Tops

10.Easter Island

Easter Island

Located some 2,000 miles west of the Chilean Coast, Easter Island, or Rapa Nui, is a tiny island that has become famous for its remarkable isolation in the vastness of the Pacific Ocean. It is relatively small, measuring roughly seventy square miles in size, and is today home to around 4,000 people. The island has become well known for the massive rock sculptures called Moai that dot its beaches. They were carved sometime around the year 1500 by the island’s earliest inhabitants, and it has been said that the massive wood sleds needed to transport them from one place to another are a big part of what led to the almost total deforestation of Easter Island. Scientists have argued that the island was once lush and tree-covered, but today it is relatively barren, a feature that only adds to the sense of sheer isolation that is said to overtake most first-time visitors. When the first settlers migrated to the island, the journey took several weeks, but today there is a small airport (reportedly the most remote in all the world) that carries passengers to the island by way of Santiago, Chile.

9. La Rinconada, Peru

For sheer inaccessibility, few locations in South America compare to La Rinconada, a small mining town in the Peruvian Andes. Located nearly 17,000 feet above sea level, La Rinconada is considered the “highest” city in the world, and it is this stunning geography that makes it so desolate. The city is located on a permanently frozen glacier, and can only be reached by truck via treacherous and winding mountain roads. Just reaching the city takes days, and even then altitude sickness, combined with the shantytown’s deplorable condition, means that few people can handle living there for long. Still, the town is said to have as many as 30,000 inhabitants, almost all of whom are involved in the business of mining gold, which is extracted from beneath the ice inside nearby caverns. In addition to its remoteness, La Rinconada has gained a dubious reputation as a destination for poor and desperate workers, many of whom work the mines for free in exchange for the right to keep a small percentage of the gold ore they find.

8. McMurdo Station, Antarctica

Located literally at the bottom of the world, Antarctica is easily one of the most remote places on the face of the Earth. There are no native inhabitants to the continent, but there are several research centers constantly in operation there, and of these McMurdo Station is the largest. Located on Ross Island near the northern tip of the continent, the almost perpetually frozen station is a center of international research, and is home to as many as 1,200 scientists and workers during the warmer summer months. It’s one of the most desolate locations on the planet, but although McMurdo is as far from a major city as any location in the world, even it is no longer as backwater as it used to be. Trips by boat to Antarctica once took months, sometimes even years, but McMurdo’s three airstrips have helped make the region a much less remote destination than before. Thanks to this, the scientists at the station now enjoy many of the modern amenities found in major cities, including gyms, television, and even a nine-hole Frisbee golf course.

7. Cape York Peninsula, Australia

Australia is known both for its extremely low population density and untouched natural beauty, both of which are best exemplified by Cape York, Peninsula, a huge expanse of untouched wilderness located on the country’s northern tip. The region has a population of only 18,000 people, most of whom are part of the country’s aboriginal tribes, and it is considered to be one of the largest undeveloped places left in the world. This helps contribute to its stunning natural beauty, but it also makes Cape York about as difficult to reach as any destination in Australia. The peninsula has become a popular destination for adventurous tourists, who drive jeeps and trucks down the unpaved Peninsula Development Road whenever it isn’t closed due to flooding during the rainy season. But even with 4-wheel drive trucks, many of the more heavily overgrown parts of Cape York Peninsula are completely inaccessible, and some regions have still only been surveyed by helicopter. Photo: http://www.abc.net.au

6. Ittoqqortoormiit, Greenland

At 836,000 square miles in size, Greenland is the world’s largest island, but its tiny population of 57,000 people means that it’s also the most desolate. And of all the towns in Greenland, perhaps none is as remote (or as difficult to pronounce) as Ittoqqortoormiit, a small fishing and hunting village located on the island’s eastern shore, to the north of Iceland. The town is part of a municipal district roughly the size of England, but it has a population of only slightly more than 500 people, meaning that each person technically has more than 150 square miles to call their own. Residents make their living off of hunting polar bears and whales, which are prevalent in the area, and by fishing for Halibut during the warmer months. Ittoqqortoormiit lies on the coast, but the seas surrounding it are almost perpetually frozen, leaving only a three-month window when the town is easily accessible by boat. There is an airport some 25 miles away, but flights are rare. For the most part, the town, one of the northernmost settlements in the world, is completely isolated in the vastness of the tundra. Photo: http://dlareh.blogspot.com (continue reading…)

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10. Kristen Stewart - is an American actress. She is best known for playing Bella Swan in Twilight, and will reprise her role in New Moon and Eclipse. She has also starred in films such as Panic Room, Zathura, In the Land of Women, Adventureland, and The Messengers.

