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Sun Cruise Hotel, South Korea

on Jun 7, 2013 in Asia, South Korea | 1 comment

Have you all read about or seen Sun Cruise Hotel in GANGNEUNG, South Korea? This ship shaped hotel in South Korea looks like a Royal Caribbean cruise ship. True, the concept of designing and building a landlocked cruise liner for a hotel seems a bit odd. But everything from the rooms (with heated floors) to the grounds – full of walking gardens and sculptures etc. – to the breathtaking views of the sea is simply… well, breathtaking. Sun Cruise Resort Hotel was designed and built by a shipyard to emulate the experience of cruising on a cruise ship. A stay at the hotel does a good job of approximating a cruise, complete with sound effects, without the motion sickness. Because the ship is constructed high on the edge of a mountain a stroll on the sun deck allows one to feel they are out at sea. Location: GANGNEUNG, South Korea Google maps. Nearby cities: Wonju; Seoul; Hamhung...

Setenil de las Bodegas

on May 19, 2013 in Europe, Spain | 1 comment

Welcome to the town of Setenil de las Bodegas in Spain, where around 3,000 inhabitants are living quite literally, under a rock. Believe it or not, people chose to settle here for practical reasons. The natural caves of Setenil turned out to be ideal living quarters because rather than needing to build entire houses to keep out the heat in the summer and the cold in the winter, all they needed to build was a facade. It is believed people have been living here since pre-historic times. The town’s name ‘Setenil de las bodegas’ reflects its rich history; setenil, from the latin words septem nihil– “seven times no”, refers to the seven times the Catholic rulers tried to take back the territory from the Moors, the medieval arabian inhabitants who ruled much of Spain for several centuries. Only on the seventh attempt to conquer Setenil were the Catholics able to win the territory– one of the...

Crooked Forest

on May 16, 2013 in Europe, Poland | 0 comments

In a tiny corner of western Poland a forest of about 400 pine trees grow with a 90 degree bend at the base of their trunks – all bent northward. Surrounded by a larger forest of straight growing pine trees this collection of curved trees, or “Crooked Forest,” is a mystery. The tress are believed to have been planted around 1930. It is also believed that the bending was caused by some form of human intervention, most likely by some tool or machine. But nobody actually knows for sure how it was done and what the motive behind it was. Location: Outside Nowe Czarnowo, West Pomerania, Poland. - via...

Bohemian Paradise

on May 11, 2013 in Czech Republic, Europe | 1 comment

Bohemian Paradise (Czech: Český ráj) is a Protected Area. It was declared in 1955 as the first nature reserve in the Czech Republic. At first it was 95 square kilometres in area; today it is almost 182. This area is in the north of Bohemia and north-eastward from the capital city Prague. Borders of this district are not given, but there are some towns which could demarcate rough borders, for example, Turnov, Jičín and Mnichovo Hradiště. This piece of land is popular thanks to a beautiful and varied countryside. There are a lot of places which should be seen. People can go for a walk and admire many natural beauties; they can drive to many castles, chateaus, ruins, museums, and other sights. Location:Turnov, Czech Republic Official...

The village of Monsanto

on May 11, 2013 in Europe, Portugal | 0 comments

Monsanto is a beautiful village built in the Portuguese countryside. Featuring narrow streets carved from rock and granite houses squeezed between giant boulders, it looks like a real life Bedrock. At the top of the 400 feet high hill stands a very old square built castle. The castle played an important role in Medieval times when the Templars Grand Master built a castle which withstood several battles including the Napoleonic invasions. In 1938, Monsanto was bestowed the most “Portuguese town in Portugal.” Location:Monsanto, Portugal Sources: Urugallu/Flickr, dailycool.net,...

Kummakivi

on May 11, 2013 in Europe, Finland | 1 comment

There are certain natural occurrences in the world that leave us all scratching our heads. One such natural wonder is Kummakivi, a geological formation found in the dense forests of Finland. The mystifying sight is that of a giant rock performing an unbelievable balancing act on a seemingly smooth, curved mound. There is still no scientific explanation for how the rock, whose given name translates as “strange rock” in Finnish, has wound up in such a perplexing position, but doesn’t it look unusual? Some Finnish folklore explains the odd locations of these giant stones by saying that trolls (or giants) carried, threw or rolled them there. Location. Valtola, Southern Savonia, Finland - via retkipaikka.fi,...

Tsingy de Bemaraha National Park

on May 11, 2013 in Africa, Madagascar | 0 comments

The Tsingy de Bemaraha National Park is a protected UNESCO world heritage site, but this park doesn’t need any tollbooths, rangers or even a tall, spiked fence. Why? Because it’s literally nothing but spiked fence. Tsingy is a 250-square-mile tiger trap made up of massive limestone obelisks riddled with jagged spears. The unusual geomorphology of the Tsingy de Bemaraha World Heritage Site, which encompasses both the National Park and the adjacent Strict Nature Reserve, means that the Site is home to an exceptionally large number of endemic species of plants and animals that are found only within extremely small niches within the tsingys. For example, the summit, slope, and base of a tsingy’s limestone needle form different ecosystems with different species clinging to their exceptionally steep slopes. Location: Melaky Region, Madagascar. Sources: Cracked.com, Flickr...

Wave Rock

on May 11, 2013 in Australia | 0 comments

The Wave Rock derives its name by its form, which looks like a giant ocean wave ready to break everything on its way. Wave Rock is the part of a 160-hectare nature reserve, Hyden Wildlife Park. A puddle at the top of Wave Rock. The “wave” is about 14 m (47 ft) high and around 110 m (350 ft) long. It forms the north side of a solitary hill, which is known as “Hyden Rock.” This hill, which is a granite inselberg, lies about 3 km east of the small town of Hyden and 296 km east-southeast of Perth, Western Australia. Official website. Location: 340km east of Perth, Western Australia Sources: Wikipedia, Flickr 1, 2,...