Interesting Tourist places and things

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Amboli-Hill station



Amboli is a hill station in south Maharashtra, India. At an altitude of 690 meters it is the last hill station before the coastal highlands of Goa and a relatively unexplored one. Amboli lies in the Sahayadri Hills of Western India, one of the world’s “Eco Hot-Spots” and it therefore abounds in a variety of fairly unique flora and fauna. However, as in the other parts of the Sahaydri Hills, denudation of the forest cover and unregulated government assisted “development” (read “hotels, resorts & highways”) are gradually ruining a once pristine environment. Historically, Amboli village came into being as one of the staging posts along the road from Vengurla port to the city of Belgaum, which was extensively used by the British to supply their garrisons in south and central India. The hills of Amboli village provide one of the sources of the Krishna river (The “Ganges” of south India) and an ancient Shiva temple (called Hiranyakeshi) exists at the cave where the water emerges. The main attraction for tourists is the incredibly high rainfall (7 meters average per year!)and the numerous waterfalls and mist during the monsoons. Legend has it that there are 108 Shiva temples in and around Amboli of which only a dozen have been uncovered, one as recently as 2005. There aren’t too many places to see or things to do but its quiet, unpolluted and the local residents are good natured and helpful.



Amboli is well connected by road to all the surrounding cities (Kolhapur 110 km, Belgaum 70 km, Panjim (Goa) 90 km) by road and the nearest airport is at Goa, about 2 hours drive away. All the roads are good and a new airport is expected to come up in north Goa shortly, reducing the travelling time to just over an hour. There are 5 decent (and relatively cheap) hotels at Amboli although, sadly, none of them offer any guided tours into the forests, the main attraction of this hill station. However, an organization called Yoga Republic conducts Jungle Yoga camps and retreats from October to March. The only local transport are motorised 3 wheeler rickshaws and a couple of private taxis. You’ll need them only for a day to check out the touristy places and can then depend upon your legs to take you the ones that interest you most.




A number of pristine beaches like Tarkarli, Malvan, Shiroda, Vengurla, Aarawali, Redi, Bhogave mark the coastline of the disctrict. The virgin beaches with long stretches of white sands, are usually crowdless. Following the footsteps of Kerala, even backwater tours including houseboats have also been initiated in recent times near Malvan. Tarkarli has also seen a rising activities in scuba diving as well.
Sawantwadi is a centre of tourist attraction in the south of the district. Many places like some beaches or hill station, Amboli are within a short reach from Sawantwadi. Amboli, a pristine hill station – unspoilt by manmade vagaries is a must-visit place during monsoon. It also hosts adventure sports academy which intermittently organises adventure camps which include activities such as Jungle Trail, Rock Climbing in Waterfalls and possibly paragliding.

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The Living Root Bridges of Cherrapunjee, India




The lower reaches of the southern slopes of Khasi and Jaintia hills, in Northeastern India, are humid, warm and streaked by many swift flowing rivers and mountain streams. On the slopes of this hill, among the dense undergrowth, a species of Indian Rubber tree – (Ficus Elastica) - thrives and flourishes. These trees shoot out many secondary roots from their trunks. The trees, supported by these secondary roots, can comfortably perch itself on huge boulders along side the riverbanks or in the middle of rivers and send its roots down to the riverbed.



The ancient War-Khasi people, a tribe in Meghalaya, had noticed these qualities of this tree and had adapted it to serve their need for building bridges across rivers and streams. In order to direct the roots in the desired direction, the Khasis sliced betel nut tree trunks half in the middle for their entire length, hollowed them out and passed the thin and long tender roots through them. The roots start growing towards other end of the stream and when they are reached they are allowed to take root in the soil. Given enough time, a sturdy, living bridge is produced.



Some of these root bridges can carry fifty or more people at a time and can be over 100 feet long. These bridges take 10 to 15 years to become fully functional, and they keep growing in strength by the day. Some of these bridges are well over 500 years old.



These bridges are unique to Meghalaya only and are being used daily even today by people living in many villages around Cherrapunjee. One special bridge has two bridges stacked one over the other. The villagers of Nongriat where this bridge is located at the bottom of the valley call it 'Umshiang Double Decker Root Bridge’.

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Salmon Spawning at Kuril Lake in Kamchatka



The Kamchatka Peninsula is a 1,250-kilometer long peninsula in the Russian Far East. It lies between the Pacific Ocean to the east and the Sea of Okhotsk to the west.



Kamchatka contains probably the world's greatest diversity of salmonid fish, including all six species of anadromous Pacific salmon (chinook, chum, coho, seema, pink, and sockeye). Biologists estimate that a sixth to a quarter of all Pacific salmon originates in Kamchatka. Kuril Lake is recognized as the biggest spawning-ground for sockeye in Eurasia. In response to pressure from poaching and to worldwide decreases in salmon stocks, some 24,000 square kilometers (9,300 sq mi) along nine of the more productive salmon rivers are in the process of being set aside as a nature preserve.

