4 Hidden Islands The World Needs To Know

The world is a wide and mysterious place. Even though our technology is meant to make it smaller, the world is somehow expanding in different ways. Different untouched lands and islands exist in various parts of our planets. Some of these islands may pose danger while a majority of them just scream adventure and beauty.

If you’re a person who enjoys adventure and the water, some of these islands are meant for you. However, if you’re planning on enjoying a nice glass of red wine and visiting spas, then there definitely are islands which tend to those needs. These places are usually unexplored or often too exclusive to be a traditional tourist destination.

So, we have put together four islands that will be intriguing to your interest and you’ll definitely have fun exploring them.

1. Pitcairn Island, Pacific Ocean

Pitcairn Island is one of the unique islands that’s located among a few volcanic islands around the British Islands. It’s a small island which consists of about 4 families and about 50 inhabitants. If you’re planning to head there, you might have to stay with the locals instead of hotels or hostels; as there are none on that island.

If you’re a technology dependent person, then you definitely are up for a challenge because most people on that island are strangers to technology. However, it’s definitely a place worth visiting because, for once, you get to unwind and let yourself go. If you love culture and heritage, then you would enjoy being part of the Polynesians and Bounty Mutineers.

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By end of this trip, whether you’re traveling with a partner or alone, you’ll enjoy the calmness and indulge in a completely different culture which can be refreshing.

Note: If you get lost, try describing the buildings because there are no street names.

2. Monuriki Island, Fiji

The Monuriki Island is a tiny island located among a cluster of islands. This cluster of islands is also known as Mamanuca. The beauty of this island is breathtaking as it’s surrounded by beautiful flora and fauna as well as amazing coral reefs. It’s no surprise that this island became the Castaway Island that hosted the lost and lonely Tom Hanks.

If you’re wondering if you’re going to be stranded, don’t worry. There are inhabitants on that island. However, this island isn’t a typical tourist destination due to its isolation as well as the obscure way to get there. Just like the previous island, you would be able to unwind and enjoy your holidays far from technology and constant communication.

If you enjoy the flora and fauna, you’ll be amazed by all the plants and animals you can find there. From the Fiji Chameleon to the ripe beautiful coconuts. You’ll find yourself in for a treat.

3. Lanzarote, West Africa

Lanzarote is an island that’s located among the cluster of the Canary Islands. This island is heavily influenced by the Spanish regime allowing it to not only adopt its language but also its culture. Unlike the other islands, this island is an island of luxury. It’s much better suited to be explored with a partner or on a honeymoon.

You’ll not only be able to enjoy a fine glass of wine cultivated from the best vineyards, but you would be living a life of luxury. You’ll be able to explore the nature as well as the beautiful scenery. If you’re a person who enjoys exquisite luxury, then don’t forget to visit the cactus garden to embrace the beauty of the cactuses from all around the world. The highlight of this place is, however, its pristine blue waters as well as its beautiful corals.

Swimming there will not only create a sense of peace, but it will also rekindle the romance between you and your partner.

4. Pig Beach, Bahama

The Pig Beach, or better known as Major Cay, is located on the coast of Bahamas. Its unique name is due to the fact that this island’s inhabitants are all pigs. You can notice pigs swimming on the beach and getting a tan on the side. Some say that these pigs escaped from a ship while others say they were the original inhabitants. However, these rumors were never proven.

This beach isn’t for someone to spend a night, however, there are various tours that go there to observe these happy pigs. Who wouldn’t want to enjoy watching pigs acting like humans? So if you’re ever in the Bahamas, make sure that this beach is part of your bucket list.

You won’t regret it.

In Conclusion

The world is a wonderful place, so never view it from a single point of view. Escape reality for some time and explore these amazing islands.

Walking over water at Naranthiwat province

In the border town of Sungai Kolok, Narathiwat province, legend has it that an old Muslim woman known for her magical powers rowed her sampan into the swampland one fine day many moons ago and never came out. After Grandmother “Daeng” – or Toh Daeng as she was known locally – had been gone a couple of days, the menfolk gathered and retraced her passage into the woods. What they found wasn’t Daeng but an immense crocodile right next to Daeng’s sampan.

