Fwd: Fw: Stunning Location most Toruists do not know + Most Misused Words of English Language + Caves of Italy + Taiwenese Birds beautifully photogrphed

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Sankara Iyer

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Nov 24, 2016, 8:56:18 AM11/24/16

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Stunning Location most Toruists do not know

There are, without doubt, a lot of really beautiful places on this planet that we call home, but it's fair to say that not all these places are created equal. In fact, some of the world’s most beautiful places are lesser known and not much talked about. This is a shame as these stunning locations are well worth a visit.

Below you can see 15 such wonderful places. Which of these would you like to lose yourself in on your next vacation?

1. The Silfra Fissure, Iceland

The Silfra Fissure is located in the Thingvellir National Park in Iceland. This fissure is a favorite place for divers and adventurers. The water is so pure and clear here that you can see right to the bottom of the fissure – all 300 meters of it.

2. The Door to Hell (Darvaza Crater), Turkmenistan

This giant burning crater is around 60 meters wide and 20 meters deep. This crater was created after geologists set fire to the natural gases inside a cave in order to prevent it from harming local people and livestock. The fire was supposed to have burn out in a few days, but it is still going strong nearly half a century later.

3. Blagaj, Bosnia and Herzogovina

Blagaj is a small village which is located at the bottom of a cliff in the midst of waterfalls and azure waters. This is a sacred place for the Sufis who have turned this village into a slice of paradise.

4. Flores Island, Portugal

Flores Island is located in the most western part of the Azores islands near the Portuguese coast. The island gets its name from the fact that almost all of it is covered with different kinds of flowers. To add to this, there are lagoons, lakes, volcanoes and caves to explore. Flores Island is listed as a UNESCO world heritage site.

5. Sentenil de las Bodegas, Spain

This small town in the south of Spain was built over 8 centuries ago. What makes it unique is the fact that it was built into rocks in order to protect the locals from the scorching sun and wind. When you visit here you realize just how small you are.

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6. Huacachina, Peru

Huacachina is a small oasis town in the heart of a vast desert. The population of the town is only around 200 people, so you can cut yourself off from the rest of the world here. If you ever visit here, be sure to try out sand boarding on Peruvian dunes.

7. The Lencois Maranhenses National Park, Brazil

The Lencois Maranhenses National Park can be found on the Atlantic coast in northeastern Brazil. During the rainy season, thousands of turquoise lagoons form among the sand dunes. These lagoons are full of fish and crabs (although no one is too sure how they get there). The best time to visit this wonderful place is between July and September when the lagoons are at their full capacity.

8. Popeye's Village, Malta

Popeye's Village was originally built for shooting the Popeye musical in the 1980s. Nowadays, it is a resort with a small amusement park, stunning views and cruises around the bay

9. Hidden Beach, Marieta Islands, Mexico

Hidden Beach is a secluded beach which has crystal clear waters and a large variety of birds living there. The only way to get to this beach is by boat. After drifting through a maze of underwater caves, you will discover a beautiful beach which has been lost within the depths of the island.

10. Lake Hillier, Australia

Lake Hillier is located in south-west Australia and the only way to get there is by plane. The water here is pink and it remains that way the whole year round. No one knows for sure what it is which gives this water its unusual colour.

11. Dongchuan Red Soil, China

This is a mountainous valley which is found in Kunming, the capital of Yunnan Province. The landscape is reddish brown due to the high concentration of minerals and fossils in the soil.

12. Las Lajas Sanctuary, Columbia

This sanctuary is located in the gorge which acts as the border between Columbia and Ecuador. This magnificent building rises 45 meters above the river below.

13. Isola Bella, Italy

Isola Bella is one of the most beautiful islands in the world. On this island you can find the stunning Borromeo Palace and a multilevel blooming garden complete with terraces, grottos and fountains. To add to this, beautiful white peacocks, known as royal birds, roam freely around the gardens.

14. The Marble Caves, Chile

These marble caves are located on one of the peninsulas at General Carrera Lake in Chile. These breathtaking caves have been created by the water over thousands of years.

15. The Cave of Saint Marcel d’Ardeche, France

The cave of Saint-Marcel-d’Ardeche) is located in the region of Rhône in the French Alps. This is a huge network of caves with stunning crystal clear water and colorful rocks.

Most Misused Words of English Language

Modern English is an interesting language - it's constantly evolving. Words are altered and definitions are updated accordingly. We can’t all be linguists, but we should know how to use the words we choose correctly.

1. Compelled

What they think it means: To do something voluntarily by choice.

What it actually means: To be forced or obligated to doing something.

To be compelled is to be forced to do something, regardless of whether you actually want to do it or not.

2. Bemused

What they think it means: Amused.

What it actually means: Confused.

While it sounds similar to Amused, its meaning is completely different. It originally comes from the middle-English words Be, which is an intensifier, and Muse, which is to contemplate.

3. Irony

What they think it means: Something that's funny.

What it actually means: Contrary to what you're expecting.

From the Greek word “eirōneia” - meaning “to simulate ignorance”. There are different kinds of irony but they generally are the expression of one's meaning by using language that normally signifies the opposite.

4. Redundant

What they think it means: Repetitive.

What it actually means: Unnecessarily excessive.

Not all repetition is redundant. Something becomes redundant only when there's too much of it.

5. Effect

What they think it means: To cause something to change.

What it actually means: An event that causes a change.

If an individual wants to change another’s opinion, the individual will need to affect it somehow. The action taken was the effect that caused the change of opinion.

6. Travesty

What they think it means: A tragedy or something unfortunate.

What it actually means: A mockery or parody.

The death of Robin Williams was a tragedy.When some individuals made jokes about it – it was a travesty.

7. i.e.