Kristen Stewart

9. Jessica Simpson - is an American singer, actress, and television personality who rose to fame in the late 1990s. She has achieved seven Billboard Top 40 hits, and has three gold and two multi-platinum RIAA-certified albums. Simpson starred with her then-husband Nick Lachey in the MTV reality show Newlyweds: Nick and Jessica. She ventured into the country music market in 2008 and released Do You Know.

Jessica Simpson

8. Heidi Klum - is a German model, actress, television host, business woman, fashion designer, television producer, artist, and occasional singer. She is married to singer Seal.

Heidi Klum

7. Britney Spears -  is an American singer and entertainer. Born in Mississippi and raised in Louisiana, Spears first appeared on national television in 1992 as a contestant on the Star Search program, and went on to star in Disney Channel’s television series The New Mickey Mouse Club from 1993 to 1994. In 1997, Spears signed a recording contract with Jive, releasing her debut album …Baby One More Time in 1999. The album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 and has sold over 25 million copies worldwide. Her success continued with the release of her sophomore album, Oops!… I Did It Again in 2000, which established her as a pop icon and credited for influencing the revival of teen pop in the late 1990s

Britney Spears

6. Miley Cyrus - is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Cyrus is best known for starring as the title character in the Disney Channel series Hannah Montana. Following the success of Hannah Montana, in October 2006, a soundtrack CD was released in which she sang eight songs from the show. Cyrus’ solo music career began with the release of her debut album, Meet Miley Cyrus on June 23, 2007, which included her first top ten single “See You Again”. Her second album, Breakout, was released on July 22, 2008. Breakout is Cyrus’ first album that does not involve the Hannah Montana franchise. Both albums debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200.[5] In 2008, she appeared in the Hannah Montana & Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert film.

Miley Cyrus

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10. The 4400 - The 4400 tells the stories of 4,400 abductees after they are returned to earth….

9. True Blood - Alan Ball, creator of Six Feet Under, returns to HBO with a new series based on the novel series Southern Vampire by Charlaine Harris. The series follows Sookie Stackhouse, a telepathic barmaid who finds comfort in the company of vampires since they have no brainwave activity for her to read. She and her brother Jason were raised by her grandmother after losing their parents in a flood and she tries to keep her telepathic ability a secret. Thanks largely in part to the creation of a Japanese-made synthetic blood called Tru Blood (where the series takes it name) vampires have made their existence known to the world. Sookie works at the bar ‘Merlotte’s’ which is owned and operated by her boss Sam Merlotte who has a secret of his own.

8. The Dresden Files -Ever since he was a boy, Harry Blackstone Copperfield Dresden, knew that monsters were real, just as he was able to make things happen simply with the force of his will. As he grew he began to learn of his magical heritage, given to him by his mother, and coveted by his Uncle, who would stop at nothing to possess it.
Now that he is grown Harry is the only private investigator / wizard in Chicago and listed in the phone book. He uses real magic to help him solve his cases, much to the chagrin of both the police and the magical establishment, whose shadow wars often spill into the ‘real’ world and involve people who have no idea just how magical, and dark, the world can be.

7. Star Trek DS9 - When the Cardassian occupation of Bajor ended in 2369, the mining space-station Terok Nor was left abandoned, its systems ripped out. By invitation of the provisional Bajoran government, Starfleet stepped in to oversee the rebuilding and day-to-day operations of the newly christened Deep Space Nine. Starfleet’s position was a tentative one, many Bajorans suspicious and unwelcoming as a result of Cardassian oppression and brutality. However the alliance held and soon DS9 was a center of travel and commerce thanks to a newly found stable wormhole, leading to the largely unexplored Gamma Quadrant.

6. Smallville - Smallville tells the tale of a teenage Clark Kent in the days before he was Superman. It is the town where he came from where very strange things started happening with his arrival in a spaceship in the midst of a meteor storm of green rocks. Clark must deal with a variety of individuals given powers by the green rocks, keep his powers a secret, cope with his friendship with a young Lex Luthor, and balance the two girls in his life, Chloe and Lana. The show also shows us how Lex Luthor develops from a friend of Clark’s and kinda-okay guy to (presumably) the villain who will plague Superman in his later years.

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10. Day Break - Detective Brett Hopper is having a really bad day, accused of killing Asst. DA Alberto Garza. He has an alibi, but no one believes him. When he realizes that he has been framed, he tries to run away but has to stop when he learns that his loved ones are also in danger. But one morning, he wakes up and relives the same day over and over again. To stop this cycle, solve the mystery and have a normal life, he must find out who framed him.

