Who says you have to go to the tropics to enjoy a tropical vacation?

Open since 2004, Tropical Islands is an indoor resort, built inside a large aircraft hangar, an hour’s drive from Berlin. It’s a man-made micro-ecosystem complete with hundreds of species of plants, sandy beaches, crystal-clear waterfalls and even bird and insect sounds made by speakers disguised as boulders. It spreads over 5 million cubic meters and it is taller than the Statue of Liberty; when the sun shines outside, visitors can actually get a tan, thanks to the effect of the sunbeams penetrating the hangar’s transparent roof, even if the weather is freezing outside.

Malaysian entrepreneur Colin Au says: “My resort means they hardly have to leave home, yet when they’re here it’s like being on a tropical cruise.”

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It’s as expensive as it is ugly if you ask me, but hey, some people seem to like it.

According to the Guinness Book of Records,the GoldVish “Piece Unique” is the most expensive mobile phone in the world; it costs $1.6 million dollars. Only 3 people in the world own of these and it is rumored that they are all Russian.

Here are the Piece Unique‘s spcifications:

– Solid 18 ct. yellow, rosé or white gold casing – Ultraslim design – 110 x 46 x 17 mm (l x h x d) – 198 grams (depending on version) – high quality VVS-1 (D-E colour) diamonds – 8 colours galuchat leather – modular exchangeable – Advanced dynamic high res. 176×220 (262k) TFT display – Up to 400 hours standby time – Sapphire glass display

Connectivity:

– Worldwide GSM coverage 850 – 900 – 1800 – 1900 MHz (Quad band) – GPRS/EDGE Class 10 – USB – Bluetooth Features:

– Photo/video camera with optimised (8x zoom, 2 megapixel) CMOS lens – Comprehensive MP3 player – FM radio – Stereo sound – PC interchangeable 2 Gb SD-memory for songs, pictures, movies – Personal organizer – Audio recorder – Email/SMS/EMS/MMS – Conference call – Hands-free calling