Sunday, 24 February, 2019

A Holiday Break

A Holiday Break

Posted on Wednesday, 1 February, 2017Sunday, 20 August, 2017 by Zheluo Cai

A HOLIDAY BREAK

FROM THURSDAY, 3 JANUARY TO SUNDAY, 12 JANUARY 2017

BANGKOK, THAILAND

Bangkok, Thailand’s capital, is a large city encompassing 1,568.7 square kilometres (605.7 sq mi) in the Chao Phraya River delta. Over 8 million people live in it, about 12.6% of the country’s population. However, over 14 million live within the surrounding Bangkok Metropolitan Region. The boat-filled Chao Phraya River feeds its network of canals, flowing past the Rattanakosin royal district, home to the opulent Grand Palace and its sacred Wat Phra Kaew Temple. Nearby on the opposite shore, Wat Arun Temple with its steep steps and Khmer-style spire is another landmark of the city. This will be our second trip to Bangkok, and we look forward to wandering around this ancient city and sampling its vibrant street life at our own pace.

IN THE MEANTIME, CONTINUE TO ENJOY READING THROUGH THE BLOG

Alert - Ebola in Democratic Republic of the Congo Friday, 22 February, 2019
There is an outbreak of Ebola in the North Kivu (Kivu Nord) and Ituri provinces in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
Watch - Lassa Fever in Nigeria Thursday, 7 February, 2019
Nigerian health officials have declared an outbreak of Lassa fever in Nigeria. Travelers to Nigeria should avoid contact with rats, especially rat urine and feces, and keep their accommodations or campsites clean.

ASTRONOMY PICTURE OF THE DAY: The Triangulum Galaxy. Image Credit: NASA, ESA, M. Durbin, J. Dalcanton, and B. F. Williams (University of Washington). At its centre is the bright, densely packed galactic core surrounded by a loose array of dark dust lanes mixed with the stars in the galactic plane. Also known as M33, the face-on spiral galaxy lies 3 million light-years away in the small northern constellation Triangulum. Over 50,000 light-years in diameter, the Triangulum Galaxy is the third largest in the Local Group of galaxies after the Andromeda Galaxy (M31), and our own Milky Way.

NASA Awards Support Services Contract for Exploration Ground Systems Program Friday, 22 February, 2019
NASA has selected LJT & Associates, Incorporated of Columbia, Maryland, to provide support services to the Exploration Ground Systems (EGS) Program at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
NASA Renames Facility in Honor of ‘Hidden Figure’ Katherine Johnson Friday, 22 February, 2019
NASA has redesignated its Independent Verification and Validation (IV&V) Facility in Fairmont, West Virginia, as the Katherine Johnson Independent Verification and Validation Facility, in honor of the West Virginia native and NASA "hidden figure."

Solomon Islands - Level 1: Exercise Normal Precautions Friday, 22 February, 2019
Exercise normal precautions in Solomon Islands. Read the Safety and Security section on the country information page. If you decide to travel to Solomon Islands: Enroll in the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) to receive security messages and make it easier to locate you in an emergency. Follow the Department of State on Facebook and […]
Saudi Arabia - Level 2: Exercise Increased Caution Thursday, 21 February, 2019
Exercise increased caution in Saudi Arabia due to terrorism and the threat of missile and drone attacks on civilian targets. Do not travel to: Within 50 miles of the border with Yemen due to terrorism and armed conflict. Terrorist groups continue plotting possible attacks in Saudi Arabia. Terrorists may attack with little or no […]

THE FLAG OF PARAGUAY: The flag of Paraguay was adopted in 1842. Its design, a red–white–blue triband, signify independence and liberty. The emblem on the obverse side is the national coat of arms of Paraguay: a yellow five-pointed star surrounded by a green wreath of palm and olive leaves tied with ribbons of the colour of the stripes, and capped by the words REPUBLICA DEL PARAGUAY. The emblem on the reverse side is the seal of the treasury: a yellow lion below a red Phrygian cap on the top of a pole (symbolising courage) and the words Paz y Justicia (“Peace and Justice”).

WORK OF ART: American Gothic is a 1930 painting by Grant Wood in the collection of the Art Institute of Chicago. Wood was inspired to paint the American Gothic House in Eldon, Iowa, along with “the kind of people I fancied should live in that house.” It depicts a farmer standing beside a woman who has been interpreted to be his sister. The figures were modelled by Wood’s sister Nan Wood Graham and their dentist Dr Byron McKeeby. The woman is dressed in a colonial print apron evoking 19th-century Americana, and the man is holding a pitchfork. American Gothic is one of the most familiar images in 20th-century American pop art scene.