9. The Wire - In chronicling a multi-generational family business dealing illegal drugs and the efforts of the Baltimore police to curb their trade, this series draws parallels between these organizations and the men and women on either side of the battle.

8. Las Vegas - Las Vegas is a fast paced drama about one of Sin City’s biggest casinos The Montecito. It follows the lives of 6 key employees and how they solve everyday problems that occur and could cost the casino a lot of money.

7. The Mentalist - tells the tale of a man, Patrick Jane who is employed as an independent detective working with the California Bureau of Investigation to solve crimes. He was making a living a psychic and would assist the police on cases — only his life changed when he lost the two most important people in his life to one of those serial killers he was helping track. He works with the Serious Crime Unit and uses his refined observations skills to help them solve cases. He works with senior agent, Teresa Gibson, agents Kimball Cho & Wayne Rigsby and the rookie, Grace Van Pelt.

6.  The Tudors - The Tudors will focus on the rarely dramatized, tumultuous early years of King Henry VIII’s nearly 40-year, omnipotent reign (1509-1547) of England. In addition to dalliances with famous female consorts Catherine of Aragon and the infamous Anne Boleyn, the series delves into Henry’s most notable political relationships, including those with philosopher Sir Thomas More and Thomas Cardinal Wolsey, head of the Catholic Church of England during its break with Rome. (continue reading…)

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10.Jurassic Park  -$919,700,000

Huge advancements in scientific technology have been able to create an island full of living dinosaurs. John Hammond have invited four individuals, plus his two grandchildren to join him at Jurassic Park. But will everything go to plan? Especially when one of the parks own workers attempt to steal the dinosaurs embryos, and have to shut down all the electricity in the process. It’s now a race for survival with everyone located all over the island.

9.The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers - $921,600,000

Sauron’s forces increase. His allies grow. The Ringwraiths return in an even more frightening form. Saruman’s army of Uruk Hai is ready to launch an assault against Aragorn and the people of Rohan. Yet, the Fellowship is broken and Boromir is dead. For the little hope that is left, Frodo and Sam march on into Mordor, unprotected. A number of new allies join with Aragorn, Gimli, Legolas, Pippin and Merry. And they must defend Rohan and attack Isengard. Yet, while all this is going on, Sauron’s troops mass toward the City of Gondor, for the War of the Ring is about to begin

8.Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace  - $922,379,000

This First Episode follows the young years of Anakin Skywalker (Darth Vader). The friendship of Obi-wan Kenobi, Yoda and Qui-Gon Jinn are also central aspects. And the beginning of the rise to power of Senator Palpatine to Emperor.

7.Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix - $937,000,866

After a lonely summer on Privet Drive, Harry returns to a Hogwarts full of ill-fortune. Few of students and parents believe him or Dumbledore that Voldemort is really back. The ministry had decided to step in by appointing a new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher that proves to be the nastiest person Harry has ever encountered. Harry also can’t help stealing glances with the beautiful Cho Chang. To top it off are dreams that Harry can’t explain, and a mystery behind something Voldemort is searching for. With these many things Harry begins one of his toughest years at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry

6. Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End - $958,404,152

Elizabeth, Will and the crew of the Pearl sail off the edge of the map (literally) with the help of mysterious Tia Dalma and the late Captain Barbossa who has been raised by the dead to save Captain Jack Sparrow . He has been condemned to the terrible fate of remaining in the void of Davey Jones’ locker for eternity. But rescuing Jack isn’t the real meat of this movie - Lord Cutler Beckett has control of the heart of Davey Jones, and with that he controls the sea. The nine pirate lords of the world must unite for a final stand against Beckett, Jones and the East India Trade company  (continue reading…)

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10. Hang Nga Guesthouse a.k.a Crazy House (Vietnam)

The house is owned by the daughter of the ex-president of Vietnam, who studied architecture in Moscow.

It does not comply with any convention about house building, has unexpected twists and turns, roofs and rooms. It looks like a fairy tale castle, it has enormous “animals” like a giraffe and a spider, no window is rectangular or round,

and it can be visited like a museum.

Hang Nga Guesthouse a.k.a Crazy House

9. Cubic Houses (Rotterdam, Netherlands)

The original idea of these cubic houses came about in the 1970s. Piet Blom has developed a couple of these cubic houses that were built in Helmond.

The city of Rotterdam asked him to design housing on top of a pedestrian bridge and he decided to use the cubic houses idea. The concept behind these houses is that he tries to create a forest by each cube representing an abstract tree; therefore the whole village becomes a forest.

