TOP 10 AMAZING PLACES ON EARTH

10. LAKE HILLIER

Location:Australia

Lake Hillier is about 600 metres (2,000 ft) in length by about 250 metres (820 ft) in width. The lake is surrounded by a rim of sand and a dense woodland of paperbark and eucalyptus trees with a narrow strip of sand dunes covered by vegetation separating its northern edge from the northern coast of Middle Island. The most notable feature of the lake is its pink colour. The vibrant colour is permanent, and does not alter when the water is taken in a container. The source of the pink colour is considered to be due to the presence of the organism Dunaliella salina. Air is the best mode of transportation for viewing the lake.

9. DEADVLEI

Location:Namibia

Deadvlei is a white clay pan located near the more famous salt pan of Sossusvlei, inside the Namib-Naukluft Park in Namibia. Also written DeadVlei or Dead Vlei, its name means “dead marsh” (from English dead, and Afrikaans vlei, a lake or marsh in a valley between the dunes). The pan also is referred to as “Dooie Vlei” which is the (presumably original) fully Afrikaans name. In Google there are many references to the site, its name often being translated erroneously in terms such as “dead valley”; a vlei is not a valley (which in Afrikaans is “vallei”). Nor is the site a valley; the pan is a desiccated vlei.

8. ZHANGYE DANXIA

Location:China

The Zhangye Danxia National Geological Park (Chinese: 张掖丹霞国家地质公园), also known as Zhangye Danxia (Landform) Geopark, is located near the city of Zhangye in China’s northwestern Gansu province. It covers an area of 510 square kilometres (200 sq mi). Formerly a provincial park and scenic area, it became a national geopark in November 2011. Known for its colorful rock formations, it has been voted by Chinese media outlets as one of the most beautiful landforms in China.

7. THE GREAT BLUE

Location:Brazil

 The Great Blue Hole is a large submarine sinkhole off the coast of Belize. It lies near the center of Lighthouse Reef, a small atoll 70 km (43 mi) from the mainland and Belize City. The hole is circular in shape, over 300 m (984 ft) across and 124 m (407 ft) deep. It was formed during several episodes of quaternary glaciation when sea levels were much lower. Analysis of stalactites found in Great Blue Hole shows that formation took place 153,000; 66,000; 60,000; and 15,000 years ago. As the ocean began to rise again, the cave was flooded. The Great Blue Hole is a part of the larger Belize Barrier Reef Reserve System, a World Heritage Site of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

6. MOUNT RORAIMA

Location:Venezuela

Mount Roraima (Spanish: Monte Roraima [ˈmonte roˈɾaima], also known as Tepuy Roraima and Cerro Roraima; Portuguese: Monte Roraima [ˈmõtʃi ʁoˈɾɐ̃jmɐ]) is the highest of the Pakaraima chain of tepui plateaus in South America. First described by the English explorer Sir Walter Raleigh in 1596, its 31 km2 summit area is bounded on all sides by cliffs rising 400 metres (1,300 ft). The mountain also serves as the triple border point of Venezuela (claiming 85% of its territory), Brazil (5%) and Guyana (10%).Mount Roraima lies on the Guiana Shield in the southeastern corner of Venezuela’s 30,000-square-kilometre (12,000 sq mi) Canaima National Park forming the highest peak of Guyana’s Highland Range. The tabletop mountains of the park are considered some of the oldest geological formations on Earth, dating back to some two billion years ago in the Precambrian. The highest point in Guyana and the highest point of the Brazilian state of Roraima lie on the plateau, but Venezuela and Brazil have higher mountains elsewhere. The triple border point is at 5°12′08″N 60°44′07″W, but the mountain’s highest point is Maverick Rock, 2,810 metres (9,219 ft), at the south end of the plateau and wholly within Venezuela.

5. TURQUOISE ICE

Location:Russia

Located in Siberia, Laka Baikal is the largest freshwater lake on the planet that contains approximately 20 percent of the Earth’s freshwater. Apart from being the oldest lake in the world at over 25 million years old, Lake Baikal is also home to over two thousand varieties of flora and fauna, of which almost 1,600 are endemic to the lake.The water of Lake Baikal is renowned for being some of the clearest in the world. When the lake freezes during the winter, an amazing phenomena takes place: large shards of transparent ice form on the surface of the lake, giving the amazing appearance of turquoise ice.

