Cool Pictures 14: no , it wasn't me who painted Mona Lisa
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This aerial photo, taken on Sunday, June 9, shows people cooling off at a water park in Nanjing, China.
Tiny beauty: how I make scientific art from behind the microscope
The retracting foot of a bdelloid rotifer, a freshwater microscopic animal.
The retracting foot of a bdelloid rotifer, a freshwater microscopic animal.
Spoiler More pics :
Muslim worshippers walk at the Grand Mosque in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, on Tuesday, June 11, ahead of the annual Hajj pilgrimage.
PPQ_Purple
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That scene looks dystopian to me. I don't know why. It just has this early 2000's dystopian movie vibe.
Maybe it's the color of the lighting where its just slightly off so that things that you know should be white aren't. Or maybe its the combination of almost fascist monumental architecture and skyscrapers. Dunno.
Maybe it's the color of the lighting where its just slightly off so that things that you know should be white aren't. Or maybe its the combination of almost fascist monumental architecture and skyscrapers. Dunno.
EgonSpengler
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This one made me think of the shark's attack on the Sanya Bay beach resort in Hainan, in The Meg (2018).
That is a big shark! The current photo photographer may have had that movie in mind when they took the picture.
The Hajj is a complicated operation. Here is a guide to how it works. The Grand Mosque is 400,000 sq meters. That is big and it can accommdate millions of pilgrims.
What is Hajj? A step-by-step guide to the Muslim pilgrimage
Here’s how Muslims perform the rituals of Hajj every year, following an ancient example.
The $2-billion Icon of the Seas made headlines when the vessel launched earlier this year, with its seven swimming pools – including a record-breaking 17,000-square-foot water park.
Finding time to fit in everything onboard Icon of the Seas promises to keep passengers busy. And speaking of passengers, the ship can carry a whopping 7,600 guests at full capacity, along with 2,350 crew – so about the whole population of Sedona, Arizona.
I keep imagining this ship capsizing.
Finding time to fit in everything onboard Icon of the Seas promises to keep passengers busy. And speaking of passengers, the ship can carry a whopping 7,600 guests at full capacity, along with 2,350 crew – so about the whole population of Sedona, Arizona.
I keep imagining this ship capsizing.
I'm subscribed to Ben and David's YT channel, and they were on one of the early Icon of the Seas cruises. The sheer size of this thing is mind-boggling:
I just do not get why anyone would choose to go on holiday on that thing. When you could go anywhere in the world, loads of people choose to go somewhere that looks like all the worst bits of the cheap commercial resort type places except with no way to get away. And they are really bad of the environment as well, and are generally socially negative probably.
To be fair, the cruise channels I watch are done by people who are professional reviewers. I got into this because I was doing some research for one of my stories (had this crazy idea of setting part of my Merlin/Highlander crossover on a cruise ship and then realized I know nothing about cruise ships other than old Love Boat episodes and the Cruise Director games).
I look at it as the kind of holiday people take when they basically hang out at a resort and take structured side trips. The only difference is that the resort is mobile and you go with it.
I've seen some videos made by people who work as crew, which is also rather interesting. Their lives aren't so glamorous.
And different reviewers focus on different things. Ben and David are a bit food-obsessed, but they've also done some interesting tours on land, as well.
I look at it as the kind of holiday people take when they basically hang out at a resort and take structured side trips. The only difference is that the resort is mobile and you go with it.
I've seen some videos made by people who work as crew, which is also rather interesting. Their lives aren't so glamorous.
And different reviewers focus on different things. Ben and David are a bit food-obsessed, but they've also done some interesting tours on land, as well.
This just makes me even more incredulous. One of the great things about travel is about getting out and trying the weird food places and styles you find around the world. Surely you cannot get food on one of those things that you cannot get in every big city in the world. If you are into food, even less reason to go on a cruse surely?
The closest thing I ever had to a cruise was taking the ferry between Vancouver and Nanaimo, BC. The trip wasn't long enough to worry about food. The closest I've ever experienced to that variety of foods in a small, walkable space is the local annual folk festival we have on July 1. And that's not in any fancy restaurant - more like tents and booths near a stage where they have outdoor ethnic music and dancing.
