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Tags: Virtual Travel / Vizerra / Technology / UNESCO / → All Tags

Vizerra Takes You To The World's Architectural Wonders

As always, virtual tourism posts come with our strong disclaimer that real travel is infinitely preferable to virtual travel. But not all destinations are accessible to all tourists, which is why programmers have developed tools to take you to faraway places or even back in time. The newest entrant into the virtual tourism is Croatian company Vizerra, which is developing software models of World Heritage Sites and architectural treasures.

Their site currently offers downloadable models of Macchu Picchu, Angkor Vat, the Taj Mahal, and the Tatev Monastery. They're working on more locations, with Swayambhunath Stupa, the Kiev Cave Monastery, and Prague's Old Town Square slated for the next release wave.

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Tags: Ecotourism / Socotra Travel / Island Travel / UNESCO / → All Tags

The Lost Island Of Socotra

The bad part about vacationing on Socotra, a four-island archipelago off the coast of the Horn of Africa: pirates. The good part about vacationing on Socotra: now that it has an airport, the island's freaky deaky biodiversity is accessible to tourists year-round.

And freaky deaky that biodiversity is. The last time the island was attached to any mainland we didn't even have real continents. It separated from the super-continent of Gondwana tens of millions of years ago and has been ecologically isolated ever since, though it's been continuously inhabited since ancient times.

Today there are over 700 endangered plants and animals on the island, a full 1/3 of them found nowhere else in the world. The island is a UNESCO recognized world heritage site. You can check out their Conservation Programme for more background.

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Tags: Geneva Field Trip / Lake Geneva / UNESCO / Switzerland Travel / Wine-Tasting Travel / → All Tags

Life is Good: Wine-Tasting in The Lavaux Vineyard Terraces

In continuing our European Vacation series, (we've already gone to Rome, France, Berlin and Turkey), our newest correspondent, Kate Winick, is fresh off a trip to Geneva where she spent some time lakeside. Here's her guide to Lake Geneva.

Thirty kilometers of UNESCO World Heritage site stretch along the northern shore of Lake Geneva, from Montreux to Lausanne, and from the lake to the lower slopes of the mountains, comprised of snaking miles of stone walls, tightly nestled villages, and most importantly—vineyards. Called The Lavaux Vineyard Terraces, the neat rows of vines upon vines have been growing from grapes into wine here since the 11th century.

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Tags: Vietnam Field Trip / Embedded Travel Guides / UNESCO / Fashion Travel / → All Tags

Vietnam By Train: Where To Find Ancient Ruins, Tailored Suits

All week long our roving correspondent Claire Duffett will be sending back her travel reports from Vietnam. Any questions or suggestions? Let us know and we'll have Claire answer them for you.

An hour south of Hue, Hoi An offers a brighter side of Vietnamese history. The city is a UNESCO World Heritage Site unto itself, a preserved shipping village. The entire city rests inside the low-hanging slope of scalloped, stone roofs that characterize Chinese-Viet architecture.

In town, you can watch local artisans, paint, sculpt, and embroider, visit the many gated, ornate homes dedicated to familial ancestors, or stroll across the wooden Japanese Covered Bridge. The whole place is almost too quaint, and you will be surrounded by plenty of wholesome families spending there days eating and shopping. It’s certainly a great place to do both.

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Tags: Vietnam Field Trip / Embedded Travel Guides / Halong Bay / UNESCO / Kayak Travel / → All Tags

Vietnam By Train: Cruising Halong Bay

All week long our roving correspondent Claire Duffett will be sending back her travel reports from Vietnam. Any questions or suggestions? Let us know and we'll have Claire answer them for you.

From Hanoi, we headed east to Halong Bay. More than 3,000 limestone islands jut out of the Gulf of Tonkin, so it's often compared to Krabi in Southern Thailand, though I visited there in November and Halong’s landscape is far more impressive. It does, however, lack the sandy, white beaches.

