Global Travel Writers: Articles

Echoes of elegance

Sun, 15 Nov 2009 23:03:00 -0500

Opened briefly during August 2009 to for the annual yachting delirium that is Audi Hamilton Race Week, the Hamilton Island Yacht Club opens its stylish, hand crafted doors to members and guests on 25 November. Cleverly designed and inspired by azure Coral Sea colours, this is one seriously well appointed club, creating an element of sophistication rarely seen in the Whitsunday Islands.

Fiona Harper checks out the uber stylish Hamilton Island Yacht Club and Hamilton Island Golf Club

Contact Fiona Harper www.fionaharper.com.au to commission this article. Images are available www.pbase.com/fionaharper/hiyc

Aground off the Pilbara coast

Mon, 14 Sep 2009 02:07:00 -0400

Living onboard a cruising yacht is a remarkably satisfying experience, offering the rare opportunity to be totally self-supporting. Daily life revolves around keeping the ship safe, the complex essential systems operating and the yacht moving towards its destination. Oh, and there�s plenty of sundowners on arrival, usually beneath an unashamedly scarlet sky as the sun disappears over the horizon. Arriving at an anchorage late afternoon, its not unusual to run into cruising buddies who we may not have seen for months, but who immediately invite us to join them on the beach to share a cold beer or two as soon as our anchor is down and secure.

But there is a frustratingly accurate saying amongst these same yachties: there are those who have run aground and those who soon will. As I found out just a few months into our Australian circumnavigation.....

Please contact Fiona Harper to commission this article or others along a yachting theme. Images are available.

Racing around the Rock

Mon, 14 Sep 2009 01:36:00 -0400

With a balmy 10 to 15 knot tropical breeze wafting across Cleveland Bay, near Townsville in north Queensland, almost 50 yachts competed in the third Sunferries Magnetic Island Race Week in September.

Join avid sailor and island resident Fiona Harper for an exciting yachting regatta on Magnetic Island, affectionately known by locals as 'the rock'.

Contact Fiona Harper if you'd like to commission this article. Images are available.

Sails and Saxophones

Mon, 14 Sep 2009 00:41:00 -0400

Now in its 13th year the Great Tropical Jazz Party is three nights and two days of cool jazz beneath the palms on Magnetic Island in north Queensland. Held annually on the second weekend in September, highly acclaimed musicans clamour to be invited to attend this unique festival created by the late Max Brown.

Held poolside amidst the tropical gardens of the All Seasons Resort Magnetic Island, the intimate venue creates an easy going ambience that brings out the best in the musicians, all of whom perform for no fee. With the jazz party following on closely from Sunferries Magnetic Island Race Week, September is a lively time on this usually laid back island of 3000 residents, just off the coast from Townsville.

Contact Fiona Harper if you'd like to commission this article. Images are available.

The Charm of Chartering

Sat, 10 Jan 2009 23:05:00 -0500

The noise was deafening. The roar of blood pumping through my head as we charged forward, hell bent on hitting the start line milliseconds after the gun went. The commands of the helmsman as he bawled his constantly changing manoeuvres. The subtly controlled hysteria of the tacticians tongue dominating the mayhem as he called the countdown. The aluminium hull bashing and crashing through the pre-start chop, the whir of winches grinding, Kevlar crackling and sheets slapping as we jockeyed for position. A cacophony of pandemonium, multiplied a hundred times over, as each yacht manically converged, seemingly, on the same point.

It was my first Hamilton Island Race Week in 1994 and it was exhilarating mayhem. Bobsled, a Kell Steinman pocket maxi, had been chartered by a group of keen yachtsmen intent on getting around the course as fast as possible. Having just conservatively sailed this downwind flyer gently through many thousands of miles on the return of the Brisbane � Osaka race, it was a shock to see my temporary home (affectionately known by the delivery crew as the Bobsled Hilton after four months at sea through the western Pacific) sailed so aggressively. Not that she wasn�t up to it: Bobsled had recently slashed the 308nm Brisbane � Gladstone race in just under 22 hours, averaging 14 knots. Race Week was just another opportunity to let her loose amongst a fleet of like-minded speed freaks who had chartered Bobsled for the week. But she was only one of many yachts on charter for that week.

Contact Fiona Harper to commission this article or others on a similar theme. Images are available from this yachting enthusiast.

From troubles to treasures in the Solomon Islands

Sun, 18 May 2008 22:32:00 -0400

It�s almost like swimming in bouillabaisse. The sheer variety and density of marine life stun most visitors to the Solomon Islands. But sadly, the gods do not appear to have been kind to the Solomons. Just as this country of over 900 islands was recovering from a four-year civil war that ended in 2003, it was hit by the devastating earthquake and tsunami of 2007. Any other nation would be down for the count after such a series of body blows; but the Solomon Islands are now picking themselves up and asking �where to next?� For tourism potential, the Solomons excel. The snorkelling and dive sites are world-famous; the cultures are kaleidoscopically diverse, and the people warm and friendly. What more could be wished for?

Sublimely Ridiculous

Thu, 03 Jan 2008 02:00:00 -0500

Billed as �the last great race in the world�, the Iditarod dog-sled race runs well over 1600 km from Anchorage to Nome, through some of the world�s most inhospitable territory.

The Iditarod is no ordinary dog-sled race. This classic event, billed as �the world�s last great race�, commemorates the famous �serum run� of 1925, when a sled dog relay carrying vital supplies of diphtheria vaccine was the only way of saving the citizenry of the remote town of Nome from near-annihilation.

For a couple of weeks in early March each year, Alaskans go crazy. This is the Iditarod season, when racers brave the 1875 km from Anchorage to Nome through territory where the temperature can drop to -50�C (or even lower, with windchill factor).

Not that a dog-race is needed to drive Alaskans crazy. Who would be crazy enough to live in this hostile environment? Just about everyone who wants a challenge in life, it would seem.

Kaohsiung gears up for the Games

Wed, 18 Jul 2007 00:13:00 -0400

Kaohsiung gears up for the Games: For the moment, the world�s eyes are on Beijing, as it prepares for the 2008 Olympics. But the focus will soon move to Kaohsiung, Taiwan�s laidback southern city, which will be staging the World Games in 2009. In preparation for the Games, Kaohsiung�s waterfront has been totally transformed, with the Love River foreshore being spruced up and graced with parks, riverside caf�s and other facilities. See image preview: http://www.photographersdirect.com/simmons/search.asp?lb=6246

Golf Tasmania

Wed, 11 Apr 2007 05:46:00 -0400

The village of Bothwell, in Tasmania�s Central Highlands, is home to Australia�s oldest golf course. Bothwell is also the location of the Australasian Golf Museum, which (with two recent major acquisitions) is now one the world�s three top golfing museums. An hour to the north, Launceston�s Country-Club Casino is a lush retreat, drawing golfers from all over the world

See image gallery:http://www.globaltravelwriters.com/Galleries/GolfTasmania/

Nights on white Sharjahs

Tue, 20 Mar 2007 17:41:00 -0400

The Emirate of Sharjah, just 20 minutes by road from Dubai, is home not only to the UAE�s only international-standard cricket team, but also to some of the most stunning architecture in the world. Besides the recently-restored old souk (market) and the new arts centre, visitors can take in the amazing new souk. Just remember that Sharjah is an alcohol-free zone, in stark contrast to the more liberal Dubai