“The crocodile was wearing Daeng’s clothes though,” says Manete Boonyanant, director of Sirindhorn Peat Swamp Forest Nature Research and Study Centre, as we start our tour of Thailand’s last remaining peat swamp forest. “The local people believed that the old woman had morphed into an immense crocodile and gave the swamp forest the name Toh Daeng in her memory.”

Despite the story being an obvious myth, I cannot help but wonder what horrors lie beneath the brackish water as we follow Toh Daeng’s footsteps into the swampland.

“In fact, the forest was infested with alligators. Horrific tales were shared between the foragers and hunters who braved the brackish water and peat swamp forest to make their living,” says the guide as he leads us deeper into the peat swamp forest.

Unfortunately, the alligators have completely disappeared and only a few of the endangered Malayan gharial, a freshwater reptile of the crocodilia family, still make their home here.

Pru Toh Daeng stretches for more than 192 square kilometres over three Narathiwat districts –Tak Bai, Sungai Kolok and Sungai Padi. Eighty per cent of the wilderness is covered by evergreen forest, providing a fertile home for flora and fauna. Three rivers – the Bang Nara among them – pass through the forest before flowing into the sea. Living within this expansive wetland are more than 195 types of birds, 50 different kinds of mammals, 30 species of reptiles and 470 different kinds of plants.

Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn first visited the wetlands of Narathiwat in 1990, walking the full length of the bamboo walkway, and has returned regularly ever since, often arranging her visits to coincide with the kolae (fishing boat) races held every September.

Visitors follow her footsteps along the broadwalk, stopping here and there to take a seat and look out over the wetlands, which echo with the sounds of animal life.

Follow the path beyond the research building and the water becomes brownish and murky. Spiders, several species of snakes and all types of creepers thrive in this dark, humid world. What counts for land here yields palm fruit – or lum pee – which tastes like cheesy vinegar and other trees with strange names including “buffalo blood”.

“When people stroll along the nature trail, they expect to be blown away by the scenery or the breathtaking panoramic view over the sheer cliff,” says the guide. “We don’t have that here. But we do have biodiversity.”

And that biodiversity is what makes this place beautiful.

If you heed just one bit of advice on a trip to the peat swamp forest, let it be this: Slow down. The beauty and romantic essence of the swampland can be elusive unless you’re willing to move slowly.

Indeed, the forest in many ways forces you to slow down.

As you walk, you don’t think about who is texting you or feel the need to check Facebook to see if anyone has posted an amusing comment. Rather you are focused on the crab-eating macaques in the branches above your head, the songs of bird beyond the canopy, and most importantly, what’s moving under the water – Grandmother Daeng or a crocodile or both.

Sometimes the swampland looks like it belongs in a fairy tale with mystical ropes of moss, walls of wood, strange-looking aerial roots and mirror images on the water.

“The peat swamp forest is more about leaves,” says Manete, “The dead leaves fall and hit the waterlogged soil preventing them from fully decomposing. Year in and year out, the dying but yet to decompose leaves create a thick layer of acidic peat.”

Some layers of peat are about five meters deep.

“When the leaves soak up the water, they feed the marine animals,” the director adds. “The downside is that in the dry season the leaves act as fuel and fires are frequent. We consistently lose peat swamp forest to the fires.”

The nature trail stretches barely two kilometers but that is long enough to take you into an enchanted world. It shuts everything else off, save the sound of the nature, leaving time to stand still.

IF YOU GO

Sirindhorn Peat Swamp Forest Nature Research and Study Centre is about a 90-minute drive from Narathiwat airport and 15 minutes from Sungai Kolok railway station. The trail is open daily from 8am to 4pm. Admission is free.

Qatar Airways to increase Dhaka-Doha flights from April 1

In a move to provide passengers with additional travel options, Qatar Airways today announced to launch a third daily flight between Dhaka and Doha from April 1.

Qatar Airways currently operates double-daily flights from Dhaka and will be increasing its frequency to three-times-daily non-stop flights, according to a Qatar Airways press release.

