There are some amazing places in this world, most of which none of us will see in real life , but with the internet we can learn about and view so much more now.

We can go around the world in our own front room, so whilst we are wondering what to do with our own spare time, maybe you will share some of your choices with either photographs or pictures of places and things you find interesting. Where you would like to visit or have visited , historical, modern, mountains and sea, gardens and buildings , monuments and temples. Anything that takes your interest.

Where or what in the world would you like to share ?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Machu_Picchu

The ancient underground city beneath the Fort at Nevsehir discovered in 2014, the largest of the 38 underground cities discovered so far in the Cappadocia region, it is estimated there are between 150 to 200 of these cities built by the Hittites.

Petra, Jordan.

The area around Petra has been inhabited as early as 7,000 BC,by the Nabataeans . There is evidence of the Nabataeans there in the 2nd century BC. but could be much longer than that. A trading post between the Red Sea and the Dead Sea , the caravans made their way along the Silk Road .

https://en.unesco.org/silkroad/silk-road-themes/world-heritage-sites/petra

We are very lucky to have so much so easily within our reach these days! I'm a bit of a fan of webcams; I know someone living outside Anchorage so I sometimes look at Alaska Cam to see what their weather's like. Snowdonia, Cornwall, loads of places etc - all can be visited virtually. More locally there's Wirralcam, of course.

Oh Alaska , I know it’s freezing most of the year and with little daylight but the scenery is breathtaking. I watch the bears at Brooks Falls in katmai avidly when they come out of hibernation its become like a bear soap opera for me as can recognise quite a few now. That’ll give me something to do if we still got this damn corona around, hope bears can’t catch it! I like all the programmes like , The last frontier , life below zero. I was only thinking of those people living off grid should be ok maybe hats how we were all supposed to live. I have to turn away when they kill animals though. Getting abit carried away there that’s what Alaska does to you ha. Yes I will be tuning into a lot of webcams to pass the time away, .

You'd think, as I know someone over there, I'd be watching that 'win a wilderness retreat in Alaska' show, but I really don't enjoy that kind of reality tv. What was eye-wateringly good was a show on last night - Dan Snow and others tracing the route of the Klondike Gold Rush in 'Operation Gold rush'. Sensational, brutal scenery on the USA/Canada border and a brutal journey - brutal even now, so goodness knows what it was like 100 years ago.

As for places to visit virtually, closer to home, the Welsh National Botanic Garden - lush! That's a place I definitely need to visit when we can all travel again. I saw it on Antiques Roadshow last night.
https://botanicgarden.wales/
Brimham Rocks has a strange charm. I've only ever been there in drizzly weather, would love to see them in the sun. Great for taking wierd photographs!
https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/brimham-rocks

When I lived in Whitehorse YT 50 years ago, I went to a town named Carcross.
We went to an drinking establishment and inside there was this very old parrot.
Apparently, it was brought up during the gold rush days.

Watched that , Win a Wilderness retreat prog, absolute rubbish ...No I like the proper Alaskan reality shows should have a look in on Life Below Zero Greenwood it’s very interesting. Nice to see you back on forum Snowshoes we need it to be kept busy to entertain us. How is this Corona impacting on you there ?

Trip down memory lane for you, Snowshoes. Nice story, thank you .

https://www.yukon-news.com/news/polly-the-foul-mouthed-sourdough-parrot/

Biting, drinking and swearing, Polly the Parrot was worse behaved than some of the miners who frequented the bar at the Caribou Hotel in Carcross.

Reportedly living to the age of 125, Polly had a long and unusual life.

According to one story, Polly belonged to a barber in Vancouver and then came to the Yukon with the stampeders and was brought over the Chilkoot Pass in 1898.

In the early 1900s, the bird came under the care of Captain James Alexander, who ran the Engineer Mine located on the shore of Tagish Lake east of Atlin, British Columbia.

In October 1918, Alexander and his wife left the bird behind while they went south for a visit.

Sadly, they did not make it to Vancouver. Both died when the ship on which they were travelling, the Princess Sophia, hit a reef while navigating the Lynn Canal and sank.

The ship was destroyed and all of its passengers were drowned.

Orphaned, Polly moved in to the Caribou Hotel in Carcross and quickly became its more distinctive resident.

From its perch in the hotel’s restaurant, Polly adopted the language and mannerisms of the hotel’s clientele.

Over more than 60 years of watching the miners belly up to the bar, the bird learned how to sing, bite, drink, spit and swear.

“By the time Dorothy (McLennan, the bird’s final owner) inherited the parrot, Polly’s habits included swearing and biting her customers, especially local gold miners,” according to the book Talking Tails: The Incredible Connection between People and their Pets, which featured a chapter on Polly’s story.

