Fasil Ghebbi is a fortress-enclosure located in Gondar, Ethiopia. It served as the home of Ethiopia's emperors in the 17th and 18th centuries. Its unique architecture shows diverse influences including Arab, Hindu, and Baroque styles.
Read more...Sewell is an uninhabited Chilean mining town located in the commune of Machalí in Cachapoal Province, O'Higgins Region, on the slopes of the Andes.The town was founded in 1904 by the Braden Copper Co. to extract the copper in the El Teniente mine, and, in 1915, it was named after the company's first president, Mr. Barton Sewell. In 1918, it already housed 14,000 people.
Following many years of active life and achieving the construction and exploitation of the largest underground mine in the world, in 1977 the company started moving families to the valley and soon after the camp was being dismantled.
The Chilean Government declared Sewell a National Monument in 1998, while the UNESCO designated it a World Heritage Site in 2006.
Sewell is known as the city of stairs as there were no roads, only a train that brought workers and their families to the camp; at night, it had the shape and the looks of a Christmas tree and anyone being born or having lived in Sewell keeps the memories of a place never heard of.
Mount Nimba Strict Nature Reserve is a national park and UNESCO World Heritage Site in both Guinea and Côte d'Ivoire. A further extension of the reserve to include areas in Liberia has also been proposed. The park includes significant portions of Mount Nimba, a geographically unique area with more than 200 endemic species. These species include multiple types of duikers, big cats, civets, Chimpanzees, and several types of viviparous toads.
Read more...The Belize Barrier Reef is a series of coral reefs straddling the coast of Belize, roughly 300 meters (1,000 ft) offshore in the north and 40 kilometers (25 mi) in the south within the country limits. The Belize Barrier Reef is a 300 kilometers (186 mi) long section of the 900 kilometers (560 mi) long Mesoamerican Barrier Reef System, which is continuous from Cancún on the northeast tip of the Yucatán Peninsula through the Riviera Maya up to offshore Guatemala, making it the second largest coral reef system in the world after the Great Barrier Reef in Australia, popular for scuba diving and snorkeling. It is Belize's top tourist destination, attracting almost half of its 260,000 visitors, and vital to its fishing industry.
Read more...Tiya is a town in southern Ethiopia. Located in the Gurage Zone of the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples Region south of Addis Ababa.
Tiya is best known for its adjacent archeological site, which is distinguished by 36 standing stones or stelae, "32 of which are engraved with enigmatic symbols, notably swords," marking a large, prehistoric burial complex. A German ethnographic expedition had visited the site in April 1935, and had found at one hour's journey to the south of the caravan camp the stone monoliths with sword symbol, which had been seen earlier by Neuville and Père Azaï.
The Citadelle Laferrière or, Citadelle Henri Christophe, or simply the Citadel, is a large mountaintop fortress located in northern Haiti, approximately 17 miles (27 km) south of the city of Cap-Haïtien and five miles (8 km) uphill from the town of Milot. It is the largest fortress in the Western Hemisphere and was designated by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site in 1982—along with the nearby Sans-Souci Palace. The Citadel was built by Henri Christophe, a key leader during the Haitian slave rebellion, after Haiti gained independence from France at the beginning of the 19th century.
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The Kasbah is a unique kind of medina, or Islamic city. It stands in one of the finest coastal sites on the Mediterranean, overlooking the islands where a Carthaginian trading-post was established in the 4th century BC. There are the remains of the citadel, old mosques and Ottoman-style palaces as well as the remains of a traditional urban structure associated with a deep-rooted sense of community.
Algiers is the capital and largest city of Algeria, and the second largest city in the Maghreb.
Timgad was a Roman colonial town in North Africa founded by the Emperor Trajan around 100 A.D. The full name of the town was Colonia Marciana Ulpia Traiana Thamugadi. Trajan commemorated the city after his mother Marcia, father Marcus Ulpius Traianus and his eldest sister Ulpia Marciana. The ruins are noteworthy for representing one of the best extant examples of the grid plan as used in Roman city planning.
Read more...Corfe Castle is a village, civil parish and ruined castle, in the English county of Dorset. The castle dates back to the 11th century, and commands a gap in the Purbeck Hills on the route between Wareham and Swanage.
Dorset, is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast.
Havana is the capital city, major port, and leading commercial centre of Cuba. The city is one of the 14 Cuban provinces.
Morro Castle is a picturesque fortress guarding the entrance to Havana bay in Havana, Cuba. Juan Bautista Antonelli, an Italian engineer, was commissioned to design the structure. When it was built in 1589, Cuba was under the control of Spain. The castle, named after the biblical Magi, was later captured by the British in 1762.
