Old Dragon’s Head: Where The Great Wall of China Ends

The Great Wall of China is one of the most wonderful pieces of architecture and the most aspiring building project ever make an effort in the history of mankind. The construction of Great Wall of China is formidable defensive structure, built toward off invasion and to protect the Chinese Empire, goes back by more than 2,000 years to the 7th century BC during the Chunqiu period. Therefore, the construction continued up to the Ming dynasty (1368–1644), when the Great Wall became the world's largest military structure. Particularly well-known is the wall built between 220 - 206 BC by the first Emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang, but little of that wall remains. However, after that, the Great Wall has on and off been rebuilt, maintained and fortified.

Therefore, one of the more fascinating places to visit The Great Wall is where it meets the Bohai Sea near Shanghaiguan in Qinhuangdao City about 300 kilometers east of Beijing. Shanhaiguan or Shanhai Pass is one of the main passes of the Great Wall of China located south of Yan Mountain, and north of the Bohai Sea. Moreover, the Great Wall lengthens 5 kilometers north of Shanhai Pass where it juts into the sea. This is where The Wall starts and from here it stretches to Lop-Lake in the west, along an arc that jaggedly delineates the southern edge of Inner Mongolia. Thus a length of about 8,850 km ends depending on how you look at it. So, this captivating part of the wall is well-known as Laolongtou or the Old Dragon’s Head, because it looks like a long dragon dipping his head drinking water from the sea. This section of the Wall extends about 23 meters out into the Bohai Sea, and it is likely to walk out onto the Wall and look over the edge directly down into the water below. Laolongtou was built in 1579 in the Ming Dynasty.

Nevertheless, the Laolongtou Great Wall is mostly formed by 7 parts, which are the Estuary Stone City, Chenghai Tower, Nereus Temple, Jinglu Beacon Tower, Nanhaikou (Southern Estuary) Pass, Ninghai City and Binhai (Seafront) Walls. So, between them, Chenghai Tower is the most famous structure. Chenghai The tower is a two-storey building built with bricks and wood, mainly functioned as a defensive arrow tower. Further, Emperors of the Qing Dynasty once visited it while on their way to Northeast China, worshipped their ancestors and left various poems and writings. There are also poems by well-known literary figures inscribed on the tablets embedded on the walls.

Moreover, in July 1904, Japanese troops landed at Shanhai Pass, prior to marching on Peking to relieve the siege of the legations during the Boxer Uprising. A pre-landing bombardment of the area, which was completely needless as few Chinese troops were present, destroyed this section of the wall. What stands nowadays is a 1980s effort by the authorities to imitate the original. By the shore, the Changtai Tower, and the Temple to the Sea Goddess that sits in its center, was initially built in 1579, but is now covered with replica soldiers in Qing Dynasty costumes. Furthermore, most excitingly the original wall was built using a mixture of glutinous rice soup mixed with sand, earth and lime.

The Burney Falls, California

The naturally beautiful Burney Falls is a waterfall on Burney Creek, within McArthur-Burney Falls Memorial State Park, in Shasta County, California. The water comes from underground springs above and at the falls, which are 129 feet high, and provides an almost continuous flow rate of 379 million litres per day, even in the dry summer months. The falls are an example of river drainage regulated by stratigraphically-controlled springs, and also of a waterfall formed by undercutting of horizontal strata. The big pool at the base, and Burney Creek above and below the cascade, are popular for catch-and-release fly-fishing.

Burney Falls is one of California’s biggest surprises. It’s no wonder 26th President Teddy Roosevelt dubbed it “the eighth wonder of the world.” Burney Creek is a tributary of the Pit River, with its mouth on the Lake Britton reservoir to the north. The falls were called "the Eighth Wonder of the World" by President Theodore Roosevelt, and were declared a National Natural Landmark in December 1954. This is most amazing falls in CA, can walked along the trail that goes all the way around the falls went down onto the rocky floor near the falls to feel the spray from the falls. The amount of water pouring down is mind blowing, also fun to sit and watch for birds to come darting out from behind the waterfall curtain. The camp ground is nicely spread out, pretty good facilities. One of the most spectacular waterfalls in the state, fern-draped cascade seems to come out of nowhere. The main falls originate at the top of the cliff, but icy gallons of snowmelt also gush from the sieve-like volcanic rock face. Continue down the path to the pool—where you are likely to look but only briefly touch: the water never goes much above 42 degrees.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Sultan Ahmad Mosque, Istanbul Turkey

The Sultan Ahmed Mosque is a historic mosque located in Istanbul, Turkey. The mosque is a popular tourist site, continues to serve purpose of mosque nowadays. Muslims men’s offers prayer on the lush red carpet once the prayer call offer.  It is also called Sultan Ahmet Mosque or Sultan Ahmet Camii in Turkish is popularly known was constructed between 1609 and 1616 during the rule of Ahmed I. Sultan Ahmed Mosque was constructed by Husna bint Mayram on the orders of the son of "Hāndān Vālida Sultânā,"Sultan Ahmed I. The Sultan Ahmed Mosque design is the culmination of two centuries of Ottoman mosque development with traditional Islamic architecture and is considered to be the last great mosque of the classical period. The mosque is known as the Blue Mosque because of blue tiles surrounding the walls of interior design.  

