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27 Sights That Will Remind You How Incredible Earth Is

Travel website CNN GO recently published a great list of incredible sights from around the world.

Spotting a lion is great, but even greater are the millions of wildebeest trekking across the African plains on an annual migration.

There are some things you can see around the world that have the potential to give you photo-showing rights for decades.

We haven't got them all -- in fact we barely scratched the surface. But we have picked out a few of the scenes that, if you're lucky enough to witness them, will invariably leave you spellbound.

Some inspiring choices here - we've listed each of them below so that you can add any of these to your lists.
Borobudur, or Barabudur, is a 9th-century Mahayana Buddhist monument near Magelang, Central Java, Indonesia. The monument comprises six square platforms topped by three circular platforms, and is decorated with 2,672 relief panels and 504 Buddha statues. A main dome, located at the center of the top platform, is surrounded by 72 Buddha statues seated inside perforated stupa. The monument is both a shrine to the Lord Buddha and a place for Buddhist pilgrimage.
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The Brighton Marine Palace and Pier is a pleasure pier in Brighton, England. It is generally known as the Palace Pier for short, but has been informally renamed Brighton Pier since 2000 by its owners, the Noble Organisation, in an attempt to suggest that it is Brighton's only pier. The West Pier was its rival but was closed in 1975 and was subsequently severely damaged by fires and storms, with the remaining iron structure being partially demolished in 2010.
At dusk, Brighton Pier offers a mesmerizing view of starling murmurations, forming dynamic aerial patterns.
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Auroras, also known as northern and southern (polar) lights or aurorae, are natural light displays in the sky, particularly in the polar regions, and usually observed at night. 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 place them a ring just within the Arctic and Antarctic circles.
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The Serengeti ecosystem is a geographical region located in north-western Tanzania and extends to south-western Kenya between latitudes 1 and 3 S and longitudes 34 and 36 E. It spans some 30,000 km (12,000 sq mi). The Serengeti hosts the largest and longest migration in the world, which is one of the ten natural travel wonders of the world. The region contains several national parks and game reserves.
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The Mackenzie Basin (popularly and traditionally known as the Mackenzie Country), is an elliptical intermontane basin, located in the Mackenzie and Waitaki Districts, near the centre of the South Island of New Zealand. It is the largest such basin in New Zealand. Historically famous mainly for sheep farming, the sparsely populated area is now also a popular tourism destination.
The Mackenzie Basin is home to the world's largest Dark Sky Reserve, perfect for stargazing.
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Torres del Paine National Park (Parque Nacional Torres del Paine) is a national park encompassing a mountains, glacier, lake, and river-rich areas in southern Chilean Patagonia. The Cordillera del Paine is the centerpiece of the park. It lies in a transition area between the Magellanic subpolar forests and the Patagonian Steppes. The park is located 112 km (70 mi) north of Puerto Natales and 312 km (194 mi) north of Punta Arenas.
Torres del Paine National Park is home to the breathtaking "W" trek, offering stunning views of glaciers, lakes, and granite peaks.
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Djemaa el Fna is a square and market place in Marrakesh's medina quarter (old city). The origin of its name remains unknown: it means Assembly of the dead in Arabic, but as the word djemaa also means mosque in Arabic, it could also mean Place of the Vanished Mosque, in reference to a destroyed Almoravid mosque, or it could mean The Mosque of Eternity or The Mosque of Annihilation or perhaps The Mosque at the End of the World.
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Yosemite National Park is a United States National Park spanning eastern portions of Tuolumne, Mariposa and Madera counties in east central California, United States. The park covers an area of 761,268 acres (3,080.74 km) and reaches across the western slopes of the Sierra Nevada mountain chain. Over 3.7 million people visit Yosemite each year: most spend their time in the seven square miles (18 km) of Yosemite Valley.
Yosemite is one of the most popular parks in the country and outdoor enthusiasts will not want to miss the opportunity to !
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The Basilica of St Mary of Health, commonly known simply as the Salute, is a Roman Catholic church and minor basilica located in the Dorsoduro sestiere of the Italian city of Venice. It stands on a narrow finger of land between the Grand Canal and the Bacino di San Marco making the church visible when entering the Piazza San Marco from the water. The Salute is part of the parish of the Gesuati and is the most recent of the so-called Plague-churches.
Santa Maria della Salute's iconic dome was designed to symbolize Venice's deliverance from the plague.
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Get inspired with these ideas for interesting and different experiences around the world.
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Palenque was a Maya city state in southern Mexico that flourished in the seventh century CE. After its decline it was absorbed into the jungle, but has been excavated and restored and is now a famous archaeological site attracting thousands of visitors. It is located near the Usumacinta River in the Mexican state of Chiapas, located about 130 km south of Ciudad del Carmen about 150 meters above sea-level.
Palenque, an ancient Mayan city in Mexico, is famous for its well-preserved temples and intricate stone carvings that provide valuable insights into the Mayan civilization.
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Tornado Alley is a colloquial and popular media term that most often refers to the area of the United States where tornadoes are most frequent. Although an official location is not defined, the area between the Rocky Mountains and Appalachian Mountains is usually associated with it.
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Sydney Harbour National Park is a national park comprising parts of Sydney Harbour, its foreshores and various islands. The park lies within the Sydney metropolitan area and was created in piecemeal fashion during the 20th century. Much of the harbour foreshores had been spoiled by residential development; what remained was preserved partly because of the presence of military bases, and partly because of the work of conservationists.
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Monument Valley is a region of the Colorado Plateau characterized by a cluster of vast sandstone buttes, the largest reaching 1,000 ft (300 m) above the valley floor. It is located on the southern border of Utah with northern Arizona, near the Four Corners area. The valley lies within the range of the Navajo Nation Reservation, and is accessible from U.S. Highway 163.
