Ramblings of a 70-year old: new york

Showing posts with label new york. Show all posts

Wednesday, November 9, 2022

Niagara Falls is a tourist attraction and there is a huge tunnel buried deep below the cascade that had been off-limits to visitors

The rocks beneath the Niagara Falls lies in the border between the US state of New York and Canada's province of Ontario. These rocks are honeycombed with chambers created to harness the powerful forces of the waterfall. There is a 2,198-foot tunnel, built more than a century ago on the Canadian side. It is now open to tourists. They can move about in the tunnel and see the awesome scale of these engineering marvels. Since July 2022, it has become a part of the decommissioned Niagara Parks Power Station tour. The tunnel in an example of the pioneering work that helped bring this corner of North America into the modern age. The power station operated from 1905 until 2006. It diverted water from the mighty Niagara River to run giant generators that electrified regional industry and contributed to the nearby Great Lakes port of Buffalo. It seems the region around the waterfall, was once a hub of activity for those who wanted to cash in on harnessing the power of water. A huge tunnel has opened below Niagara Falls.

Today, the Niagara Parks station is the world's only intact hydroelectric plant of its era. Before reaching the tunnel, visitors to the power station can see a scale model of the massive engineering works that went into converting the pounding waters into electricity. There is a glass elevator to take the visitors down to the bottom is the tunnel where the water exits. The tunnel itself is an engineering marvel. Thousands of workers excavated the shale beneath the main generating room. They used equipment like lanterns, dynamite, pickaxes and shovels. Incidentally, the tunnel resembles a fortress and they did it all without any electricity. A visit to the power station and tunnel takes around two hours. There is also an evening show involving an overnight halt. Niagara Falls is a place of natural beauty and an example of how natural forces continue to shape our modern lives.

Monday, August 29, 2022

Meghan Markle says she and her husband were "happy" to leave the UK

In another tell-tale interview to a New York magazine, Meghan Markle admits she and her husband Prince Harry were "happy" to leave the UK. The main reason was apparently adjustment. In her words - "just by existing, we were upsetting the dynamic of the hierarchy." She went on to add that the two of them were prepared to go anywhere in the Commonwealth. They wanted to move out of their life in Britain and relocate to Canada, New Zealand and South Africa. That was before deciding on a home in California. The Duchess of Sussex explains that she did make efforts to patch up with both her in-laws and members of her own family and she is “still healing" from the ordeal. . Meghan’s interview comes amid speculation she and Harry might noit be able to visit the Queen at Balmoral during their forthcoming visit to Britain next week due to security issues.

Meghan recently launched her Archetypes podcast on Spotify. In it, she reveals that in spite of her son Archie narrowly escaping a fire in his bedroom, she and Harry had to go ahead with their visit to South Africa. The couple now live in Montecito. This is a small coastal village north of Los Angeles. On the subject of her relationship with Prince Harry, she said they were like "salt and pepper." This is because they "always move together." The couple has made some plans related to their upcoming trip to the UK. They will make appearances to "support several charities close to their hearts." Their itinerary includes a trip to Manchester on 5 September for the One Young World Summit. Later they will visit Germany for the Invictus Games Dusseldorf 2023 One Year To Go event.

Saturday, August 27, 2022

Treaty to protect marine life on the high seas

There was no unity of thought on the subject of according protection to marine life on the high seas. Diplomats from around the world did meet but were unable to arrive at a consensus. The subject was about an agreement on a United Nations treaty meant to protect marine life on the high seas. The meetings went to a fifth round without any outcome and the U.N. headquarters in New York had to suspend the activities. These had been going on for two weeks and environmentalists had expected positive results that would go a long way to close a gap in international marine protection measures. There is no international treaty of the high seas and such a treaty is essential to grant protection to the biodiversity in two-thirds of the world's ocean. These are areas outside of national jurisdictions. Such a treaty would help protect marine lives. Nations Fail to Reach Deal on UN Treaty to Protect Sea Life. The global goal is to earmark 30 percent of ocean area as marine sanctuary.

The health of the ocean and climate change are interlinked. The oceans absorb most of the excess heat but the duration of these heat waves are getting longer and more frequent. Livelihood of people in the Caribbean depend on the health of the ocean. This is what Janine Felson, Belize's ambassador to the United Nations revealed. She said - “The ocean cannot afford further delay.” The talks centered on various aspects like how to share benefits from marine life, establish protected areas, prevent harm from human activity on the high seas and extend assistance to poor countries to acquire the skills and means for exploring the oceans. The failure to reach a deal was a disappointment for Greenpeace and others who had been campaigning but the talks will resume next year unless a special emergency session is called before the end of 2022. The goal is to protect at least 30% of the world’s oceans by 2030. In the words of U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Monica Medina - "We cannot let the tides and currents push us back. We must keep going.”