Wat Xieng Thong is a Buddhist temple (wat), located on the northern tip of the peninsula of Luang Phrabang, Laos.
Luang Prabang, or Louangphrabang, Xieng Dong Xieng Thong, is a city located in north central Laos, on the Mekong River about 425 km north of Vientiane, and the capital of Louangphrabang Province.
Vientiane is the capital city of Laos, situated in the Mekong Valley. It is also Laos's largest city.
The Stupa in picture is Pha That Luang. Pha That Luang (Paa T-had Lu-uang) (Great Stupa in Lao) is a Buddhist stupa in Vientiane, Laos. It was built in the 16th century under King Setthathirat on the ruins of an earlier 13th century Khmer temple, which the Lao believe was in turn built on a 3rd century Indian temple built by Buddhist missionaries from the Mauryan Empire who were sent by the Emperor Ashoka. Relics of The Buddha are said to be contained here.
The Rio Abiseo National Park is located in the San Martín department of Peru. The park is home to a large number of species of flora and fauna, as well as the location of over 30 pre-Columbian archaeological sites. Since 1986, the park has not been open to tourism due to the fragile nature of both the natural and archaeological environment.
Read more...The Victoria Falls or Mosi-oa-Tunya (the Smoke that Thunders) is a waterfall situated in southern Africa on the Zambezi River between the countries of Zambia and Zimbabwe. The falls are some of the largest in the world.
Victoria Falls was so named by Scottish explorer David Livingstone, and this is the name in use in Zimbabwe. The older, indigenous name of Mosi-oa-Tunya is the name in official use in Zambia. The World Heritage List recognises both names. While it is neither the highest nor the widest waterfall in the world, it is claimed to be the largest. This claim is based on a width of 1.7 kilometers (1 mi) and height of 108 meters (360 ft), forming the largest sheet of falling water in the world. The falls' maximum flow rate compares well with that of other major waterfalls.
The Komodo National Park is a national park in Indonesia located near the Lesser Sunda Islands in the border region between the provinces of East Nusa Tenggara and West Nusa Tenggara. The park includes the three larger islands Komodo, Rinca and Padar, as well as numerous smaller ones, and a total area of 1817 km² (603 km² of it land). The national park was founded in 1980 in order to protect the Komodo dragon. Later it was dedicated to protecting other species, including marine species. The islands of the national park are of volcanic origin. About 4000 people live within the park.
Read more...Borobudur is a ninth-century Mahayana Buddhist monument in Magelang, Central Java, Indonesia. The monument comprises six square platforms topped by three circular platforms, and is decorated with 2,672 relief panels and 504 Buddha statues. A main dome, located at the center of the top platform, is surrounded by 72 Buddha statues seated inside perforated stupa.
Read more...Prambanan is the largest Hindu temple compound in Central Java in Indonesia, located approximately 18 km east of Yogyakarta.
The temple is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is one of the largest Hindu temples in south-east Asia. It is characterised by its tall and pointed architecture, typical of Hindu temple architecture, and by the 47m high central building inside a large complex of individual temples.
Valley de los Ingenios, Valle de los Ingenios or Valley of the Sugar Mills is a series of three interconnected valleys about 12 kilometres (7 miles) outside of Trinidad, Cuba. The three valleys, San Luis, Santa Rosa and Meyer were a centre for sugar production from the late 18th century until the late 19th century. At the peak of the industry in Cuba there were over fifty sugar mills in operation in the three valleys with over 30,000 slaves working in the mills and the sugar cane plantations which surrounded them. The entire area covers 270 sq km (104 sq mi) and includes the sites of over 70 former sugar mills.
Read more...Desembarco del Granma National Park is a national park in south-eastern Cuba, in what is now Granma Province. The park is named after the yacht in which Fidel Castro, Che Guevara, Raúl Castro, and 79 of their supporters sailed from Mexico to Cuba in 1956 and incited the Cuban Revolution.
Read more...Viñales Valley is a karstic depression in Cuba. The valley has an area of 132 km² and is located in the Sierra de los Organos, just north of Viñales in the Pinar del Río Province.
Read more...Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is located in southwestern Uganda in East Africa. The park is part of the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest, and is situated along the Democratic Republic of Congo border next to the Virunga National Park and on the edge of the western Rift Valley. It comprises 331 square kilometres of jungle forests and contains both montane and lowland forest and is accessible only on foot. The Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is a UNESCO-designated World Heritage Site.
