World's Largest Libraries

Reading habit is the most natural habit to inculcate.  A good book or reading an informative piece makes the ideal companion; it’s interesting, builds on your patience and allows you to grow in the pool of knowledge without you realizing it. So for that we find libraries build by people in order to enhance and mobilize such healthy activities.

Here I have compiled some of the largest libraries of the world. I hope you will like it.

Library of Congress

World's busiest airports

Travelling has always fascinated people all over the world and flying has been the fastest in order to do so. Airports are mostly packed with people but here are some busiest airports by passenger traffic. Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in Atlanta has been the world’s busiest airport every year since 2000.

Here are some of the busiest airports of the world. I hope you will like it.

Atlanta International Airport

10 Most Unique Elevators in the World

It is hard to describe or to explain the fascination exerted by a fast elevator. I am sure that, for a jungle or countryside raise child, the elevators are by far the most interesting and fascinating thing in a big city.Many different reasons can make a certain elevator be interesting, amazing or fascinating.

The fastest elevators are for sure fascinating; they ensure accelerations bigger than a plane. Outdoor elevators are also amazing through dimensions, but many of them are causing serious environment issues. The elevators linking the parts of the city from different heights are very useful, and became iconic landmarks of that city.

Here I have compiled some of the world’s most unique elevators. I hope you will like it.

The Gateway Arch

7 Utterly "Lost" Cities of America

Photo:
While many might believe the term “lost” might only refer to misplaced items and confusing TV dramas, the cities in this article stretch the definition far beyond what Merriam-Webster ever considered. Some are lost to politics, others to education, and still other cities are just plain lost.
7. Roanoke Colony, NC

Around the World in 30 Colors

Photo:
lapidim
All day, every day we are surrounded by color, and even though we should be thanking the gods for being so lucky we’re too often numb to it. But when we have one of those lucid moments on viewing something special, seeing an awesome image and really taking notice of our world, it’s then we stop and say, "Wow!"
Here are some of those "Wow!" moments, captured forever so that we never loose sight of the color in our lives.

Colors of America and Australia

Milano Santa Monica: An Eco-City Within a City

Photo:
All images via Home Design Find
Long famed for its legendary fashion houses, Milan soon hopes to be known as a cutting-edge leader in yet another area of design: green communities. Come 2013, the bustling metropolitan area will be home to Milano Santa Monica, a two million square metre green space that will feature 2,000 apartments alongside schools, shops and sporting facilities.

Giant Sinkhole Devours Cologne's Past

Photo:
Image: Robert Brands
More than a week back, on Tuesday, 3rd March, the archive of the city of Cologne in Germany collapsed. The building at Severinstrasse 222-228 housed more than 18 km (!) of shelves, which held more than 65,000 documents, 500,000 photographs of the city and 100,000 architectural drawings and plans. While some are blaming the ongoing subway construction, we’re wondering – could it be another case of a giant sinkhole devouring everything around it?

Everyday Life At The Russian Antarctic Station

Photo:
Image: Xavier M. Jubier
Dark days and long nights, temperatures up to minus 128 Fahrenheit, cramped living conditions and the same old jokes and people. Welcome to Antarctica, the place where you’ll find big eyes and bolos, new species of the human kind. Inspired by Anton Chekalin’s stunning pictures of Novolazarevskaya Antarctic Station featured last month, we got thinking about everyday life at a Russian Antarctic station.
When planning a stay in the Antarctic, getting there might be the first hurdle, but not the last. In psychospeak, ICE stands for isolated, confined environment and is very fitting when talking about Antarctic living conditions. There’s also everyday life on a base to reckon with, getting around and surviving out in the field, and killing time when nothing is going on…

11 Most Bizarre Border Crossings Around The World

Photo:
Image: Frontex
For many, crossing a border conjures images of border personnel with stern expressions and gun belts, paperwork, questions, long lines and maybe sweaty palms. But borders can also be green, beautiful, informative and friendly – unusual, to say the least. It is also truly amazing where one can find border crossings, so follow us on a tour of astounding checkpoints around the mountains, deserts, seas and cities of the world.

