1.
Resort
–
A resort is a self-contained commercial establishment that endeavors to provide most of a vacationers wants, such as food, drink, lodging, sports, entertainment, and shopping, on the premises. The term resort may be used for a property that provides an array of amenities, typically including entertainment. A hotel is frequently a central feature of a resort, such as the Grand Hotel at Mackinac Island, some resorts are also timeshare or fractionally owned, or wholly owned condominium complexes. A resort is not always a commercial establishment operated by a single company, commonly these facilities are of higher quality than would be expected if one were to stay at a hotel or eat in a towns restaurants. Closely related to these resorts are convention and large meeting sites, generally these occur in cities where special meeting halls, together with ample accommodations as well as varied dining and entertainment, are provided. An all-inclusive resort charges a price that includes most or all items. At a minimum, most inclusive resorts include lodging, unlimited food, drink, sports activities, all-inclusive resorts are found in the Caribbean, particularly in Dominican Republic, Egypt, and elsewhere. Many also offer sports and other included in the price as well. They are often located in warmer regions, the all-inclusive model originated in the Club Med resorts, which were founded by the Belgian Gérard Blitz. Some all-inclusive resorts are designed for specific vacation interests, for example, certain resorts cater to adults, while even more specialized properties accept couples only. Other all-inclusive resorts are geared toward families, with facilities like craft centers, game rooms, all-inclusive resorts are also very popular locations for destination weddings. A spa resort is a short term residential/lodging facility with the purpose of providing individual services for spa-goers to develop healthy habits. Historically many such spas were developed at the location of natural hot springs or sources of mineral waters, golf resorts are resorts that cater specifically to the sport of golf, and include access to one or more golf course and or clubhouse. Golf resorts typically provide golf packages that provide visitors with all greens and cart fees, range balls, accommodations, in North America a ski resort is generally a destination resort in a ski area. Ski resort is less likely to refer to a town or village, a megaresort is a type of destination resort which is of an exceptionally large size, such as those along the Las Vegas Strip. In Singapore integrated resort is a euphemism for a destination resort. A holiday village is a type of self-contained resort in Europe, a holiday camp in the United Kingdom refers to a resort where the accommodation is in chalets. The term holiday park is used for a resort where the accommodation includes static caravans, there are 1500+ timeshare resorts in the U. S. that are operated by major hospitality, timeshare-specific, or independent companies
2.
Skiing
–
Skiing is a mode of transport, recreational activity and competitive winter sport in which the participant uses skis to glide on snow. Many types of skiing events are recognized by the International Olympic Committee. Skiing has a history of almost five millennia, although modern skiing has evolved from beginnings in Scandinavia, it may have been practiced as early as 600 BC in what is now China. The word ski is one of a handful of words Norway has exported to the international community and it comes from the Old Norse word skíð which means split piece of wood or firewood. Asymmetrical skis were used at least in northern Finland and Sweden until the late 19th century, on one leg the skier wore a long straight non-arching ski for sliding, and on the other a shorter ski for kicking. Early skiers used one long pole or spear, the first depiction of a skier with two ski poles dates to 1741. Until the mid-19th century skiing was primarily used for transport, and since then has become a recreation, military ski races were held in Norway during the 18th century, and ski warfare was studied in the late 18th century. As equipment evolved and ski lifts were developed skiing evolved into two main genres during the late 19th and early 20th century, Alpine and Nordic, also called downhill skiing, alpine skiing typically takes place on a piste at a ski resort. It is characterized by fixed-heel bindings that attach at both the toe and the heel of the skiers boot, because alpine equipment is somewhat difficult to walk in, ski lifts, including chairlifts, bring skiers up the slope. Backcountry skiing can be accessed by helicopter, snowcat, hiking, facilities at resorts can include night skiing, après-ski, and glade skiing under the supervision of the ski patrol and the ski school. Alpine skiing branched off from the older Nordic skiing around the 1920s, Alpine equipment specialized to where it can only be used with the help of lifts. The Nordic disciplines include cross-country skiing and ski jumping, which share in common the use of binding that attach at the toes of the skiers boots, cross-country skiing may be practiced on groomed trails or in undeveloped backcountry areas. Ski jumping skiing is practiced at certain areas that are deemed for ski jumping only, Telemark skiing is a ski turning technique and FIS-sanctioned discipline. It is named after the Telemark region of Norway, using equipment similar to nordic skiing, the ski bindings having the ski boot attached only at the toe. This allows the skier to raise his/her heel throughout the turn, the following disciplines are sanctioned by the FIS and USSA. Many have their own cups and are in the Winter Olympic Games. Cross-country, The sport encompasses a variety of formats for cross-country skiing races over courses of varying lengths, such races occur over homologated, groomed courses designed to support classic and free-style events, where the skiers may employ skate skiing. Alpine skiing discliplines include combined, downhill, slalom, giant slalom, Super-G, one run of each even like one run of Super-G and one run of Slalom skiing this is called a Super Combined
3.
