The Best Islands in Indonesia

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Take a look at some of the best islands in Indonesia and know the key places to visit. Whether you are planning a weekend trip or a month-long getaway, make sure you do not miss out on the best islands in Indonesia.

1.      Sumatra 

Sumatra is the largest island in Indonesia and can rightly be considered her crown jewel. The beauty of this island is mesmerizing and it only becomes blissful by the time the sun sets. This island includes a variety of flora and fauna which are popular in the entire world. Some of the most popular species which are only found in Sumatra are: Sumatran Rhinoceros, Orangutan, elephant, ground cuckoo and tiger. The popular rainforest plants on this island includes Rafflesia Armoldii which is the most popular plant found rarely in any other part of the world.

2.      Lombok 

This island is situated in the province of West Nusa Tenggara in Indonesia. This island has both cultural, ecological and traditional significance for the people of Indonesia. One of the mesmerizing part of this island’s culture is the Sasaknese wedding which feature colorful attire and extensive Indonesian rituals. Rinjani is the highest peak on this island which is popular for camping activities. The beauty of Senaru waterfall is marvelous. There are visitors coming over just to witness the beauty of this waterfall. No wonder this island is popular as a honeymoon spot.

3.      Flores Island

This island is popular for the spectacular beauty of Kelimutu volcano which is 1,639 meters high. This volcano includes three lakes which are of different shades and colors. And that’s not it, these lakes change colors after a period of time from red, to bright green and blue. One can also witness the beauty of harbor of Labuhan Bajo which is located on the west coast. And if you wish to visit this island, do not forget to capture the beautiful color of lakes derived from the volcano. In fact, visitors in this area are mostly concerned with the extraordinary scenery which is nothing less than heaven on earth.

4.      Raja Ampat Islands (Waigeo, Misoo, Bantanta and Salawati) 

Raja Ampat is also known as four kings which includes the four islands mentioned above and is surrounded by almost 1500 small islands. These islands are located of the tip of bird’s head peninsula. Raja ampat is also considered as the global epicenter of tropical marine biodiversity. Another major attraction in Raja Ampat is Cendreawasih Bay which is known as the largest marine national park in the country.

5.      Komodo 

This island is particularly famous as a habitat of the largest lizard named as the fierce Komodo dragon. This island also includes a must visit place called Komodo national park. One of the interesting views from this island is a pink beach which is formed through a combination of white sand, red sand and bits of Foraminifera. The population of this island is basically a mixture of Bugis and Sulawesi who were exiled to this island. The tribes of this island are among the most welcoming and will time spent here will be memorable for eternity.

6.      Seram Island 

This island is a major island in Maluku province of the country. Mount Binaiya is the popular tourist attraction as it is the highest peak on this island. It is surrounded by dense forests populated by fascinating species of birds, animals, insects and vegetation. The geology of this island is known as the most tectonically complex area in the globe because of the tectonic micro plates meeting here. This island is also a home to various species of birds out of which 14 are known as endemic namely: king parrot, salmon-crested cockatoo, ecleptus parrot, sacred kingfisher, moluccan, lazuli kingfisher and purper-naped lory.

7.      Bangka-Belitung Islands 

These islands are in the province of Indonesia close to South of Sumatra province. Parai beach is one of the popular beaches in Bnagka-Belitng which offers soothing beauty of nature under the blanket of clear sky and crystal clear water. The popular temple Fuk Tet Che is also resided in these islands. Every year, many visitors come to witness the architectural beauty of this premises. Alongside, there are other popular beaches like Matras Beach, Pasir Padi Beach, Tanjung Tinggi beach and Tanjung Pesona Beach which are common beaches to visit in the diary of visitors.

8.      Ambon Island 

This island is a former part of Maluku islands in the province of Indonesia. This island is popular for its mountainous view which offers spectacular sceneries of the visitors. The mountains look ravishing when there are volcanoes in the two highest mountains namely Wawani and Salahutu. The average temperature on this island falls under 270C. This island is popular for the heavy rainfall as well which occurs after the monsoons.  This island is also a home to various crops like sugarcane, breadfruit, cocoa, cotton, pepper and coffee.

