Thursday, December 23, 2010

Great Mosque of Djenne

The Great Mosque in Djenne, the capital of Mali, is considered by many to be an architectural wonder. From the photographs I've seen of it, it looks like one big beautiful sand castle. In a way, it is, since it's apparently made of mud.

Madurai Meenakshi Temple

I just discovered a temple in southern India which is surrounded by a few tall towers that appear to be made of countless Hindu idols. While religions like that are somewhat creepy, an environment shaped by such practices for hundreds of years would be quite amazing to see. Also, this temple is located in the middle of one of the most populated places in the world. The crazy amount of figures on these towers seem to reflect that area's characteristic.

Sigiriya

These are the ruins of the ancient capital of Ceylon. A main interesting feature of it is a great stone landmark over a thousand feet high. Its location in Sri Lanka would create a very interesting atmosphere in addition to the unique architecture.

Chan Chan

Most of (or at least a big chunk of) Peru's tourism probably comes from Machu Picchu. Although pictures I've seen of it are quite beautiful, the place is imaginably run over by tourists.

Today, however, I found another remarkable archaeological site in Peru, south of Trujillo. It's called Chan Chan, and it is beautiful, grand, and apparently made from mud... mmuuuuuuddd! (to my future self reading this: you were quite bored today)

Sunday, December 12, 2010

Marquesas Islands

I discovered the island of Hiva Oa because of its amazingly seahorse-like shape. Further information about Hiva Oa showed me that its natural features are wonders of the Pacifc. Its main city Atuona is surrounded by mountains over three thousand feet high. Its plant life is very exotic and tropical, and the pictures I've found of the island make me wonder why I hadn't heard of it before, or the Marquesas Islands of which it is a part of.

I would love to visit any main island of that entire chain; these islands are beautiful.

Iqaluit

Iqaluit is the capital of Nunavut, and is very north. However, it has a population of over seven thousand residents. It's a small town, but its near-arctic setting makes me want to visit it to see how it has been shaped in such a climate. The natural scenery surrounding the capital would also be worth seeing, imaginably.

Beli Iskar Valley

This month I was touring Google Earth with its flight simulator feature, visiting every European capital to get a sense of each country with the available satellite photographs and terrain provided. Going from Sofia to Athens, I discovered an amazing valley in the Rila Mountains of southwestern Bulgaria. The valley which the Beli Iskar River passes through appears to be uniquely beautiful and grand. Others describe it as a place which is as a far away land.

Paris

Paris has many interesting sights I'd be interested to see, including the famous Eiffel Tower and Arc de Triomph.

There's also the Champs-Elysées. I first heard about this on a TV show episode focused somewhat on beautiful landmarks of Paris. After some more research, I quickly learned that it truly was a wonder of that French capital. Just having the experience of walking from the Louvre to the Arc de Triomph would give a lasting impression of the culture of Parisian luxury in that area. Photographs I've seen of it are beautiful, and being there in person would be quite amazing.

South Pole


Although there are probably more beautiful places to see in Antarctica, the geographic south pole would be a very interesting destination. It is most likely representative of the majority of the Antarctic landscape: icy, cold, and empty. Of course, the South Pole area has facilities to ensure human survival, so it seems like the most ideal barren Antarctic spot to visit.

What is amazing is that the American station at the South Pole is open for visitors, though transportation to the pole area is most likely terribly inconvenient. It would be quite a journey, though, and possibly a great adventure in the journey there.