Read more...Kasubi Tombs in Kampala, Uganda, is the burial grounds for four previous Kabakas (Kings of Buganda Kingdom), and a World Heritage Site. The royal enclosure at Kasubi hill was first built in 1881.
Read more...Rwenzori Mountains National Park is a Ugandan national park and UNESCO World Heritage Site located in the Rwenzori Mountains. Almost 1,000 km2 (386 sq mi) in size, the park has Africa's third highest mountain peak and many waterfalls, lakes, and glaciers. The park is known for its beautiful plant life.
Read more...Laxey is a village on the east coast of the Isle of Man. Its name derives from the Old Norse Laxa meaning 'Salmon River'.
Read more...Modena is a city and a comune (municipality) on the south side of the Po valley, in the Province of Modena in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy.The Cathedral of Modena and the annexed campanile are a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Modena Cathedral is a Romanesque Roman Catholic cathedral church in Modena, Italy. It is the cathedral, or duomo in Italian, of the Archdiocese of Modena-Nonantola. Consecrated in 1184, it is one of the most important Romanesque buildings in Europe.
The Cinque Terre is a rugged portion of coast on the Italian Riviera. It is in the Liguria region of Italy, to the west of the city of La Spezia. "The Five Lands" comprises five villages: Monterosso al Mare, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola, and Riomaggiore.
The coastline, the five villages, and the surrounding hillsides are all part of the Cinque Terre National Park and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore is the cathedral church (Duomo) of Florence, Italy, begun in 1296 in the Gothic style to the design of Arnolfo di Cambio and completed structurally in 1436 with the dome engineered by Filippo Brunelleschi. The exterior of the basilica is faced with polychrome marble panels in various shades of green and pink bordered by white and has an elaborate 19th century Gothic Revival facade by Emilio De Fabris.
Read more...New Lanark is a village on the River Clyde, approximately 1.4 miles (2.2 kilometres) from Lanark, in South Lanarkshire, Scotland. It was founded in 1786 by David Dale, who built cotton mills and housing for the mill workers. Dale built the mills there to take advantage of the water power provided by the river. Under the ownership of a partnership that included Dale's son-in-law, Robert Owen, a philanthropist and social reformer, New Lanark became a successful business and an epitome of utopian socialism.
Read more...Her Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress, more commonly known as the Tower of London (and historically as The Tower), is a historic monument in central London, England, on the north bank of the River Thames. It is located within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets and is separated from the eastern edge of the City of London by the open space known as Tower Hill.
The Tower of London is often identified with the White Tower, the original stark square fortress built by William the Conqueror in 1078. However, the tower as a whole is a complex of several buildings set within two concentric rings of defensive walls and a moat.
Hạ Long Bay (Descending Dragon bay) is a UNESCO World Heritage site located in Quảng Ninh province, Vietnam. The bay features thousands of limestone karsts and isles in various sizes and shapes.
Read more...Diamantina is a Brazilian city in the state of Minas Gerais. Its estimated population in 2006 was 44,746 in a total area of 3,870 km².
Arraial do Tijuco (as Diamantina was first called) was built during the colonial era in the early 18th century. As its name suggests, Diamantina was a center of diamond mining in the 18th and 19th centuries.
The Pantanal is a tropical wetland in South America, mostly within the Brazilian states of Mato Grosso and Mato Grosso do Sul, and also portions in Bolivia and Paraguay. It is an area consisting of a variety of floodplain sub-regions, each with distinct hydrological, geological and ecological characteristics; in fact, up to twelve of these hydrological ecosystems have been defined. In total the Pantanal covers between 140,000 km² to 195,000 square kilometers (75,000 sq mi)], making it the largest wetland in the world.
Read more...Congonhas (Congonhas do Campo) is a historical Brazilian city located in the state of Minas Gerais. It is situated 90 km south from Belo Horizonte, the capital of state of Minas Gerais.
The city is notable for its basilica - the Santuário de Bom Jesus de Matosinhos - and associated sculptures which was commissioned by Portuguese adventurer, Feliciano Mendes in the 18th century. It was created by Aleijadinho, one of the best artists in the baroque style in the world. The soapstone sculptures of old testament prophets around the terrace are considered amongst his finest work.
Iguazu Falls, Iguassu Falls, or Iguaçu Falls are waterfalls of the Iguazu River located on the border of the Brazilian state of Paraná and the Argentine province of Misiones. The falls divide the river into the upper and lower Iguazu.
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