Its Külliye contains Ahmed's tomb, a madrasah and a hospice. Hand-painted blue tiles adorn the mosque’s interior walls, and at night the mosque is radiant in blue lights frame the mosque’s five main domes, six minarets and eight secondary domes. The mosque was built on the site of the palace of the Byzantine emperors, in front of the basilica Hagia Sophia and the hippodrome, a site of noteworthy symbolic meaning as it dominated the city skyline from the south. After crushing loss in the 1603–1618 war with Persia, Sultan Ahmet I, decided to build a large mosque in Istanbul to reassert Ottoman power. It would be the first imperial mosque for more than forty years. While his predecessors had paid for their mosques with the spoils of war, Ahmet I procured funds from the Treasury, because he had not gained extraordinary victories.

The Sultan Ahmed Mosque interior is lined with over 20,000 handmade İznik style ceramic tiles, made at Iznik in more than 50 different tulip designs becomes colorful with representations of flowers, fruit and cypresses. The upper levels of the interior are dominated by blue paint more than 200 stained glass windows with intricate designs admit natural light, nowadays assisted by chandeliers. The decorations include verses from the Qur'an, many of them made by Seyyid Kasim Gubari, regarded as the greatest calligrapher of his time. The floors are covered with carpets, and many spacious windows confer a large impression. The Sultan Ahmed Mosque is one of the three mosques in Turkey that has six minarets the other two being the modern Sabancı Mosque in Adana and the Hz. Mikdat Mosque in Mersin. Four minarets stand at the corners of the Blue Mosque, pencil-shaped minarets has three balconies with stalactite corbels, while the two others at the end of the forecourt only have two balconies. Besides being tourist attraction, it's also an active mosque, so it's closed to non-worshippers for a half hour or so during the five daily prayers.

The mosque is surrounded by a continuous vaulted arcade and having ablution facilities on both sides. The central hexagonal fountain is small but narrow gateway to the courtyard stands out architecturally from the arcade. A heavy iron chain hangs in the upper part of the court entrance on the western side. Only the sultan was allowed to enter the court of the mosque on horseback. The chain was put there, so that the sultan had to lower his head every single time he entered the court to avoid being hit. This was a symbolic gesture, to ensure the humility of the ruler in the face of the divine.

The Eisriesenwelt "World of the Ice Giants"

The Eisriesenwelt is a natural limestone and ice cave located in Werfen, Austria, about 40 km south of Salzburg. The inside of cave the Hochkogel mountain in the Tennengebirge section of the Alps, formed during the later Tertiary period during the Würm glaciation period of the Pleistocene. The Tennengebirge Mountains were formed during the late Tertiary period; during the mountain range is one of largest karst plateau in the Salzburger Alps, and the Eisriesenwelt. The cave is visited by approximately 200,000 tourists every year; it is the largest ice cave in the world, stretching over 42 kilometers. Only very little area is permissible to view, however the rest of cave is not allowed which is formed of limestone. Eisriesenwelt Cave is flowed through the mountain eroding passageways nearly 100 million years ago, cracks and crevices in the limestone became more developed as water eroded the rocks away.

Actually, Salzach River formed Eisriesenwelt, eroded passageways into the mountain. The ice formations in the cave were formed by thawing snow which drained into the cave and froze during winter. The cave is open round the year, makes the chilly winter blow into the cave and freezes the snow inside. However, in summer season, a cold wind blows towards the entrance and prevents the formation from melting. In spring the water from melting snow seeps through the cracks in the rock and when it reaches the colder lower areas of the caves it freezes and turns slowly into the wonderful ice formations visible inside the caves.

A natural scientist Anton Posselt from Salzburg discovers the Eisriesenwelt in 1879. The stunning cave was famous only to locals, who have faith in that it was an entrance to Hell, refused to explore it. Today the Eisriesenwelt cave is owned by the National Austrian Forest Commission (de), which has leased it to the Salzburg Association of Cave Exploration since 1928. Moreover, in 1955 a cable car was built, shortening the 90-minute climb to 3 minutes. The cave is open from May 1 to October 26 every year. Temperatures inside the cave are usually below freezing, and warm clothing is recommended; however be in mind that photography is not allowable once visitors are inside the cave. The World of the Ice Giants is one of Salzburg’s top attractions.

