I was having a grand ole time surfing at Ala Moana Bowls the other day when a rude, disrespecting woman decided to paddle for a wave and proceeded to cut off three other surfers and nearly behead my friend. Growing ever more confrontational in my old age, I began to argue with the lady about her very inappropriate surf etiquette. Profanities were exchanged, I nearly spit in her face, and she nearly punched me. Two perfectly mature female surfers in Honolulu suddenly became mortal enemies over shoulder-high waves just days before the New Year.

This immediately got me thinking about my surfing experiences abroad. I've been fortunate enough to have surfed in some of the most idyllic places in the world, with Costa Rica, West Timor, and Fiji topping that list. While I don't claim to be an expert in the sport, I usually know how to behave in the water -- especially in foreign waters.

I never get tired of people's inventions when it comes to smuggling stuff across the border. Take Jereme James, a 34-year old Californian man, who tried to smuggle iguanas into the US inside his prosthetic leg.

James was caught and convicted on two counts of smuggling and possessing endangered animals. He allegedly stole three baby Fiji Island banded iguanas from an ecological preserve while on a trip to the South Pacific islands in 2002 and smuggled them by concealing them in the compartment of a prosthetic leg. The iguanas are threatened with extinction because of habitat loss and are considered an endangered species, AFP reports.

OK, so things didn't work out so well for the iguana smuggler who now faces jail. But, how many people actually get away with stuff like that all the time? How many have I been on a plane with?

Sometimes you go to a place for its beauty or famous tourist sites. Other times, you simply go for the people.

That's partially how I ended up in Ireland to work after college. In my humble opinion, the Irish are some of the nicest people on this planet. And now, there is documented evidence to support this.

Lonely Planet's remarkable Bluelist now boasts that Ireland is indeed the friendliest, most welcoming country in the world.

While this is no surprise for me, I'd never be able to guess the other countries mentioned in the top ten list. And in fact, I was pleasantly surprised to learn that backpackers and travelers voted the USA in at second; this is great news considering the bashing we've been receiving abroad in the last few years.

In case you are looking for a holiday destination where the people themselves will put a smile on your face you may want to check out the other countries which also made the list; Malawi, Vietnam, Thailand, Fiji, Indonesia, Samoa, and Scotland.

Check out the blues in this shot! It almost makes you want to sing the blues for not being on board the tottering sailboat. This photo was submitted by Matava - The Astrolabe Hideaway Kadavu, Fiji and it looks as though they're trying to win over some island deprived soul with their series of photos left in the Gadling Flickr pool.

Their caption states: Matava is an eco adventure getaway offering you a fun and unique blend of cultural experiences and adventure activities in the environmentally pristine and remote island of Kadavu in Fiji.

Sign me up!

When we first posted about Tribe Wanted, there was some schadenfreude speculation that the online creation of a "tribe" and the subsequent lease of a South Pacific island where members could live out their tribal aspirations, would eventually disrupt into some type of Lord of the Flies anarchy in which Piggy's skull is crushed and modern man once again proves that evil is inherent.

Well, the island is up and running and so far the death toll is non-existent.

James Vlahos was amongst the first of 920 members to arrive on the island and has penned the most in-depth report I've seen on the development of the island. And development it is. As a "pioneering colonist" Vlahos and his other tribe members were charged with actually building an eco-friendly resort and facilities from scratch while also maintaining a cohesive tribal unit comprised of random members from around the world who signed up online and didn't know each other until they arrived on the island.

So far the utopian experiment has gone rather well according to Vlahos. Sure, there are some personality clashes on the island, but that's inevitable. Otherwise, there has been no Lord of the Flies scenarios except for one exception: a major brush fire which caused a schism in the group when half chose to evacuate on a boat while the other half stayed behind to fight the fire.

Things are moving along, but I still don't think I'll be signing up any time soon.

For those of you interested in joining the club, you can do so on their website here. In the meantime, here is a selection of photos from Vlahos's National Geographic Adventure article.

