Quiet Beach Trivia Quiz

Answer: Thailand

Koh Samui, Thailand's second biggest island after Phuket, is a popular holiday destination because of its white sandy beaches and tropical climate, and tourism is now its biggest industry. The centre of the island also contains a large amount of tropical jungle.

Its most popular beaches include Chaweng (the largest beach in Koh Samui), Maenam and Lamai. The downside of the tourist influx is the immense amount of waste generated, as the island only has a very small number of waste water treatment plants.

Answer: Brighton

Not pictured is Brighton Pier, or the Palace Pier, the only survivor of Brighton's three piers (the Chain Pier collapsed a long time ago and the remnants of the dilapidated West Pier were destroyed in an arson attack). Brighton (where I spent my childhood) is in the English county of Sussex, and has been a popular holiday resort since the Regency period; the Royal Pavilion was built as a seaside residence for George IV, then the Prince Regent.

Although the beaches aren't sandy - which was a huge disappointment to me as a child - they are still a popular location for swimmers, dog walkers, surfers and beach parties.

They are divided into sections by structures known as groynes.

Answer: It is located in Victoria.

Beloved by many a surfer, Bondi Beach is actually near Sydney, in New South Wales. As for the other answers, Jhyimy Miles, also known as the Bondi Caveman, set up camp in a cave in the cliffs at Bondi Beach during the 2000 Olympics, but was eventually forced to leave by the local council, despite protests.

The swimsuit photoshoot featured 1010 bikini-clad women. In the early 20th century, Jews from Germany and Eastern Europe migrated to Bondi, and a thriving Jewish community developed. It is also home to a yeshiva (a religious Jewish school), a kosher butcher and several synagogues.

Answer: Zeeland

Zeeland literally means 'sea land', and appropriately, much of it is below sea level. It borders the North Sea. Many of its beaches are close to sand dunes, and are popular with cyclists, dog walkers and kite flyers. The beaches are also a good spot for birdwatchers, as they attract many seabirds. Zeeland, along with Holland, is also home to the Delta Works, a series of storm barriers, dykes, levees and locks to protect part of the Dutch coast from flooding.

Answer: Mauritius

The island of Mauritius, once the home of the now extinct dodo, is one of Africa's most popular beach holiday destinations, with its picturesque coastal waters, palm trees and white sandy beaches. It is one of the Mascarene Islands, along with Réunion and Rodrigues. Luxury tourism has played a key role in the economic growth of the island. Le Morne Brabant, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is surrounded by a lagoon and is home to rare species of plant.

As well as beaches, Mauritius also plays home to rainforests and coral reefs.

Answer: Micro-organisms

Elafonisi is an island near Crete. The pink sand at Elafonisi's beaches is caused by a combination of red micro-organisms which grow on dead coral and shells, and microscopic amoeba called Fornifera which deposit calcium carbonate materials. Wikipedia describes it as a 'symbiotic relationship'. Because of sand theft - people stealing the sand for its unusual colour - the beach has lost a fair bit of its original colour. To prevent this, the Greek government have designated Elafonisi a nature reserve and banned the removal of sand.

Answer: Lava

Unlike Elafonisi in the last question, Honokalani's black sand IS the result of lava - lava that has cooled and subsequently been fractured into tiny bits by the ocean over the years. Honokalani can be found in Wai'anapanapa State Park, which contains lava tubes, blowholes and colonies of seabirds, on the island of Maui. Unlike other beaches in this quiz, it is dangerous to swimmers unless the sea is extremely calm (a rare event), because of rip currents and a steep drop in the bottom of the ocean floor away from the beach.

Answer: Namibia

'Swakopmund' means 'mouth of the Swakop', a river that runs through western Namibia. It was originally founded as a port for German South West Africa, hence the German colonial architecture, and still has a small German-speaking population. It has since been repurposed as a seaside resort, with a funfair, a shopping mall called Platz am Meer ('place by the sea'), and several bars and cafes. 'Mad Max: Fury Road' was filmed there, and it's also popular for shark fishing, surfing and quad biking.

Answer: White sand

'Shirahama' means 'white sand', rather fittingly, and there are a few beaches in Japan with this name, such as the one in Wakayama, which has imported white sand from Australia. The one in the photo is in Shimoda in the Shizuoka prefecture, on the Izu Peninsula.

Other notable Shimoda beaches include Shirahama Ohama Beach, recognisable by its red torii (a Japanese Shinto shrine gate), and the quieter Sotoura Beach.

Answer: Yalta

The Crimean Peninsula is surrounded by the Black Sea, and the town of Yalta was the location for the Big Three Conference between the Soviet Union, Britain and the USA. It has a warm climate and is surrounded by hills and mountains. Because of its popularity as a resort, it has been nicknamed the 'Communist Côte d'Azur', although tensions in the Crimea have put visitors from outside Russia off. Two of Ukraine's Blue Flag beaches are located there (the Blue Flag being an award for cleanliness and safety, awarded by the Foundation for Environmental Education).

The beaches are accompanied by a seafront promenade.