The island Borneo and its beautiful rainforest

Borneo is the largest island of Asia and the third-largest island in the world. It is located in the north of Java, west of Sulawesi and the east of Sumatra. The island Borneo is divided among three countries: Brunei, Malaysia and Indonesia. Around 73% of the island is Indonesian territory, 26% is Labuan territory.

Borneo houses one of the oldest rainforests in the world. It is 140 million years old. In this forest there are around 15.000 species of flowering plants, with 3.000 species of trees, 221 species of terrestrial mammals and 420 species of resident birds in Borneo. It was a beautiful place to visit. In the Borneo rainforest there are only few Borneo orangutan left. An endangered species and natural habitant of the rainforest.

In 2010 the World Wide Fund for Nature said that 123 species had been discovered in Borneo, since “Heart of Borneo” agreement was signed in 2007. The heart of Borneo rainforest foundation tries to protect the biological, ecological and cultural richness of Borneo. Half a million people and many species still rely on the rainforest of Borneo. That’s why it is so important it can stay. The rainforest used to cover the entire island of Borneo. But in the last half century it always became smaller. Some species were forced to extinction, which is very sad. The nomadic and semi-nomadic people who lived in the forest were forced to settle and watch the forest be destroyed. It’s a sad story because this forest had always been their home.

The World Wide Fund for Nature has classified the island Borneo into seven distinct ecoregions. Most of them are lowland regions. The Borneo lowland rain forests cover most of the island, with an area of 427.500 km². Then there are also the Borneo peat swamp forests, Kerangas or Sundaland heath forests, Southwest Borneo freshwater swamp forest, and Sunda Shelf mangroves. The Borneo montane rain forests lie in the central highlands of the island. Here we can find Mount Kinabalu, the highest elevation on the island. Borneo is definitely a city with an incredible nature.

Sources:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Borneo

http://www.heartofborneo.org/about-us/

http://www.borneorainforestresort.com/

 

Riga: culture and economy

Largest city of the Baltic States and home to more than one third of the Latvian people: Riga. Riga is the capital of Latvia and covers a territory of 307.17 km². Almost 700.000 people live in this city that was founded in 1201. The historical center of Riga is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. So definitely worth a visit. It is situated at the mouth of the Daugava. Riga has always been located at a juncture of trading routes, and that’s why it is a multicultural city. In Riga there have been living for a longtime: the Latvians, Germans, Russians, Poles, Swedes, Finns and others.

It is known for its art Nouveau and Jugendstil architecture, and the 19^th century wooden architecture. In 2014 Riga is the European capital of culture, along with the Sweden city Umea. During this year the city will organize hundreds of special events. And it will show its culture every day of the year to the world. People will be able to get to know famous people who have been of great influence to Riga. They will also be able to evaluate modern Latvian music, fine arts, cinema, museums, and much more. 

Riga is divided in 6 different administrative divisions: Central, Kurzeme, Northern, Latgale, Vidzeme and Zemgale Suburbs. Three of them were established in 1^st September 1941. The other three were founded later, in October 1969. In these districts Riga consists of 58 neighborhoods. So this is definitely a very large and diverse city.

When we look at the economy of Riga we see that half of the amount of jobs in Latvia are in Riga. They have the biggest exports in Latvia, especially in woods, IT, food and beverage manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, transport and metallurgy. The Riga Port is also one of the largest in the Baltic States and could handle 34 million tons of cargo in 2011, with which they broke a record.

Sources:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Riga

http://www.latvia.travel/en/riga

http://www.liveriga.com/en/