Sanqingshan is shrouded in mists for 200 days of the year. The mist gives an otherworldly quality to the mountain, along with thousands of streams that pour into pools, granite formations that resemble silhouettes of humans and animals, and strangely shaped pine trees. The pools and vegetation create unique environments that lure many exotic and rare birds and animals to make their home there. Sanqingshan is home to about 2,500 plant species. This is one of the only places to find the plants that are used in making traditional Chinese medicines.
People chose to settle here for practical reasons. The natural caves of Setenil turned out to be ideal living quarters because rather than needing to build entire houses to keep out the heat in the summer and the cold in the winter, all they needed to build was a facade. It is believed people have been living here since pre-historic times. he town’s name ‘Setenil de las bodegas’ reflects its rich history; setenil, from the latin words septem nihil– “seven times no”, refers to the seven times the Catholic rulers tried to take back the territory from the Moors, the medieval arabian inhabitants who ruled much of Spain for several centuries. Only on the seventh attempt to conquer Setenil were the Catholics able to gain back the territory– one of the last Muslim strongholds in Iberia. ‘
35 feet tall, it’s arguably the most spectacular feature of the gardens of Villa Medici at Pratolino, now part of Villa Demidoff, located about 7 miles north of Florence, Italy. A personification of the Apennine mountain ranges, it’s sculpted as though on that minimal margin between landscape and man, its smooth skin emerging out of the rough terrain or metamorphosing back into a mountain. He even has stalactites for a shaggy beard.
Iguazu falls is on the border between Brazil and Argentina. It is one of the widest waterfalls on earth. If you ever imagined an island coming out of the water and floating in the sky, this picture is for you. Though it does not actually leave the earth, it seems to play on the imagination of an island acceding
La Isla de la Munecas – Island of the Dolls
Sun Cruise Resort Hotel was designed and built by a shipyard to emulate the experience of cruising on a cruise ship. A stay at the hotel does a good job of approximating a cruise, complete with sound effects, without the motion sickness. Because the ship is constructed high on the edge of a mountain a stroll on the sun deck allows one to feel they are out at sea.
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