Cubic Houses

8. Habitat 67 (Montreal, Canada)

Expo 67, one of the world’s largest universal expositions was held in Montreal. Housing was one of the main themes of Expo 67.

The cube is the base, the mean and the finality of Habitat 67. In its material sense, the cube is a symbol of stability. As for its mystic meaning, the cube is symbol of wisdom, truth, moral perfection, at the origin itself of our civilization.

354 cubes of a magnificent grey-beige build up one on the other to form 146 residences nestled between sky and earth, between city and river, between greenery and light.

Habitat 67

7. Wonderworks (Pigeon Forge, TN, United States)

Located along the main thoroughfare, you might miss this odd structure altogether if not for its unique architecture. It leans! When you drive by, don’t dismiss it as yet another tourist trap in a town full of vendors capitalizing on the lure of the Smoky Mountains. Even parents on their way to the more famous Dollywood Theme Park might want to consider Wonderworks, when trying to budget which attractions deserve their hard earned vacation dollars.

Wonderworks

6. Kansas City Public Library (Missouri, United States)

This project, located in the heart of Kansas City, represents one of the pioneer projects behind the revitalization of downtown.

The people of Kansas City were asked to help pick highly influential books that represent Kansas City. Those titles were included as ‘bookbindings’ in the innovative design of the parking garage exterior, to inspire people to utilize the downtown Central Library.

Kansas City Public Library

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5.  Château de Versailles

This castle complex is Louis XIV’s masterpiece, a structure so magnificent that the state treasury was almost depleted during its construction. Also known as the Palace of Versailles, and located now on the edge of Paris, this palace became home to French nobility during the seventeenth century. As the complex grew through four “building campaigns,” Versailles became the center of French government. Louis XIV lived at Versailles, and government offices, homes of thousands of courtiers and their retinues were built there, and nobles of a certain rank and position spent time each year at the court complex. Louis XIV’s attempt to centralize the French government succeeded, as few could match the ostentatious glamour represented by Versailles.

Château de Versailles

4. Bran Castle

This is another castle that the faint of heart might want to avoid! Commonly known as Dracula ’s Castle, the Bran Castle was originally a stronghold built by the Knights of Teutonic Order in 1212. The first documentary attestation of the Bran Castle is the act issued on 19 November 1377, giving the Saxons of Kronstadt (Brasov) the privilege to build the Citadel. The building started in 1378 as a defense against Turks and later became a customs post on the pass between Transylvania and Walachia. From 1920 the castle became a royal residence until the expulsion of the royal family in 1948. Today it functions as a very attractive museum of medieval arts. The official Romanian site will provide you with the lowdown on this country’s castles, so be sure to visit that site if you plan to visit Romania. (continue reading…)

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8. Jennifer Aniston - is an American actress. She became famous from the mid 1990s to the early 2000s for playing the role of Rachel Green in the popular US sitcom Friends, a role for which she won an Emmy Award, a Golden Globe Award, and a Screen Actors Guild Award.

Jennifer Aniston

She earned more than $8 million for “Marley & Me.”

7.Anne Hathaway -  is an American actress. She made her acting debut in the 1999 television series Get Real, but her first prominent role was in Disney’s family comedy The Princess Diaries (starring opposite Julie Andrews), which established her career.

She continued to appear in family films over the next three years, with lead roles in Ella Enchanted and The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement in 2004. Hathaway would later venture away from the “G-rated” image her early acting career bestowed upon her, starring in the films Havoc and Brokeback Mountain. She later starred in The Devil Wears Prada, opposite Meryl Streep; Becoming Jane, in which she portrays Jane Austen, and Get Smart, opposite Steve Carell. In 2008 she earned widespread critical acclaim for her star turn in the film Rachel Getting Married, for which she won numerous awards and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress.

Anne Hathaway

She was paid about $5 million for “Bride Wars,” but can expect to command more after critical acclaim for Jonathan Demme’s “Rachel Getting Married.”

6.Kate Hudson  - is an American film actress. She came to prominence in 2001 after receiving an Oscar nomination and a Golden Globe for her role in the drama Almost Famous, and has since established herself as a Hollywood lead actress, starring in several films, including How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, The Skeleton Key, You, Me and Dupree, Fool’s Gold, and Bride Wars.

Kate Hudson

She took in about $7 million each for “My Best Friend’s Girl” and upcoming “Bride Wars.”

