Not normally a winter sports hotspot, England has found a solution to the fact that it does not snow all year round like in famous mountain resorts, and the result in the Xscape centre in Milton Keynes.

In addition to a 16-screen cinema, a climbing wall, and a small shopping centre, the building has the main attraction of a 170ft indoor ski slope, and the opportunity for local residents to experience the thrill and chill of winter sports without having to fork out for an expensive holiday.

The XScape gained publicity in the early months of 2010, when it was revealed that it played a key role in the development of an athlete in the 2010 Winter Olympics, in Vancouver (Canada). Scottish-born Kwame Nkrumah-Acheampong lived in Ghana for much of his childhood, before moving to England as a young adult, taking a job as a receptionist at XScape, where he learnt to ski during his off-time…

After several years of training, Nkrumah-Acheampong qualified for the 2010 Winter Olympics, represening his childhood home of Ghana, their first appearence at a winter games. Being dubbed ‘The Snow Leopard’ by those back home (with a lycra skisuit to match), he finished 53rd in the men’s slalom (of 102 participants (54 finished). The acheivement of being at the games has inspired the formation of the Ghana Winter Olympic Association, and government backing to build an artificial slope near capital Accra. Not bad progress for starting out indoors…

Dubai always have a range of exciting projects and developments on the go, and ‘the world’ is a man-made series of islands made to be shaped like the earth’s landmass.

Each island is named after a country or location based on its position, and because the entire development (taking sand from the ocean floor to mould into these islands) cost over $14B to make, it is only natural that a potential buyer will have to fork out at least $15M, more for the desireable locations.

After purchase, and island owner is able to do what they like with their land, and with utilities hooked up to the area, there could soon be people buying or renting houses there. The possibilities seem endless, and the developers are planning similar projects to The World, so it could soon be easier than ever to claim your own island (still at a fairly high price, though)…

The World

Alcatraz Island, off the coast of San Francisco, since first coming to public attention in 1934, has been famed as a place where escape is an option for those with extreme desperation.

In 1934 Alcatraz Island was converted into a prison, after an earthquake had damaged several other local institutions. In use until 1963, Alcatraz Prison, with room for 312 convicts, was notorious as a secure and ‘unescapeable’ location (with movies made about this reputation). This was mainly due to the rare fact that this was a prison on an island, and even more so that an escapee would also have to navigate up to 1.5 miles of often stormy waters. The result of this was that despite several escape attempts that would have been enough on a land-based prison (e.g. ‘over the wall’), the long swim across meant that convicts would either get caught during their lenghy swim, or would be risking their lives due to the coldness and risk of drowning.

Of the 36 attempts (two people tried twice, meaning 34 individuals), 23 were caught and brought back, 6 were shot and killed, and 3 were declared lost at sea, while the rest were also lost, and presumed dead (the closest anyone came was actually making it across the waters, but suffering from hypothermia afterwards, resulting in being caught).

Alcatraz has also been seen or pardied in popular culture, most notably in the Harry Potter series, where the wizard prison of Azkaban is seen as inescapeable.

Since being decommissioned in 1963, Alcatraz Island was taken over by native Indian settlers in the 1970’s, before a compromise was later reached, and the island and prison is now a national landmark in America, and has been turned into a museum and tourist attraction.

Alcatraz Island

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Opened in 2000, the London Eye has developed into one of the main attractions of London for tourists, and a key feature of the city. With a span of 135 meters, it is one of the largest observation/ferris wheels in the world.

For passengers who buy tickets to ride the wheel, it is an opportunity to see London through several different viewpoints from one of the 32 glass cubicles, with time not being an issue either, as a full rotation takes around 30 minutes. It is visited by an average of 3.5 million people annually, meaning that at the time of writing, it is likely that over 35 million people have visited the attraction in the decade that it has been open, with the figure rising every day.

London Eye

Incoming satellite searches:-

eye of london on satellite

Large boats can be used for anything now, such as living and holidaying, but a few years ago, the big innovation was punishment!

In 1997, the HMS Weare was created in the English county of Dorset, as a solution to prison overcrowding. In 2005, the prison-boat was decommisioned due to high costs (could they not have just cut back on luxuries for inmates?), and could now be moved elsewhere to be a money-making attraction, such as a man-made island or a diving centre…

Currently, though, the ship has been based in its port since decommision, and employs a security guard whose job is, ironically, to keep people out of prison…

HMS Weare

Incoming satellite searches:-

prison at sea

The Panama Canal is a national landmark of the North (Central) American nation of Panama, and much like the Suez Canal in Egypt, has been integral with the development of the modern world due to its significance in shipping.

Before 1914, anyone wishing to take their ship past the Americas region would need to go via Cape Horn, the southern peak of South America, a region also known for heavy storms, which was even worse for countries such as USA, where a shipping trip from the east to west coasts would be much more tedious than it ever needed to be. Thankfully, though, the newly-built canal went straight through the middle of the two continents, saving on plenty of time, fuel, and money, managing to cut most journeys by more than half.

After many years of varying leadership, the Panama Canal is run by a specific authority employed by the Government of Panama.

Panama Canal

A sculpture with a story, the Headington Shark, located (half) in a house in the town of Headington (England), and like many new items, has not avoided the attention of the infamous ‘Health & Safety’ brigade in Britain.

The sculpture was constructed by local artist and radio presenter Bill Heine, on the 41st anniversery of the Nagasaki bombings during World War II. It was made as a symbol of opression against nuclear weapons, and was certainly seen as a big statement at 25ft high and a weight of 200kg. Naturally, the city (Oxford) council got involved with this unauthorised addition to the neighborhood, and wanted to take it down due to no planning permission and a ’saftey hazard’.

After 6 years, in 1992, the matter was referred to national government, where it was held that the shark could stay, provided id did not ‘harm the visual amenity. The shark was now safe, and has been causing second glances from passers-by ever since…

The Headington Shark (in Street View)