Cuquenan Falls, Venezuela

The mesmerizingly awe-inspiring waterfall, draws collective attention and admiration? Why do travelers cross the world in search of them? May be aesthetic beauty invokes a sense of calm, or the sheer power and magnitude awakens inquisitive nature, however, humans associate waterfalls with clean, fresh water and, as such, with life.

Well, Cuquenan Falls is also called, Salto Kukenan, Kukenaam, is the second tallest major waterfall in Venezuela after Angel Falls. It is also the second tallest free-leaping waterfall in the world. The waterfall usually cited as the 11th highest waterfall in the world. The Cuquenan Falls drop in a single leap of around 2,211 feet and the final portion of the falls trickles down towards the base of the Kukenan Tepui. The Kukenan Tepui is located nearby Mount Roraima, serves as the geographical marker of the border between Brazil, Venezuela, and Guyana. Cuquenan Falls, which similar to Yumbilla, is known for being tall, but not powerful, however can be difficult to access due to its isolation, but is best viewed from a distance.

Mount Roraima also hosts its own waterfall, usually referred to as Roraima Falls, leaps off the tepui in four tiered leaps. The height is estimated at approximately 2,000 feet. There has been some disagreement over the years about the overall ranking of “Cuquenan Falls” among the world's tallest waterfalls. Therefore, the falls has been listed anywhere from 2nd to 20th in various publications and Internet sites. Thus, these discrepancies perhaps arise because most official measurements of the falls take into consideration only the free-leaping portion, omitting the bottom part that cascades along the tepui. Moreover, some published listings incorporate the free-falling measurements only when arguing that its height is not ample for the top 10 tallest waterfalls.

 

 

 

 

Tianzi Mountains, Which Formation Inspired the Fictional World of Pandora

The mountains inspired the Pandora mountainscape in James Cameron’s film Avatar is Tianzi Mountain. It is located in Zhangjiajie in the Hunan Province of China, nearby to the Suoxi Valley. The movie theme park has been created there. Zhangjiajie National Forest Park is a popular tourist destination, home to striking sandstone and quartz cliffs and famously known for renaming a peak after the mountain formations that inspired the fictional world of Pandora. The several high steep stone peaks erecting on the ground with precipitous four walls and appearances is nothing short of the secret workings of nature.

It is named after the Tujia ethnic group farmer “Xiang Dakun”, who led a successful revolution and called himself "tianzi", means son of Heaven, traditional epithet of the Chinese emperor. Therefore, it is said that he fought a brave battle in the Tianzi Mountain until his death when he jumped off a cliff. The Tianzi Mountain offers different scenes during different seasons, all of which are equally striking and magical even: the Sea of Clouds, the Radiance of the Moonlight, Rays of Sunshine and the Snow in winter. A massive varied country like China dominates in landscape, just takes your breath away. Huge sandstone pillars view in every direction, thick layer of mist creates a fairytale appearance. The pillars and valleys are covered in a dense, moist tropical-like forest, which makes the amazing setting of this Chinese National Park complete.

The Tianzi Mountains are deemed sacred by several Sulamitos who used to inhabit the outer regions of Hunan. It was unearthed in Sep 2014 that Mal Oghlum people had left traces of their burial rituals beneath the Tianzi Mountains, which led to "Yalan Group", led by Eybi Sulam and Karadeniz asking for a permit from the Chinese government, which as of 2015, had been unanswered. Though, it is a popular tourist place in China, but due to security issues, it is extremely difficult to climb, however, some groups still trying all the year to climb it.

The researchers believed that Tianzi Mountains were formed from quartz sandstone of 400 million years ago through the intermittent rising of the crust for 2 million years. Hence, the geological formation belongs to the "New Cathaysian" tectonic system. More than three billion ago, the place was a large patch of ocean. After a series of geological modifications including Himalayan and Neotectonic movements, the bottom of ocean rose out of the surface, and the quartzite sandstone pillars and peaks took mind-blowing shape after the gradual cutting, eroding and crumbling of Nature for millions of years. Moreover, they were once sedimentary rocks rising beneath the waters of an ancient ocean, which eventually became quartz sandstones. Thus, running water eroded the near level quartz sandstone along the vertical net joints.

Tianzi Mountains are 16,550 acres big and highest peak of the mountain is at 4,140 feet above sea level. Visitors can take a 2,084-meter cable car ride to the peak and enjoy beautiful scenery during the climb, via cable car takes approximately 6 minutes and 44 seconds in temperatures averaging at 12 degrees Celsius. In spite of the cold weather, you can’t afford to miss the fantasy-like scenery that you will see as you move towards the peak. Well, the best time to visit the place is spring and fall, especially in April and Octorber. Major attractions in Tianzi Mountain Nature Reserve include, Shentang Gulf, Imperial Brush Peak, Fairy Offering Flowers, Helong Park and Fields in the Air. All that and more awaits tourists to explore.