Cyprus makes big underwater splash
A world beneath the waves is being mapped out in Cyprus as the Mediterranean country explores new avenues to promote tourism and biodiversity. Divers are busy surveying the island's underwater wrecks and reefs with the aim of creating immersive digital tours, Gulf-based newspaper The National reported. A joint venture between the tourism board of the port city of Larnaca and the Cyprus Maritime and Marine Institution, the project — to be called Larnaca Virtual Underwater Routes — is expected to be available online by the end of the year. Among the 3D models being created is the Lef 1 shipwreck, a 16-metre-long vessel that sank off the southern coast of the island. “We're taking quite a lot of info through photography of the seabed and then we're stitching it together through programming on the computer to create a video that gives you a 360-degree tour,” explained visual designer Marios Constantinides. In addition to Cyprus's best-known dive site, a Swedish-built ferry that capsized off the coast of Larnaca in 1979, the project will capture two natural reefs and three wrecks and officials hope it will raise environmental awareness, as well as attract visitors.
`Crazy' nicknames get validated in new maps
Take a bow, Crazy Mary's Hole. Well done, Nuncle Dicks. You've arrived, Stinky Bay. Cartographers in Britain have made 7,500 local nicknames official by adding them to coastal maps. The odd monikers — such as Crazy Mary's Hole, located near a defunct lighthouse in the eastern English county of Suffolk — have been used locally for decades. But many of the locations are not covered by existing maps, or do not have internet coverage, making it difficult for marine rescuers to locate those in distress. According to London Daily Telegraph, the addition of the nicknames to a private mapping service used by Britain's coast guard agency will improve communication between rescue teams and make it easier to pinpoint locations. The agency estimates there are more than 500,000 coastal place names in use across the U.K.
Irish floating hotel gets the go-ahead
Ireland is poised to get its first floating hotel after the owners of a marina complex got the green light to convert a barge into a four-star 36-room inn. Seamus Carey, owner of the Cranagh Marina Complex in Coleraine, County Derry, Northern Ireland, said the project, which would include a restaurant and conference facilities, has attracted “huge interest” from investors. He told the Irish Independent the marina is “the only business on this island that can do this,” adding it would be an “exciting time” for the region as it emerges from lockdown. “We believe it will revitalize the environs and improve and facilitate connections between the area . ... not to mention the economic impact that will be felt by residents and surrounding businesses.” Carey, who had to abandon an earlier plan to launch a Mississippi-style paddle steamer, said he was motivated by a steady increase in visitors seen before the pandemic hit. “We are delighted to receive approval for what will be a completely new facility on the island of Ireland,” he said. “We believe the floating hotel will enhance our offering and enable visitors to stay and enjoy all the wonderful offerings of the North coast.”