4. CHOCOLATE HILLS

Location:Philippines

The Chocolate Hills or Tsokolateng burol in filipino are a geological formation in Bohol Province, Philippines. There are at least 1,260 hills but there may be as many as 1,776 hills spread over an area of more than 50 square kilometres (20 sq mi). They are covered in green grass that turns brown (like chocolate) during the dry season, hence the name.The Chocolate Hills are a famous tourist attraction of Bohol. They are featured in the provincial flag and seal to symbolize the abundance of natural attractions in the province. They are in the Philippine Tourism Authority’s list of tourist destinations in the Philippines; they have been declared the country’s third National Geological Monument and proposed for inclusion in the UNESCO World Heritage List.

3. THE CRYSTAL CAVE

Location:Iceland

For such a small country–and one with a less than enticing name–Iceland sure has its fair share of must-see natural phenomena. If you’ve already soaked up the steamy minerals of the Blue Lagoon, head southeast to Skaftafell, a preservation area that has been incorporated into Vatnajokull National Park, largely for its jaw-dropping glacial contents, which are highlighted by the Crystal Cave of Svmnafellsjvkull.Created by the unparalleled forces of the Vatnajvkull ice cap, the Crystal Cave emerged as a result of its glacier meeting the Icelandic coastline. The cave’s ice dates back centuries, and its weight has pressed out all remnant air, so the resultant formation’s texture and colors are both brilliant and otherworldly. Access is via a 22-foot entrance at the water’s edge, though height clearance tapers down to only about 4 feet at the far end, about 150 feet in.

2. EYE OF SAHARA 

Location:Mauritania

The Richat Structure, also known as the Eye of the Sahara and Guelb er Richat, is a prominent circular feature in the Sahara desert near Ouadane, west–central Mauritania. This structure is a deeply eroded, slightly elliptical, 40 km in diameter dome. The sedimentary rock exposed in this dome ranges in age from Late Proterozoic within the center of the dome to Ordovician sandstone around its edges. The sedimentary rocks comprising this structure dip outward at 10°–20°. Differential erosion of resistant layers of quartzite has created high-relief circular cuestas. Its center consists of a siliceous breccia covering an area that is at least 3 km in diameter.Exposed within the interior of the Richat Structure are a variety of intrusive and extrusive igneous rocks. They include rhyolitic volcanic rocks, gabbros, carbonatites and kimberlites. The rhyolitic rocks consist of lava flows and hydrothermally altered tuffaceous rocks that are part of two distinct eruptive centers, which are interpreted to be the eroded remains of two maars. According to field mapping and aeromagnetic data, the gabbroic rocks form two concentric ring dikes. The inner ring dike is about 20 m in width and lies about 3 km from the center of Richat Structure. The outer ring dike is about 50 m in width and lies about 7 to 8 km from the center of this structure. Thirty-two carbonatite dikes and sills have been mapped within the Richat Structure. The dikes are generally about 300 m long and typically 1 to 4 m wide. They consist of massive carbonatites that are mostly devoid of vesicles. The carbonatite rocks have been dated as having cooled between 94 to 104 million years ago. A kimberlitic plug and several sills have been found within the northern part of the Richat Structure. The kimberlite plug has been dated being about 99 million years old. These intrusive igneous rocks are interpreted as indicating the presence of a large alkaline igneous intrusion that currently underlies the Richat Structure and created it by uplifting the overlying rock.

1. TIANZI MOUNTAINS

Location:China

Located in the northern part of Wulingyuan Scenic Area in Hunan Province, Tianzi (Son of Heaven) Mountain Nature Reserve is one of the four scenic spots in Wulingyuan (three other spots are the Zhangjiajie National Forest Park, the Suoxiyu Natural Resource Reserve and the Yangjiajie Scenic Area). It covers an area of 67 square kilometers (about 16,550 acres), and the highest peak is 1,262 meters (about 4,140 feet) above the sea level. Tianzi Mountain provides stunning views of peaks, which rise one after another. It is known as ‘the Monarch of the Peak Forest’. At the top of the mountain, visitors can see the full extent of the Wulingyuan Scenic Area. Beautiful scenes of the mountain greet visitors in different seasons. There are four wonders: the Sea of Clouds, the Radiance of the Moonlight, Rays of Sunshine and the Snow in winter.

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SOURCE: YOUTUBE / top10videolist

TOP 10 MOST VIOLENT PRISONS

10. RIKERS ISLAND PRISON

Location: New york, USA

Rikers Island  is New York City’s main jail complex, as well as the name of the 413.17-acre (1.672 km2) island on which it sits, in the East River between Queens and the mainland Bronx, adjacent to the runways of LaGuardia Airport. Supposedly named after Abraham Rycken, the island is home to one of the world’s largest correctional institutions. The island itself is part of the Bronx, though it is included as part of Queens Community Board 1 and has a Queens ZIP code of 11370. The jail complex, operated by the New York City Department of Correction, has a budget of $860 million a year, a staff of 9,000 officers and 1,500 civilians managing 100,000 admissions per year and an average daily population of 14,000 inmates. However, it is notorious for abuse and neglect of prisoners in recent years, which has attracted increased media and judicial scrutiny that resulted in numerous rulings against the New York City government. In May 2013, Rikers Island ranked as one of the ten worst prisons in the United States, based on reporting in Mother Jones magazine.

