Niue

Niue is an island located in the Pacific Ocean, Niue is in a free association with New Zealand. All Niueans are New Zeleands. The land area is 260 square kilometres (100 sq mi) with about 1,400 people who are predominantly Polynesian.


In 2003 Niue became the world's first Wi Fi nation.


Niue is one of the world's larrgest coral islands. A coral reef surrounds the island, with only a major break near Alofi (the capital). A notable feature is the number of limestone caves found close to the coast.


Some soils are geochemically very unusual.


Agriculture is very important to the lifestyle of Niueans and the economy, and around 204 square kilometres of Niue's total land area are available for agriculture. 



Tapioca or cassava, yams and kumaras also grow very well, as do different varieties of bananas. Copra, passionfruit and limes dominated exports in the 1970s, but in 2008 vanilla, noni and taro are Niue's main export crops. 



Tourism, Fishery and Agriculture are Niue's 3 priority economic sectors.


Niue only counts with two broadcast media stations: television Niue and Radio sunshine, since it's really small size. And only with the "Niue star" as a newspaper.


The European Union is helping Niue convert to using renewable energy. 


Despite Niue being a small country, a number of different sports are popular. Rugby union is the most popular sport in Niue, played by both men and women; Niue were the 2008 FORU Oceania Cup champions. 
Niue money is awesome:

 I'm not kidding those are real C:


And here's Niue's landscapes

And an image of whales, because an image of whales is always good C:

And this is it, since Niue is really small and there isn't much to talk about C:

Gold Coast Australia


Gold Coast is a  is a coastal city located in South East Queensland, Australia. Gold Coast is famous for literally being a place full of fun.


Gold Coast had been a place for film productions; Scooby Doo movies and House of Wax are examples of this.


Gold Coast has more than 70km of fantastic beaches.


Gold coast main industry is tourism; and is well known for its beaches and attractions, such as Broadbeach, Surfers Paradise, Burleigh heights and Main beach.


This amaizing city in Australia has waterways prevent longshore drift and the bar from silting up. It includes suburbs, localities, towns and rural districts.


Since 2007 Gold Coast has been the sixth largest city in Australia and the largest non-capital city.


Gold Coast City’s unemployment rate (5.6 per cent) is below the national level (5.9 per cent).


Around 10 million tourists visit the Gold Coast area every year: of 849,114 international visitors, 3,468,000 domestic overnight visitors and 5,366,000 daytrip visitors. Tourism is the region’s biggest industry, directly contributing more than $4.4 billion into the city economy every year and directly accounting for one in four jobs in the city


Recreational activities on the Gold Coast include surfing, fishing, boating and golf.


Now I know Gold Coast seems like the best place ever (and certainly it is, at least for me)


But it gets better.


Did you know Gold Coast is the first city to have a water park where there's a loop? No? Well then check it out: 

Now I shall show you all the Wonderland that is Gold Coast:

Infinity is a mind blowing journey into spectacular futuristic maze-like world of wonder. Made up of an extraordinary series of around 20 multi-sensual environments filled with unique special effects, atmospheric sound fields, ultra groovy music and illusions.

Take a walk on the wild side and get closer to Australia’s native wildlife in a natural environment and experience spellbinding Aboriginal music, dance and culture - seven nights a week. All together in a unique buffet and tour package you must experience at least once in your life, a truly memorable time for young and old.

reamworld is home to the greatest number of traditional theme park rides on the Coast with all the kid friendly rides, roller coasters, water slides, bumper cars and more gravity defying, stomach churning contraptions than you could want. There's even an Imax theatre and the famous Tiger Island. If it's a quintessential theme park you're after then Dreamworld is the one for you. 

Crocodiles, wallabies, kangaroos, koalas and almost all of the other famous Australian native animals have representatives living in Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary. You can look at them in natural habitats, feed and pat some of them or just experience the fantastic 27 hectare bushland setting - an oasis of wildlife amidst the Gold Coast bustle. Join the lorikeets for breakfast for a truly wonderul, once in a life time experience.

Part theme park, part movie studio, Movie World is the only movie-related theme park in Australia. With one of the best roller coasters on the coast and a good handful of movie related rides (think Looney Tunes, Scooby Doo, Superman, Batman and more), you'll experience a fun-filled adventure with the glitz and glamour of Hollywood. Get 'behind the scenes' movie info and stunt shows to keep the whole family entertained for the best part of a day.

