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Rich people sometimes had their own elaborately decorated chairs, but plain black painted chairs could be hired, a bit like hiring a taxi today. |
A 1768 list of fares in Edinburgh suggested a fee of 6d (2.5 pence) for a journey within the City, 1 shilling and 6d (7.5p) for a journey half a mile outside the City, and 4 shillings (20p) for a whole day's hire. |
Sedan chairs were carried on long poles placed through brackets at either side of the chair. The door was at the front so the passenger could get in and out without the poles being removed. Two people known as 'Chairmen' were needed to carry each chair. Many of the Chairmen came from the Highlands of Scotland. They had... |
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The Tobago Twist |
At the beginning of the dive, our small group entered the water at London Bridge in the shadow of the towering rock arch that gives this site its name. By the time we've kicked into the shallows at the end of the dive, we've found an unusual abundance of queen angelfish, two cherubfish--another kind of angelfish, these... |
We've been briefed thoroughly on this section of the dive: If the surge presents no hazard, we'll cruise through the arch and meet the boat on the other side. If things look dicey, divemaster Lynne Marshall-Dunn will let us decide for ourselves whether we want to try to shoot the passage or turn around and head back th... |
"It's like the rum punch," Marshall-Dunn tells me later. "Go anywhere else in the Caribbean and order a rum punch, and you'll get the same thing--you know, fruit juice and rum. But here, they add Angostura bitters and it gives it an extra something. It's just right. It's the same way with the diving--it's like the rest... |
Call it the Tobago Twist--the way everything here, above water and below, seems familiar and at the same time entirely unique. The twist shows up in countless ways as you explore the island, in the narrow roads that dip in and out of postcard-perfect bays along the coasts, in the outrageously colored native birds and t... |
Even geographically, Tobago and its larger sister island Trinidad are out of the mainstream, at the extreme southern end of the lesser Antilles, the island chain that defines the eastern edge of the Caribbean Sea. Unlike the other islands in the chain, Trinidad and Tobago actually lie on the continental shelf of South ... |
Catching the Drift |
The moving water comes courtesy of the powerful Guyana Current, which hits the Atlantic coast of Tobago and splits around the island before continuing its northwest trajectory. The food comes courtesy of the Orinoco River, which empties tons of nutrients (and sediments) from the jungles of Venezuela into the ocean to b... |
There's some current present on nearly every dive and on some dives, it's strong enough to offer carnival-ride thrills. Just drop into the water, head for the bottom and let the current take you away. Most diving is done from wooden pirogues that hold a relatively small group of divers and equipment for a single dive. ... |
The Nutrient Buffet |
Like the currents, the nutrients that wash in from the outflow of the Orinoco River can create challenges for divers in the form of reduced visibility, but the benefits far outweigh the challenges. Who wants to see forever anyway if there's nothing to look at? Tobago reefs are packed with life, thanks to the abundant f... |
The best-known diners at Tobago's plankton buffet are manta rays, and this is one of the best places in the Caribbean to spot one of the majestic creatures, especially between January and May. The plentiful nutrients also support lush stands of soft corals, healthy forests of sponges and filter feeders galore, like dee... |
And then there are the fish. Like bird-watchers in Tobago's rainforest, avid fish-watchers on Tobago's reefs are in luck. The unique underwater environment, coupled with the island's proximity to South America, means you'll find species here that are rare or absent in other parts of the Caribbean. If these fish haven't... |
Diving Crown Point |
Tobago's two primary dive areas are a study in contrasts. At the southwest tip of the island, Crown Point is the bustling epicenter of tourism on Tobago and the site of the island's airport. At the far northeast end of the island lies the quiet village of Speyside. First, Crown Point ... |
This is where nondiving visitors to Tobago hang out, and a whole range of resorts, restaurants and bars cater to them. Popular beaches are crowded on this end of the island, but a laid-back holiday vibe prevails over the scene, which sees many vacationing visitors from Trinidad. |
Dive operators in Crown Point offer two basic choices for divers: the current-swept sites on the Atlantic side of the point or the quieter protected coves on the Caribbean side. If you're looking for a ride on the liquid wind, check out sites like Diver's Dream, Diver's Thirst and Flying Reef, which takes several dives... |
On the mellower Caribbean side of Crown Point, Mt. Irvine Wall is a favorite easy but beautiful shallow dive, with a sloping wall that bottoms out at 40 feet on a sand plain that reflects the bright sunlight, illuminating the brilliant colors of encrusting sponges on the wall. Nearby sits the interisland car ferry Mave... |
Many divers leave the Crown Point area as soon as they arrive to head for the northeast tip of the island and the world-renowned diving found there. An hour's drive from Crown Point, Speyside is a quiet fishing village. There are two dedicated dive resorts and a handful of restaurants in the scenic little town and not ... |