Snowboarding
–
Snowboarding is a recreational activity and Olympic and Paralympic sport that involves descending a snow-covered slope while standing on a snowboard attached to a riders feet. The development of snowboarding was inspired by skateboarding, sledding, surfing and skiing and it was developed in the United States in the 1960s, became a Winter Olympic Sport at Nagano in 1998 and first featured in the Winter Paralympics at Sochi in 2014. Its popularity in the United States peaked in 2007 and has been in a decline since, and, in 1966 alone over half a million snurfers were sold. In the early 1970s, Poppen organized snurfing competitions at a Michigan ski resort that attracted enthusiasts from all over the country, one of those early pioneers was Tom Sims, a devotee of skateboarding. He produced commercial snowboards in the mid-70s, articles about his invention in such mainstream magazines as Newsweek helped publicize the young sport. The pioneers were not all from the United States, in 1976, Welsh skateboard enthusiasts Jon Roberts and that same year, he founded Burton Snowboards in Londonderry, Vermont. The snowboards were made of wooden planks that were flexible and had water ski foot traps, very few people picked up snowboarding because the price of the board was considered too high at $38, but eventually Burton would become the biggest snowboarding company in the business. The first competitions to offer prize money were the National Snurfing Championship, in 1979, Jake Burton Carpenter, came from Vermont to compete with a snowboard of his own design. There were protests about Jake entering with a non-snurfer board, paul Graves, and others, advocated that Jake be allowed to race. A modified Open division was created and won by Jake as the sole entrant and that race was considered the first competition for snowboards and is the start of what has now become competitive snowboarding. In 1980 the event moved to Pando Winter Sports Park near Grand Rapids, in 1982, the first USA National Snowboard race was held near Woodstock, Vermont, at Suicide Six. The race, organized by Graves, was won by Burtons first team rider Doug Bouton, in 1983, the first World Championship halfpipe competition was held at Soda Springs, California. Tom Sims, founder of Sims Snowboards, organized the event with the help of Mike Chantry, in 1985, the first World Cup was held in Zürs, Austria, further cementing snowboardings recognition as an official international competitive sport. In 1990, the International Snowboard Federation was founded to provide universal contest regulations, many alpine resorts have terrain parks. At the 1998 Winter Olympic Games in Nagano, Japan, Snowboarding became an official Olympic event, initially, ski areas adopted the sport at a much slower pace than the winter sports public. Indeed, for years, there was animosity between skiers and snowboarders, which led to an ongoing skier vs snowboarder feud. Early snowboards were banned from the slopes by park officials, for several years snowboarders would have to take a small skills assessment prior to being allowed to ride the chairlifts. It was thought that a snowboarder would wipe the snow off the mountain
4.
Piste
–
A piste is a marked ski run or path down a mountain for snow skiing, snowboarding, or other mountain sports. This European term is French and synonymous with trail, slope, pronunciation varies slightly in English, with British English using a long i, and American pronunciation using a short i. Increasingly, North Americans employ its common European antonym, off piste, to describe backcountry skiing, pistes are usually maintained using tracked vehicles known as snowcats to compact or groom the snow to even out trail conditions, remove moguls, and redistribute snow to extend the ski season. Natural snow is often augmented with snow making machines early in the season or when the snowpack is low, typically, grading is done by the resort, and grades are relative to other trails within that resort. In North America, a rating system is used to indicate the comparative difficulty of trails. Australia and New Zealand also share the same rating system, ski trail difficulty is measured by percent slope, not degree angle. A 100% slope is a 45 degree angle, in general, beginner slopes are between 6% and 25%. Intermediate slopes are between 25% and 40%, difficult slopes are 40% and up. However, this is just a rule of thumb. Although slope gradient is the consideration in assigning a trail difficulty rating. A trail will be rated by its most difficult part, even if the rest of the trail is easy, ski resorts assign ratings to their own trails, rating a trail compared only with other trails at that resort. Also considered, width of the trail, sharpest turns, terrain roughness, in Europe, pistes are classified by a color-coded system. The actual color system differs in parts for each country - in all blue, red. Shapes are not always used - sometimes all ratings are circles as being defined in the rules of the German Skiing Association DSV. The three basic color codes of the DSV have been integrated into the national standards DIN32912 in Germany, the ratings are, Green Learning or Beginner slopes. These are usually not marked trails, but tend to be large, open, can sometimes be marked as a Green circle. Blue An easy trail, similar to the North American Green Circle, the slope gradient shall not exceed 25% except for short wide sections with a higher gradient. Sometimes described as a blue square, Red An intermediate slope, similar to the North American Blue Square
5.