Home to the world's largest variety of tropical fruit, it's free to get in and shop for gourmet varieties of bizarre and wonderful fruits. You can also pay to check out the plantation safaris, mini train rides, jungle cruises and fruit tasting shows. Admission is about $32 for adults and $15 for kids. Tropical Fruit World is located about 10 minutes south of the border in NSW, you'll see the turn-off on the Pacific Highway.

O'Reilly's Tree Top Walk allows you to walk through the canopy to see flowering and fruiting trees and vines, the epiphytic orchids and ferns, and the birds and animals that inhabit the tree tops. (And it's free)

Gold Coast also has a nightlife full of clubs and adult stuff, but considering this is made by an underage student I better not write about that :)

Now you may be thinking: Can Gold Coast be even more spectacular?
The answer is yes, yes it can.

Gold Coast Hitherland

South East Queensland’s best-kept secret is the picturesque mountain rainforest region to the west of the Gold Coast. Often referred to as the green behind the gold, the Gold Coast Hinterland and the Scenic Rim, the region around Tamborine Mountain (or Mt Tamborine) and the beautiful and extensiveLamington National Park, all part of the Border Ranges.

Be amazed:

So I know this is all you can take without thinking about killing me for showing you this amazing place when we're still in school and can't take a vacation to Gold Coast. -sigh-

Dubai

Dubai (Cause Dubai article is always good)

History

Dubai’s earliest record was in 1095 in the “Book of Geography”. Little is known about Dubai’s first habitants and how did they got there, even though tools and other stuff had been found.

Dubai came to the protection of the United Kingdom by the “Exclusive Agreement” were UK agreed to protect Dubai against the evil Ottoman Empire back in 1892. During the 1800’s Dubai suffered two great tragedies: the first one was a smallpox epidemia in 1841 that forced people to move to Deira, then a fire burned most homes in Deira in 1894.

However thanks to Dubai’s geographical location traders and merchants were attracted; making Dubai a major trade site. Dubai major industry was pearls; yes pearls exports, until World War I struck and Dubai suffered a major lost in its pearl production, leading to a deep depression. This depression caused many people to starve or migrate.

In 1947 Dubai fought a war against Abu Dhabi because of a border dispute, but then British government said “No war no” and created a buffer frontier that lead to a cessation in hostilities.

After years of searching, oil was found in Dubai in 1971. Remember the deep depression they went to? Well since oil was found Dubai became a major oil exporter and its population increased by %300.

On 2 December 1971 Dubai, together with Abu Dhabi and five other emirates, formed the United Arab Emirates after the former protector, Britain, left the Persian Gulf in 1971. They all agreed to use the UAE dirham as they currency.

Dubai was affected by the 1990 Gulf war; but many companies moved their business to Dubai.

Dubai is now a great place for tourism.

 Culture

Dubai is a highly cosmopolitan society with a diverse and vibrant culture. The influence of Islamic and Arab culture on its architecture, music, attire, cuisine and lifestyle are very prominent as well. Since 2006, the weekend has been Friday-Saturday, as a compromise between Friday's holiness to Muslims and the Western weekend of Saturday-Sunday.

Major holidays in Dubai include Eid al Fitr, which marks the end of Ramadan, and National Day (2 December), which marks the formation of the United Arab Emirates. Annual entertainment events such as the Dubai Shopping Festival (DSF) and Dubai Summer Surprises (DSS) attract over 4 million visitors from across the region and generate revenues in excess of $2.7 billion (in other words Dubai’s pretty rich). Large shopping malls in the city, such as Deira City Centre, Mirdiff City Centre,BurJuman, Mall of the Emirates, Dubai Mall and Ibn Battuta Mall as well as traditional souks attract shoppers from the region.

Etiquette is an important aspect of UAE culture and tradition, to which visitors are expected to conform. In Dubai you need to wear traditional clothing, they want to protect the public from cultural insensitivity.

During celebrations singing and dancing also take place and many of the traditional songs and dances have survived to the present time. Yowalah is the traditional dance of the UAE. Young girls would dance by swinging their long black hair and swaying their bodies in time to the strong beat of the music. Men would re-enact battles fought or successful hunting expeditions, often symbolically using sticks, swords or rifles

Basically Dubai’s culture is reigned by the Islamic religion.

