Making life a holiday with interesting vacation and adventure ideas.

This is not a political blog but occasionally a piece of news is brought to my attention that is beyond belief. It is news that directly impacts millions of tourists and news that the world deserves to hear. The information appears to be valid and I forward it without comment; make up your own mind.

I will however, begin by quoting the Buddhist Thought for the Day:
"If you want to have friends, you must be friendly. If you want to make peace, you must be peaceful. - Peace Pilgrim...", which coincidentally, I happened to read just before I saw the article Merry Christmas Hawaii - And Bombs Away! by freelance writer, Cathy Garger.

According to a recent Associated Press article, "B-2 Stealth Bombers Hit US Targets" and the Cathy Garger article in OpEdNews, the United States government is using both Hawaii and Alaska to expand its war games and better train pilots by dropping bombs from stealth Air Force B-2 bombers on them around Christmas time.

No doubt the Alaskans aren't to happy about this and the Hawaiians have begun a protest movement because their land has been found to be previously contaminated with depleted Uranium from military exercises. A problem that would be compounded by bombing, since it would cause the toxic dust to become airborne. They point out that Hawaii is a special place, loved, enjoyed and visited by millions of people every year from all over the world. It truly seems beyond belief that tourists face being greeted with the US military's own unique brand of hospitality, which Cathy Garger describes as "the invisible gift of inhaled Uranium aerosol blowing in the warm tropical winds."

Labels: 2007, Alaska, Hawaii, protest, USA

Mike Robertson from Wareham, on England's south coast, has dramatically climbed the Eiffel Tower in Paris to protest at the Burma operations of oil giant Total. With 18 years of climbing experience behind him, he drew gasps from onlookers as he made the rope-free assault on the famous French landmark.

Mike wanted to draw attention to human rights violations in Burma, which he learned of while planning a climbing trip there. Read more in the report by Juliette Astrup in 'This is Dorset'.

Labels: Burma, climbing, Eiffel Tower, France, Mike Robertson, Paris, protest

A Japanese whaling fleet has set off on an expedition targeting humpback, fin and minke whales, in the Antarctic. The fleet aims to catch over 1,000 whales before returning to port early next year.

In defiance of world agreements and opinion, the whalers are expected to kill about 50 fin whales, which environmentalists say are a critically endangered species and also about 50 humpback whales, well known for their picturesque silhouette and acrobatic breaching.

Greenpeace said its Esperanza campaign ship was in waters off Japan, waiting to intersect the fleet in the coming days to demand that the expedition returns home. The endangered animals are currently migrating south along the Australian coast and The Australian government and people, are being pro-active in attempting to bring both political and social pressure on Japan. More.

Labels: Antarctica, Japan, protest, whales

France is starting to deal with a series of open-ended strikes that are expected to paralyse public services and utilities. Beginning today, only about 12% of the high-speed TGV trains are running and there is almost no Paris metro service. Paris Opera House and Comedie Francaise State Theatre are expected to be closed, while disruption is anticipated to escalate next week when civil servants, teachers and other public employees will stage protests.

EDF electricity and GDF gas are caught up in the turmoil and even the magistrates and court clerks are planning to take to the streets. As you might expect, the French students have got involved and to cap it all, next week there will be no forecast from Meteo France weather employees.

This is bad news for Parisian hoteliers who report that over a quarter of their reservations have been cancelled already. More information and comment.

Labels: 2007, France, protest, train, travel

My short post last week about the Hawaii Superferry Protest has generated loads of interest and reflects the furor that has exploded in the media about the issue. Like most onlookers, when the idea of the Superferry was first announced, I thought that it seemed like something that would be of great benefit to the people of Hawaii and would certainly make life easier for tourists. Great assurances were made about possible environmental concerns and I was surprised to receive a strongly worded comment pointing out in no uncertain terms, that there was a lot more to the Hawaii Superferry Protest than meets the eye.

Another reader, Zaphod, provided a link to SinkDaSuperferry.googlepages.com for tons of links to superferry info and video, which I duly followed up and it seems that there is a lot more to this issue. It seems that the law requires ventures such as the Hawaii Superferry to be subject to an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) but despite protest, this requirement was waived in the case of the Superferry.

However, it turns out that there is even more to the story. Let me begin by drawing attention to an article by Joanne Ralston in Hawaii Reporter. Joanne asks why protesters have, "singled out just one company for an Environmental Assessment (EA) and Environmental Impact Study (EIS)." Suggesting that, "there is nothing fair or reasonable about this. Either everyone has to go through a costly and time consuming EIS, or no one does." She concludes that the Superferry Protesters are "Hypocrites All" and implies that there must be a hidden agenda to the protest.

Guess what, there is a hidden agenda, but surprise, surprise, the hidden agenda may not be coming from the protestors. A web site devoted to the superferry impact provides a valuable insight into the many and varied environmental issues but then comes up with this little gem. "The Superferry design is the same as vessels being used by WestPac Express who transport military personnel and equipment in Japan."

Can you hear the alarm bells ringing? superferryimpact.com advise that John F. Lehman, former Secretary of the Navy under President Reagan chairs the Hawaii Superferry Board of Directors; his private equity firm, J.F. Lehman & Co., has invested $71 million in the Hawaii Superferry and five of the other 11 members of the Hawaii Superferry Board have ties to J.F. Lehman & Co.

The site goes on to quote an interview with John F. Lehman in the Pacific Business News (April 8, 2005), the nub of which is that there will be regular usage of the Hawaii Superferry by platoons of Stryker vehicles because armored personnel carriers can travel as a unit and drive on to the ferry. The unit members will be able to go into the passenger area that is set up so that it will be a conference or briefing area, making it much cheaper and more efficient for the military to train soldiers.

Maybe, just maybe, this is the reason that the protesters have "singled out just one company for an Environmental Assessment (EA) and Environmental Impact Study (EIS)."

Labels: environment, Hawaii, protest, Superferry, USA

Just a few days after its maiden voyage, the new Hawaii Superferry has been grounded indefinitely until public safety can be assured.

On Monday, environmental protesters, arguing that the new ferry will endanger whales, cause pollution and damage the ecology, paddled out on surfboards, canoes and kayaks to blockade the $95 million ferry, forcing it to return to Honolulu. Already suspended from sailing to Maui because of an impeding court challenge, the Coast Guard has now said that a safe passage for the ferry cannot be guaranteed in and out of the harbor at Kauai.

Superferry officials say that the boat is jet powered, so there are no exposed propellers to endanger marine life and they have instituted special navigational procedures to avoid whales. Ironically, the only alternative means of travel between the Hawaiian islands is by air, which is the mode of transport most commonly targeted by the environmental lobby because of the widespread pollution that it causes.

Our listings contain many different activity holidays in Hawaii covering a wide range of activities, including swimming with dolphins.

Labels: environment, Hawaii, protest, Superferry