Taiping is among the top 3 most sustainable cities in the world, according to the 2019 Sustainable Top 100 Destination Awards, right behind Ljubljana, Slovenia and Vancouver, Canada in the “Best of Cities” category!
ITB Berlin hosted the most prestigious Awards Ceremony for Sustainable Destinations. This event is dedicated to recognizing innovation and good practices in tourism management: islands, towns, regions and whole countries. The award winners have been selected by a Jury representing 12 international organizations.
Taiping rated as one of the top green destinations.
The town’s Municipal Council president Datuk Abd Rahim Md Ariff received the award.
Taiping Municipal Council president Datuk Abd Rahim Md Ariff said, “This is the first time we received a prestigious international award. This achievement is due to the hard work of the community and all relevant governmental agencies.”
“The council always works hard to make Taiping a popular tourist destination,” Abd Rahim added.
The “Best of Cities” category of the awards recognizes cities that show leadership in urban sustainability and in avoiding disruptive over-tourism.
Taiping is the second largest town in Perak after the state capital Ipoh. The town also is known as the wettest town in Peninsular Malaysia. Its unusual rainfall has also blessed its Lake Gardens with a fertile and splendid collection of flora and century-old rain trees. Itis characterized by aging buildings and clear blue skies with high chances of rain.
Green Destinations, a non-profit organization that focuses on the efforts of creating sustainable tourism, leading global cooperation between experts, listed Taiping on its 100 Sustainable Cities list in December 2018.
Taiping used to be a thriving tin-mining town that lost its luster with the rise of Ipoh and Kuala Lumpur as cities.
Taiping has previously been recognized as the Best Destination Manager 2016 by the Tourism Promotion Board for the Asia Pacific; besides having received the Malaysia Tourism Council Gold Award 2017 in Best Heritage and Eco Travel Destination Category and Malaysia Tourism Council Gold Award 2018 for the Best Tourism Promotion Campaign.
For those who have not visited Taiping, it is time to consider visiting this beautiful city!
Haarlem is a small city located just 27 minutes with a train outside of Amsterdam. Its abundance of historical sights, cultural attractions and hidden gems crammed into a relatively small city, a visit to Haarlem makes for a brilliant day trip from Amsterdam. There are many attractions to keep you busy – including river cruises, flower markets and more.
The square is located at the historic heart of Haarlem, underneath the imposing Grote Kerk, and is the image of the city that many people will recognize. Hosting regular festivals, concerts and markets, the Grote Markt is the hub of daily life in Haarlem.
The Grote Kerk or St.-Bavokerk is a Reformed Protestant church and former Catholic cathedral located on the central market square in the Dutch city of Haarlem. This Late Gothic cruciform basilica, now reaching 140 meters in length with its slender 40-meter tower, was started in the 14th century. The cathedral’s famous Müller Organ is considered one of the greatest such instruments in the world for its tone and decoration.
The beautiful giant towers high above Haarlem’s rooftops and the gothic interior is nothing but breathtaking.
The Frans Hals Museum is one of the leading art galleries in the Netherlands. The museum has the world’s largest collection of works by Hals, including five of his large civic guard pieces.
It was founded in 1862 in the newly renovated former Dominican church cloisters located in the back of the Haarlem city hall.
The museum is specialized in restoration and research on the works of Haarlem painters in the 17th century and of the painters of the 16th century who taught them to paint, most notably Jan van Scorel, Maerten van Heemskerck, Hendrick Goltzius and Cornelis van Haarlem.
The museum includes a collection of modern and contemporary art, including paintings, sculptures, textiles, ceramics, and graphic art by artists from Haarlem and the surrounding area.
The City Hall in Haarlem is the seat of the city’s government. The oldest parts of the City Hall date back to 1250. The north wing, and the Neoclassical façade were added in the 1600s. The interior is also of interest and includes numerous fine paintings, relics, and mementos.
Teylers Museum, the oldest museum in the Netherlands, was founded in 1778. The museum is in the former home of Pieter Teyler van der Hulst. He was a wealthy cloth merchant and Amsterdam banker of Scottish descent, who bequeathed his fortune for the advancement of religion, art and science. Nearby the museum is the Teylers Hofje, a hofje which was also founded in Teyler’s name.
Teyler’s Museum displays an eclectic collection of fossils, minerals, scientific instruments, medals, coins, and paintings. It is most famous for its extensive collection of old master’s prints and drawings, including several works by Michelangelo and Rembrandt.
In the 19th century, the museum was expanded with two painting galleries.
Bakenessergracht is home to some of the city’s oldest and most spectacular buildings. At the end of the Bakenessergracht is the River Binnen Spaarne, crossed here via an attractive old drawbridge, and from which you get a great view of the Amsterdamse Poort. Haarlem’s city gate, built in the early 1400s and a national monument has two octagonal towers and two round towers.
In the 1960s the gate was declared a national monument. In 1985 a complete renovation of the gate took place.
The Proveniershuis is a hofje and former schutterij on the Grote Houtstraat in Haarlem, Netherlands. The complex of buildings surrounds a rectangular garden taking up a city block that is on the Haarlem hofje route. The homes around this courtyard are much larger, and the garden itself is about twice the normal size.