Tunnel border crossings

The Rainbow Coloured Skies of India

Photo:
Image: Naveen Gujje
India is for many a country of contrasts, extremes and in recent years, upswing. In fact, India Shining was the political slogan with which India started the first decade of the new millennium. Without doubt, it has always been a country of colours so, inspired by last week’s article on rainbows, we’ve arranged stunning pictures of Indian moodscapes according to the rainbow spectrum. Put on some A.R. Rahman, Cat Stevens/Yusuf Islam or even Lucky Ali and follow us on an Indian tour de rang…

San Francisco From Above

Photo:
Image: Jitze Couperus
Alcatraz, the Bay Bridge, Coit Tower, downtown, Fisherman’s Wharf… the sights of San Francisco are numerous. All the more fun is spotting them from above because they tend to look oh-so-different from a bird’s eye perspective. But see for youself and join us on our musical tour of “I Spy….” San Francisco.
San Francisco is the fourth most populous city in California, and the whole of the San Francisco Bay Area is home to more than seven million people. During the gold rush of the 19th century, the city was literally a “Golden Gate” for many adventurous fortune seekers. Though its old name Yerba Buena (from the Spanish hierba buena, the “good herb”) was changed in 1847 after the Mexican-American war, the term still has a valid (yet different) meaning for many today.

10 Beautiful Yet Deadly Mega Metropolises

Photo:
Image via UCAR
Any city with a few million inhabitants is bound to have problems: population, pollution, transportation, water quality, sanitation, crime, natural disasters – you name it. A mega metropolis with a population of 10 or even 20 million will have massive ones especially if it is disadvantaged due to geographic location. Seriously, would you want to be the mayor of one of the world’s biggest cities? Let’s take a look at ten of these mega metros around the world and see what’s bothering them most.
Many institutes and non-profit organisations such as the Blacksmith Institute, Mercer Human Resource Consulting and the World Health Organization keep track of pollution and “dirtiest cities” around the world. We have taken their lists and results into account and cities like Bogota, Karachi, Manila, Mumbai and Sao Paulo and even London, Paris, Athens, New York, Los Angeles and others were strong contenders. However, our focus was on global cities and one major problem that overshadowed others. So, without further ado, our list of Ten Deadliest Mega Metros in alphabetical order.

Paris Evolving Under the Gaze of Notre Dame's Gargoyles

Photo:
Photo: Florian Siebeck
They sit perched atop dizzying heights, often unnoticed by human eyes but ever watchful of our movements. They have outlived us by centuries and under their gaze the story of a city's sins and changing face can be told. The gargoyles of the famous Notre Dame Cathedral – half man, half beast – preside over Paris, and have done so since the medieval era. To them, whole generations pass in the blink of a stony eye.
Notre Dame gargoyle, date unknown

The Incredible Light Shows of Niagara Falls

Photo:
Image by comic book guy.
What do you get when you illuminate one of the world’s most spectacular waterfalls with nearly 5km of shimmering floodlights, over 125 animated displays and 3 million sparkling tree and ground lights? A dazzling extravaganza that will make you see the Niagara falls in a whole new light – and for those of you who can’t make it, we decided to take a closer look.

Amsterdam From Above

Photo:
Image: harry.kontos
Amsterdam, ah Amsterdam. City of red lights, amber-hued beers, and green, green grass; a city much less in need of traffic lights than most owing to its winding bike paths and of course its famous historic canals – more reasons why green could be said to be this city’s colour of choice. With its rich history, vibrant culture and liberal attitude, the Dutch capital is well worth wondering through, and yet a city of such distinctive design is also brilliantly appreciated from above.
Downtown Amsterdam from the air

La Tomatina 2009: Pictures from the World's Largest Tomato Fight!

Photo:
Image: Tomatina2009
The official website of La Tomatina says it all: tomatofight.es. That what it’s all about, a tomato fight that involves many tourists and the whole city of Buñol in the province of Valencia in eastern Spain. Held every last Wednesday in August, it’s tremendous fun for young and old. But there are rules and it’s okay even from an environmental standpoint. Find out why.
Swimming in tomatoes:

10 Best Architectural Cities of the World

Every city has its architectural wonders, from historic monuments to soaring new skyscrapers. What works of architecture make your favorite city special? If you like to spend your vacation sightseeing, walking trough old town cores and admiring the architecture then this list will help you a lot.

