Scientists are now racing to track what’s left of the underwater seagrass plateaus Hundreds of miles from the nearest shore, ribbon-like fronds flutter in the ocean currents sweeping across an underwater mountain plateau the size of Switzerland. A remote-powered camera glides through the sunlit, turquoise waters of this corner of the western Indian Ocean, capturing rare footage of what scientists believe is the world’s largest seagrass meadow. A shoal of fish swim over seagrass on the Saya de Malha Bank within the Mascarene plateau, Mauritius March 20, 2021. Tommy Trenchard/Greenpeace/Handout via REUTERS Human activity is helping destroy the equivalent of a soccer field of these seagrasses every 30 minutes around the world, according to the U.N. Environment Programme (UNEP). A...
Read MoreCategory: सैर-सपाटा
travelogues, travel articles and news from around the world
Singapore currently accounts for a third of the world’s cruises its tourism body said on Wednesday, owing to the roaring success of its “cruises to nowhere” at a time of crisis in the industry globally. Cruises have yet to restart in many parts of the world after taking a beating from the coronavirus pandemic, with some of the earliest big outbreaks found on cruise ships. The city-state launched what it called “round trips” on luxury liners in November, which have no port of call and last only a few days. Singapore has seen relatively few domestic COVID-19 cases since last year. FILE PHOTO: Royal Caribbean's Quantum of the Seas is moored at the Marina Bay Cruise Centre after a passenger was tested positive onboard for the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Singapore December 9, 2...
Read MoreCyprus is getting protected status for its prized halloumi, giving its producers the sole right to sell the rubbery cheese in the European Union. Later this month, the European Union is set to formally give halloumi, or “hellim” in Turkish, the protected designation of origin (PDO) status, which will come into effect from October, according to Cyprus’ agriculture ministry. Grilled halloumi is seen in a restaurant in Nicosia, Cyprus, April 2, 2021. REUTERS/Yiannis Kourtoglou The move reaffirms what the industry and state have said for years, said cheesemaker George Petrou, general manager of Petrou Bros. Dairy Products which has about 25% of Cyprus’ export market: that halloumi is Cypriot, with historical accounts suggesting production as early as around 1500. “Unfortunately in...
Read MoreA historic grocery store in central Moscow is to close its doors after trading for more than a hundred years due to legal issues and a drop in tourism caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Store, which is also an architectural marvel, was quite popular among tourists going to Moscow. Opened at the turn of the 20th century, Yeliseyevsky Store is known for its palatial, neo-baroque interior and wide selection of gourmet foods and souvenirs. FILE PHOTO: A woman wearing a protective face mask pushes a shopping cart at Yeliseyevsky Store in central Moscow, Russia April 2, 2021. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov But the shelves -- usually filled with fresh fruit, fine spirits and traditional Russian ornaments -- have been eerily empty in recent days since the announcement that the shop would close in ...
Read MoreDuring some summers, as the Caribbean water temperatures climb, the luminous coral colonies of gold, green and blue that ring the island nation of Cuba give way to patches of skeletal white. The technicolor streaks of darting tropical fish flash less frequently. The rasping sounds of lobsters go quiet. While Cuba’s marine life has suffered from overfishing and pollution, there is mounting evidence that the warming of waters due to climate change may be taking a large toll as well -- both off the island’s coast and globally. A view of a coral colony on the coast of Havana, Cuba, March 28, 2021. REUTERS/Sarah Marsh Research published Monday finds that the total number of open-water species declined by about half in the 40 years up to 2010 in tropical marine zones worldwide. Duri...
Read MoreCalling yourself “The Dying Town” may not sound like the best way of attracting visitors, but Civita has learned to make a living out of dying. And it has resisted definitive death for so long that Italy has nominated it and the surrounding area of stark cliffs and valleys known as “badlands” to be a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Centuries ago, the town was much larger and connected by road to other settlements. But landslides, earthquakes, cracks and erosion have reduced its size dramatically and left it sitting spectacularly alone at the top of a spur. When winter clouds are low, Civita looks like a floating castle in the air. On a clear day, the rock on which it rests looks like a slice of a multi-layered cake. Clay from an inland sea a million years ago supports strata o...
Read MoreLook at your shoes. If they bear the Baťa logo, then you should know that you are wearing a product with a history dating back to the Austro-Hungarian Empire of 1894. At that time the young cobbler Tomáš Baťa founded a shoemaking company in Zlín together with his sister and one of his brothers. In the following years the business spread across four continents, and today you can buy Baťa footwear in dozens of cities all around the world. Seems inspiring? Well, read on, that's not even half of it. Bata Shoes The young cobbler Tomáš Baťa was somewhat of a rebel. True, he came from a family that had been in the shoe business for centuries, but aged 14 he found himself a job with a company producing shoemaking machines. This was not much liked either by his father or the said company...
Read Moreजापान में बसंत की कल्पना करें तो खुद-ब-खुद चेरी ब्लॉसम का ख्याल आता है। कोई एक फूल किसी जगह के लिए कितनी अहमियत रखता है कि उसका खिलना पूरे देश में महीनों तक जश्न की वजह रहता है। जापान का चेरी ब्लॉसम फूल इसका उदाहरण है। लेकिन इसका इस साल जल्दी खिल जाना लोगों की चिंता का सबब बन गया है। यह कोई मामूली बात नहीं, लेकिन क्या यह किसी बड़े बदलाव का संकेत है! फूलों के खिलने का मौसम है। आखिरकार धरती के ऊपरी आधे हिस्से, जिसे हम लोग उत्तरी गोलार्ध कहते हैं, में ये बसंत के दिन हैं। सतह पर पसरी ठंड जैसे-जैसे पिघलने लगती और उसे सूरज की तपिश मिलती है तो फूल अंकुरित होने लगते हैं। ऐसे में स्वाभाविक ही है कि खिलते फूल पूरे माहौल में उल्लास व रंगत भर देते हैं। फाइल फोटोः जापान में हर तरफ चेरी ब्लॉसम का रंग कोई खास फूल कितनी अहमियत रखता है कि उसका खिलना पूरे देश में महीनों तक जश्न की वजह रहता है, जाप...
Read MoreTourism first! Island of Phuket in mass vaccination drive ahead of the rest of Thailand
In Thailand, it’s the all-important tourism sector that has jumped to the head of the COVID-19 vaccination line, with the country’s most popular resort island embarking on a mass inoculation programme two months ahead of the rest of the country. The island of Phuket aims to deliver shots to at least 460,000 people - most of its population - as it gears up for July 1, when vaccinated overseas visitors will no longer be required to quarantine. People receive the Sinovac COVID-19 vaccine as the Thai resort island of Phuket rushes to vaccinate its population amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, and ahead of a July 1 ending of strict quarantine for overseas visitors, to bring back tourism revenue in Phuket, Thailand, April 1, 2021. REUTERS/Jorge Silva Phuket also has its ...
Read MoreSingapore will next month accept visitors who use a mobile travel pass containing digital certificates for COVID-19 tests and vaccines, its aviation regulator said on Monday, becoming one of the first countries to adopt the initiative. Singapore will accept the International Air Transport Association (IATA) mobile travel pass for pre-departure checks, where travelers can get clearance to fly to and enter Singapore by showing a smartphone application containing their data from accredited laboratories. FILE PHOTO: People look at a Singapore Airlines plane, amid the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), at a viewing gallery of the Changi Airport in Singapore. REUTERS/Edgar Su The pass was successfully tested by Singapore Airlines. More than 20 carriers, including Emirates, Q...
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