Category Archives: Structures, History and Countries

Hitachi Seaside Park

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Hitachi Seaside Park

Hitachi Seaside Park is a park of wonder.

  • Hitachi Seaside Park is a park located on the coast of Japan’s largest island, Honshu, in the city of Hitachinaka, in the Ibaraki Prefecture.
  • ‘Hitachi Seaside Park’ is known as ‘Kokuei Hitachi Kaihinkōen’ in Japanese.
  • Hitachi Seaside Park comprises of approximately 190 hectares (470 acres) of area, that includes a hill, forests, garden, entertainment area and other features.
  • Hitachi Seaside Park notably contains 4.5 million blue nemophila plants, 1 million daffodils and 170 different varieties of tulip, as well as many other flowering plants and vegetation.
  • Hitachi Seaside Park features a Ferris wheel that is a good way to gain great views of the park, as well as a rollercoaster, golf area, a labyrinth, a water playground and more.
Hitachi Seaside Park, Flowers, Blue, Blooming, Ferris Wheel, Japan, Garden, Public, Ten Random Facts, Flickr
Hitachi Seaside Park
Image courtesy of Temaki/Flickr
  • Hitachi Seaside Park is the venue for the Rock in Japan Festival, the largest rock genre music festival in Japan, that is held each year in August.
  • Hitachi Seaside Park has entrance and parking fees, and pets on leashes are welcome, although they are restricted in some areas.
  • Hitachi Seaside Park contains numerous cycling tracks, public paths and recreation areas.
  • Although flowering occurs all year, the majority of flowers in Hitachi Seaside Park bloom in spring, notably the nemophilas, which led to the name ‘Nemophila Harmony’ for this period.
  • Since the Fukishima nuclear disaster of 2011, some areas of Hitachi Seaside Park have been closed at various times due to rising radiation levels, however, the levels are closely monitored and decontamination has occurred when necessary.
Bibliography:
Flower Paradise at Hitachi Seaside Park, Japan, 2012, Amusing Planet, http://www.amusingplanet.com/2012/06/flower-paradise-at-hitachi-seaside-park.html
Hitachi Seaside Park, 2013, Visit Ibaraki Japan, http://visitibaraki.net/hitachi-seaside-park-post.html
Hitachi Seaside Park, 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hitachi_Seaside_Park
Menu, 2014, Hitachi Seaside Park, http://hitachikaihin.go.jp/

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Cappadocia

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Cappadocia

Cappadocia provides kilometres of exploration.

  • Cappadocia is an area that includes ancient cities built among numerous rock formations, located in central Turkey in the Middle East.
  • ‘Cappadocia’ is also known as ‘Capadocia’ and, in Turkish, ‘Kapadokya’, and likely comes from a name that means ‘land of beautiful horses’.
  • Cappadocia contains numerous settlements built underground, which served as refuges for early Christians against the Romans, and the 200 or more underground churches are of significant historical interest.
  • The cities and towns of Cappadocia were possibly originally built and owned by the Hittites in 2500-2000 BC.
  • Cappadocia is visited by many tourists, who commonly trek through or hot air balloon over the area.
Cappadocia, Balloons, Rocks, Mystical, Turkey, Ten Random Facts, Place, Europe
Part of Cappadocia
Image courtesy of Mr Hicks46/Flickr
  • Parts of Cappadocia have been designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1985, including the Göreme National Park, and significant places of interest include Avanos, Goreme, Guzelyurt, Ihlara Valley, Selime, Uchisar, Urgup and Zelve.
  • Historically, Cappadocia has been previously owned by Hittite, Persian and Roman empires.
  • The highest point in Cappadocia is Mount Erciyes, measuring 3,916 metres (12,848 feet) in height.
  • Cappadocia covers an area of approximately 100,000 square kilometres (38,610 square miles).
  • Cappadocia rock formations are primarily sedimentary rocks that have been affected by erosion.
Bibliography:
Cappadocia, 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cappadocia
Göreme National Park and the Rock Sites of Cappadocia, 2014, World Heritage Convention, http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/357

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Saint Lucia

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Saint Lucia

‘The Land, The People, The Light’ – the motto of Saint Lucia.