Here I have compiled some of the best architecture cities of the world. When I was done with the list I remembered Damascus also has a very good architectural history. So please add cities in comment section which you think I missed.

Florence, Italy

10 Best Cities to Be Seen on Bicycle

Not only it is more Eco-friendly, but you will explore the city much better than you would by car. No traffic jams, no endless searches for parking… Bicycle is a great way to scan your chosen destination. And most of the people of the cities which you will see in this list use bicycle as the mean of transportation.

Here I have compiled some of the best cities to be seen on bicycle. I hope you will like it.

Montreal, Canada

Beijing’s Forbidden City

Photo:
Image: d’n’c
Located exactly in the centre of the ancient city of Beijing, the Forbidden City is the world’s largest palace complex. YongLe (or YungLe), the third emperor of the Ming Dynasty, ordered its construction in 1406, which lasted until 1420. Not very long for such an impressive complex but then, about one million workers were employed, among them 100,000 artisans alone.

Former War Zones Too Dangerous to Enter

Photo:
United Nations Photo
When the smoke clears and the last shells have fallen, some war zones will retain painful reminders of former unpleasantries.

Welcome to Deception Island

Photo:
Photo: The Cool Family
Deception Island. The name alone conjures intrigue, concealment and trickery. Upon approaching this remote, horseshoe-shaped Antarctic outcrop, a desolate and forbidding coastline looms – sheer, snow-capped rocky crags and barren volcanic slopes cloaked in a soup of swirling fog. Occupied sporadically for a century or more, ghost settlements are now all that remain of the island’s earlier human ventures. Several vicious volcanic eruptions have made sure of that.

Italy's Drowned Village

Photo:
Image: suedtirol.altoadige
Legend has it the bell can still be heard in the dead of winter, sounding out its knell despite the fact that it has long since been removed. The bell tower of the 14th century church that projects from Lake Reschen in the far north of Italy is all that is now visible of the once thriving village of Graun. In the middle of the last century, the town was drowned by the artificial lake that lies above it to this day – and all because of the business designs of a big electricity firm.

Al Hajjara: The City That Hangs Over A Precipice

Photo:
View of Al Hajjara - Would you want to live on the top right?
Image: Franco Pecchio
The city of Al Hajjara in Yemen’s Haraz Mountains seems ancient yet modern at the same time: the taller of the brown, flat-roofed houses so precariously balanced on top of the mountain resemble early skyscrapers. Many are decorated with elaborate white friezes and patterns so typical for the region. The town’s remoteness and narrow streets suggest a close-knit community that might, in times of invasions, have allowed outsiders to enter yet not necessarily to leave…

The Blue City From Above

Photo:
Tom Thai
In the arid north-west of the Indian subcontinent lies the state of Rajasthan. A land of lush forests as well as the mighty Thar Desert, Rajasthan contains one of the jewels of India – the Blue City of Jodhpur.

Paris in the Snow

Photo:
Pont Alexandre III in the snow
Image: Jean-François Gornet
Ah, Paris! Not only a destination in summer when the days get longer and the skirts shorter; no, also popular in winter when all the famous places and monuments are covered by decorative layers of snow. We heard couples from near and far are already gathering in time for Valentine’s Day. Some cities just have it all, but see for yourself…
The Eiffel Tower, built in 1889 as the entrance arch (talk about splendour!) to the World’s Fair, was the world’s tallest building until 1930. Since then, it has seen it all and takes its six million annual visitors in its

Germany’s Incredible Hanging Railway

Photo:
Image via myinsterestingfiles
The hanging railway in Germany's western central city of Wuppertal (pronounced Voopahtahl) is the oldest monorail system in the world. Built in 1900, the Wuppertaler Schwebebahn or "floating train" has been continuously operated since 1901, despite two world wars, various accidents and other turbulent events. Find out the stories behind this stylish and green mode of transportation.
Schwebebahn then and now – trial with 6 compartments in 1903, and in 2004:

