Landscape and Holiday Pictures
Following is a selection of our favourite holiday destinations
Seychelles
Seychelles is an archipelagic island country in the Indian Ocean at the eastern edge of the Somali Sea. The country consists of 115 islands. Its capital and largest city, Victoria, lies 1,500 km east of mainland Africa. Seychelles was uninhabited prior to being encountered by Europeans in the 16th century. It faced competing French and British interests until coming under full British control in the late 19th century. Independence was granted in 1976 and it became a republic at the same time. It has been a member of Commonwealth. Seychellois culture and society is an eclectic mix of French, British, and African influences, with more recent infusions of Chinese and Indian elements. The country is a member of the United Nations, the African Union, the Southern African Development Community, and the Commonwealth of Nations.
Hawaii
Oahu is the third largest of the Hawaiian Islands. It is home to about seven-tenths of the population of the U.S. state of Hawaii. The state capital, Honolulu, is on Oahu's southeast coast. Including small close-in offshore islands such as Ford Island and the islands in Kāneohe Bay and off the eastern (windward) coast, it has a total land area of 596.7 square miles (1,545.4 km2), making it the 20th largest island in the United States. In the greatest dimension, this volcanic island is 71 km long and 48km across. The length of the shoreline is 365km. The island is the result of two separate shield volcanoes: the Waianae and Koolau Ranges, with a broad "valley" or saddle (the central Oahu Plain) between them. The highest point is Kaala in the Waianae Range, rising to 4,003 feet (1,220 m) above sea level.
Kanada
Banff National Park is Canada's oldest national park, established in 1885 in the Rocky Mountains. The park, located 110–180 kilometres west of Calgary in the province of Alberta, encompasses 6,641 square kilometres of mountainous terrain, with numerous glaciers and ice fields, dense coniferous forest, and alpine landscapes. The Icefields Parkway extends from Lake Louise, connecting to Jasper National Park in the north. Provincial forests and Yoho National Park are neighbours to the west, while Kootenay National Park is located to the south and Kananaskis Country to the southeast. The main commercial centre of the park is the town of Banff, in the Bow River valley.The Canadian Pacific Railway was instrumental in Banff's early years, building the Banff Springs Hotel and Lake Louise Chalet, and attracting tourists through extensive advertising.
Guadeloupe
Guadeloupe is an insular region of France located and is a part of the Lesser Antilles in the Caribbean. Administratively, it is an overseas region consisting of a single overseas department. With a land area of 1,628 square kilometres (629 square miles) and a population of 400,132 in January 2015, it is the largest and most populous European Union territory in North America. Guadeloupe's two main islands are Basse-Terre to the west and Grande-Terre to the east, which are separated by a narrow strait that is crossed with bridges. They are often referred to as a single island. Guadeloupe, like the other overseas departments, is an integral part of France.
Mauritius
Mauritius is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about 2,000 kilometres (1,200 mi) off the southeast coast of the African continent. The country includes the islands of Mauritius and Rodrigues, 560 kilometres (350 mi) east of Mauritius. The islands of Mauritius and Rodrigues form part of the Mascarene Islands, along with nearby Réunion, a French overseas department. The area of the country is 2,040 km2 (790 sq mi). The capital and largest city is Port Louis. The people of Mauritius are multiethnic, multi-religious, multicultural and multilingual. The island's government is closely modelled on the Westminster parliamentary system, and Mauritius is highly ranked for democracy and for economic and political freedom. Along with the other Mascarene Islands, Mauritius is known for its varied flora and fauna, with many species endemic to the island. The island is widely known as the only known home of the dodo, which, along with several other avian species, was made extinct by human activities relatively shortly after the island's settlement.
Lissabon
Lisbon is the capital and the largest city of Portugal, with a population of 552,700 within its administrative limits in an area of 100.05 km². About 3 million people live in the Lisbon Metropolitan Area (which represents approximately 27% of the country's population). It is continental Europe's westernmost capital city and the only one along the Atlantic coast. Lisbon lies in the western Iberian Peninsula on the Atlantic Ocean and the River Tagus. Lisbon enjoys a Mediterranean climate. It has one of the warmest winters of any metropolis in Europe, with average temperatures 15 °C during the day and 8 °C at night from December to February. The typical summer season lasts about four months, from June to September, although also in April temperatures sometimes reach around 25 °C.