Category Archives: World

by

21 Roads to Drive Before you Die


SOURCE:  TWISTED SIFTER

There’s nothing like a road trip to really experience a country. From coastal highways and dizzying mountain passes, to scenic routes through national parks and bridges over great spans of water; roads are the circulatory system that connects a country. After an extensive search online, the Sifter has compiled a list of some of the most beautiful, challenging and unforgettable roads in the world.

While hardly exhaustive, this list should provide great inspiration and bucket list fodder for those planning an upcoming trip. Please feel free to share any additional roads in the comments and perhaps a pt II will be compiled :)

1. Highway 1, Big Sur, California

bixby-bridge-highway-1-big-sur-california

by

Thailand HITS 1000 unique view – Population: 67,091,089
 Background
A unified Thai kingdom was established in the mid-14th century. Known as Siam until 1939, Thailand is the only Southeast Asian country never to have been taken over by a European power. A bloodless revolution in 1932 led to a constitutional monarchy. In alliance with Japan during World War II, Thailand became a US treaty ally in 1954 after sending troops to Korea and fighting alongside the US in Vietnam. A military coup in September 2006 ousted then Prime Minister THAKSIN Chinnawat. December 2007 elections saw the pro-THAKSIN People’s Power Party (PPP) emerge at the head of a coalition government that took office in February 2008. The anti-THAKSIN People’s Alliance for Democracy (PAD, aka yellow-shirts) in May 2008 began street demonstrations against the new government, eventually occupying the prime minister’s office in August and Bangkok’s two international airports in November. After an early December 2008 court ruling that dissolved the ruling PPP and two other coalition parties for election violations, the Democrat Party formed a new coalition government and ABHISIT Wetchachiwa became prime minister. In October 2008 THAKSIN fled abroad in advance of an abuse of power conviction and has agitated his followers from abroad since then. THAKSIN supporters under the banner of the United Front for Democracy Against Dictatorship (UDD, aka red-shirts) rioted in April 2009, shutting down an ASEAN meeting in Pattaya. Following a February 2010 court verdict confiscating half of THAKSIN’s frozen assets, the UDD staged large protests between March and May 2010, and occupied several blocks of downtown Bangkok. Clashes between security forces and protesters, elements of which were armed, resulted in at least 92 deaths and an estimated $1.5 billion in arson-related property losses. These protests exposed major cleavages in the Thai body politic that hampered the government and led to a general election in July 2011. THAKSIN’s youngest sister, YINGLAK, led the Puea Thai party to an electoral win and assumed control of the government in August. YINGLAK’s leadership was almost immediately challenged by historic flooding in late 2011 that had large swathes of the country underwater and threatened to inundate Bangkok itself. At the beginning of 2012 the Puea Thai-led government began fulfilling one of its main election promises, the pursuit of constitutional reform, which could lead to the nation’s 19th Constitution since 1932. Since January 2004, thousands have been killed and wounded as separatists in Thailand’s southern ethnic Malay-Muslim provinces continued the campaign of violence associated with their cause. Continue reading →
by

Welcome Country # 201 to our BLOG! Vanuatu Population: 227,574
 Background
Multiple waves of colonizers, each speaking a distinct language, migrated to the New Hebrides in the millennia preceding European exploration in the 18th century. This settlement pattern accounts for the complex linguistic diversity found on the archipelago to this day. The British and French, who settled the New Hebrides in the 19th century, agreed in 1906 to an Anglo-French Condominium, which administered the islands until independence in 1980, when the new name of Vanuatu was adopted. Continue reading →
by

The World’s Biggest Cave


 Both Cheryl & I get claustrophobic!  Not sure we could even go in here for very long despite how LARGE it is.
SOURCE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC

In 2009, a team of British cavers investigated a recently uncovered cave in a remote Vietnamese jungle. The Son Doong cave is enormous; can it be larger than the current world-record holder? The explorers traveled for miles through the cave before hitting a 46-foot-high wall. Now, follow the team as they return to Son Doong to finish exploring the cave and climb the wall. Will Son Doong prove to be the worlds biggest cave? And what secrets are undiscovered inside this unique ecosystem?

Also read the full article on Son Doong cave by Mark Jenkins in the January 2011 issue of National Geographic Magazine. But first, enjoy some of the beautiful pictures illustrating the natural beauty of Son Doong.