Milan: The Opera House of Italy

Photo: Mypoorbrain
Whether you are a fan of opera or not, Italy is where it all started and Milan is most definitely the place to be if you want to experience opera at its uplifting, magnificent and lung-bursting best. Italian culture has opera at its very heart and Milan’s Teatro alla Scala (La Scala) is the most famous and celebrated opera venue in the world. Getting tickets to a performance at La Scala is both tricky and expensive and audiences tend to consist almost entirely of supremely wealthy aficionados, celebrities and the aristocracy. The opera house has a bar, a book shop and a history museum, too. Many famous operas were first performed here, including Puccini’s Madame Butterfly in 1904.
Opera is one of those things that you do need to try before making your mind up about it – and you might be surprised. It’s not all about buxom, emotional women in togas beseeching a lost love with a series of screeches and glass-shattering caterwauls. Opera has been known to move even the hardest of hearts to tears.
There are also some beautiful and historically significant opera houses in Venice (La Fenice), Naples (San Carlo), Rome, Verona, Bologna, Parma, Palermo and Pisa. The opera season in most regions is usually from autumn to spring, although outdoor performances during the summer months are also very popular.
Native Italian composers such as Rossini (1792-1868), Verdi (1813-1901) and Puccini (1858-1924) created some of the best-loved operas which to this day are performed all over the world and enjoyed by millions. Why not watch these rousing and passionate musical dramas in their rightful birthplace, performed triumphantly in the mother tongue? Get your designer finery on, grab a take-out pizza and go and join in!
It’s got to beat drab and dreary television soap operas, anyway. Walford or Milan? It’s a tough one. Bellissimo!
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A Frenzied Delirium of Feathers: The Moulin Rouge

Photo: Roy Rainford/Corbis
Just as Italy is famed for its stirring opera performances, so France prides itself on the glittery cabaret of its capital’s famous nightlife activities – and none quite so glittery and famous as the Moulin Rouge show. This wild, exotic, energetic show was recently made even more famous by director Baz Luhrmann’s award-winning and visually bedazzling 2001 film starring Nicole Kidman (and formerly adapted in1952 from the book of the same name by Pierre La Mure, then starring Zsa-Zsa Gabor).
Described by Andrey Bely in 1906 as a “frenzied delirium of feathers, vulgar painted lips, and eyelashes of black and blue,” the Moulin Rouge is widely believed to be where the can-can dance originated. If Peter Stringfellow had been born in the mid-19th century in downtown Paris, he may well have come up with a similar idea himself. As it is, the venue was the brainchild of Joseph Oller, a part-time book-maker and impresario from Catalan, Spain who moved to Paris as a child. The emphasis was (and remains) on the burlesque, the provocative and the seductive, and it was certainly primarily an adult form of entertainment. Today, however, the Moulin Rouge (‘red windmill’) continues to offer its thousands of annual visitors a veritable smorgasbord of resplendent visions and sounds and is now enjoyed by women just as much as men. Almost as much, anyway. The centre-stage courtesans and scantily-clad dancers of the turn of the 20th century (when the venue was frequented by avant-garde regulars such as alcoholic French artist Henri Toulouse-Lautrec) have now largely been replaced with professional entertainers and over the years these have included Ella Fitzgerald, Liza Minelli and Frank Sinatra.
Still redolent with the romance of the era, the Moulin Rouge needs to be experienced, even if you only go there to have a glass of wine and steal a sneaky peek at what goes on behind those ornate doors and beyond the rainbow of fluorescent lights.
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10 Most Friendly Countries of the World

There are some nations that boast the title of the friendliest, most welcoming or most hospitable people in the world. Whether various surveys and rankings are right or not, each of us has probably visited one or two countries where the locals’ kindness has exceeded our expectations.

The countries mentioned below have made this list because of their hospitable greetings to travelers. So, add them to your must-see list as there’s nothing nicer than a warm welcome. Here I have compiled 10 most friendly countries on the world. I hope you will like it. Do add or suggest other countries in our comment section.