This home for Haarlem proveniers was founded in 1707 by the city council to house elderly men. The main buildings are much older than that.
The Roman Catholic Cathedral of St. Bavo is a relatively recent three-aisle cruciform basilica built between 1895 and 1906. Some 100 meters long, 42 meters wide, and 60 meters high
That church was itself a replacement for the Sint-Bavokerk, that had been converted to Protestantism from Catholicism in 1578.
Haarlem has been voted as the Netherlands’ best shopping destination. You can find a unique combination of big brands to independent labels, as well as charming antique and curiosity shops. The best-known streets in Haarlem are the Grote Houtstraat, the Barteljorisstraat, and the Zijlstraat. But you’ll find many interesting shops if you explore the smaller streets such as the Schagchelstraat, Kleine Houtstraat, Anegang, Warmoesstraat, Koningstraat and Gierstraat.
Want to find more sustainable destinations? Check our other posts.
Ningaloo Reef is home to the world’s largest fringing reef and can easily be accessed within a few feet from the coast. This is the only place in the world where a large coral reef can be accessed so easily. Because of its incredible biodiversity, it is on the UNESCO World Heritage list.
Ningaloo Reef is home to more than 200 species of hard corals and 50 species of soft corals with over 520 species of fish. The reefs are easily accessible because it is the close distance from the shore. It is a popular destination for divers and snorkellers.
Coral reefs around the world are under increasing stress due to a combination of local and global factors.
The Great Barrier Reef is the world’s largest coral reef system composed of over 2,900 individual reefs and 900 islands stretching for over 2,300 kilometers. The reef is located in the Coral Sea, off the coast of Queensland, Australia. This reef structure is composed of and built by billions of tiny organisms, known as coral polyps and it is the only living structure that can be seen from space.
This reef provides home for an astounding variety of marine life, plants and animals – from ancient sea turtles, reef fish and 134 species of sharks and rays, to 400 different hard and soft corals and a plethora of seaweeds. The Reef is far more than an economic resource.
Coral bleaching
Coral reefs need clean, clear water to survive. When sediment and other pollutants enter the water, they smother coral reefs, speed the growth of damaging algae, and lower water quality. Pollution can also make corals more susceptible to disease, impede coral growth and reproduction, and cause changes in food structures on the reef.
Small-scale bleaching is a common sight on the reef, but in the 1998 year that saw widespread bleaching, 42% of the reef turned white.
Farm pollution
Sediment and chemical runoff from farms is a major threat to inshore coral reefs and seagrass meadows in our Great Barrier Reef.
Nutrients from fertilizer pollution in the Reef’s waters also fuels massive outbreaks of the coral-eating crown-of-thorns starfish, which devour our coral reefs. Reducing fertilizer use will not only save money but will also reduce polluted runoff.
Fishing
Coral reef fish are a significant food source for over a billion people worldwide. Traps set too close to reefs and marine debris, such as ghost traps, lost nets, monofilament, and lines, can damage coral reefs, which take a long time to recover.
Overfishing cause reducing the numbers of grazing fish that keep corals clean of algal overgrowth.
On many of the cays, there are spectacular and globally important breeding colonies of seabirds and marine turtles, and Raine Island is the world’s largest green turtle breeding area.
Ningaloo Reef
This incredible, pristine wilderness offers the most affordable reef experience you are likely to find anywhere in the world. Ningaloo Reef is actually in fairly good health compare to the Great Barrier Reef.
There are many ways to enjoy the Ningaloo Reef and use ECO certified tour operators to ensure your trip is one that contributes to the protection of the reef in the long-term.
With easy access from Exmouth, the Turquoise Bay Drift Snorkel offers some of the best snorkeling just meters from the beach. The shallow edges of the reef provide perfect snorkeling conditions for people of all ages and mobility.
Three of the world’s seven marine turtle species, nest on mainland beaches and islands of Ningaloo Reef during the summer months from November to March. Here you may catch sight of loggerhead, green, hawksbill and flatback turtles as they embark on their epic annual journey. The loggerhead turtle is the most endangered species of sea turtle in the world.
Volunteers are required between December and January each year to monitor nesting beaches for turtle activity!
The bottom line
The Great Barrier Reef is very accessible if staying in Cairns or Port Douglas.
Compared to the Great Barrier Reef, Ningaloo is quite remote. Located off the coast of Western Australia, Ningaloo Reef requires a flight to Perth and a flight to Exmouth.
The diving and snorkeling sites of the Ningaloo are right along the coast with the Navy Pier, near the town of Exmouth, named as one of the best shore dives in the world.
The Ningaloo Reef is perhaps most famed for its whale sharks which feed there from March to June.
Ningaloo Reef facilitates intimate wildlife encounters – swimming with whale sharks and observing nesting turtles – and for accessibility and affordability it can’t be beaten
On the other hand, the Great Barrier Reef offers the diversity of indulgent five-star escapes, world-class dive sites, sailing trips, and budget island camping adventures, but you’ll have to pay more and your trip will end up more expensive. When Ningaloo Reef offers the joy of spending a night on the reef or some truly remote paradise.