9.      Gili Islands (Gili Trawangan, Gili Meno, Gili Air) 

These islands are located on the northwest coast of Lombok province of Indonesia. These islands are popular as a destination for tourism and thus, include various resorts in the area. One can avail their stay in creative small huts which are surrounded by pools and restarants in the nearby region. The usage of automobiles in this island is prohibited as the view of this island is preferably enjoy barefoot or riding a bicycle.

10.  Bali 

Probably the most popular among Indonesia’s islands, tourists flock to this island because the cultural diversity and attraction of beaches. Witnesiing sunset on Amed Beach alongside Mount Aguing is a beautiful view admired by tourists. Tanah Lot temple is the region is also popular for its rituals and architecture beauty of the walls. One must plan a scuba diving activity on Bali island because it is nothing less than beautiful and extravagant experience of marine life.

5-step beginners guide to creating your own blog

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If you’re wondering about how to start your own blog, then look no further. This comprehensive, step by step guide will take you through every facet of creating your own blog from helping you find an idea to launching it successfully.

Step #1: The Idea

The first step in creating a blog is coming up with a theme or “idea” around which your blog will revolve. Of the zillion web pages and blogs on the internet, why should someone read yours? What makes your site so special?  You do not have to go through bulk of websites on internet to search “how to start your own blog”?

An easy way to answer this question is to identify what makes YOU special. Do your friends often ask for your recipe after coming over for dinner? Then maybe a cooking blog is the right way to go. Look no further for the “how to start your own blog” articles and utilize your skills and talent for creating one instead.

You want to know how to start your own cooking blog? Great. So how do you differentiate yourself from your competitors who probably have several thousand visitors per day? Simple, position it in a niche such as - Cooking for the Paleo Diet, Recipes for Vegans or voila you have yourself a blog in an underserved niche.

Pro Tip: In your quest to beat out the competition, don’t select a niche that has no audience.

Step #2: The Platform

This is a crucial step that will determine the direction of your blog. If you are like me and don’t like dealing with messy stuff and would just like a platform that would allow you to write quickly then consider one of the following free options

·         WordPress.com

·         BlogSpot

·         Weebly

·         Tumblr

I encourage you to look at each of these options and choose whichever one is best suited for your blog. For example, Tumblr is great for short form blogs and perfect if you want to run a photography blog. These tips will come in handy when you are looking for how to start your own blog.

Pro Tip: Choose a platform that allows you to import data from another platform. You’ll be thankful for this feature when you decide to change platforms after you’ve written hundreds of blog posts.

Step #3: Domain & Hosting

Think of a smart domain name which is easy to remember, simple and related to your blog’s theme. That is how, readers will remember you and keep visiting your blog. Find out if it’s available by visiting GoDaddy, Namecheap or similar registrars.

A cheap but comprehensive hosting plan should be next on your to-do list to start your own blog. Look for a hosting provider that has servers in your country, a 99.99% uptime and is rated well by the Better Business Bureau. You don’t want to end up in a long-term contract with a provider who causes your blog to crash during peak times.

Pro Tip: Often you can get great discounts if your domain and hosting providers are the same company.  

Step #4: Write & Publish

The most important step of all, start penning down your thoughts. When you start out, split your writing tasks in small, manageable chunks to make it easier on yourself. For instance, you can start with creating a rough draft with whatever you know about the topic and keep researching and collecting facts until you’ve fleshed it out into a full blog post.

Remember content is king. People read your blog because you have useful content, so it never pays to laze through this part. After you are done, you can style your writing using catchy quotes, bolded statements, bullets and categorization which will keep readers glued to the end.

Pro Tip: Do not hire someone else to write your content, at least until your blog has scaled. You are simply sinking money into a venture you are not sure will pay off.