Switzerland

10 Most Beautiful Golf Courses in France

Everyone who visits France talks about the exquisite beauty of the country. From the charming smaller villages around Alsace and Provence, to the culture and bustle of Paris, France’s aesthetics cannot be called into question. It’s no surprise then that compiling a list of the most beautiful golf courses in France was pretty easy – narrowing it down to the best 10 was the hard part.

So here I have compiled some of the most beautiful golf courses in France. I hope you will like it.

Belle Dune, Northern France

Rio Carnival: The Most Colorful Party on Earth

Photo: sfmission.com on flickr
If you’ve ever joined the UK’s most famous and flamboyant street party, the Notting Hill Carnival, you will have experienced something of the taste of this huge-scale, all-out, orgiastic, four-day mother of all parties: the Rio de Janeiro carnival. This mega-celebration in Brazil is an annual event, starting forty days before Easter (so usually mid-to-late February, which tends to be Rio’s hottest month). The tradition of carnival is celebrated throughout Brazil but Rio’s is widely believed to be the biggest and the best. Indeed Rio is recognised as Carnival Capital of the World, attracting around 500,000 visitors every year.
In each and every way a glorious and relentless assault on all five of your senses with its triumphant samba parades and the raw energy of the colourful street bands, the carnival is intended to represent hedonism, excess and unfettered jubilation; a true celebration of life and of being alive. Although Brazil is a religious country – around 75% of the population is Roman Catholic – the carnival is a deliberately subversive statement, reflecting the country’s modern attitudes and vibrant mix of people. Its end time coincides with the beginning of Lent, when many people (even the non-religious) temporarily abstain from a naughty or dirty little habit that they enjoy indulging in such as smoking, eating chocolate, drinking alcohol or… well, use your imagination. So the carnival is a no-holds-barred opportunity for going a bit wild and doing whatever the hell you want – and loudly and proudly, too – before Lent’s self-restraint mission begins.
Although it does have a reputation for having its no-go areas, Rio de Janeiro is certainly a city worth visiting anyway – hot all year round with vivacious people (Cariocas) and stunning beaches – but if you can spare the extra cash and enjoy huge rapturous crowds and thumping music, book early for a carnival stay and leave your inhibitions at the airport.
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Berlin's Legendary Love Parade

Photo: Ago76
Never let it be said that our German friends don’t know how to party. The Love Parade, with a 20-year tradition that can be traced back to the demolition of the Berlin Wall in 1989, is an annual celebration of love, tolerance, peace and diversity, with a banging techno soundtrack, superstar DJ sets and writhing crowds of up to a million or more. Not bad for what started as a politically-motivated demonstration with just 150 people and the simple motto, “Music knows no boundaries”.
Although it began in Germany and Berlin is its birthplace, there have been numerous other Love Parades around the world, all boasting the same joyous theme and similar mixes of loud, proud, loved-up visitors. Other venues include Vienna, Sydney, Zurich, San Francisco (LoveFest/LovEvolution), Acapulco, Mexico City, Cape Town and even a one-off Love Parade in Leeds, England. For an entire weekend (usually during the summer months), the streets are crammed with floats and trucks boasting mega-powerful sound systems on full volume, and swarms of euphoric people in colourful cyber costumes (or in some cases, a notable absence of clothing).
This event is not for the faint-hearted or the wallflowers among us. The Love Parade is said to be the biggest and most clamorous and amorous (although perhaps not so glamorous) street rave in the world, and has even been referred to as "the greatest amateur circus on earth".
Having overcome recent funding problems and various other obstacles (which unfortunately resulted in the cancellation of a number of recent events), the Love Parade continues to attract huge crowds, and Dortmund’s triumphant 2008 “Highway to Love” event had a staggering 1.6 million visitors, most of whom really were quite literally ‘staggering’ after four days of intense dancing, partying and ‘feeling the love’. The next official event is in Duisburg in June 2010 so grab your glowsticks and your whistles and go feel the love for yourself!
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5 Casinos Where You Can Meet Royalty

Photo: via Wikipedia
As a child, many of us grew up being told stories of princes and princesses. As little kids we fantasized about one day being one, how big our castle would be or how many servants we would have. The thought of being a royal bore excitement inside our little minds.
Well, did you know you actually could meet one of those princes or princesses? You just need to be in the right places at the right time.