Like many UNESCO sites, the beauty of Halong Bay is constantly at odds with the ugliness of heavy tourism. Its adjacent city is the worst of rapid, unchecked development, with hideous high-rises abutting massage parlors and slums. The bay itself is littered with “junk boats,” heavy wooden boats that ferry tourists through the maze of islands.

While the antique boats themselves look quite beautiful lumbering through the water, there is simply too many of them. Often, the iridescent glean of oil is visible on the water, and I floated past empty bottles and debris.

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Tags: Jaunted Field Trips / Homecoming Scotland / Whisky / UNESCO / → All Tags

Five Reasons To Visit Scotland in 2009 (Or Ever, Really)

There are plenty of reasons to visit Scotland, London’s twee neighbor to the north—and by that we mean, plenty of reasons beyond the thousands of burly men in skirts with adorable Scottish accents. Just to prove it, we’ll give you five fabulous reasons to go to Scotland, and we won’t mention kilts at all.

Reason 1: 2009 is a banner year for the Scots, as it is the 250th anniversary of the birth of Robert “Rabbie” Burns, and the entire country is partying all year long to celebrate. Rabbie Burns, for those who don’t know, is the famous (Scottish) poet who gave us “Auld Lang Syne,” and for whom the town of Burns, New York, was named after. The year long “Rabbie” celebration is widely called “Homecoming” and anyone with Scottish descent is invited to fly “home,” trace their ancestry, drink some whisky, and dance around with their fellow countrymen. Whether you dance in pants or “skirts,” is up to you.

More reasons after the jump

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Tags: Adventures of Link / Giza Pyramids / UNESCO / World Heritage Sites / → All Tags

How Many Pyramids Are There In Giza? Seriously?

Marriott is running an online contest right now that asks "How many major pyramids are located at Giza?" If you couldn't figure it out from the photo they show right next to the question, the answer is three.

The two previous questions in the game asked why they celebrate Carnival in Rio (to mark the beginning of Lent) and who officially opened the Sydney Opera House (Elizabeth II). Tomorrow's quiz is about Rome, and judging from the difficulty of the questions so far, we're throwing out these potential answers: The Forum, The Colosseum, Romulus, Julius Caesar, Trevi Fountain and Italy.

Related Stories:
· Marriott World of Rewards [Official Site]
· 3-D Models of the Pyramids for Google Earth [GEHacks]
· The Giza Pyramids World Heritage Site [UNESCO]
· Giza Pyramid Complex [Wikipedia]

[Photo of the famous Giza Pizza Hut: noaman]

Tags: Where Are / Google Maps / King Solomon's Mines / World Heritage Sites / UNESCO / → All Tags

King Solomon's Mines

Researchers in Jordan think they've uncovered the location of King Solomon's Mines, a copper-rich region that's inspired multiple films, including one starring Patrick Swayze and another featuring Sharon Stone and John Rhys-Davies.

The area, south of the Dead Sea in Jordan's Faynan district, is known in Arabic as Khirbat en-Nahas and includes roughly 100 ancient buildings. Artifacts recovered from the area as well as carbon dating helped researchers determine that the mines were used in the 10th century BC--and could prove the historical existence of King Solomon.

Lead researcher Thomas Levy says:

We can't believe everything ancient writings tell us. But this research represents a confluence between the archaeological and scientific data and the Bible.

Levy is now working with the government of Jordan to have the area declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site, a status the nearby ancient village of Petra already enjoys.

Related Stories:
· Copper Ruins in Jordan Bolster Biblical Record [LAT]
· King Solomon's (Copper) Mines? [UCSD]
· High-Precision Radiocarbon Dating and Biblical Archaeology [PNAS, warning science content!]
· World Heritage Sites in Jordan [Official Site]

Tags: Temples / Southeast Asia Travel / World Heritage Sites / Culture / UNESCO / → All Tags

Thailand and Cambodia Talk It Out in China

On the list of people we're glad we're not--after Bristol Palin and Guy Ritchie, natch--comes Thai premier Somchai Wongsawat. The masochist voluntarily agreed to lead Thailand amid unprecedented government protests.