Step #5: Share Share Share

Great! Now you have a bright and shiny blog with useful content for your target audience. But wait a minute. No one knows you exist. You may think you have the best idea since sliced bread but it doesn’t matter if no one knows about it. So, it is very important to share your blog articles as much as possible. So that people may come to know that you have accomplished your dream to start your own blog. No more searching of “how to start your own blog” articles.

As in real estate, the best advice for sharing your blog post is location, location, location. Sharing on your Facebook or Twitter pages is great but if you don’t have as many followers or fans, it is not going to increase your readership. Instead, try sharing it in related blogs which have similar audience profile. Your reader conversion is very high when you do targeted sharing to relevant industry websites.

Pro Tip: Create a separate Twitter and Facebook page for your blog. Privacy first!

Now that you’ve learnt about how to start your own blog, here’s one final step. Go do it! Nothing beats experience and the worst that could happen is you end up not having as many visitors as you would like. But along the way, you would have gained valuable experience. Remember, the most difficult step is the first one. Good luck and happy blogging!

Role of neuroscience in sports

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If you are wondering what Neuroscience has to do with sports training, the answer is - everything! The difference between good athletes and great ones is that great athletes know that the way to maximize their strength and potential is to train both their mind and body. This is where sports neuroscience comes in. It helps athletes understand the neurobiological effects of their training.

Sports neuroscience has exploded so much in recent years that there are now doctoral programs in top schools around the country that focus exclusively on sports neuroscience research. In this article, I will share 5 important aspects of your sports training that you can hack with a little help from neuroscience.

Understanding Your Physiology

Any sport is intrinsically a physiological activity requiring excellent motor skills, reflexes and strength depending on the type of sport you play. Physiology, unlike anatomy, differs for each athlete and involves important factors such as environmental conditions, hydration level, body composition and carb loading. Sports physiology helps athletes and coaches recognise the effects of their training regimen on their body.

Seek the help of a sports physiologist who can help you understand the physiological demands of your specific sport and help you train at your highest level. Sports physiologists will typically measure how you perform under various test conditions to study and identify your areas of improvement. Using this information, your coaches can then design a customized training program that is specifically tailor made for your body.

Holistic Lifestyle Enhancement

Elite athletes recognize that much of their success lies outside of the training room as it does inside. For example, you can hardly be expected to be a top athlete if you are on the brink of debt and faced with a huge financial burden. Similarly, over the course of years you may have developed certain habits such as waking up late or sleeping too few hours that are detrimental to your sports performance.

Holistic lifestyle enhancement allows you to recognize that it is very important to develop successful habits in all aspects of your life to augment your sport training. If your coach is not a trained performance lifestyle practitioner, seek the help of one. These experts can provide the support that is necessary to truly live a healthy lifestyle. They can also help you through financial counselling and help you identify your options after your sports career.

Consistent Analysis of Performance

Depending on the level of expertise you want to attain, it is very important to keep consistently measuring and analysing your performance. Ask your friend or coach to record your training sessions or practice games and make sure you watch them after each game. Introspection and learning are crucial mental factors that are likely to affect your performance.

If you want to learn more from your games including specific technical and tactical mistakes you are making in the game, then consider investing in an analysis software. For almost every major sport, there exists performance analysis software that can provide you with great insight about your game. The more training sessions you have and the more games you upload in the analysis software, the more data and insights you can gather. For example, one athlete recognized that he performed better on indoor tracks as opposed to outdoor fields.

Mental Training

Constant physical training can be an exhausting activity. Add to it a few losses and you are looking at a recipe for disaster. Mental training is not just important but essential for successful sports performance. Sports neuroscience ranks it among the top things to-do for athletes of all levels. Mental training provides you with the discipline necessary to consistently perform on and off the field. Sports neuroscience plays a pivotal role because it can help trainers and coaches develop mental training methods based on every athlete’s specific needs.

