*21*Goslar

Goslar is an ancient town in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is located at the northwestern foot of the Harz Mountains. The Old Town of Goslar, together with the nearby Rammelsberg Mine were UNESCO World Heritage Sites since 1992.

Goslar was founded in the year of 922 by the Saxon King of the time, Henry I. The discovery of silver and copper ore deposits was the main factors Saxon emperors establishing their administration there. However, research shows that Goslar actually has a rich history well dated back to Neolithic era.

For centuries, Goslar was lauded as the Christianity centre in Germany. There are altogether 47 churches, chapels and monasteries decorating the skyline of this historic town. Because of this, Goslar was also referred to as the “Rome of the North”. Besides Christianity buildings, another piece of important architecture in Goslar is the Kaiserpfalz or the Imperial Palace. This palace is of a typical Romanesque architecture. One can also choose to explore the nature with the nearby Rammelsberg Mountain a popular destination. Rammelsberg Mountain has a rich mining history and was closed down recently in 1988. One can also visit the Rammelsberg Mining Museum. This is a clip showing impressive architecture in Goslar.

*19*Protaras

I do not know much about Cyprus, and I bet the same happens to most of the readers here. Cyprus is an island country situated in the eastern Mediterranean. In fact, it is the third largest island in Mediterranean Sea. The island is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the area.

One of the most popular resorts in Cyprus is Protaras. The resort of Protaras is located on the south east coast of Cyprus, in the Famagusta district. Protaras is well known for its lovely gold sandy beach in Fig Tree Bay. Fig Tree Bay features the best beach on the island in the name of Blue Flag Beach. One can engage in its vast range of water sports ranging from boat paddling to jet skiing.

*18*Petra

Petra is an archaeological site as well as an ancient city in Jordan, in the south western of Asia. Named one of the New Seven Wonders of the World, Petra is renowned for its rock carvings on the cliffs. Although Petra was first established sometime around the 6th century BC, the site remained unknown to the Western world until 1812, when it was discovered by Swiss explorer Johann Ludwig Burckhardt. In December 6, 1985, Petra was designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.

It was believed that the carvings were done by the Nabataeans, an Arab nomadic tribe who settled here more than 2000 years ago. You can enter the city from the east. The entrance is a narrow gorge of 3 to 4 meters wide and over 1 kilometer in length called the Siq (literally means “the shaft”). At the end of the narrow gorge stands Al-Khazneh (Treasury). Al-Khazneh is a massive façade with 30 meters in width and 43 meters in height, carved out of the rock surface. A little further from the Treasury is en-Nejr (theatre).

Here is a little tip on when is the best time to see Petra. The perfect time would be either early to mid morning or late afternoon. During these hours, the sun enhances the amazing natural colors of the rocks, good for photographing.

*17*Ardmore

Ardmore is fishing village in County Waterford, on the south coast of Republic of Ireland. It is believed to be the oldest Christian settlement in Ireland, with its rich religious history began in the 5th century with the arrival of Saint Declan.

Today Ardmore is a popular seaside resort. It has several nice beaches nearby, namely the Main Beach, Goat Island, Ballyquin, the Curragh, and Whiting Bay. Hill above the village offers a fantastic view of Ardmore Bay. On the hill too one can find a well preserved 12th century round tower and the ruins of St. Declan church. The following clip shows the landscape of Ardmore.

*16*Zhangjiajie

Zhangjiajie is a city as well as the National Forest Park within it in the northwestern part of Hunan Province in China. Zhangjiajie was named after a small village located within its bounds. In 1992, Wulingyuan Scenic Area, consisting of Zhangjiajie, Suoxi Gully, Tianzi Mountains and Yangjiajie was declared as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Zhangjiajie covers a total area of 3,600 square kilometers. The area is distinguished by its karsts landforms of more than 3,000 quartzite sandstone pillars and peaks, many of them over 200 meters high. Between the peaks lie ravines and gorges with streams, pools and waterfalls and some 40 caves. Among the most popular are Baofeng Lake, Huanglong Cave and Longwang Cave. Video below was taken while walking around in the scenic area as well as on the cable car. The scenery is absolutely beautiful and stunning!

*15*Phang Nga Bay

Located approximately 75 kilometers north east from Phuket, Phang Nga Bay is a bay in the beautiful Andaman Sea with a total surface area of 400 kilometer square. It was declared as a national park since 1981.

Phang Nga is a shallow bay with 42 islands. It was said that one could walk from Phuket to Krabi when sea levels were low some 10,000 years ago. The area is made up of hundreds of limestone landforms which include limestone cliffs with caves and collapsed cave systems. These limestone landforms all have unique shape. Some look like camel hump and saw tooth while others look like animal horn. One of the most famous such landforms in Phang Nga Bay is the Koh Tapu (‘Koh’ means island and ‘Tapu’ means nail respectively in Thai language). Koh Tapu is about 20 meters tall and takes the shape of a nail. This island is also known as James Bond Island, which is the filming location of the 1974 James Bond movie “The Man with the Golden Gun”.

The best way to savor the beauty of Phang Nga Bay is to take on sea canoeing there. The following clip shows the exotic Phang Nga Bay sea cave canoeing.

*15*Rio de Janeiro

Rio de Janeiro is the second largest city in Brazil after Sao Paolo. It was the capital city of Brazil until the transfer of the capital to Brasilia in 1960. Rio de Janeiro was discovered by Portuguese explorer Gaspar de Lemos on January, 1502 in which the city was named Rio de Janeiro (literally means “River of January in Portuguese language).

The city was nicknamed “The Marvelous City”, as it is a city that knows how to entertain, day and night. Perhaps the most famous local landmark of Rio de Janeiro is the giant Christ the Redeemer statue atop Corcovado Mountain. This statue was recently named as one of the New Seven Wonders of the World. Rio de Janeiro boasts of having the sea, the lagoon and the forest in the middle of the city. Two of its hotel lined tourist beaches are Copacabana and Ipanema. Besides sea, sun and sand, Rio de Janeiro also boasts the largest urban forest in the world in the name of Tijuca Forest. One can also take the cable car up Sugar Loaf Mountain for more spectacular views on the city.