9. LA SANTE PRISON

Location: Paris, France

La Santé Prison (literally meaning Prison of the Health) (French: Maison d’arrêt de la Santé or Prison de la Santé) is a prison operated by the Ministry of Justice located in the east of the Montparnasse district of the 14th arrondissement in Paris, France at 42 Rue de la Santé. It is one of the most famous prisons in France, with both VIP and high security wings. Along with the Fleury-Mérogis Prison (Europe’s largest prison) and the Fresnes Prison, both located in the southern suburbs, La Santé is one of the three main prisons of the Paris area.

8. PETAK ISLAND PRISON

Location: Petak Island, Russia

Petak Island Prison, Russia – Known as Russia’s Alcatraz, Petak Island Prison located in the White Lake houses the most dangerous Russian prisoners. Vyacheslav, a former prosecutor, was sentenced to life behind the physical and geographical walls of Petak Island.  Vyacheslav, then 29, was sentenced to death for stabbing two women to death.  He admitted to barely knowing either of them.  “I took a knife, killed a bookkeeper and a cashier and stole their money.  I didn’t need the money, but I needed to feel again.  I was bored with my life . . . Maybe you understand,” said Vyacheslav, now 46. Vyacheslav was originally sentenced to death, but the Russian decree outlawing the death penalty halted his execution while it was in progress.  He was thus sentenced to life in Petak. Petak functions under a strict set of rules that dictate order.  Prisoners are kept two to a cell where they spend most of their time, a total of 22 and a half hours per day.  For the remainder, prisoners are locked inside cages that are fenced in with barbed wire.  No bathrooms or libraries are available.  Only two visitors are allowed each year.  Many go insane.

7. BANG KWANG PRISON

Location: Thailand

Bangkwang Central Prison is a male maximum security prison built on the outskirts of Bangkok, Thailand in the 1930’s.  It was built to hold 3,500 prisoners but currently holds in the region of 8,000.  It is known as “The Bangkok Hilton” in the West and in Thailand as “The Big Tiger” as it eats men alive. The inmate population is made up of prisoners whose appeals are pending in the Appeal Court and Supreme Court, convicted prisoners whose terms of sentences range from twenty-five years to life imprisonment and prisoners who have been sentenced to the death sentence and are awaiting excecution.Until October 2003 excecution was carried out by the firing squad, lethal injection is now used.

6. LA SABANETA PRISON

Location: Venezuela

In the Venezuelan prison system, there are 25,000 prisoners housed in facilities designed for about 15,000; and with roughly one-third of Venezuela’s population below the poverty line, jails like Sabaneta are stuffed. Some prisoners are forced to sleep in hammocks strung up in narrow pipe-access corridors, while the corruption of the system allows inmates with more power and money to attain rooms with more space. Combine this with an understaffed guard detail of about 1 guard to every 150 inmates, and you have a prison in desperate need of reform.

The worst part: There are countless violent incidents. One of the most frightening was the death of 108 prisoners as a result of a fierce gun battle in January 1994, and the level of violence has hardly decreased. The killings were indeed one of the most vicious and tragic in the country’s history, but it’s a common trend: In 1995 alone, an astounding 196 prisoners were killed and 624 were wounded as a result of jail violence.

5. DIYARBAKIR PRISON

Location: Diyarbakir, Turkey

Turkish prisons certainly have a shady past, to say the least, and Diyarbakir is no exception. From incarcerating children for lifelong sentences to overcrowding to sewage-flooded hallways, the prison redefines fear and hatred. There is no love lost between guards and prisoners, but a 1996 incident hints at a brutal authoritarian rule that leaves no inmate safe. In what one prisoner described as, “a planned massacre,” an attack on 33 prisoners resulted in 10 dead and 23 injured, 9 of which were left in critical condition. An investigation revealed a startling possibility that the guards masterminded the attack, which featured guards and police in full riot gear and equipped with batons and truncheons.

The worst part: It’s clear that the inmates have few rights. There is a large population of political prisoners, therefore “certain people” actually get all their basic rights reversed. So, instead of being provided with health care, visits and access to cultural and sports facilities, these rights are taken away and prisoners are held in abeyance. The Turkish government hopes to banish this kind of cruel treatment, but so far everything seems stuck in a “waiting period.”