My understanding is that there are something like a couple of dozen restaurants at least on these cruise ships, with a wide variety of cuisines. As well, people can try local foods when they're in port or go on an excursion. It might seem that Ben and David do nothing but eat, but they tend to divide their cruises into two or three episodes, each focusing on a different aspect of the voyage. Their target audience isn't people like me, who won't ever go on a cruise, but rather other cruisers or people seriously considering it.
The whole thing seems like an amazing expenditure of money to me, when you consider that the entertainment offered is usually something that would bore me silly. If I'm going to spend $$$ on musical entertainment, I want an actual full Broadway musical on a proper stage, not just people wearing generic costumes singing the songs, with no context. Or give me a symphony orchestra or a folk music concert. Trivia contests and bingo don't appeal at all, and neither does gambling. But it's the kind of vacation some people are into, and if they have that kind of money to spend, I guess that's not really a reason to judge (personally if I had that kind of money for a holiday, I'd go to Worldcon).
However, some of these reviewers mentioned theme cruises and how annoying they find them. Personally, I'd love a science fiction-themed cruise (they're a thing, like a floating SF convention). Or an eclipse cruise, with science-focused programming.
It's still interesting, and occasionally funny to watch some of these videos. There's another reviewer from England who took a cruise to Norway, and she was carrying on about this really cool machine they were using to vacuum up the snow from the deck and empty it over the side of the ship. The comments pretty well exploded in laughter as everyone realized that she had no clue about ordinary snowblowers.
My understanding is that there are something like a couple of dozen restaurants at least on these cruise ships, with a wide variety of cuisines. As well, people can try local foods when they're in port or go on an excursion. It might seem that Ben and David do nothing but eat, but they tend to divide their cruises into two or three episodes, each focusing on a different aspect of the voyage. Their target audience isn't people like me, who won't ever go on a cruise, but rather other cruisers or people seriously considering it.
The whole thing seems like an amazing expenditure of money to me, when you consider that the entertainment offered is usually something that would bore me silly. If I'm going to spend $$$ on musical entertainment, I want an actual full Broadway musical on a proper stage, not just people wearing generic costumes singing the songs, with no context. Or give me a symphony orchestra or a folk music concert. Trivia contests and bingo don't appeal at all, and neither does gambling. But it's the kind of vacation some people are into, and if they have that kind of money to spend, I guess that's not really a reason to judge (personally if I had that kind of money for a holiday, I'd go to Worldcon).
However, some of these reviewers mentioned theme cruises and how annoying they find them. Personally, I'd love a science fiction-themed cruise (they're a thing, like a floating SF convention). Or an eclipse cruise, with science-focused programming.
It's still interesting, and occasionally funny to watch some of these videos. There's another reviewer from England who took a cruise to Norway, and she was carrying on about this really cool machine they were using to vacuum up the snow from the deck and empty it over the side of the ship. The comments pretty well exploded in laughter as everyone realized that she had no clue about ordinary snowblowers.
This at least sounds appealing, but I am not sure what it would have on a non-floating convention.
This however I could possibly see myself paying for. Presumably one could be almost certain to see it, as the cruse ship could go where there is no clouds. I would love to properly see a total eclipse, and it is hard to be sure to not be clouded out. It is almost to the point of why do not loads of cruse ships chase eclipses around the world? [EDIT]Though of course they have thought of that. Actually New Scientist do exactly what you ask for, but I am not sure the boat is the same:
This unique cruise will be hosted aboard a new, state-of-the-art polar expedition vessel, the Sylvia Earle, one of a handful of passenger ships to feature the revolutionary Ulstein X-BOW, reducing fuel consumption and allowing a sleeker cruising experience.
Spoiler They have not built it yet :
Spoiler Eclipse map for the cruse ships to chase :
The Egypt one in 2027 is the longest in our lifetime, and the point of longest toality is right by Luxor. The weather is pretty clear there that time of year.
Spoiler Total eclipse :
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The unbroken seal on King Tut's tomb.
Moraine Lake, Banff National Park, Alberta:
Comrade Ceasefire
Simmer slowly
That's just marketing guff. The bow shape is not new, or revolutionary. Inverted bows were used over 100 years ago.This at least sounds appealing, but I am not sure what it would have on a non-floating convention.
This unique cruise will be hosted aboard a new, state-of-the-art polar expedition vessel, the Sylvia Earle, one of a handful of passenger ships to feature the revolutionary Ulstein X-BOW, reducing fuel consumption and allowing a sleeker cruising experience.
Spoiler They have not built it yet :