This morning when I watched the news it was called to my attention that today marks the two-year anniversary of one the biggest natural disasters to occur in Southeast Asia. Footage of massive waves, bulldozing tiny tropical beach resorts in Thailand and water carrying the remnants of homes, vehicles, and those trying desperately to escape; glowed on my television screen. I cut the news off and retreated to my room. I wasn't in much of a mood to see the sorrow mounted in the eyes of an orphan whose parents had been washed away in the ocean. I just couldn't bear it so early.

Now as I sit hanging out on the web I see several stories remembering those who lost a great deal and how much progress still needs to be made. The International Herald Tribune has an excellent photo gallery displaying images of smiles from young girls like the two above whirling around in a playground (a donation by a relief agency), people playing volleyball on Thailand's Patong beach, and then sad images as well. Most of Thailand's beaches have been able to rebuild quickly, but other areas in Sri Lanka & Indonesia have been left to slowly pick up the pieces due to misuse of money (millions) and government corruption.

A drill system is being practiced across to Southeast Asia for future disasters and to commemorate the 9.3 earthquake two years back.

I've traveled to places where they've never seen an American before. That's not too hard of a challenge. But, as far as I know, I've never been to a place where the locals have never seen a white person before.

There are many places on this planet where this is still possible, but I never would have expected resort-packed Fiji to be one of them.

And yet, it is. Gustavo Ten Hoever, writing for Travel & Leisure, went in search of "authentic" Fiji and actually found it.

The informative article whisks the reader through some of the more popular areas of the island nation and then delves into the backcountry where tourists are non-existent and the sight of a white person sends children running away in fear.

Sounds like my kind of place!

We posted a couple of months ago about a fantastic idea hatched by a couple of Brits: lease an exotic island for three years and populate it with a tribe of due-paying members who can visit up to three weeks a year.

Like so many semi-utopian ideas, we were all curious if this one would ever get off the ground. Well, the first boatload of tribespeople have finally arrived at the island and are gleefully getting things in order according to an article in Friday's USA Today.

Vorovoro Island is part of the Fiji archipelago and is mostly deserted--which means that part of the time-share aspect is that tribe members have to give some of their time to help build. The 937 paid members of the tribe need to construct shelter and toilets and basically an entire infrastructure to survive. In the meantime, it's tents and hospitality from some of the real locals living on another part of the island.

Tribe members who are not currently on the island can also participate in daily planning from the comfort of their own homes thanks to a live internet link powered by solar energy.

Check out the great online feature at USA Today which incorporates a number of pretty cool videos to give a much better idea of how things are shaping up in paradise.

Let's hope it survives.

Providing a caption for the illustration you see pictured here could get you and a pal an incredible trip to Fiji. To show how gung-ho they are about their 25th Birthday / Anniversary, ISLANDS magazine is looking to send the person with the most clever and creative caption to Fiji. The trip for two would be all-inclusive and lands you in the beautiful 500-acre island paradise of Turtle Islands. I won't list all the prize details here, because I want to win, I mean because you'll certainly want to head over to ISLANDS magazine for your chance to win. Seems like a pretty easy contest to enter, meaning little effort should be involved in getting your entry in there. Contest ends 09/30/06.

No excuses!

Yup - I've long been the type to get geeked up over a good contest, but at least I don't keep my discoveries top secret so that no one else can enter. That would be wickedly selfish of me. Now STA Travel has this Tribewanted contest going on and I must say it's one of the more interesting sweepstakes I've seen in a good while. For starters they're giving away a membership to the eco-friendly green community located in the Mamanuca Islands of Fiji. As a member of the Tribewanted you will gain a unique opportunity to participate in creating a ecological community with limited membership by debating tribal issues using an online forum to decide the development of the island. Only 5,000 memberships are being sold and only 100 people will be allowed on the island at one time. The island does not officially open until September 1, 2006.

Sound intriguing? Need more details? Head over to STA Travel, register, tell your friends and good luck!