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Posts Tagged ‘Indonesia’

The Steamship Carnatic Diving Holiday

December 18th, 2009 No comments

The story begins in August 1869 when the Steamer “Venetian” sailed from Liverpool for Alexandria with a cargo bound for Bombay. Shortly afterwards the “Pera” sailed from London with passengers for the same destination. This was at a time when the Suez Canal was nearing completion and due to be opened within three months.

Even at this late stage, however, few could imagine how such a new “seaway” would change the shape of world trade forever. Up until now, ships had unloaded passengers and cargo at Alexandria from where they would be moved by land to Suez – over 200 miles away, before joining another vessel and resuming the journey. In this way, the longer and more perilous route around the Cape of Good Hope was avoided.

The passengers on board the Pera had enjoyed an uneventful crossing to Gibraltar and a similarly quiet journey taking in almost the entire length of the Mediterranean before their ship grounded off Alexandria – where they remained for three hours until floating off with the tide.

Despite this minor mishap, they were, nevertheless mostly at ease and looking forward to joining the more opulent “Carnatic” – the pride of the P & O fleet. The long trek to Suez was a frightful journey in the most oppressive of conditions – but there really was no alternative and everyone knew they would soon be enjoying cool evening sea breezes once again. In the meantime, the Masters of both the Pera and Venetian had played their part and were already heading back to England.

Progress overland was always slow, so it was not until the second week of September that Captain Jones was able to supervise the arrival and stowage of both passengers and cargo. He exercised great care – some of that cargo was very valuable and he had to make sure every single item was accounted for and thoroughly checked.

Finally, he was able to confirm a total of 230 passengers and crew in addition to a cargo of cotton bales, copper sheeting, Royal Mail, and 40,000 specie – as bullion was called in those days.

If you want an enjoyable holiday with some adventure look no further than a diving holidays. Indonesia diving can be a wonderful experience, please go to our website at http://www.diving-world.com/

Map of Bali

September 17th, 2009 No comments

You’ll find Bali located three miles off the west coast of Java with a relatively tiny land area of just over 5,000km; Bali could easily fit into Australia over 1,200 times. From the tip of the Map of Bali in the north to the end of the island in the south is only 55miles and east to west it’s only ninety miles, so getting round the island is reasonably straightforward and the longest drive that you’d need to do in order to get to any resort would be two hours at the most.

The most well liked Bali hotel resorts are situated in the south of the island with a couple of others along the east and west coast. Nusa Dua is the most southern resort that is well-liked by visitors, although you may find other less known ones a bit further south. The roads around the coast of Bali are generally in good condition, it is when you leave the main stretch that you’ll find the roads are very rarely maintained to any standard and are generally just mud tracks frequently impassible by 2 vehicles and you need to be cautious about folk and animals that use not only these side roads but the main roads to walk on.

Heading along the west coast from Nusa Dua you’ll come to Jimbaran another highly regarded and busy holiday maker resort. Maybe ten minutes further along you’ll go by Ngurah Rai International airport that’s used as a gateway for the rest of Indonesia. Kuta and South Kuta are perhaps another 20 min drive from here and this is where you will find the most commercialized area of Bali. Not only are the hotels built to accommodate many tourists, but the leisure facilities and the shopping areas very tourist orientated.

The drive from here to the tip of the west coast will take you past some of the more up market visitor destinations of Bali. Legian and Seminyak are situated along the west coast and offer more magnificent accommodation including personal beaches, gardens and swimming pools. The remainder of the drive up the west coast will take you past many places to remain, but they are not the famous or popular resorts or hotels. For the holiday maker who favors secluded areas there will be masses of places to remain along this western section of Bali without all the trappings and crowds of the big tourist places.

From here you could head inland in an easterly direction and you will come to Ubud which is situated in the mountainous region of Bali. The landscape is worlds apart compared to the coastal resorts. Here you will be surrounded by lush tropical rain forests with stunning views of the mountains and volcanoes. Driving further east you’ll shortly come to the eastern shore, where there are a few popular resorts. As with the resorts further up the west coast you’ll find these are far more expensive than the southern areas due to the excellent diving locations around this area. The widely known resorts on the east coast are Candi Dasa and Sanur. After you get to Sanur you can take a detour inland and come to Denspanar, the capital of Bali. Though this is not actually a popular tourist destination due to its lack of beaches, night life and shopping malls, it remains worth taking time out to explore.

From Denspanar you would drive south again and before you get to Nusa Dua where you started from, you’ll pass Tanjung Benoa a very popular, but extremely up market area. Tanjung Benoa is located on the end of the peninsula and has stunning views of the sea.

As far as the most visited and popular places in Bali go, those are the better known ones, but Bali offers so much more. There are such a lot of more Bali hotels situated all around the island and on some of the smaller islands just around the coast. Bali is surely an island to be explored and visiting one of the smaller know villages will give you a much better comprehension of the genuine Balinese lifestyle .

If you are heading to Bali on holiday and need a detailed Map of Bali to help you find your way around, check out Bali Accommodation. You will also find detailed hotel listings and up to date visa requirements to make your travel plans easy.

Tropical Islands to Party On

March 6th, 2009 No comments

Everyone likes a good party. Even if you are just a tourist looking to having a fun time while relaxing on a beach, then picking the perfect party tropical island should be your priority. There are a lot of tropical destinations out there and they are beautiful, however, not all of them offer the party conditions you may desire.

One of the best locations to discover crazy party islands is in the country of Greece. People flock to the country for its cool weather, stunning beaches, and great parties. The top two places to party are Ios and Corfu. Corfu is located on the west coast of Greece. There are regular beach parties at the famed Atlantis nightclub and vacationers all seem to stay at the notorious Pink Palace hostel. During the day, people soak up the warm Mediterranean sun and then party all night long.

Ios sees a lot of travelers who want to do one thing: party. The island has a lot of tropical beaches with crystal clear blue ocean. At night, everyone comes out for some great seafood and Greek dining before spending the evening doing body shots of each other and waking up on the beach. Most party goers end up staying out until sun rise and sleep it off while getting a tan during the day. But besides that, Ios is not only a party island but it is also beautiful and filled with culture to experience during the day.

For those looking to get out of the Mediterranean, you can head over to Southeast Asia and the islands of Bali and Ko Phangan. Bali is one of the most popular destinations in the world. Located in Indonesia, this huge island has a bit of everything. And those looking for a party will find it on Kuta beach. Besides great surfing, this spot is known for its beach parties and excessive nightlife. Here the tourists get loud, get down, and get crazy. Its a cheap destination making it really popular among backpackers, Aussies, and Kiwis. After you burnt yourself out at night, treat yourself to a nice massage during the day.

In the South Pacific, Fiji is well known to be a center of parties and activities. The most famous island group there is the Yasawa and that sees a lot of young backpackers who only have fun and sun on their mind. Here cheap bungalows, nightly BBQs, and cheap alcohol as well as beautiful beaches and great diving. It also helps that Fiji is a major stop on all RTW airline tickets.

No matter where want to go to in the world, there is a spot just for you. Youll find what you desire and will be partying with sun kissed tourists from all over the world quicker than you can think.

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