10 Most Famous Lost Cities of the World

A city becomes lost when it is abandoned by its inhabitants and left to decay. This can be the result of war, migration, or natural disaster, but in each case these cities can act as a sort of time capsule, leaving a civilization frozen in history and waiting to be discovered. While many of these cities have indeed been rediscovered, others have never been found and have taken on the status of legend.

Whether real or mythical, here I have compiled some of the most famous lost cities that have captured the imaginations of historians, archeologists, and adventurers.

Atlantis

10 Most Unique Golf Courses in the World

Golfing holidays have become increasingly popular over the past decade and are a perfect way to unwind and catch a tan, whilst also enabling a healthy dose of rivalry to take place during your break. If you’re thinking of booking such a sporting vacation, you’ll be pleased to know that golf courses are popping up at a steady rate in pretty much every country you can name. However if you’re looking for something a little more unique, there are also a number of golf courses which are bizarre enough to become talking points in their own right, even before you’ve managed to buckle your first club.

Here I have compiled some of the world’s unique and strangest golf courses and holes. I hope you will like it.

The Movable, Floating Green

10 Most Beautiful Lighthouses in the World

In early time people set fires at the edge of the water to warn boats of dangerous rocks and shores. The early lighthouses used wick lamps as a source of light.  In the olden times the light beam could only travel a few miles.  In 1822 the first modern lighthouse lens was invented by a Frenchman named Augustin Fesnel.  He found out how to increase the light by using prisms.

Here I have compiled the list of some of the most beautiful, amazing lighthouses. These are so beautiful that if you are watching them at night you could stay without a breath. If I missed any, do share it in comments section.

Enoshima Lighthouse, Japan

Coober Pedy: The Australian Town Where 1,500 People Live Underground

Photo: via queens of random
When temperatures reach a searing 40 degrees Celsius outside, there is only one place to go in Coober Pedy, South Australia – underground.
Nearly half of the 3500 inhabitants in this outback town live underground. Known as the opal capital of the world, in amongst its disused mine shafts you’ll find homes, hotels and even a church dug into the hillsides.

Journey Through a Tribal Mountain Village in India

Photo: Tom Antebi
Although having an actual showerhead attached to a pipe constituted a bit of a luxury, the water at that time of day was so cold that the only mental tool I had to propel myself into it was by telling myself, “It’s not getting any warmer…”
I padded across the courtyard for my morning ritual of chai with Jagdish and his family and to read my copy of The Times of India, whilst Akash and Vivec watched cartoons starring Indian gods.

The Hospital in the Rock: The Nuclear Bunker that Lies Beneath Budapest

Photo: Ali1234
Deep in the bowels of Budapest, beneath the famous Buda Castle – which overlooks Hungary’s capital bristling with medieval and Baroque architecture – lies a hidden part of the city. In the shadow of the palatial grace of some of Europe’s most magnificent architecture, inquisitive souls can descend to discover an

Life in a Communal Rubbish Dump in India

Photo: Tom Antebi
By this point it was about 2 in the morning, and there must have been thousands of them, all walking on the side of the dusty motorway, heading in the same direction as us. They all bore various bits of religious paraphernalia, and as we drove on and on, so did the seemingly endless stream of people. After asking the orthopedic surgeon in the back, whose English was probably better than mine, it transpired they were

Il Palio: Siena's Electrifying Horse Race

Photo: Peter Sterling
Twice a summer, the Piazza del Campo, or central square, in the otherwise quiet Tuscan city of Siena swells to capacity with locals and tourists alike for one of the most pulsating sporting events in the world – Il Palio. The horse race, held on a narrow strip of dirt imported specifically for the event, circles the piazza – and tens of thousands of onlookers – in less than two frenetic, often terrifying minutes.

