Hey geograpeeps. Barby here.
You didn't think I was just gonna leave you guys off with the Central African Republic for 2015, did you?
Nah... I got one last little surprise for you guys before the year is over.
MERRY CHRISTMAS!... Island.
First of all, yes the island was briefly mentioned in the Australia video
However, it's Christmas, so why don't we talk a little bit more about this Christmas Island?
First of all, the island was discovered on Christmas Day in 1643 by the British East India Company
located in the Indian Ocean actually closer to the island of Java in Indonesia rather than Australia
even though the island is under Australian sovereignty.
The island is shaped somewhat like a symmetrical sideways X-shaped blob
with 4 peninsulas that jut out.
Three of these peninsulas are either inhabited or used
whereas the southwest Winifred beach zone is kinda left alone.
Now here's the thing, the island kinda belonged to Singapore
but when it did belong to Singapore
Singapore was kinda under British sovereignty
so it was all kinda under the overarching sovereignty of the UK.
Finally, it was ceded to Australia in the... '70s... I think?
I gotta check my research.
"Ooh, Barby! You're the geography guy! You should know this!"
I'm sorry!
This was a very last minute thing! I didn't really plan it very well!
Oh! Actually, Australia bought it from Singapore for about $20 million in 1957
...huh!
Anyway, moving on
The largest town/ I guess you can say "capital" is Flying Fish Cove
The town is named that, not because of the flying fish in the area
(there are no flying fish)
but it was named after the survey ship that landed there
and to this day, about a third of the entire island's population lives in that one town.
To get in, you can only fly in from either Perth, Australia or Jakarta, Indonesia
Australia has two weekly flights that go there
and Indonesia has special flights that only go about two or three times a month.
Now this is the coolest part about the island
the actual natural makeup of the island
Now, here's the thing
due to its isolation and minimal interaction with human disturbances
the island hosts a wide range of endemic species of plants and fish and birds and crustaceans
Sometimes it's referred to as the "Galapagos of the Indian Ocean"
There aren't many mammals on the island
there used to be two endemic species of rats, but they went extinct
and to this day, there are only a few shrews, bats, and rusa deers
which were actually imported from Indonesia
Yeah, I just said "deers"
No... the plural is "deer"
"deer" is the plural of "deer"
But this is probably the most interesting thing about the island
the island is inhabited by about 14 different species of crabs
but the one that really sticks out is the red crab.
Every year, about 40 to 50 million red crabs migrate to the island for mating season
and they pretty much just invade and dominate the entire island
They climb all over your trees, they go in your front yards
they go on the beach, they go on your driveways, they go on the roads
The islanders have actually built up barricades over the roads
with crab walks that go over the roads so that people don't crush the crabs
Now, of course, like many other islands in the Indian/Pacific Ocean
this island is rich in phosphate deposits, which they mine
which makes up a huge portion of their economic output.
However, Christmas Island was a little smart
because they kinda saw the trend that was going on with all the other Pacific islands
that were exploiting their phosphate deposits way too fast
and they were like, "Hey, maybe we should, like... uh, I dunno, diversify our... revenue sources?"
So then they were like, "Hey, why don't we build like a golf course and a casino and a resort?
because... hey, that could help"
So, luckily they're doing pretty good for themselves.
The island is only inhabited by about (eh) 2000-ish residents
However, the cool thing is the people that make up these residents.
When you look at Christmas Island, you kinda see like a mini-Singapore
you see the same demographical overtone that lays out throughout the entire island.
The majority of people on the island are actually either Chinese or Malay at 85%
only about 10% of the island is actually white.
You're actually probably better off speaking Chinese on this island than you are English
However, keep in mind the Chinese spoken here is more in reference to Cantonese and the other southern dialects rather than Mandarin.
And the cool thing is the island is actually kinda like a microcosm of different cultures and religions and ideologies
but they all kinda just blend in.
Of course, the majority of people are Buddhists, and then you have Christians, and there are a few Muslims
so on the island, you can actually witness festivals and holidays for every single people group happening every year.
Everything from the Mooncake Festival to Hari Raya Haji
to... yes, even Christmas.
So that's Christmas Island
I thought I'd just give you guys a little something extra before the year is over
Yes, I'm here at my parents' house for the holidays.
And, thank you guys so much for those of you who have been following up and keeping up with things that have been going on
Yes, my dad is doing a little bit better
there were a lot of bumps in the road throughout the end of the year
but... yeah
thank you guys so much for your prayers and concerns
and... yeah... just
hope you guys have a great Christmas and New Year, and holiday season
and I'll see you guys in 2016!
Alright, stay cool, stay tuned!