Posts Tagged ‘Cosmopolitan Capital’
A world apart in every sense, Tasmania is Australia’s only island state, and the very isolation that once made it an ideal location for penal settlements now helps preserve its natural riches. Tasmania would seem to have it all, from history and wilderness to friendly people and great food and wines.
Tasmania certainly seems to move at a much slower pace than the mainland, affording visitors the time and space to relax. Over 360 km (224 mi) long and 306 km (190 mi) wide, it’s big enough to allow you to head for the hills on the back roads and escape everyday life. Along the way are magnificent peaks, old colonial settlements and empty beaches. It also purports to have some of the cleanest air in the world.
The first European to sight Tasmania was the Dutch navigator Abel Tasman in 1642, and from then on many explorers came this
way, including James Cook and William Bligh. But the arrival of these men was bad news for the Tasmanian Aborigines. They lost their traditional hunting grounds and sometimes their lives, and were resettled to Flinders Island to be “civilized”. Many Aboriginal sites are sacred, but on the cliffs around Woolnorth can be seen some of their unique art.
Corners of Tasmania are often likened to the green pastures of England, but here there are also vast wildernesses: the west is wild and untamed, inland are glacial mountains and roaring rivers.
For the less adventurous, there is the cosmopolitan capital Hobart, spread out over seven hills and with a waterfront location to match Sydney’s. In the heart of the countryside lies sleepy old Richmond with some of Australia’s finest and most pristine colonial architecture it’s now a Mecca for artists and artisans.
Tasmania is often overlooked by tourists to Australia. Yet this discreet island, roughly the size of Ireland, is both gentle and wild, charming and challenging.
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The Canaries are a group of seven volcanic islands off the Atlantic coast of North Africa. They cover an area of 7,450 sq km (2,900 sq ml) containing some of the world’s most dramatic scenery. Each island has its own unique landscape and flora and fauna, ranging from the desert of Fuerteventura to the lush mountainous forest of La Gomera. Las Palmas de Gran Canaria is the cosmopolitan capital of the archipelago, reputed to have the best climate in the world.
The name Islas Canarias is likely derived from the Latin words Insula Canaria, meaning “Island of the Dogs”. It is speculated that the so called dogs were actually a species of Monk Seals which are now extinct.
The Spanish first occupied the Canaries in 1402, but it took the better part of a century to gain complete control of this strategic point on the Atlantic trade route. For the next 300 years, the islands grew increasingly wealthy from trading profits until, in the 19th century, a recession led to mass emigration to America. The development of the tourist industry eventually turned the tide and today, around 10 million tourists visit the islands every year.
Tenerife, the largest island, has the most varied scenery. It has a landscape of fertile valleys, steep cliffs and wide sandy beaches dominated by the towering outline of El Teide, the third largest volcano on earth at 3,718 m (12,195 ft) high. La Palma, the green island’, has the world’s largest volcanic crater, La Caldera del Taburiente with a diameter of 9 km (6 ml) and a depth of 770 m (2,525 ft).
The smallest island, Hierro is also the rockiest with a dramatic coastline plunging straight into the sea. Lanzarote is the most extraordinary of all. It boasts a surreal volcanic landscape of petrified lava from 18th and 19th century eruptions. The stark beauty of its eerily empty scenery, dotted with ancient vineyards, brilliant coloured flowers and sparkling white houses is unlike anywhere else on the planet. Visiting these islands is a truly memorable experience.
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