I have to say that after seeing these pics, I’ve decided I’d love to visit this place as much as I’d love to visit Devil’s Pool, at Victoria Falls, in Zimbabwe. It’s just one of those sights that simply takes your breath away.

This man-made wonder is 1013 meters long covers 80 acres, its deepest end reaches 115ft and it holds 66 million gallons of water. If you want to take a dip in the world’s largest swimming pool you’ll have to travel to San Alfonso del Mar in Algarrobo, Chile, where a computer-controlled suction and filtration system continuously pumps water from the ocean, keeping crystal clear.

Although it wasn’t cheap, costing around $2 billion to build and another $4 million/year for maintenance, the pool seems to be worth it as it has been attracting huge crowds of curious tourists, since it opened in December.

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Hundreds of Japanese grown-men wrestle each other in the mud water of Mimusubi shrine in Yotsukaido, a settlement near Tokyo. Every year on February 25 these men take part in this strange yet fun looking rite, believed to bring good harvest for the whole year and good health for babies.

Set in Yellowstone National Park in the US, Morning Glory Pool is one of our planet’s many natural wonders. It is one of the park’s many hot springs and it was named in 1880, due to its resemblance to the well-known flower. The pool used to be completely blue, but human kind had to screw things up, as it always does, and because of the debris that’s been thrown in along the years, part of the vent has been clogged. That caused the temperature of the water to decrease, allowing bacteria to settle in, and that’s how the yellow fringe was formed. I’m not saying it’s less beautiful now but, in recent years the bacteria has started moving more and more towards the center of the pool and if the vandalism doesn’t stop, we might soon admire Morning Glory Pool only in photos…

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

Photo: Miguel Hermoso Cuesta/Wikimedia Commons

 

Before you go laying the “this is photoshoped” line on me, do a little search on the web and convince yourself it is real. It’s actually one of the most well-known diving places in the world, set in Palau. Actually if any of you watched Survivor Palau, you might remember this as one of the sights.

Jellyfish Lake was once connected to the waters of the Pacific ocean, but is now completely isolated. The large population of jellyfish living here was believed to be missing those stinging cells, also known as nemastocysts, but it turns out they do have them, only they’re really tiny. That’s why it’s perfectly ok for people to swim so close to the jellyfish, our tissue doesn’t feel the sting.

This is definitely one of the “must-go before I die” places, right up there with Devil’s Pool and Morning Glory Pool!

Photo: tata_aka_T/Flickr

Photo: Shinji/Flickr

 

The Karni Mata Hindu temple was built by Maharajah Ganga Singh in the early 1900s as a tribute to the rat goddess, Karni Mata and the most intriguing aspect of it, is that it’s home for over 20.000 worshiped rats.

The legend behind this temple is that Karni Mata, a matriarch from the 14th century was a reincarnation of Durga, the goddess of power and victory. at one point one of her clansmen’s child died and she tried to bring it back to life only to be told by Yama, the god of death that he had already reincarnated as a rat. Karni Mata struck a deal with Tama, that all her dead clansmen would reincarnate as rats, until they were ready to be born again into the tribe.

It’s a nice story but I can’t stop thinking about how that place must smell…

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Ivrea is a small town, about 40 minutes north of Turin, Italy. It isn’t a very animated settlement, but once a year, during the Orange Battle Carnival, Ivrea comes to life. the battle is an allegoric representation of the medieval insurrection of 1194, against the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick of Swabia. Masked, armored men throw oranges at the crowd who in turn throw them back at them, until the streets are covered by a carpet of squashed oranges that is sometimes even 30 cm thick…

As much fun as I’m sure this carnival is I have to wonder if those oranges, like the bananas in the banana wall, would have been more appreciated by some starving children in a third world country. But hey, that’s just me…

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Situated in the village of Jukkasjärvi, 200 kilometers north of the Arctic Circle, in Sweeden, the Icehotel is one of the most fantastic tourist locations on the face of the Earth. Using pure, clear ice from the frozen Torne River, artists from all around the world come to Jukkasjärvi every year, to sculpt beautiful ice and snow structures. We are not aware of how spicy the prices are ( you can check here) but we’re sure it’s a unique experience that’s gotta be worth every penny!

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The city of Schiedam was and remains to this day, the poorest city in the Netherlands and the Yellow Brick Road, that connects the center of the city to the new train station, is not only meant to make the city more beautiful, but also to symbolize the road to prosperity and success. Yellow Brick Road also has a shine that resembles that of gold.

If you’re ever in New Zealand, don’t miss out the chance to visit Waitomo cave, the only place on Earth where the stars shine underground. Well ok, they’re not really stars, but thousands of glow-worms radiating their unmistakable luminescent light.

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No matter how much you love swimming I’m willing to bet the farm you wouldn’t dare do it here…unless you have a death wish!

This is the Citarum river, in Indonesia, possibly the most polluted river in the world, due to mankind’s greed and insensibility regarding environment. Once one of the most beautiful waters in Asia, now the Citarum is a graveyard of debris, where locals, who can no longer fish, risk their lives scavenging for bottles and anything else they might sell for a small profit.

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If you’re ever in Zimbabwe, don’t miss the chance to take a swim in The Devil’s Pool, a small lagoon, enclosed by rocks, on the edge of one of the biggest, most beautiful waterfalls in the world, Victoria Falls. Set on Livingstone Island, at a height of 103 meters, Devil’s Pool is definitely one of the most surreal locations on Earth.

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