RWC Final

So it's come down to the final two...

New Zealand vs France...

Winner takes all...

Could be a fantastic match on Sunday morning, and as England and all the other Home Nations have dropped steadily over the past few weeks (some heads held a lot lower than others, *cough*England*cough*), we're backing the All Blacks to grab their first RWC since 1987.

Kia Manuia Aotearoa!

(Good luck NZ!.... I think)

Ever hit a cow with a golf ball?

Very peculiar story coming from NZ today..

A golf course has been forced to close because of 'disruption' to the organic farm next door because of the many golf balls apparently crossing the fences every year, and some of the golfers trespassing.

The judge passed in favour of the farm, and the golf course has been forced to close.

Amazingly, the golf course was actually there first!

Have a read yourself here..

Haka and Homework

England may have been dumped out of the World Cup by France at the weekend, but some Cornish school kids have created their own version of the famous New Zealand Haka, which is performed before every match the All Blacks play.

It may not be as intimidating as the original Maori war dance, but it really is brilliant, and well worth a look..

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-15271807

Alma telescope, Atacama Desert, Chile

The Atacama large milllimetre/submillimetre array (Alma) in Chile's Atacama Desert has been under construction since 2003 and has been up and running since the end of July this year when the 16th of its giant antenna dishes was put into place and connected up.   66 dishes will be installed when the overall project is complete and when they are all in place, views of and insights into space, galaxies and the Universe that were never thought possible even just 50 years ago will start to emerge.  However, earlier this week it officially opened to the world with the release of its first image: http://www.almaobservatory.org/en/press-room/press-releases/297-alma-opens-its-eyes....and there's quite rightly been a flurry of publicity, of which this is just one little bit:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-15107254

I was lucky enough to be in northern Chile earlier this year and passed close by the site of the Alma. The small, hazy, light coloured dots in the middle of the red hillside is the hub of the telescope and project complex.  Located in Chile's Atacama Desert, close to the small oasis town of San Pedro de Atacama, this photo was taken from the road just outside of San Pedro en route to Purmarmaca in Argentina's north western province of Jujuy, via the Jama Pass. I didn't take the photo for its quality, rather just because I wanted to record being so close to such an incredibly ambitious and promising piece of engineering and science in action. 


The landscapes you pass through on the road from Chile to Argentina by the way are simply gorgeous....the dry climate, altitude and lack of air pollution mean that the clean and clear air (one of the major reasons the Alma is located where it is), coupled with the region's geology, produce incredibly vibrant colours that you just can't take your eyes off...... 

Guyana's answer to David Beckham?

Ricky Shakes of Ebbsfleet United has been called up to represent Guyana in their second round World Cup Qualifiers against Bermuda and Barbados. Wins could take Guyana close to qualification for the next round where they will play Mexico and Costa Rica.

Even though he made one appearance for Trinidad and Tobago in 2006 in a friendly, FIFA have given the Guyana FA permission to call him up to the squad.

Ricky came through the ranks at Bolton before spells with Bristol Rovers and Swindon Town, amongst others.

Could he take the world stage by storm?

Watch this space...

Moby Dick has been spotted off Australia!

Captain Ahab has said to be readying his boat...

Ok maybe not, and maybe it isn't Moby Dick, but a white humpback whale has been seen near the Great Barrier Reef by tourists in the past week. Said to be a 12ft calf, Moby was seen with its pod on their south migration, where he/she is fattening up ready for the cold of the Antarctic.

Very jealous of the lucky so-and-so who happened to be diving nearby at the time, as there is estimated to be only 10-15 white whales amongst the 15,000 humpback population around Australia's East Coast.

The (New) 7 Wonders of Nature

A new list is being compiled to select the new 7 wonders of nature. The vote has been shortlisted from over 440 entries from over 220 different countries down to 28, all of which are up against each other to make the final 7. This is a follow up to first Wonders of the World Vote, which attracted over 100 million votes.

Several TID countries and their landmarks figure, with Australia being represented by both Uluru (Ayers Rock) and the Great Barrier Reef. New Zealand's Milford Sound has made the list, as has Mount Kilimanjaro from Tanzania, and Iguazu Falls from Argentina.

If you would like to show your support for any of these amazing natural wonders (or any of the none TID ones), please go to www.new7wonders.com and click on vote!

Fantasy Football Update

Just a quick up date on how the the TID Fantasy Football League is going.

After 6 games of the season, Von is edging out Kieran by 9 points to hold on to first position, while Paul is slightly further behind, but still well within reach.

The team made up from players with (mostly) TID nationalities is bringing up the rear. This team has had a few injuries of late, so we'll wait until the end of the season before making too many judgements!

Falkland Islands Oiled Wildlife Facility

We and our clients here at TID have made a donation to the The Oiled Wildlife Facility Appeal which is building a new oiled penguin facility on the Falkland Islands to replace the old one which unfortunately has never had electricity or water.

As well as the buildings, proper pools are being built to aid the rehabilitation of the penguins. Species rare in the Falklands, such as Chinstrap penguins, have turned up oiled with other successfully treated species include Gentoo, King, and Rockhopper penguins.

Building permission has been approved and the appeal is going well having now reached over the £8,000 mark. With a £10,000 target, it is nearing its goal but still needs that final push!

It's a vitally important project and a noble cause - click here to go to the site if you wish to help out too.

Things are on the up!

After we highlighted last months football dreamland for Guyana at the expense of Wales, things are looking good for our next door neighbours, and not just in sport!

Wales are improving at football, (up 27 in the latest FIFA rankings) and are doing their bit to help save the rainforest.

Through donations to a cause named 'Size of Wales' run by the The Waterloo Foundation, the Welsh are striving to save an area of rainforest the size of (... you guessed it) Wales. The project area includes parts of Somalia, Kenya, Tanzania (a TID destination), Mozambique, as well as some offshore islands.

So far 400,000 trees have been planted, and sustainable projects set up to help earn an extra $65,000, though initiatives such as eco-tourism, herbal products and selling honey.