A half-mile block of 40-story buildings could fit inside this lit stretch of Hang Son Doong, which may be the world’s biggest subterranean passage. (Photo Credit: © Carsten Peter/National Geographic)
by

60 insane cloud formations from around the world [PICs]


When traveling I always find myself taking time to look at the clouds all around us.  This batch of photos intrigues me hence the post.  Enjoy the 60 pics of some of the craziest cloud formations I have ever seen.
By On July 25, 2012 
Cloud varieties go way beyond the cumulus, stratus, and cirrus we learn about in elementary school. Check out these wild natural phenomena.

STANDING IN A CORNFIELD IN INDIANA, I once saw a fat roll cloud (like #4 below) float directly over my head. It’s a 12-year-old memory that remains fresh. There was a moment of mild panic just as the cloud reached me — Is this what a tornado looks like right before it hits? I thought. This is some freaky unnatural shit and I do not know how I’m supposed to react.

I imagine a lot of these photographers having similar hesitations as they set up for the shots below. While it was relatively easy to put together this collection due to the huge number of crazy cloud pictures available online (did you know there’s a Cloud Appreciation Society?), many of the phenomena shown here are pretty rare…and potentially panic-inducing.

1. Lenticular cloud, Mt. Fuji, Japan

Altocumulus lenticularis is one of the more obviously ‘bizarre’ cloud types — they don’t occur too frequently, so when you see one, you take notice. They often form above or near mountains, as moist air flows rapidly over a rise in elevation. Mt. Fuji makes a pretty sweet base for this one.

Source unknown

Continue reading →

by

WELCOME Curacao Population: 145,834 – 200th Country to VISIT our BLOG!
 Background
Originally settled by Arawak Indians, Curacao was seized by the Dutch in 1634 along with the neighboring island of Bonaire. Once the center of the Caribbean slave trade, Curacao was hard hit economically by the abolition of slavery in 1863. Its prosperity (and that of neighboring Aruba) was restored in the early 20th century with the construction of the Isla Refineria to service the newly discovered Venezuelan oil fields. In 1954, Curacao and several other Dutch Caribbean possessions were reorganized as the Netherlands Antilles, part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. In referenda in 2005 and 2009, the citizens of Curacao voted to become a self-governing country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The change in status became effective in October 2010 with the dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles. Continue reading →
by

#199th Country to Visit our BLOG! WELCOME Uzbekistan Population: 28,394,180
 Background
Russia conquered the territory of present-day Uzbekistan in the late 19th century. Stiff resistance to the Red Army after the Bolshevik Revolution was eventually suppressed and a socialist republic established in 1924. During the Soviet era, intensive production of “white gold” (cotton) and grain led to overuse of agrochemicals and the depletion of water supplies, which have left the land degraded and the Aral Sea and certain rivers half dry. Independent since 1991, the country seeks to gradually lessen its dependence on the cotton monoculture by diversifying agricultural production while developing its mineral and petroleum reserves and increasing its manufacturing base. Current concerns include terrorism by Islamic militants, economic stagnation, and the curtailment of human rights and democratization. Continue reading →
by

FIVE OF THE BEST GS ENTHUSIASTS WIN THE RIDE OF THEIR LIVES!


Even though I wish it was one of us going I am really PSYCHED BMW picked at least one grrl for this amazing ride of a lifetime! But, no one from North America?  We know how to ride an adventure ;)

19/12/2012

It has now been decided. Five of the best candidates have won the chance to experience five of the best motorcycling tours imaginable on the new R 1200 GS. BMW Motorrad’s ‘Ride of your Life’ competition attracted thousands of entries from across the globe, making it extremely difficult for the high-profile jury to make their final decision and choose the five candidates who will benefit from this life-changing, money-can’t-buy experience aboard the most eagerly-awaited new motorcycle in a generation. Continue reading →

by

Poland & Austria hit over 1000 Unique Views


thanks Poland and Austria for stopping by over 1000 times!

Poland 1,066
  Voivodeship Unique Visitors
31.1. Masovian 285
31.2. Silesian 116
31.3. Lesser Poland 113
31.4. Greater Poland 87
31.5. Pomeranian 82
31.6. Lower Silesian 79
31.7. Lodz 47
31.8. Kuyavian-Pomeranian 41
31.9. Lublin 39
31.10. Podlaskie 27
31.11. West Pomeranian 25
31.12. Podkarpackie 25
31.13. Opole 16
31.14. Lubusz 12
31.15. Swietokrzyskie 11
31.16. Warmian-Masurian 10
Unknown

Austria 1,001
  Region Unique Visitors
32.1. Vienna 429
32.2. Styria 108
32.3. Upper Austria 99
32.4. Tyrol 90
32.5. Lower Austria 87
32.6. Salzburg 56
32.7. Carinthia 42
32.8. Vorarlberg 24
32.9. Burgenland 11