Higashimokoto Flower Park Japan

Higashimokoto Flower Park Japan

Home to nearly one million pink shibazakura flowers, spread over an area of 100,000 square meters, on a hillside overlooking the picturesque town of Takinoue, the Higashimokoto Flower Park is a must-see attraction for flower lovers.

There are lost of impressive tourist destinations on Japan’s Hokkaido island, but the hillside flower park overlooking the town of Takinoue stands out as the most colorful. Every year, from early May to mid June, the hill is covered with a pink carpet of Moss Phlox flowers, commonly known as shibazakura. Winding paths lead visitors from the base of the hill to the very top where they are treated to a magnificent view of the surrounding sea of flowers.

Higashimokoto Park was founded in 1956, with only a box full of shibazakura seeds, but a growing number of plants have been planted every year since, and today the pink flowers cover an area of over 100,000 square meters. During the month-long blooming season, the bright pink flowers fill the air with a sweet scent that complements the amazing view. At the height of the moss phlox season, locals hold an annual festival dedicated to the flowers, featuring all kinds of themed events, and stalls selling snacks and souvenirs.

Horizontal Waterfalls In Australia

Horizontal Waterfalls In Australia


It is strange to hear this combination of words. However, it is a fact. In the Australian Talbot Bay are several unusual waterfalls that appear only at high tide, which makes the definition of waterfall controversial.

The maximum difference between the highest and the lowest point of the falls is only about five meters. In the same time, the width of the gorges through which rushes the water is in one case about 10 meters and in other about 20 meters. The two waterfalls are the connecting openings between the Talbot Bay and the Poulton Creek. The gorges are located on the McLarty Range on a distance of about 300 meters from each other.

Coldest City In The World - Yakutsk Siberia

Coldest City In The World - Yakutsk Siberia


Yakutsk, a remote city in Eastern Siberia along the Lena River, is the coldest city in the world. Located 1840 km away from Irkoustk and 5000 km away from Moscow, this city founded in 1632 by the Cossacks imposes upon its inhabitants an extreme way of life.

And yet, despite particularly harsh conditions, Yakutsk boasts a population of 270,000, or a quarter of the entire population of Siberia. No other place on the planet experiences the temperature extreme found here: in winter, the temperatures regularly fall to minus 40° (the coldest temperature recorded was –64°C) and in summer often reaches temperatures above 30°C. Photos: January 2013.

A scene in Yakutsk, Siberia, the coldest city in the world. more images after the break...

Beautiful Aihole Temple District of Karnataka, India

Beautiful Aihole Temple District of Karnataka, India

Aihole is a temple complex in the Bagalkot district of Karnataka, India. It is a very popular tourist spot in north Karnataka. Aihole is to the east of Pattadakal, along the Malaprabha River, while Badami is to the west of both.
Early inscriptions call this town Aryapura and Arya-vole. According to hindu mythology Aihole is the place were parshuram washed his axe after killing Kshathriya’s. He saw a pond(Hole in Kannada) with exclamation he called it as “Ayyo Hole” thus the name Aihole came to existance since from then. Aihole has its own historical significance and is called as cradle of Hindu rock architecture. Many temples and caves of historical importance can be found at Aihole.


Aihole was the first capital of the early Chalukyas. Here they built over 125 temples in various styles and is said to be a laboratory of experiments in rock cut architecture.


Aihole, was the cradle of ancient Hindu temple architecture. It has more than 70 temples. The experimentation with different styles was undertaken by the artisans. The artisans worked on the rocks to create the earliest rock cut shrines. The artisans graduated to the full fledged Chalukya style of architecture.

The Ruins of Madain Saleh - Saudi Arabia

The Ruins of Madain Saleh - Saudi Arabia


Madain Saleh is a pre-Islamic archaeological site located in the Al-Ula sector, within the Al Madinah Region of Saudi Arabia. The Quran tell of an earlier settlement of the area by the tribe of Thamud in the 3rd millennium BC.

According to the Islamic text, Allah punished the Thamudis for their persistent practice of idol worship and for conspiring to kill the prophet whom He sent, the non-believers being struck by an earthquake and lightning blasts. Thus, the site has earned a superstitious reputation down to contemporary times as a cursed place.

In 2008, for its well-preserved remains from late antiquity, especially the 131 rock-cut monumental tombs, with their elaborately ornamented façades, of the Nabatean kingdom, UNESCO proclaimed Madain Saleh as a site of patrimony, becoming Saudi Arabia's first World Heritage Site.