10 countries that will change your life

Some holiday destinations are good for just that: holidays. Getting away from it all. You turn up, have a little look around, drink a few beers, buy a few souvenirs, and go home.

It’s nice, but it’s not going to rock your world. It’s not going to change who you are, or how you look at the world.

And that’s fine. But travel can be a lot more than that. If you’re looking for a country that will change your life, then these are the places to start: Laos, Mexico, Japan, India, South Africa, Germany, Brazil, Uganda, China and Cambodia.

--Ben Groundwater
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Chimpanzee and gorilla heads and body parts seized in Gabon

Five people were arrested for the cache which included the head and hands of an endangered gorilla, 12 chimpanzee heads and 30 chimpanzee hands. WWF called for a tough judicial approach to act as a deterrent. Africa's wildlife is often poached for the profitable bushmeat trade or for use in traditional good luck charms. Gabon's rainforests teem with wildlife, including lowland gorillas and forest elephants - and national parks make up around one tenth of the country.

Read more at BBC News Africa

Danger to Great Barrier Reef from Queensland Flooding

Marine life in Australia’s Great Barrier Reef could be at risk from the effects of intense flooding across Queensland, environmental officials stressed in a 10 January statement.

The flood waters are carrying toxic material into the Reef, and turtles and corals alike could suffer as a result.

“Toxic pollution from flooded farms and towns along the Queensland coast will have a disastrous impact on the Great Barrier Reefs corals and will likely have a significant impact on dugongs, turtles and other marine life”, the WWF (World Wildlife Fund) stated---ENVIRO NEWS' 

Orphaned gorillas find a safe haven

“Called GRACE (Gorilla Rehabilitation and Conservation Education), the center’s goal is to teach orphaned gorillas how to survive in the wild as a new, self-sufficient “family,” with the longer-term goal to release them into a natural habitat in a neighboring forest in the Congo Basin.”
Read more at http://edition.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/africa/12/17/grace.gorillas.congo/

Natural Help for Sinus and Migraine Headaches

I suffer from sinus migraines. It seems that since I moved to Florida five years ago, they have gotten worse with the additional allergens from tropical plants and trees. I take the usual over the counter pain meds, but they don't always provide relief. Last week, a friend of mine gave me a bottle of small green beads from Aromafloria. You place the beads in cheesecloth and then inhale the aroma when you feel the headache starting. I can say that today I have a migraine from the low pressure moving into Florida, but when I inhale the beads, it seems that the dagger is removed from my sinuses for a time of relief. Be sure to check out http://www.aromafloria.com/SearchResult.aspx?CategoryID=11

Mountain Gorilla Census Reveals Increase in Population

KIGALI, RWANDA - The number on one of the world’s most charismatic and endangered species is in.

The analysis of the census conducted in March and April 2010 indicates that there were a total of 480 mountain gorillas, (Gorilla beringei beringei), in 36 groups along with 14 solitary silverback males in the Virunga Massif, which includes three contiguous national parks: Parc National des Virunga in DRC, Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda and Mgahinga Gorilla National Park in Uganda. The only other location where mountain gorillas exist is Bwindi Impenetrable National Park in Uganda.

Along with the 302 mountain gorillas censused in Bwindi in 2006 and four orphaned mountain gorillas in a sanctuary in DRC, this brings the total world population to 786 individuals.

The last census undertaken in the Virunga Massif was in 2003, when the population was estimated at 380 individuals. The current figure represents a 26.3 % increase in the population of mountain gorillas in this area over the last seven years, which is a 3.7 % annual growth rate. This increase in the population occurred despite the killing of no less than nine mountain gorillas, in four separate incidents, during this time period.

Of the 480 mountain gorillas censused, 352 (73%) were habituated (349 in groups and three solitary males) and 128 were unhabituated (117 in groups and 11 solitary males).

"This population has made an absolutely remarkable recovery from the approximately 250 individuals that existed only three decades ago. This recovery is due to the relentless collaborative efforts of many organizations and institutions in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda and Uganda," stated Dr. Augustin Basabose, Coordinator of Species at the International Gorilla Conservation Programme (IGCP), a coalition of African Wildlife Foundation (AWF), Fauna & Flora International, and the World Wide Fund for Nature.

Please visit http://www.awf.org to read the full story and to learn how you can help continue to save these amazing gorillas!

Baby Boat Cradle is too precious!

Hmmmm, just makes you want to have a little on to put into this amazing cradle. A true ship's tender replica. Hangs from suspension system to rock your little one to sleep. Can be removed from suspension system and put on a rocker or wagon conversion for child's older years. Boat pictured is cypress planked on a mahogany backbone with a lacewood transom. Suspension system (davits) are mahogany. Boat and davits can be custom ordered in any number of different woods. Can also be finished in several eco and child friendly ways. Boat design by Warren Jordan. BEAVERBOATWORKS