Performance Nutrition

The final hack is one that is most overlooked. With athletes typically averaging 5-7 meals per day to keep energy levels up, it is crucial to understand what you can and cannot eat in each of those meals. Understanding your diet involves an understanding of your environmental factors, your specific sport, energy expended and your body composition.

Each meal you eat can alter your body in a small but significant way that could ultimately be the difference between a win or a loss. If you are training 3-4 hours per day, the last thing you want is to succumb to diseases and then realize that you have botched your immune system because you have not had proper nutritious meals.

So, there you go! These are five ways to hack your sports training and improve your performance. Whether you are practicing for the Olympics or for your local league match, these hacks will surely be useful in taking your sport to the next level. Good luck!

How to make a blog: An easy guide

Blog is basically a simple website that focuses on written content that is also referred to as blog posts. It is a pretty common term nowadays and there are gazillions of blogs out there with different niches. There are news blogs, then there are cooking blogs, tech blogs and list goes on. Still the need for content and useful blogs remains the same with hundreds of blogs being made for every topic each day.

Do you make a blog too? Are you specifically passionate about a specific subject or topic or need to convey your skills and expertise to your audience? Then you should definitely make your own blog. In this post, we will tell exactly how to make a blog?

Can you make a blog?

There are some widespread misconceptions about starting your own blog. For instance, some individuals believe that you have to be an exceptional writer to start your own blog or should have some expertise in an area to make your blog. These and various other misconceptions are not true.

Tell me tell you why. Everyone can not be a skilled writer but they can have knowledge, expertise and passion about a certain topic that they want to share with the world. You may have seen various blogs with an informal and conversational style of writing but the information they convey is meaningful. Similarly, a person might not be an expert in something. Let’s say skills like poetry, cooking, pottery etc. A person may be in the initial stages of learning these skills and they are not necessarily a certified poet or chef, or a commercial high level pottery maker but still they can share whatever they learn with others through their blog. It’s always a good idea to know that how to create a blog and make money?

Reasons for making your blog

There can be several reasons for making a blog:

1)      You want to work from home

By making a blog you do not have to go outside your home to earn money. You can work from home without leaving your comfort zone. Several bloggers make lucrative amount of profits from their blogs.

2)      It is easier to work online from home

The best part about earning through blogging is the passive income you get. You just need to spend a few hours in a week to create a blog post and then generate the income through your blog. It is easier to work online from home like this right?

So without further ado let’s learn how to make a blog site

How to start Blog make money

1)      First choose a blog name

Before you learn how to start blog make money, choose a suitable name for your blog as names have an everlasting impact on your potential visitors. Look out for a genre of your blog. Is it a travel blog? A cooking blog? Or simply a platform to share musings and confessions? Choose a name accordingly.

2)      Choose a domain name extension

The .com domain is the most preferred one but you can also opt for the other domain names. Just make sure it is available.

3)      Be descriptive

It is always a good idea to give your audience an idea about who you are and what your blog is about. For instance, if this blog is sharing that how to make a blog site, you will also find other posts related to this niche.

4)      Make it online

This might sound a little technical but you need to host your blog and require blogging software. You may find various blog hosts online who will register your blog with domain name so that it becomes exclusively yours and also install a software for your blog.

5)      Customizing your blog

After a host has set up a blog online for you, just log in to your blog with the given process. Usually, its something like http://www.blog.com/wp-admin. Replace the word ‘blog’ with the actual name of your blog.

After signing in as an administrator of the blog, you can make the required changes to your blog. Change the layout and design as you wish. Choose the colour schemes of your choice and the font etc. If you are using wordpress, then blog themes might be available to customize your blog.  Just look for the appearance tab anywhere on your screen mostly on the left and click on it. You will be able to find ready-made themes there.

6)      Write a post and publish it

There must be a button named “posts”. Click on it and choose add new. Here you can add a new post with the fonts of your choice and with whole custom tailored layout that you can choose. Write a post and publish! Make sure that your first blog post is really good to create a good impression. Also make sure to remove ‘’coming soon’’ page if there is any.