Speyside dives are clustered around two small islands just offshore, Goat Island and Little Tobago. The water surrounding these islands is filled with reefs, pinnacles and even smaller islands, which all create a maze of currents and cross-currents. All that moving water flattens the area's prolific barrel sponges and ... |
Named for an upright pair of rocks that rise from the surface of the water, Bookends is a fast-current ride over a reef slope of hard and soft corals until you reach a bowl-shaped arena patrolled by big tarpon. Black Jack Hole is a sloping reef featuring enormous barrel sponges and schooling creolefish, tomtates and ba... |
Beyond Speyside |
Around the northeast tip of Tobago from Speyside, the small group of rocky outcroppings that form the St. Giles Islands are a magnet for divers looking for adventure. Speyside dive operators make the run to St. Giles in 20 to 30 minutes. Currents can be strong here, but so are your chances of swimming with pelagic visi... |
The topside landmark and signature dive of St. Giles is the rock arch known as London Bridge. The site is as dramatic underwater as it is above, with a thrilling passage through the arch itself, swirling schools of fish and the chance to see hammerheads. Other sites include Marble Island with impressive granite walls, ... |
Continuing west down the north coast of Tobago, you'll eventually reach another group of rocks that offers more underwater thrills. The Sisters Rocks group are five large seamounts that break the surface of the water and are accessible by dive boats from Castara, Arnos Vale and Charlotteville. Underwater, the pinnacles... |
Dive In |
Dive Conditions: Most operators still use wooden pirogues--nimble outboard boats of local design and construction that hold a small group of divers. Divers roll off the boat at the same time and dive together as a group, particularly on drift dives. The divemaster carries a surface float, and the boat follows to pick e... |
Climate: From January through May, Tobago is the coolest and experiences the least rain. Daytime temperatures are in the 80s and trade winds keep the island from feeling excessively hot. June to November is the rainy season. |
Documents: U.S. and Canadian residents need a passport and a return or ongoing ticket. |
Money Matters: The Trinidad and Tobago dollar (TT$) floats against other currencies; check the exchange rate before you leave. Credit cards are accepted at hotels and dive shops, but most other transactions are in cash. The departure tax is TT$100. |
Health Matters: Food and treated tap water are generally safe to eat and drink, and bottled water is available. |
Language: English, but locals also speak a dialect that can be difficult to understand for visitors. |
Just In Case: A recompression chamber is in Roxborough. Staffed by volunteer divemasters, firefighters and nurses, it is on call 24 hours a day. |
Tourism: Tourism and Industrial Development Company of Trinidad and Tobago, |
For More Information: To find dive operators, travel guides and recent trip reports submitted by users, go to |
The Topside Twist |
Looking for a way to spend a leisurely afternoon following a couple of morning drift dives? Try one of these ... |
Every day at 4 p.m., visitors gather for a bird-watching tea at Arnos Vale Hotel, where hummingbirds are as common as mosquitoes in other places. For US$10, you get to enjoy tea and snacks on the hotel's balcony and watch the menagerie of bird life that comes within arm's reach to eat at the many feeders the hotel staf... |
This spectacular rainforest preserve is a cool, lush retreat and offers the best bird-watching in the Caribbean. You can enjoy the forest by setting out on the trail on your own, but you'll get much more out of a tour with a knowledgeable guide, who can introduce you to the forest's flora and spot birds you'd never fin... |
The most easily accessible of Tobago's waterfalls is an easy 15-minute hike from the parking area near Roxborough. The price of admission includes the cost of a guide, who will share natural points of interest along the way. Once you reach the falls, you can cool off in the lowest of the falls' three pools, or make the... |
From Speyside, cross the mountain ridge into scenic and quiet Charlotteville on the north coast. From there, drive west, where you'll hit a series of picture-perfect bays like Parlatuvier and Englishman's. You may find a group of men working together to pull in a long seine net, weighted with lead, to check the day's c... |
Find a scenic stretch of sand along the Northside Road, or if you're in the Crown Point area, head for Pigeon Point, a popular and pretty palm-lined beach (US$3 admission). There's no admission fee to Store Bay Beach, another popular local spot that features food vendors offering fresh local fare. Try the crab and dump... |
New Flights to Tobago |
Travel to Tobago gets a little easier starting Dec. 9, when Delta Airlines begins offering four nonstop flights a week from Atlanta to Trinidad, a short hop from Tobago. Flight 319 will depart Atlanta on Mondays, Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays, and return flight 322 will depart Trinidad on Mondays, Thursdays, Saturd... |
The Null Device |
Posts matching tags 'electroplankton' |