  • Saint Lucia is an island located in the West Indies, in the Caribbean Sea, close to the Atlantic Sea, and is one of the Windward Islands of the Lesser Antilles volcanic island arc.
  • Saint Lucia covers an area of 617 square kilometres (238.2 square miles) and its highest peak, Mount Gimie, is 950 metres (3,120 feet) high.
  • It is believed that Saint Lucia was first discovered by Europeans around the early 1500s, most likely by the Spanish navigator, Juan de la Cosa.
  • Saint Lucia was first settled unofficially in the 1550s by a French pirate named François le Clerc, and it wasn’t until the mid 1600s that French Jacques Dyel du Parques is said to have successfully built a settlement and appointed a governor there, although previous failed attempts had occurred by both the French and British.
  • Saint Lucia has a significant musical culture, particularly in folk music, and it hosts an annual jazz festival.
Saint Lucia, Island, Peaks, Valley, Ocean, Caribbean, Ten Random Facts, Flickr, British
Part of Saint Lucia
Image courtesy of Charles Kenny/Flickr
  • Saint Lucia officially became a part of the Commonwealth in 1979, and therefore has the British monarch as its head of state, and it is ruled by a prime minister and a democratic government.
  • Saint Lucia’s population in 2010 was 174,000 and its capital is Castries.
  • Saint Lucia is divided into eleven districts, or quarters, created by the French, and despite being settled by the French, it was fought over by the British for 150 years and changed hands between France and Britain numerous times.
  • The majority of Saint Lucian residents speak Creole French, a French dialect which is also known as ‘Patois’, though the official language is English.
  • Saint Lucia has a UNESCO World Heritage Site that includes two volcanic spires called the ‘Pitons’ and Sulphur Springs that are active hot springs, and its main industries are bananas and tourism, as the island sees a large quantity of tourists each year.
Bibliography:
History of Saint Lucia, 2011, Geographia, http://www.geographia.com/st-lucia/lchis01.htm
Saint Lucia, 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Lucia

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Fingal’s Cave

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Fingal’s Cave

Fingal’s Cave is a cave full of sound.

  • Fingal’s Cave is a cave located on the coast of the small deserted island called Staffa, that is part of Europe’s Scotland.
  • Fingal’s Cave is primarily made of basalt columns, caused by volcanic action, that are largely hexagonal prisms.
  • Fingal’s Cave has an arch shaped roof and gaping mouth, formed by erosion caused by water, and water can be found in the cave.
  • ‘Fingal’s Cave’ is also known as ‘an uaimh binn’, and its literal Irish translation is ‘the melodic cave’.
  • The sounds of the nearby waves echo throughout Fingal’s Cave, creating strange sounds.
Fingal's Cave, Entrance, Scotland, Ten Random Facts, Basalt, Island, Deserted, Stone, Europe, Flickr
Entrance of Fingal’s Cave
Image courtesy of Luxpim/Flickr
  • ‘Fingal’s Cave’ was named after a heroic character, ‘Fingal’, in a poem said to be translated by James Macpherson, a Scottish poet and historian in the 1700s, which was likely a reference to the Irish myth of a giant named Fionn mac Cumhaill (or Finn McCool).
  • Fingal’s Cave has been mentioned or pictured in numerous art and literary pieces, and possibly the most famous is the overture that German composer Felix Mendelssohn wrote, titled ‘The Hebrides’ (known also as ‘Fingal’s Cave’) after he visited the site in the late 1820s.
  • Tourists can access Fingal’s Cave by boat, or by foot once on the island, although the cave is not suitable for boats to enter.
  • Fingal’s Cave measurements are disputed, and the height is said to range from 20 to 23 metres (66 to 75 feet), while the depth ranges from 45 to 85 metres (150 to 279 feet), and the widest part is said to be approximately 12 metres (40 feet).
  • The basalt columns of Fingal’s Cave are similar to those that form the Giant’s Causeway, in Europe’s Northern Ireland, and it is possible that both sites were created by the same volcanic action.
Bibliography:
Fingal’s Cave, 2014, Atlas Obscura, http://www.atlasobscura.com/places/fingal-s-cave
Fingal’s Cave, 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fingal’s_Cave

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Neuschwanstein Castle

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Neuschwanstein Castle

Neuschwanstein Castle is a very dreamy castle.