If the burning streets of Bangkok aren't enough to worry about, now the guy has to deal with a potential war with neighboring Cambodia. Last week, fighting erupted along the countries' border over this UNESCO World Heritage temple that both claim to own.

Now, Somchai will again sit down with Hun Sen, Cambodia's 20-plus-year strongman prime minister, for another attempt at a truce. Both men headed to Beijing today for the talks. Looks like hosting bilateral talks is China's way of reminding the world its post-Olympics city still exists.

Related Stories:
· Somchai and Hun Sen Meet in China [Bangkok Post]
· What Are Thailand and Cambodia Fighting About? [Jaunted]

[Photo: daylife.com]

Tags: Temples / Southeast Asia Travel / World Heritage Sites / Culture / UNESCO / → All Tags

Temple Troubles: Thailand and Cambodia Fight On

It was back in July that we first mentioned the temple trouble between Thailand and Cambodia as they fought over the newly UNESCO Heritage-listed Preah Vihear temple on their disputed border. And we thought it'd all be over soon and we could put this place back on our want-to-visit list.

Not so. Since then, there have been more protests and even a short skirmish between Thai and Cambodian soldiers that left three people injured. Landmines have also caused a few injuries.

This week, the two sides finally sat down for a chat again. But the only result seems to be that Cambodia has told Thailand it has to get its troops out, and the Thais have said they're staying there to do more mine clearance work. Which means that planning a visit to the gorgeous Preah Vihear will have to stay on our "postponed" list.

Related Stories:
· Cambodia, Thailand Resume Talks on Border Spat [AFP, via Google]
· What Are Thailand and Cambodia Fighting About? [Jaunted]
· Cambodia Travel coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: Mofaitsontdm]

Tags: Seven Wonders of the World / Museums / UNESCO / → All Tags

Possible Museum Travel: Egypt's Underwater Treasures

Serious hidden treasures from Cleopatra's palace lie beneath the waters of the Mediterranean, off the coast of Alexandria, Egypt. And a proposed underwater museum will showcase these sunken wonders if UNESCO determines that the project is feasible.

Cleopatra's palace was built on an island in one of the largest human-made bays on the planet. Earthquakes unfortunately submerged her opulent lair until the 1990s when archaeologist-divers found the thousands of precious objects.

The museum could be truly astounding, showing off 26 sphinxes, statues bearing gifts to the gods, Roman and Greek shipwrecks and pieces of the Pharos of Alexandria lighthouse--one of the seven ancient wonders of the world.

Related Stories:
· Underwater Museum Planned for Egypt's Alexandria [National Geographic]
· Egypt Travel coverage [Jaunted]
· Seven Wonders of the World coverage [Jaunted]

Tags: Museums / Arts / UNESCO / World Heritage Sites / → All Tags

UNESCO Travel: Heritage Sites Through the Eyes of Artists

If you're headed to San Diego for one of two film festivals in the next few weeks, then there's something else to add to your itinerary. A new exhibit at the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego features works from artists that have spent time in World Heritage Sites around the globe.

The exhibit, Human/Nature: Artists Respond to a Changing Planet, concentrates on the environment. For example, artist Mark Dion stalked reptiles in Komodo National Park in Indonesia. Other artists visited the Atlantic Forest South-East Reserves in Brazil and the Galápagos Islands in Ecuador for inspiration.

If you're interested in a visit, the feature is running through early 2009. Admission into the museum will cost you $10, includes access to the museum's permanent collections as well.

Related Stories:
· Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego [Official Site]
· Human/Nature: Artists Respond to a Changing Planet [Official Site]
· Museums coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: tunachilli]