurance when we return to Calgary!).
Our final day in Australia allowed us a morning of last minute shopping as the Royal Princess arrived in port and we re-boarded the ship looking forward to our next great adventure.
On the Australian mainland we docked in the beautiful Sydney harbour right by the opera house. Unfortunately we were not able to spend much time in Sydney before we boarded our flight to Ayers Rock and the giant red rock call Uluru by the native aboriginals. It was an amazing site and we spent our first night in Australia on the open dessert under a sky filled with more stars than any of us had seen in our lifetime. It was a site that you literally cannot find anywhere else in the world. The following day we were able to visit an aboriginal village, take numerous pictures of Uluru and the Ogres (a series of 37 large rock outcroppings), and stop for a camel ride on the bus trip to Alice Springs. After a night in Alice Springs we visited a dessert museum and zoo before our flight to Cairns where we stayed for the next three days.
On our first full day in Cairns we boarded a ferryboat for a 90-minute ride to a pontoon anchored to the Great Barrier Reef. To describe the Great Barrier Reef as breathtaking is an understatement. Adam and Erin spent most of the day snorkeling with thousands of fish, including a large parrotfish named Roxy that was much more like a pet puppy dog than a fish. After only a few minutes, Erin was able to make Roxy come on command and also to instruct Roxy to follow Erin around the coral reefs like a well-trained pet – you had to see it to believe it! Maggie and I also spent a couple of hours snorkeling around with a marine biologist who pointed out numerous varieties of coral, fish and mammals. We ended this phenomenal day with a helicopter ride over the Great Barrier Reef and rain forest back to Cairns.
The next day we rode an old railroad train through the Australian rainforest to the top of a mountain and returned to Cairns on a gondola that rose above the jungle. At the top, Erin and Adam visited a zoo where they were able to hold a koala and feed kangaroos. At the bottom of the gondola we visited an aboriginal culture centre that allowed us to learn how to throw boomerangs and spears. Adam and Erin had their faces painted like the natives and Adam received lessons from an aboriginal professional on how to play the didgeridoo that he had bought in Cairns. The kids were also given original aboriginal boomerangs to take home (Note to Self: Increase our home insurance when we return to Calgary!).
Our final day in Australia allowed us a morning of last minute shopping as the Royal Princess arrived in port and we re-boarded the ship looking forward to our next great adventure.
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