To celebrate the additional daily flights from Dhaka, Qatar Airways is offering a special offer of up to 30 percent discount on both Economy and Business Class fares with sales validity till March 2, 2017 for travel between April 1 and December 10, 2017, the release read.

Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive, His Excellency Akbar Al Baker, said: “Qatar Airways launched services to Dhaka 20 years ago and our travellers have continued to benefit from the airline’s significant growth, access to excellent connections into the airline’s growing network, and award-winning service. The increase in flights provides added convenience for our passengers, and caters to strong passenger demand for those travelling to and from Bangladesh.”

Flight departure and arrival times offer seamless connections to a variety of destinations in the GCC, Europe, Africa, the Americas, and cities on the airline’s network as far away as Philadelphia and New York in the US. In addition, passengers will soon be able to benefit from easy access to further new destinations as Qatar Airways will launch flights to Las Vegas in the US and two new destinations in Saudi Arabia this year – Yanbu and Tabuk, the release added.

Currently, Qatar Airways operates Dhaka to Doha flights with an Airbus A330, in a two-class cabin configuration featuring 30 seats in Business Class and 275 Economy Class seats. The additional daily A330 service will depart Dhaka in the evening – promising to be highly popular among those heading to the US, Europe and the Middle East.

Qatar Airways’ world-class on board service offers all passengers access to up to 3,000 entertainment options via Oryx One and a delicious selection of cuisine which is designed to ensure a memorable in-flight experience.

Interior Design Tips

If you're moving soon to a new apartment and you don't have loaded pockets to hire a designer, you'll most probably want to do it yourself. You're not to be underestimated because your Interest is filled with beautiful interiors but when it comes to actually putting in everything, you're stuck and confused and nothing seems right. For those desperate times, here are a few tips for creating the near perfect interior:

Light colors for smaller rooms: 
The color of your room is one of the biggest factors working behind how it looks. Choose the right one and it'll look beautiful. Pick a weird combination and it'll get on everyone's nerves. For tiny rooms that might feel stuffy to you, pick a color that's light and whitish. It makes the area look open and welcoming rather than congested.

World's Most Eco-Friendly Buildings

Northern Arizona University, USA

One of the three greenest buildings, NAU earns its rep by incorporating state-of-the-art technology and design principles. Recycled materials cover about 20 percent of the building's supplies. A “green” roof helps in regulating the temperature of the entire structure and about 75 percent of the lighting is natural. Water is reused throughout NAU to reduce wastage.

Top 5 Holiday Spots in Bangladesh

“Travel, in the younger sort, is a part of education; in the elder, a part of experience,” renowned English writer Francis Bacon thus inspires people who love to travel.

Yes, it is high time to go beyond the textbooks and throw off the bowlines to make the holidays more exciting and memorable. So step out in the open, follow the sun to the greens and silver sand beaches, and catch the winds in the sails to explore, dream and discover.

Bangladesh is blessed with many wonderful places attracting people to see its beauty. Here are the five most magnificent natural and archaeological beauties to visit:

Cox’s Bazar [World’s Longest Sea Beach]

Taj Mahal ranks 3rd among world's top landmarks

Standing majestically on the banks of River Yamuna, the Taj Mahal is synonymous to love and romance. The purity of the white marble, the exquisite ornamentation, precious gemstones used and its picturesque location, all make a visit to the Taj Mahal gain a place amongst the most sought-after tours in the world. It is the love behind this outstanding monument that has given a life to this monument. 

Honouring the Dead for a Better Life

The Mon community in Sangkhla Buri on Thailand's border with Myanmar pay respect to their ancestors by sending off a boat laden with food.

According to traditional beliefs, the seventh month in the lunar calendar is when restless spirits roam the earth. That seventh month usually falls around August or September and all over Asia, communities mark the festival of the hungry ghost in their own fashion.

4 places you can go for a stroll in Dhaka

When was the last time you stopped and took a deep long breath to smell the fresh air? Life in the metropolis can sometimes be claustrophobic. With the hectic work schedule, blazing horns and blinding lights it is very easy to get lost in the commotion that is Dhaka city. So where do you go in this concrete jungle to sit, think and contemplate your day away? Here are a few places in the city where you can relax and take a breath.