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The Modern Ghost City of Ordos

The city of Ordos, in Inner Mongolia, China, was founded on February 26, 2001. It was designed to be home for one million people, yet, the Kangbashi district remains nearly empty five years after construction began.





Ordos means "palaces" in Mongolian, and it's richer than Beijing. In fact, with a $14,500 GDP per capita, it's one of the richest in the whole country. With 1,548,000 inhabitants, Ordos is not exactly empty. But much of its modern architecture, sometimes awesomely futuristic, sometimes nafftastically overdeveloped and underdesigned, remains completely empty. The density of this city is only 17.8 people per square kilometer. By comparison, New York City has 157.91 habitants per square kilometer, San Francisco has 6,688.4, and Madrid 5,293.69.




The Kangbashi district began as a public-works project in Ordos, a wealthy coal-mining town in Inner Mongolia. The area is filled with office towers, administrative centers, government buildings, museums, theaters and sports fields—not to mention acre on acre of subdivisions overflowing with middle-class duplexes and bungalows. The only problem: the district was originally designed to house, support and entertain 1 million people, yet hardly anyone lives there.



Though many of the properties in Kangbashi have been sold and a million people were projected to be living in Kangbashi by 2010, the city is still empty.



Mostly empty apartment buildings in Kangbashi, a half hour down the road is Dongsheng, where most of Ordos' 1.5 million resident call home.

[ranchilo]

Etno village "Stanisici", Bijeljina, Bosina and Herzegovina

[rtrummer]

Hidden Wave is really beautiful. Is it like this all year around, or are the seasons pronounced?

[MelvinFloyd]

Top Travel destinations in the World:
1. France
2. Spain
3. Italy
4. USA
5. Maxico.
___________________________

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Tashirojima - The Cat Island of Japan



The Cat Island, officially called Tashirojima, is a small island in Ishinomaki City, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan, that is inhabited by more cats than people. The island has become known as "Cat Island" due to the large stray cat population that thrives as a result of the local belief that feeding cats will bring wealth and good fortune. The cat population is now larger than the human population on the island.



But Tashirojima doesn’t have too many humans to begin with. There are approximately 100 residents on Cat Island, and most of them are over 70. One person is 37, and everybody else is over 60 years old. With more than 50% of the population being over 65 years of age, the survival of the island is threatened. It won’t be long before the four footed animal end up being the only living being on the Cat island.





Keywords: interesting tourist places, indian tourism. world tourism, Ice Road , Caves and Rocks at Staffa Island , interesting tourist things, ranikot-fort, Ladybower Reservoir, The Cat Island of Japan

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Storseisundet–The Bridge to Nowhere




No, this is not a ramp to launch spaceships. It is a bridge on one of Norway's most scenic and popular tourist roads - the Atlantic Ocean Road (Atlanterhavsveien in Norwegian). The bridge named Storseisundet makes a sharp bend as it jumps over a number of small islands and waterways. The approach to the bridge looks scary as the bridge seems to end abruptly and as if any attempt to proceed would result into the vehicle flying out and dropping into the waters below.



The Atlantic Road which connects Norway's mainland to the Island of Averøy is spanned by eight bridges of which Storseisundet is the longest and most spectacular. The Atlantic Ocean Road’s scenic route and the 260 meter long cantilevered Storseisundet Bridge has earned it the title of "Norwegian Construction of the Century" and is currently Norway's second most visited scenic road after Trollstigen.






Keywords: interesting tourist places, indian tourism. world tourism, Ice Road , Caves and Rocks at Staffa Island , interesting tourist things, ranikot-fort, Ladybower Reservoir, The Cat Island of Japan,Storseisundet

[minisoji]

The Capilano Suspension Bridge



The Capilano Suspension Bridge is a simple suspension bridge crossing the Capilano River in the District of North Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The current bridge is 136 metres (446 ft) long and 70 metres (230 ft) above the river. It is part of a private facility, with a charge for admission, and draws over 800,000 visitors a year.




Originally built in 1889 by the Scottish civil engineer, George Grant Mackay, Capilano Suspension Bridge is the oldest and one of the most popular tourist attractions in Vancouver. The bridge offers a squirrel’s view of a thriving coastal forest. Originally the bridge was made of hemp rope and cedar planks but today it has been carefully constructed of reinforced steel. Using custom-engineered steel cables and through regular inspection, the authorities ensure that the bridge does not harm the Douglas fir trees.




Be ready to enjoy a unique blend of adventure, history and culture when you make your way across this famous landmark of Vancouver and refresh your breath in the cedar-scented rainforest air. You can even feel your pulse speeding up, the moment you imagine stepping onto the swaying planks of Capilano Suspension Bridge.





Keywords: interesting tourist places, indian tourism. world tourism, Ice Road , Caves and Rocks at Staffa Island , interesting tourist things, ranikot-fort, Ladybower Reservoir, The Cat Island of Japan,Storseisundet,Capilano Suspension Bridge