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10. The McMurdo Dry Valleys - are a row of valleys in Antarctica located within Victoria Land west of McMurdo Sound. The region includes many interesting geological features including Lake Vida and the Onyx River, Antarctica’s longest river. It is also one of the world’s most extreme deserts.

McMurdo Dry Valleys

9.  Bermuda Triangle - The Bermuda Triangle, also known as the Devil’s Triangle, is a region in the western part of the North Atlantic Ocean where a number of aircraft and surface vessels allegedly disappeared mysteriously. Popular culture has attributed these disappearances to the paranormal or activity by extraterrestrial beings. Documented evidence indicates that a significant percentage of the incidents were inaccurately reported or embellished by later authors, and numerous official agencies have stated that the number and nature of disappearances in the region is similar to that in any other area of ocean.

Bermuda Triangle

8. Kauai - is the oldest of the main Hawaiian Islands. With an area of 562.3 square miles (1,456.4 km2), it is the fourth largest of the main islands in the Hawaiian archipelago and the 21st largest island in the United States. Known also as the “Garden Isle”, Kauaʻi lies 105 miles (170 kilometers) across the Kauaʻi Channel, northwest of Oʻahu.

The United States Census Bureau defines Kauaʻi as Census Tracts 401 through 409 of Kauaʻi County, Hawaiʻi, which is all of the county except for the islands of Kaʻula, Lehua, and Niʻihau. The 2000 census population of Kauaʻi (the island) was 58,303.

Kauai

7. Rotorua - is a city on the southern shores of the lake of the same name, in the Bay of Plenty region of the North Island of New Zealand. The city is the seat of the Rotorua District, a territorial authority encompassing the city and several other nearby towns. Rotorua city has an estimated permanent population of 55,600 , with the Rotorua district having a total estimated population of 68,200 . The city is in the heart of the North Island, just 60 kilometres (37 mi) south of Tauranga, 80 kilometres (50 mi) north of Taupo, 105 kilometres (65 mi) east of Hamilton, and 230 kilometres (140 mi) southeast of Auckland.

Rotorua is a major destination for both domestic and international tourists; the tourism industry is by far the largest industry in the district. The city is known for its geothermal activity, and features geysers – notably the Pohutu Geyser at Whakarewarewa – and hot mud pools. This thermal activity is sourced to the Rotorua caldera, on which the city lies. Rotorua is home to the largest tertiary institute outside of the university centres, the Waiariki Institute of Technology.

Rotorua

6.Auroras - also known as northern and southern (polar) lights or aurorae (singular: aurora), are natural light displays in the sky, usually observed at night, particularly in the polar regions. They typically occur in the ionosphere. They are also referred to as polar auroras. This is a misnomer however, because they are commonly visible between 65 to 72 degrees north and south latitudes, which would place it in a ring just within the Arctic and Antarctic circles. Aurorae occur deeper inside the polar regions, but these are infrequent occurrences, and these are often invisible to the naked eye.

In northern latitudes, the effect is known as the aurora borealis, named after the Roman goddess of dawn, Aurora, and the Greek name for the north wind, Boreas, by Pierre Gassendi in 1621. The aurora borealis is also called the northern polar lights, as it is only visible in the sky from the Northern Hemisphere, with the chance of visibility increasing with proximity to the North Magnetic Pole. (Earth’s is currently in the arctic islands of northern Canada.) Auroras seen near the magnetic pole may be high overhead, but from further away, they illuminate the northern horizon as a greenish glow or sometimes a faint red, as if the Sun were rising from an unusual direction. The Aurora Borealis most often occurs near the equinoxes. The northern lights have had a number of names throughout history. The Cree call this phenomenon the “Dance of the Spirits.” In the Middle Ages the auroras have been called a sign from God (see Wilfried Schröder, Das Phänomen des Polarlichts, Darmstadt 1984).

Auroras

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Himeji Castle

Himeji Castle

You may have seen this castle as a ninja training school in James Bond’s You Only Live Twice. It also appeared in The Last Samurai, several Kurosawa movies, and in the TV miniseries, Shogun. Also known as the “White Heron Castle”, Himeji Castle was originally built in the 14th century, and then rebuilt in 1580.

Hohenschwangau Castle

Hohenschwangau

Hohenschwangau Castle (lit: Castle of the High Swan County) is a 19th century castle in southern Germany. It was the childhood residence of King Ludwig II of Bavaria and was built by his father, King Maximilian II of Bavaria. It is located in the German village of Schwangau near the town of Füssen, part of the county of Ostallgäu in southwestern Bavaria, Germany, very close to the border with Austria. (continue reading…)

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