7)      Advertise your blog

Social media is the best place to publicize your blog posts. Share the excerpts from your blog and share the links to promote it. Make sure to start an email marketing campaign. If the readers like your content start collecting their emails and requests to see what exactly are they expecting out of this blog.

8)      Making money

Once you have successfully published and advertised your blog, you can start making money. The easiest way to do this is to sell an advertising space. Let the advertisers of products know that a space is available on your blog to show their ads. When you will upload their ads to your site, you will get a commission each time a visitor visits your blog and click on their ad. It Is always a good idea to choose the ads according to the content of your blog to generate more clicks.

Now you know that how to create a blog and earn money. It is not difficult, just some dedication and hard work will pay off in the long run.

8 Things your feet are saying about your health

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A foot is perhaps the most overlooked part of the body and gets very little attention. Besides painting our toes now and then and plucking off that stray hair during sandal season, our feet are mostly ignored. But did you know that a foot is the perfect indicator of our overall health and provides valuable pointers that we should take note of. If you experience any of these below, make sure you consult your general practitioner immediately.

Stinky Feet

If you have improper hygiene, your feet are likely to show the first signs of it. While stinking or smelly feet may not signal anything dangerous, it is nevertheless an important indicator. If the feet continue to smell even after you have restored your hygiene (for example, by taking a bath), then it may be a sign of fungal infection such as athlete’s foot. Always wear cotton socks to prevent smelly feet and regularly wash both your shoes (yes, your shoes need to be cleaned!) and socks.

Foot Cramps

If you had recently walked or hiked long distances or worn shoes without ankle support, then it is likely that the foot cramps were caused because of that. However, if you don’t think any of that applies to you then foot cramps could be an indicator of issues with the nervous system such as vasculitis or arteritis. It could also be something as harmless as nutritional deficiency such as low calcium or magnesium. After periods of high exercise always make sure to rest your feet and give it a proper foot massage.

Yellow Toenails

Unlike common assumption, yellow toenails are not a sign of improper hygiene. Rather it is a sign of fungal infection called as Onychomycosis. Many people ignore this symptom and do not pay attention believing that it would go away in time. However, onychomycosis fungus keeps growing under the toenail and since feet are usually in cold and moist places (inside a shoe), it provides the perfect breeding ground for the fungus. In extreme cases, it has caused people to lose the entire toenail.

A sore that won’t heal

A sore that doesn’t heal is a very important indicator for diabetes mellitus. Because diabetes causes increased glucose levels, it prevents any wound from healing properly. If your sore does not go away in a few days consult a doctor immediately. A sore could also be an indicator for skin cancer.

Perpetually cold feet

While some people prefer their feet cold when sleeping, yet others have naturally cold feet. If your feet seem unusually cold, then it could be an indication of hypothyroidism. It means that your thyroid gland is secreting less thyroid hormones than necessary for proper body functioning.  You can confirm this with a simple blood test at home or by visiting the nearest doctor.

Heel Pain

While it is common in women who wear stilettos, pain in the heel could be a symptom of several issues. It could be a sign for ligament inflammation or it could be a sign that you are starting to develop varicose veins. Try wearing flat heeled and open toes shoes to see if the symptoms persist. If they do, consult a doctor right away.

A Puffy Toe

At first glance a puffy toe may seem like the result of hitting your toe against a hard surface. But if your puffy and enlarged toe does not subside within a few hours, it may be a sign of gout. Gout which is a form of arthritis is caused by the accumulation of uric acid. Monitor your toe for a few days to see if it continues to be puffy and visit a podiatrist at first opportunity.

Pitted Toenails

Pitted toenails could be an indicator of the immune condition psoriasis. In general psoriasis manifests in the skin but in rare cases, some people may find their toenails to have small holes or pits in them. It is easily treated with over the counter medication.