The creator of the Electroplankton game/generative music tool for the Nintendo DS, Toshio Iwai, has developed a new electronic musical instrument. Known as the Tenori-On, it's an electronic tablet containing a 16x16 grid of LED-illuminated pushbutton; it can be used as a loop-based sequencer, or played in more game-lik... |
Each of Tenori-On's LED buttons can either be lightly strummed, sort of like a harp, or alternatively pressed down, whereby each button lights up. Musical notes are triggered by a regular line of light that moves from left to right, much like the sweeping line in PSP game Lumines. |
Perhaps most interesting are the more game-like modes, where you can set off Breakout or Pong-style music balls that 'bounce' around the grid, triggering new sets of dynamics sound. These can be layered on top of the more traditional music making modes, creating what Iwai called, "a real musical instrument for our digi... |
No idea when (or even if) it'll go to market, though Yamaha seem to have the rights to it. |
(via Boing Boing) art electroplankton music tech tenori-on toshio iwai 3 Share |
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You are the one who was chosen to live, so it's you who change the world. |
A bit about Krascsenits Daniel ... |
Daniel Krascsenits, born: 07/12/1996 Country: Slovakia City: Bratislava |
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Thursday, October 11, 2007 |
No, No, A Thousand Times No! |
I'd rather die than say yes. |
(with apologies to anyone reading this who may be under the age of, oh, i don't know ... ninety? i think this was some old music hall song or something.) |
Today our (very young, very large) security guard asked me, for the second time, if I would knit him a sweater. I said no. For the second time. |
And then he offered me $50. |
OK, I know how much he makes so that's a fair chunk for him but still -- the dude's a bit of a mountain. There's a good chance that that would buy enough acrylic for a sweater for him, but nothing else. |
I told him that I didn't knit for money (and at the rate I go, this is a good thing) but if I did, it would cost him at least $700. And that's if I wanted to do it, which I don't. |
On the one hand I'm flattered that he's interested in knitting (he asked me to haul my knitting out of my bag so that he could see it) and that he likes what I'm doing enough to ask for a sweater, but on the other hand ... |
I told him to go to Zellers instead if he wanted a sweater for $50 and that I only knit for love. I was polite enough not to tell him that I was willing to pretend that sex was love. I wasn't sure if he'd have a heart attack and fall over (I have to be 20 years older than him) or if he'd offer, in which case I'd die of... |
Sheesh. At least the last one who asked me to knit for her only wanted a scarf. (And got one, too). |
(oh, and does anyone know a good -- inexpensive -- sweater-designing template/software package/instruction manual? the man i am sleeping with wants a cabled sweater and i think i'm going to have to design it myself to get exactly what we want.) |
If you have a spreadsheet program(me), there's a knitting font you can use in it to chart things. That's the cheapest option I can think of, but I don't know links. Because I clearly suck. But I'm sure someone else will know. |
you should have offered to teach him to knit. then HE'D be spending the umpty billion dollars it would take to clothe his big ass. |
Shoot me an email, Rab-beyotch, and I will run whatever numbers you need on mine. It's so cheap it's free. |
I tell people all the time that if they want knitted socks from me, it'll cost them $200. That shuts them up pretty quick. This hobby ain't cheap, and my time is worth something too. |
I second what dragon knitter said. You know, give a man a fish...blah blah blah. I don't blame you in the least for declining, though I also understand about feeling a little bad. Non-knitters just don't understand the amount of time that goes into creating a garment that big, and they're used to paying wal-mart prices... |
What gets me are the people who think I'll knit them something just out of the goodness of my heart. Neither my heart nor my pocketbook have that much goodness. Now, if these moochers had something nice to barter, like, say, if they made shoes, or cowboy hats, or jewelry, then we'd be in business. |
so funny. |
knit a man a sweater and he has only one sweater. TEACH a man to knit, well... |
egads. did I just (sortof) quote scripture? -shudder- |
I do find it amusing that the man you are sleeping with deserves a hand-knit sweater. he must be good. ;) |
I feel bad saying no to the ones who say, "Ooooh, it's soooo beautiful. Would you please oh please knit me something?" The ones I DON'T feel bad about denying, like my sister in law, say, "I want a hat and scarf. Not too fancy or anything. You should go ahead and make that for me." |
A friend of mine wanted a Ravenclaw scarf for Halloween. He asked me this a few weeks ago, and I'm a grad student. So I laughed at him and explained how freakin' long those things take. I do love him, and I promised him a hat forever ago, so he bought the scarf online and I am making him a hat. He really had no idea ho... |
I had a similar situation once. I knit some fingerless mitts for one of my employees partly--believe it or not--in my capacity as her manager because in the winter our offices can get deathly cold and, as technical writers who type 8 hours a day, our hands need to be warm. Another employee (who is, in the interest of f... |
Here's a free knitting graph creator |
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