4. COTONOU CIVIL PRISON

Location: Benin

Benin is a small country in West Africa next to Togo and Nigeria. Cotonou’s facility has about 2,400 men, women, and children living in an area built to hold no more than 400. It is so overcrowded, some prisoners sleep in shifts, and others have died from suffocation while sleeping. Over 90 percent of the prisoners are awaiting trial, a process that takes several years because of backlog in the judicial system. Conditions at the prison are not intentional, the republic has limited funds to care for the inmates. Despite international assistance, many prisoners still die from preventable diseases.

3.  TADMOR PRISON

Location: Syrian

Syrian poet, and five-year inmate, Faraj Beraqdar, described Tadmor military prison as: “The kingdom of death and madness.” Tadmor is known for its outrageous use of torture, its executions and for one of the biggest prison massacres in world history. On June 27, 1980, commando forces from the defense brigades savagely murdered an estimated 500 prisoners. One day, after a failed assassination attempt on Damascus President Hafez al-Asad, the commandos arrived at the jail via helicopter and proceeded to kill the inmates in their dormitories.

The worst part: In a word, torture. The methods used are medieval in nature: Some inmates were killed by the sharp end of an ax and cut into parts, others were roped and dragged to death and still others were brutally beaten by metal pipes. These torture victims consisted of both the guilty and the innocent, and were often randomly selected.

2. GITARAMA CENTRAL PRISON

Location: Rwanda

We’ll cut to the chase: Gitarama Prison is Hell on Earth. It is home to approximately 6,000 prisoners, which would be terrible even if the capacity weren’t 500. Prisoners have to feed each other to survive, and the jail is so horrendously overpopulated that prisoners often stand upright to the point that their feet begin to rot. It doesn’t help that they’re standing in feces, which leads to disgusting episodes of gangrene. The inmates who aren’t fortunate enough to have their limbs simply fall off are forced to brave amputation procedures that, under these conditions, are a gamble at best. Most of the prisoners at Gitarama have been incarcerated due to the genocide committed against Rwanda.

1. CAMP 22

Location: North Korea

Those who have lived to tell us about Camp 22, located in the bleak northeastern tip of North Korea, can be counted on the fingers of one hand, and all of them are former guards or staff. Of all of North Korea’s numerous labor camps and detention facilities, large and small, Camp 22 is one of the largest, and almost certainly the most terrible, if only for the inhuman experiments witnesses say were done to the men, women, children, and even infants sent there. North Korea’s system of spying, thought-control, isolation, and terror may have no equal in human history. That is how Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il kept the secrets of Camp 22 inside its ten-foot wire fences and distinctive blocky guard posts for decades. That changed when satellite photography went public. Since then, Google Earth has revealed the world’s most secret places to armies of amateur “squints.” Satellite photography was available to the human rights researcher David Hawk when he set to work on “The Hidden Gulag,” his ground-breaking study of North Korea’s forced labor camps. Hawk’s interviews with survivors and former guards alone would not have had the same impact had those witnesses not been able to point to those photographs and say.

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SOURCE: YOUTUBE / top10videolist

TOP 10 MOST HIGHEST WATERFALL IN THE WORLD

10. TYSSESTRENGENE

• Location: Norway
• Height: 2,123 Feet/647 Meters.

This waterfall is located in Odda, Norway and has a height of about 2,123 feet. Tyssestrengene waterfalls are fed by the Tysso River. This waterfall is widely used for hydroelectric purposes and therefore its water flow is curtailed to such a point that only after heavy melting of snow there is any flow of substance.

9. LOWER MAR VALLEY

• Location: Norway
• Height: 2,151 Feet/655 Meters.

It is located in Eikesdal, Norway which is almost 2,151 feet in height. The water that has been tapped for hydroelectric purpose, flows over the falls during the tourist season from 20th june to 20th august, Whereas other times the water is directed through the hydroelectric strategy.

8. ESPELANDS

• Location: Norway
• Height: 2,307 Feet/703 Meters.

Espelands falls or Espelandsfossen is a tall waterfall with a height of 2,307 feet or 703 meters. This waterfall is situated in the Espelandsdalen valley in the municipality of Granvin, Norway and lies just above the large lake Espelandsyatnet.

7. YOSEMITE

• Location: USA,California
• Height: 2,425 Feet/739 Meters.

