The Cook Islands

by Erik Olsen on

If I recall correctly, Neil has posted here a few times about the tropical paradise that is the Cook Islands. They are a historical place, these little dollops of land in the South pacific. They are the place where William Bligh, captain of the H.M.S. Bounty, last visited before the infamous 1789 mutiny.

And yet today they are also a major tourist destination for Aussies and Kiwis as well as many Europeans and Americans who make the long, long flight to get there.

In this fine little piece from the AP, writer Chirstina Almeida, visits the islands and finds they are, as advertised, slice of tropical heaven, a place with few cars, and where most islanders use motor scooters. You learn a little bit about the island’s storied history, but also some of the local attractions, which include (as might be expected) some fine fish meals and superb snorkeling and diving, where you can spot varied sea life from puffer and unicorn fish to giant clams. Needless to say, as we move swiftly into winter, one can’t help but sit back and ponder the fun and sun of a destination like this is.

Loi Krathong in Thailand

by Erik Olsen on

Years ago I lived for a little bit in Bangkok and it just so happened I was lucky enough to be there during a November. Why lucky? Because one of the country’s great holidays takes place this month, a holiday that I got to experience first hand and that I thoroughly enjoyed.

The event is called Loi Krathong and this year it takes place on November 5. Loi Krathong is an fascinating festival of lights, and takes place throughout Thailand, but particularly in Bangkok. The tradition is to set hundreds of thousands of flower-shaped finely-decorated, candles on the klongs or canals throughout the city. The candles are placed on banana leaves, making them little boats called krathongs. And in the meantime, everyone and their mother sister and aunt sings a catchy little song about the krathong that rises over the cit and makes the whole event magical. So if you are heading to Thailand, definitely find yourself a great spot to watch this great little event.

Painting the Town Ted

by Erik Olsen on

OK, not Ted, but how about Momo? I have got to hand it to the guy, this is a very clever stunt. The guy, an artist named Momo, painted a line across Manhattan, using the city’s well-known grid layout to spell his name (literally) across the city.

What a superb idea! But is it art? Sure, I suppose so. Better than a blank canvas posing as a masterpiece. But more than that it’s just plain creative. The video is shot relatively well…lots of cuts and shots around the city, with an emphasis on the West Village Chelsea it seems.

A neat idea. Of course, the guy is lucky, he could be named Agamemnon or something. You can see the video in quicktime here.


Worldwide Panos 2006 Best Of

by Erik Olsen on

Some folks here know I’m a big fan of panoramic photography. One of the organizations/Web sites that I often visit and have occasionally contributed to is the World Wide Panoramic project. This project comes out of the geoimages group at Berkeley and has provided some of the best panoramic photography on the Web today. Every three months (each quarter) they hold a…well, it’s not a contest exactly…it’s more just an opportunity for pano photographers around the world to contribute according to a particular theme.

The previous eleven events have created a showcase of VR photography, with over 2500 panoramas by over 750 photographers from more than 70 countries. It’s very cool. Trust me. And at the end of this year the are holding their annual Best of – A World Wide Panorama event. All you have to do is contribute and you have a chance to, well, not win a lot of money but to get the admiration of lots of other pano photographers. I’m gong to do my best to contribute this year, as I have been lax in contributing to some of the other events. So, if you shoot panos, go over and upload your best shot .

Wrangell-St. Elias

by Erik Olsen on

Several years ago a couple of buddies and I made an epic paddling trip out of Valdez, Alaska. I thought Valdez was lovely, but one place that caught my eye as we made our way to that little town on the water…best known for where the Exxon/Valdez ran aground…was a little, well, NOT so little, place called Wrangell-St. Elias. Now, I’ll bet you if you ask most people what, let alone where, Wrangell-St. Elias is, you’d get a puzzled response. Wyoming? Montana?

Well, it turns out that Wrangell-St. Elias is in Alaska, the country’s largest sate, and keeping to that motif, it is also our country’s largest National Park. I’ll bet you thought that honor went to Yellowstone, didn’t you. Nope.

Well ,in this fine article from the Star Tribune, writer Chris Welsch takes us through the park via the McCarthy Road, a famous stretch of road that is really, says Welsch, just an old railroad bed with gravel sprinkled on it. Welsch heads to the town of Kennicott, once a bustling copper town, but now “a much quieter place” where visitors can hang out near the Root Glacier, a mile-wide river of ice streaming down from the mountains. It’s a fine piece of travel writing that takes a look at a place that most folks, as I say, have probably never heard of.