Old Delhi: City Of Wonders

Photo: Marianovella Monti
Cows, cars, dogs and men live, breathe and sleep on the bumpy, brave streets of Old Delhi. A little boy, no older than 6, but more streetwise than an old man of 60, hangs onto the sleeve of my shirt as he asks - with his much rehearsed but irresistible stare - for 10 rupees; equivalent to 15 pence.

The Most Colorful Food Fight on Earth

Photo: de/photstrecke
Ivrea is a small Italian city about 40 minutes North of Turin. It was the site of the first post-Roman kingdom of Italy, around 1000AD. It has its day of glory once a year during Carnival, when a juicy orange battle takes place, in memory of of a local insurrection in 1194, against Holy Roman Emperor Frederick of

The Running of the Bulls in Pamplona

Photo: Eneko Alonso
Spain is a country full of amazing sights, sounds and tastes. But one event defines Spain like no other... the Running of the Bulls in Pamplona.
Started in the 14th Century, the purpose of this event (yes there IS a purpose!) is the transport of the bulls from the off-site corrals where they spend the night, to the bullring where they are killed in the evening bullfights.

Giethoorn: The Dutch Village With No Roads

Photo: roepers
Can you imagine a village with no roads? There is such a place in the Netherlands called Giethoorn (pronounced 'geethorn'). There are no roads and cars have to remain outside the village. The only access to the stunningly lovely houses in Giethoorn is by water, or on foot over tiny individual wooden bridges.

The Serene Beauty of Holland's Kinderdijk Windmills

Photo: Regina Fugate
Windmills are unique to the Dutch landscape, and everyone who has seen images of Holland, has seen a picture or painting of a windmill. Can you imagine the Dutch landscape without windmills? I can’t!
Lovers of windmills will be visually rewarded when they visit Kinderdijk: nowhere else in the world will you find such a concentration of operational windmills, not even in other parts of the Netherlands! The nineteen mills at Kinderdijk were built between 1500 and 1740 and they are so well-preserved that in 1997, the windmills were put on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Small Town USA: America's Living National Museum

Photo: the prodigal untitled13
In every major city a local or a tourist can find a museum that contains priceless masterpieces of paint, canvas, plaster and stone. But if one were to turn off the interstate and drive to where the neighbors still borrow a cup of sugar and time moves slower, you will find a different kind of museum. A museum of traditions and values.

Trafalgar Square's Amazing Maze

Photo: Steve Punter
As a Londoner I am very attentive to the innovative quirks of the UK's capital, from strange elephants dotted around the city, to giant chessboards, to an oversized ship in a bottle and recently, a rather large (30m by 20m) and environmentally friendly (!) maze found right in the centre of Trafalgar Square. Much like the Queen of Heart’s maze in Wonderland, the attraction is not just aimed at confusing the puzzled wanderer; on the contrary it seeks to teach foreigners and locals alike about the pulsing heart of Theatreland; London’s West End. The idea is to encourage tourists to drop out of the ordinary tourist trail (Big Ben, Portobello and the Change of Guard) in order to be pleasantly surprised by the multitude of unwritten

Capturing the Spectacular Sunset of Manhattanhenge

Photo: Neil deGrasse Tyson
There’s nothing like a dramatic pink, red, and orange-hued sunset to cap off your tiring and stressful day, especially when you’re feeling down in the dumps. Over at the Big Apple, urban folks have definitely got it made because they can watch an incredible Manhattanhenge sunset during the summer season. Because of the many buildings and skyscrapers looming over the New York streets, you wouldn’t really expect to see a brilliant display of a sunset glow when you’re walking home from work. But come the end of May, the urban phenomenon called the Manhattanhenge fully lights up the streets at around 8 o’clock in the evening, as the sun aligns with Manhattan's streets, running from east to west.

10 Best Places to Live in Europe

Europe has been the center of Western Civilization since time immemorial. One of the most beautiful places on the earth, Europe has grandeur of its own. Travelers from all over the globe love to visit Europe at least once in their lifetime. If visiting this place could be so exciting, simply imagine the charm of being a resident of this wonderful continent.

This list was based on an annual survey conducted by Mercer Consulting based on the quality of living worldwide. So here are some of the best places to live in Europe. 

Zurich, Switzerland