Yosemite waterfall is not only the world’s 7th highest waterfall but also the North America’s highest waterfall. It is situated in Yosemite National park of California and is a major fascination in the park and attracts numerous visitors from all around the world each and every year. This captivating waterfall has a height of 2,425 feet or 739 meters and is extremely attractive in late spring season when the flow of water is at its peak. The fall comprises of three sections; upper Yosemite fall, middle cascade, and lower Yosemite. Some of its waterfalls are fed by snowmelt, therefore the amount of water flowing over vary widely during all over the year.

6. MUTARAZI

• Location: Zimbabwe
• Height: 2,499 Feet/762 Meters.

It is Zimbabwe’s highest waterfall and the Continent’s second highest with a height of 2,499 feet or 762 meters. It is situated in Nyanga National park of Zimbabwe on the River Mutarazi. It is an impressive waterfall and is also a great tourist attraction, tourists can take a short hike to the border of the slope for scenic views of the Honde Valley and the waterfalls. The falls are gorgeously coupled with another larger river that falls over little higher and more comprehensive waterfalls named Muchururu falls. Mutarazi falls presents a captivating sight of two almost identical drops as the river flows over the face of the cliff. The best time to visit this fall is late in afternoon and it is extremely stunning.

5. GOCTA CATARACTS

• Location: Peru
• Height: 2532 Feet/771 Meters.

It is an enduring waterfall with two drops situated in Peru’s province of Chachapoyas in Amazonas and has a height of about 2532 feet or 771 meters. Although, this waterfall had been widely renowned to locals for centuries but its existence was known to world in 2005 by a group of explorers. The volume of water that comes over the falls alters greatly on the time of year. Gocta catarcts is becoming a great tourist destination and before the beginning of the rainy season, the water that falls looks like a cloud of fog than a heavy cascade.

4. MONGE

• Location: Norway
• Height: 2,536 Feet/773 Meters.

This impressive waterfall is located in Rauma Muncipality of Norway, near the Rauma River and the European route E136 highway. Monge falls are also termed as Mongefossen and possess a height of 2,536 feet or 773 meters. This waterfall also holds the title as being the world’s highest waterfall that can be visualized from a railway station. It is widely used for hydroelectric power and because of this reason there is decreased water flow during the tourist’s season in summer.

3. UTIGORD

• Location: Norway
• Height: 2,685 Feet/ 818 Meters.

Utigord falls also possess an alternate name, Remnefjellsfossen, because of the nearby mountain named Ramnefjellet, this mountain has killed more than 100 individuals as a consequence of landslides in 1905 and 1936. These falls are fed by the Ramnefjellbreen glacier, a part of the great Jostedal glacier. This free leaping waterfall has a height of 2,685 feet or 818 meters. The falls can be easily approached by sea plane, boat, or road, and an encampment is located within hiking distance at the base of the falls. Because of small water flow to these waterfalls, they are included in the list of few main waterfalls in Norway that has not been reserved for hydroelectric usage.

2. TUGELA

• Location: South Africa
• Height: 3,110 Feet/948 Meters.

Tugela Falls is considered as the second highest waterfall in the world with a height of 3,110 feet or 948 meters. This waterfall is located in the Dragon’s Mountains in the Royal Natal National Park of South Africa. These waterfalls are beautifully and simply viewed from the main road of the park after a heavy rainfall, as it shimmers due to the reflection of sun. These falls drop down in five free bouncing falls. The point of supply of the Tugela River is the Mount-Aux-Sources highland which stretches various kilometers above the Amphitheatre slope from where the falls deluge down. There is also a nascent camp area and mountain hut instantly above the falls.

1. ANGEL

• Location: Venezuela
• Height: 3,212 Feet/979 Meters.

Angel Falls is known as the highest waterfall in the world with a height of 3,212 feet or 979 meters. This highest uninterrupted waterfall is termed as Salto Angel in Spanish and is located in the Canaima National Park which is a UNESCO World Heritage site in Venezuela. It was first discovered in 1910 by Ernesto de Santa Cruz and was named after an American pilot, Jimmie Angel who first time flew an airplane over the falls. The height figure 3,212 feet mainly comprises of the main descent but also include almost 0.25 miles of sloped deluge rapids beneath the drop and 98 feet high descent downstream of the talus rapids. The highest mark of the waterfall reaches at 979 meters and the water falling is from a height of 807 meters. The waterfall has so tremendous height that by the time water extents the landscape it turns into small particles that become fog. Since mountainous waterfalls are nourished by rain, so if anyone wants to visit it then planning should be made carefully. As during the dry season, this waterfall is just an ooze of water whereas in rainy weather, it is a fully developed waterfall.Angel forms a glorious attraction at the Canaima National Park, Venezuela, however trip to the falls is an extremely complicated affair.

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SOURCE: YOUTUBE / top110videolist