North America
–
North America is a continent entirely within the Northern Hemisphere and almost all within the Western Hemisphere. It can also be considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the west and south by the Pacific Ocean, and to the southeast by South America and the Caribbean Sea. North America covers an area of about 24,709,000 square kilometers, about 16. 5% of the land area. North America is the third largest continent by area, following Asia and Africa, and the fourth by population after Asia, Africa, and Europe. In 2013, its population was estimated at nearly 565 million people in 23 independent states, or about 7. 5% of the worlds population, North America was reached by its first human populations during the last glacial period, via crossing the Bering land bridge. The so-called Paleo-Indian period is taken to have lasted until about 10,000 years ago, the Classic stage spans roughly the 6th to 13th centuries. The Pre-Columbian era ended with the migrations and the arrival of European settlers during the Age of Discovery. Present-day cultural and ethnic patterns reflect different kind of interactions between European colonists, indigenous peoples, African slaves and their descendants, European influences are strongest in the northern parts of the continent while indigenous and African influences are relatively stronger in the south. Because of the history of colonialism, most North Americans speak English, Spanish or French, the Americas are usually accepted as having been named after the Italian explorer Amerigo Vespucci by the German cartographers Martin Waldseemüller and Matthias Ringmann. Vespucci, who explored South America between 1497 and 1502, was the first European to suggest that the Americas were not the East Indies, but a different landmass previously unknown by Europeans. In 1507, Waldseemüller produced a map, in which he placed the word America on the continent of South America. He explained the rationale for the name in the accompanying book Cosmographiae Introductio, for Waldseemüller, no one should object to the naming of the land after its discoverer. He used the Latinized version of Vespuccis name, but in its feminine form America, following the examples of Europa, Asia and Africa. Later, other mapmakers extended the name America to the continent, In 1538. Some argue that the convention is to use the surname for naming discoveries except in the case of royalty, a minutely explored belief that has been advanced is that America was named for a Spanish sailor bearing the ancient Visigothic name of Amairick. Another is that the name is rooted in a Native American language, the term North America maintains various definitions in accordance with location and context. In Canadian English, North America may be used to refer to the United States, alternatively, usage sometimes includes Greenland and Mexico, as well as offshore islands
6.
Tsaghkadzor
–
Tsaghkadzor is a spa town and a popular health resort in Armenia, located north of the capital Yerevan in the Kotayk Province. According to the 2011 census, the town has a population of 1,256, Tsaghkadzor literally means valley of flowers or flower canyon in Armenian. The name of Tsaghkadzor is associated with the name of the nearby Tsaghkunyats Mountains, originally, it was known as Tsaghkunyats Dzor by its foundation during the 3rd century. In the 11th century, the town was known as Kecharuyk or Kecharis derived from the Kecharis Principality under the Armenian Pahlavuni family. Later, during the 17th century, the towns was called Darachichak by the Turkic invaders, keeping the name until 1947, historically, the territory of modern-day Tsaghkadzor is associated with the Varazhnunik canton of Ayrarat province of Ancient Armenia. During the 4th and 5th centuries, Tsaghkunyats Dzor along the surrounding lands, later between the 5th and 7th centuries, the region was granted to the Kamsarakan and Amatuni families, under the Persian rule. Between the 7th and 9th centuries, Armenia suffered from the Arab Islamic occupation, in the 9th century, Tsaghkunyats Dzor became part of the Bagratid Kingdom of Armenia established in 885. Starting from the 10th century, the houses of Kamsarakan and Pahlavuni -both related with the Arsacid dynasty by origins- were merged and governed the cantons of Aragatsotn, Kotayk and Varazhnunik. Prince Grigor Magistros of the Pahlavuni family became the head of the Kecharis Principality and built the Kecharis Monastery in 1033, in 1051, he also built the Surp Nshan Church. During this period, the town was known as Kecharuyk, in the mid-11th century, the region suffered from the Seljuk invasion led by Tughril and later by his successor Alp Arslan. After the Mongols captured Ani in 1236, Armenia turned into a Mongol protectorate as part of the Ilkhanate, and the Zakarids became vassals to the Mongols. After the fall of the Ilkhanate in the century, the Zakarid princes ruled over Lori, Shirak, Kotayk. At the beginning of the 16th century, Kecharuyk became part of the Erivan Beglarbegi within the Safavid Persia, the town of Kecharuyk became to be known as Darachichak under the Persian rule. During the first half of the 18th century, Darachichak became part of the Erivan Khanate under the rule of the Afsharid dynasty and later under the Qajar dynasty of Persia. It remained under the Persian rule until 1827-1828, when Eastern Armenia was ceded by the Russian Empire as a result of the Russo-Persian War of 1826–28, after 2 years of brief independence, Armenia became part of the Soviet Union in December 1920. In 1930, Darachichak was included in the newly-formed Akhta raion, in 1947 the village of Darachichak was renamed Tsaghkadzor. In 1958, it was incorporated into an urban-type settlement, during the Soviet era, Tsaghkadzor has been developed as a major spa town and health resort, intending to attract a large number of tourists. Many monumental buildings and dachas previously built by the merchants of Yerevan
_10.JPG)
Media related to Ski resorts at Wikimedia Commons