Food

Arabic food is very popular and is available everywhere in the city. Fast food, South Asian, and Chinese cuisines are also very popular and are widely available. The sale and consumption of pork, though not illegal, is regulated and is sold only to non-Muslims, in designated areas of supermarkets and airports.

Now if you want to drink alcohol while you’re on Dubai, you need a special permit. Alcohol consume is regulated and can be found on bars and hotels; but just at night, since Dubai is known for its wild- I mean- nightlife.

Places you shouldn’t miss
Everything. Every single place of Dubai is amazing. But here are some examples:

Dubai’s Opera House It’s a cultural center with capacity of 2, 500 seats, a theatre of 800 and a 5,000 square meters in art galleries. Burj Kalhifa It’s a skyscraper located in the center of a great complex that crosses town in a transversal way. Aquadventure This water park is located in the Atlantis hotel, it has slides, swim with sharks, artificial beaches and much more. Desert Safari This is a tour onDubai’s desert, it’s amazing since you can do sand board, ride a camel or even have a henna tattoo. Al-Mahara Restaurant Now if you go to Dubai you can’t miss the opportunity of going to this amazing restaurant. I would go into detail but since it’s the world’s most expensive restaurant… go under your own risk. Ok so these are just examples; but since Dubai is one of the most expensive cities in the world I think that’s enough… watch the next pictures of Dubai and feel bad for not being able to afford going there.  This is the view from a skycrapper from Dubai Dubai's famous nightlife.

Porto Alegre, Brasil

 

History

Porto Alegre began as a large farm whose surroundings were inhabited by Indians from several different tribes. A small village formed in the area in 1752 by settlers mainly from the Azores, and in 1772 the parish of São Francisco do Porto dos Casais was formed. A year later the bishop changed the parish's name to Nossa Senhora Madre de Deus do Porto Alegre (Our Lady Mother of God of the Happy Port) and the city was selected as the location for the provincial government.

Porto Alegre had become a city of 12,000 inhabitants by 1822, the year the Brazil gained independence. The main port facilities were built between 1845 and 1860. By the end of the century the population had risen to 73,000. The city became known worldwide in 1963 through hosting the World University Games. In 1985 the people of Porto Alegre joined the movement for free elections and one of the largest demonstrations took place in the city.

Culture

Carnival/Carnaval

The Porto Alegre Carnival began in the 18th century with the entrudo, a prank brought over by the Portuguese from the Azores, whereby people threw flour, water, and "limão de cheiro" missiles at each other.  

The corso, a parade of floats down Porto Alegre's streets, was a celebration enjoyed by the more well-to-do of the city's inhabitants.

One of the most important Carnival personalities is King Momo. At the beginning of Carnival, usually in February, he receives the keys to the city from the Mayor of Porto Alegre, symbolically governing the Carnival during the four days of revelry. Vincente Rao was the most popular King Momo.

Cuisine

One of the most famous foods of Brazil, churrasco (slow-grilled and -roasted meat), originated in Rio Grande do Sul. But cuisine is eclectic here, and rice and beans sit on southern tables beside Italian and German dishes, thanks to the South's many European immigrants. Colonial coffee is the elaborate 5 PM tea, with breads, pies, and German kuchen, popular among the Germans in the South.

The traditional beverage is the "erva mate". The Chalet of the XV de Novembro Plaza is one of the most traditional bar-draught beer-restaurants in the city, where the last "lambe-lambe" photographs of the region work ("lambe-lambes" are photographers who develop pictures outdoor using the oldest method known).

Religion	Percentage	Number
Catholic	73.15%	995,330
Protestant	9.33%	126,879
No religion	8.16%	110,959
Spiritist	4.29%	58,380
Jewish	0.49%	6,627
Jehovah's Witnesses	0.45%	6,092

Source: IBGE 2000. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints has a temple in Porto Alegre.

Porto Alegre was one of the first cities in Brazil to develop a recycling program and has been acknowledged as having the best management practices in the country.

Places you shouldn't miss:

Piratini Palace

Praça da Matriz

Public Market

Mario Quintana Culture House

Farroupilha Park

Usina do Gasômetro

Moinhos de Vento Park