What they think it means: For example.

What it actually means: In other words.

From the Latin “Id Est” (meaning: in that), i.e. is used when you want repeat something in a different manner – i.e. to say something again in another way.

8. Plethora

What they think it means: A lot of something.

What it actually means: More than is needed.

From the Greek “plēthōrē”, meaning “Be full”. 10,000 people in a stadium isn't a plethora of people, but put them in a small house and they suddenly become a plethora.

9. Disinterested

What they think it means: Bored.

What it actually means: Neutral.

If you are bored – you are uninterested (it doesn’t interest you). But if you are disinterested – you simply don’t care either way.

10. Obsolete

What they think it means: Old, out of date.

What it actually means: Not produced, used, or needed.

You might think that your old cellphone is obsolete, and you might be right, because that model probably isn't produced anymore. However, cellphones on the whole are still produced, used and needed, so cellphones in themselves are not obsolete. A good example of something that is obsolete is a steam engine – they’re so inefficient compared to today’s combustion and electric engines, that no-one produces, uses or needs them.

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11. Chronic

What they think it means: Severe.

What it actually means: Over the course of a long time.

A person with chronic pain is not necessarily in severe pain, but has been experiencing the pain for a long time.

12. Nauseous

What they think it means: To feel ill.

What it actually means: To cause feelings of illness.

If you say that you are nauseous – you’re actually saying that you cause nausea in others. Instead, the word you should be using is nauseated.

13. Peruse

What they think it means: To skim or browse.

What it actually means: To observe in depth.

This word originates from 15th Century English. “Per”, meaning thoroughly, and Use. If you peruse a book, you are reading it with your full concentration, possibly re-reading it several times.

14. Defective

What they think it means: That something is broken or it has missing pieces.

What it actually means: Simply that it’s broken.

Imagine if you were to buy two new smartphones. One cannot be turned on, and the other’s screen is in pieces. The first is not defective, but rather deficient. The latter is indeed defective, as it’s literally broken.

15. Enormity

What they think it means: Huge, enormous.

What it actually means: Profoundly immoral or evil.

From the Latin “enormitas”, meaning ‘deviation from legal or moral rectitude’, enormity can only be used to describe size or quantity in regard to something that is perceived as bad (or worse).

16. Fortuitous

What they think it means: Lucky.

What it actually means: By chance.

A fortuitous event differs from an event of luck by being neutral. If you find a winning lottery ticket on the street, that is lucky. If you then slip and fall, losing the ticket, that is fortuitous.

17. Can

What they think it means: What is permissible.

What it actually means: What is possible.

If you were to ask me: “Can I have a drink?”, you’re not asking me if you are allowed to have a drink, but rather, if you are actually capable of drinking.

18. Literally

What they think it means: Figuratively.

What it actually means: Actually.

What you use “Literally”, you’re saying that something happened in the literal sense of the word and not as a figure of speech. If you were to say “There were literally a million cars on the road” then it means that the number of cars on the road was exactly one million, no more, no less.

19. Total

Total means exactly what people think it means but it is used unnecessarily on a frequent basis. When there is a total of 50 people, the total is 50 whether or not you use the word “total”. You might hear someone say that they were totally surprised. Surprise is not a conditional emotion - You were either surprised, or you were not. The use of total doesn't add anything of value to the sentence.

20. Conversate

What they think it means: To have a conversation.

What it actually means: Nothing.

It comes from a mix of “Converse” and “Conversation”, but it's simply not a real word and it doesn't have meaning.

21. Irregardless

What they think it means: Without regard.

What it actually means: Nothing.

Like conversate above, irregardless isn’t actually a word. When people say irregardless, they actually mean to say regardless.

Caves of Italy

Located in Southern Italy, there is an ancient city called Matera, famed for its cave houses called 'sassi'. The sassi are carved into the cliffs of a rocky ravine. They are believed to have been created by what was once a big river. The dwellings are said to be among the first human settlements in Italy dating back to the Paleolithic era some 9,000 years ago. Since then, until as recently as the 1950s, the caves have been inhabited.

The caved houses are believed to be one of the oldest human settlements in the Mediterranean, dating back to the Paleolithic era.

Over time more caves were dug out to accommodate the growing population. Some of the earliest houses look like stone huts.

As the city developed it became a mix of narrow alleys and stairways.

Residents living in the dwellings were evacuated in the 1950s. The people who lived in the dwellings at the time had no running water, electricity or a sewage facility nearby.

The people residing within the area lacked basic goods too as there were no shops in the village.

A typical diet included bread, oil, crushed tomatoes and peppers.

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Disease was rampant. Malaria was especially common. Large families lived alongside their livestock and in extremely unhygienic conditions.

After the Second World War, the new government tried to move the city's cave residents into modern housing. Many of the residents, however, were reluctant to move, until the government forcibly relocated the inhabitants to a new town on top of the cliff.

In 1993 UNESCO named Matera a World Heritage site. And at this time, the city's fortune changed. The title brought in a wave of curious tourists. The crumbling caves were restored and transformed and the city saw the creation of cozy homes as well as stylish hotels and restaurants.

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Matera is now known as an interesting, unusual and memorable tourist destination in southern Italy.

In fact, the ancient city has also appeared as a biblical location in Hollywood films like The Passion of the Christ, The Nativity Storyand King David.

Taiwanese birds beautifully photogaphed

John & Fish, a brother and sister duo from Taiwan, have been photographing birds since 2006. Amazed by the beauty of nature, they began taking pictures of the birds of Taiwan and soon opened up a flickr account which promptly “exploded” with visitors. Their online album got millions of views from around the world. Viewers even provided the duo with valuable information which inspired their newer works.

If you want to see more of their work, check out their site Johnnfish.com.

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