  • Neuschwanstein Castle is a castle located in Germany’s Bavaria, in Europe, built by the German King Ludwig II of Bavaria, and it is a popular filming location and model for fictitious castles.
  • ‘Neuschwanstein’ Castle, which means ‘new swan-on-the-rock’, is also known as ‘New Swan Stone Castle’ in English and ‘Schloss Neuschwanstein’ in German, and it was originally called ‘New Hohenschwangau Castle’.
  • Neuschwanstein Castle was built on the site of old, crumbling medieval twin castles, as a replacement, and King Ludwig II was hoping that it would only take three years to build.
  • Neuschwanstein Castle was designed by Eduard Riedel, a German architect, although King Ludwig II had significant input in the design.
  • Neuschwanstein Castle is a Romanesque Revival styled architectural building, although the castle was first designed in neo-Gothic style.
Neuschwanstein Castle, Blue, White, dreamy, mystical, Green, Ten Random Facts, Germany, Flickr
Neuschwanstein Castle
Image courtesy of Raymond Bryson/Flickr
  • King Ludwig II lived in Neuschwanstein Castle throughout various stages of its construction, although it is said that he only spent a total of 172 days in it.
  • The building of Neuschwanstein Castle commenced in late 1869 and ended in 1892, after King Ludwig II’s death in 1886, but the castle was never fully completed.
  • Neuschwanstein Castle originally had in excess of 200 rooms planned, although only approximately 15 were completely finished.
  • The original estimate cost of Neuschwanstein Castle was 3.2 million marks, although the actual cost was at least double that, which contributed to the extensive debts of King Ludwig II.
  • Neuschwanstein Castle was first opened to the public in August 1886, six weeks after King Ludwig II’s death, and is now seen by at least 1.4 million people each year, but it can only be accessed via a guided tour that takes approximately 30 minutes.
Bibliography:
Neuschwanstein, n.d, Bayerische Verwaltung der staatlichen Schlösser, Gärten und Seen, http://www.neuschwanstein.de/englisch/palace/index.htm#
Neuschwanstein Castle, 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neuschwanstein_Castle

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Santorini

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Santorini

Santorini is an archipelago shrouded with mystery.

  • Santorini is an archipelago of five islands that is part of Greece, and is located in the Aegean Sea, in the Mediterranean Sea.
  • ‘Santorini’ is also known as ‘Thera’ and ‘Thira’, while the main island is known by the same name – it was named during the Latin empire after the cathedral Saint Irene, and was originally known in the Greek empire as ‘Kallístē’, ‘Strongýlē’ and ‘Thēra’, although the latter was eventually reinstated officially.
  • Santorini has a total area of 90.6 square kilometres (35 square miles), with the main island measuring 73 square kilometres (28 square miles), and it has a bus service, a major airline service and two ports for watercraft.
  • The Santorini archipelago was originally a single island which was destroyed, most likely between 1500 BC to 1700 BC, by the devastating Minoan or Thera volcanic eruption, and before its destruction the original island was well populated, and it was rediscovered and resettled after the Bronze Age.
  • In 2011, Santorini was the home to approximately 15 thousand people, all inhabiting the main island, except for a small population of approximately 150 that live on the island of Therasia.
Santorini, Blue, Island, Archipelago, Birds-eye view, Volcano, Greece, Ten Random Facts, Flickr,
Santorini Archipalego
Image courtesy of Steve Jurveston/Flickr
  • The Santorini islands surround the dormant volcano that destroyed the original island, which is, out of the surrounding volcanic chain known as the South Aegean Volcanic Arc, currently the most volcanically active, and its last eruption was in 1950, and activity was recorded from 2011-2012.
  • Santorini has been ruled by a number of different empires throughout its history, including the Minoan, Greek, Roman, Latin and Ottoman Turkish empires, and most recently, in 1830, it was reclaimed by Greece.
  • Even though up until the 1990s the availability of fresh water was scarce, people on the main island of Santorini have been able to establish prominent wine and tomato agricultural industries.
  • It is said that one of the locations on the original single Santorini Island, now dubbed as ‘Akrotiri’, is possibly the lost city of Atlantis, a Greek-originating legend, that was described by Plato.
  • Santorini buildings are typically Greek in their architectural style, and are shaped as strikingly white cubes, although many of the buildings were destroyed by an earthquake in 1956.
Bibliography:
Geography, 2014, Santorini, http://www.santorini.net/about-santorini/geography/
Santorini, 2014, Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santorini

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