Monument Valley, located on the Arizona-Utah border, has served as the backdrop for countless Western films, making it one of the most iconic and recognizable landscapes in the world.
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The Taj Mahal is a mausoleum located in Agra, India. It is one of the most recognizable structures in the world. It was built by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his third wife, Mumtaz Mahal. It is widely considered as one of the most beautiful buildings in the world and stands as a symbol of eternal love. Taj Mahal is the finest example of Mughal architecture, a style that combines elements from Persian, Islamic and Indian architectural styles.
You will not be alone! An estimated 7-8 million visitors each year make this India's top destination.
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Kasanka National Park in Central Province, Zambia is unique in the country and unusual in Africa in that it is privately managed and owned by a trust. The Kasanka Trust was registered in Zambia in 1987 and in the UK in 1989. It aims to make the park self-sustaining and secure its biodiversity. Kasanka National Park is in the Central Zambezian Miombo woodlands ecoregion which covers most of the country.
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Carlsbad Caverns National Park is a United States National Park in the Guadalupe Mountains in southeastern New Mexico. The primary attraction of the park for most visitors is the show cave, Carlsbad Caverns. Visitors to the cave can hike in on their own via the natural entrance, or take the elevator (the exit for everyone) directly to the Underground Lunchroom some 750 feet (230 m) below.
Carlsbad Caverns National Park is home to the deepest cave in the continental United States. Lechuguilla Cave is 138.3 miles (222.6 km) long and the seventh-longest explored cave in the world.
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The Victoria Falls or Mosi-oa-Tunya (the Smoke that Thunders) is a waterfall located in southern Africa on the Zambezi River between the countries of Zambia and Zimbabwe. The falls are some of the largest in the world.
A lunar rainbow, or "moonbow," can be seen at Victoria Falls during a full moon.
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Shubenacadie is a community located in Hants County, in central Nova Scotia, Canada. As of 2006, the population was 2,074. In the Micmac language, Shubenacadie (or Sipekne'katik) means "abounding in ground nuts" or "place where the red potato grows. " Shubenacadie was home to a Canadian residential school from 1922 to 1968, the only Indian residential school in Atlantic Canada. Today, it is a service centre, featuring several shops and services.
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Cape Tribulation is a headland and locality in northern Queensland, Australia 110 km north of Cairns. It is located within the Daintree National Park and the Wet Tropics World Heritage area. The locality contains a small number of tourism resorts and backpacker hostels. A sealed road provides access to the area from the south via the Daintree River Ferry.
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Petra is a historic and archaeological city in the Jordanian governorate of Ma'an that is known for its rock cut architecture and water conduits system. Established sometime around the 6th century BC as the capital city of the Nabataeans, it is a symbol of Jordan as well as its most visited tourism attraction. It lies on the slope of Mount Hor in a basin among the mountains which form the eastern flank of Arabah (Wadi Araba), the large valley running from the Dead Sea to the Gulf of Aqaba.
Petra in Jordan is home to the iconic Treasury building, which was featured in the movie "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade."
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The Dolomites are a section of the Alps. They are located for the most part in the province of Belluno, the rest in the provinces of Bolzano-Bozen and Trento (all in north-eastern Italy). Conventionally they extend from the River Adige in the west to the Piave Valley in the east. The northern and southern borders are defined by the Puster Valley and the Sugana Valley (Val Sugana).
The Trentino Dolomites boast over 300 days of sunshine annually, perfect for year-round outdoor adventures.
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Cappadocia is a region in central Turkey, largely in Nevsehir Province. The name was traditionally used in Christian sources throughout history and is still widely used as an international tourism concept to define a region of exceptional natural wonders, in particular characterized by fairy chimneys and a unique historical and cultural heritage. The term, as used in tourism, roughly corresponds to present-day Nevsehir Province.
Cappadocia's unique fairy chimneys and rock formations were formed by ancient volcanic eruptions and erosion.
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The Lake District, also known as The Lakes or Lakeland, is a mountainous region in North West England. A popular holiday destination, it is famous for its lakes and its mountains (or fells), and its associations with the early 19th century poetry and writings of William Wordsworth and the Lake Poets. The central, and most visited, part of the area is contained in the Lake District National Park, the largest of thirteen National Parks in England and Wales, and second largest in the UK.
The Lake District's Scafell Pike is England's highest peak, offering breathtaking views from 3,209 feet.
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The sardine run of southern Africa occurs between May and July when millions of sardines - or more specifically the Southern African pilchard Sardinops sagax - spawn in the cool waters of the Agulhas Bank and move northward along the east coast of South Africa. Their sheer numbers create a feeding frenzy along the coastline.
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The Cíes Islands are an archipelago off the coast of Pontevedra in Galicia (Spain), in the mouth of the Ría de Vigo. They belong to the parish of San Francisco de Afora, in the municipality of Vigo. They were declared a Nature Reserve in 1980 and are included in the Atlantic Islands of Galicia National Park (Parque Nacional Marítimo-Terrestre das Illas Atlánticas de Galicia) created in 2002.
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Mining in Cornwall and Devon began in the early Bronze Age approximately 2,150 BC and ended with the South Crofty tin mine in Cornwall closing in 1998. Tin and later also copper were the most productive of the metals extracted: some tin mining continued long after mining of other metals had become unprofitable. Historically extensive tin and copper mining has occurred in Devon and Cornwall, as well as arsenic, silver, zinc and a few other metals.
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Get inspired with these ideas for interesting and different experiences around the world.
Take your goal setting to the next level with a whole set of exclusive features that will empower you to achieve more.
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