“The bird also belted back whiskey until he got so drunk he fell off his perch. Despite his wicked ways, Dorothy knew Polly loved kids – the parrot sang sweetly whenever children sat down for homemade pie in her restaurant.”

Polly’s unusual talents also earned it a dubious fame when a Canadian Press reporter turned up at the hotel in the 1970s.

“The world famous Carcross parrot is probably the oldest, meanest, ugliest, dirtiest bird north of the 60th parallel,” Dennis Bell wrote in an article called Parrot Reformed but Hates Everyone, which was heralded as a story of the year in 1972.

“He hates everybody. Which is understandable, because the damned old buzzard has resided within spitting distance of a beer parlour since 1919 and has had to endure 64 years of beer fumes, drunks who mash soggy crackers through the bars of his cage, and phantom, feather pluckers.”

After outliving many of its owners, Polly died in November 1972 and was buried in Carcross.

By that time, stories of this fantastic bird had been heard all over the world and the Caribou Hotel owners received letters, cards and phone calls from people offering their condolences. Some people even offered replacement parrots.

“A funeral train loaded with dignitaries rode out from Whitehorse on the White Pass railway. Johnny Johns, the famous hunting guide, performed the eulogy and sang some verses of I Love You Truly (one of Polly’s favourite songs), while beating on a skin drum,” wrote Sam Holloway in the Yukoner Magazine in 2004.

“With the service over, almost the entire population of Carcross, folks from all over the Yukon and elsewhere, went to the Caribou Hotel for drinks – many, many drinks.”

Polly’s gravestone, which was placed on the outskirts of the cemetery, reads: “Under this sod lies a sourdough parrot, / Its heart was gold, pure 14 carat. / Polly now can spread her wings / Leaving behind all earthly things. / She ranks in fame as our dear departed, / A just reward for being good hearted.”

A rubbing from Polly’s gravestone is featured in Matt Willes’ display of Yukon headstone rubbings showing in the MacBride Museum’s community cabinet until September.

Wow, you're the best gran. I'd forgotten all that. Yes, great story. I guess you can teach old parrots new tricks.

Good grief - that parrot must have been made of stern stuff to survive those experiences (I saw the Chikoot Pass on tv last night - yikes!) and live to such a great age! My friend has an African Grey - she'd be very interested to read that. Thanks for posting it!

Good morning.


Sakura Street, Japan.

Morning Granny, love this topic and would join in with putting images up but unfortunately I can’t get any photos up , I’ve got too figure out how to get jpg or pnf size , that’ll take me ages as you know how good I am with technology, NOT ha ...

Are you on a laptop ,Cools ?

I use an I-pad Granny, I used to be able to do it but somethings changed , plenty on Mr Google about it so I should be able to figure it out ,,,,,eventually ha....

Hope so Cools. Would love to see some of your favourite places. My laptop is constantly being changed too. Something to do with something, but I never know and don't understand. The end of this months sees Google change, so I don't know if it will affect anything, but as most see to work on their iPhones now, I suppose all things are geared to them. Extremely inconsiderate !

Amazing, tiny creatures .

Table mountain, Cape Town South Africa.,lived there for awhile many years ago, beautiful scenery..

Lovely, Cools. Lucky to have had the experience of living there.

I find this interesting.. mainly because the bible story of Lot's wife turning into a pillar of salt, could actually be substantiated by the location and the salt tunnels.
The story clearly gives an account of a volcanic eruption and possibly in those times the only way to describe his wife , covered in molten ash or lava would be as a comparison to a pillar of salt, although I'm not so sure the said 'pillars' in the video are necessarily the original one.

(As a matter of interest, if anyone reads any more about this in Genesis.. the mention of 'angels' translated means 'messengers' not a winged type of human )

Genesis 19 ; 23- 29
23 By the time Lot reached Zoar, the sun had risen over the land. 24 Then the Lord rained down burning sulfur on Sodom and Gomorrah—from the Lord out of the heavens. 25 Thus he overthrew those cities and the entire plain, destroying all those living in the cities—and also the vegetation in the land. 26 But Lot’s wife looked back, and she became a pillar of salt.

27 Early the next morning Abraham got up and returned to the place where he had stood before the Lord. 28 He looked down toward Sodom and Gomorrah, toward all the land of the plain, and he saw dense smoke rising from the land, like smoke from a furnace.

The second video has in the last few years discovered the longest salt caves in the world ,at Mount Sodom in the same location as the Dead Sea in Israel . 7,000 yrs old and 6 miles long.

More of the same in a bit more detail. We have to take from it what we wish, and see it as an amazing place.

Oh dear.. he (the above one) is really heavy. Sorry folks, I thought it was more about the terrain rather than the scriptures. Interesting, but certainly not for everyone. US bible punchers.

Brooks falls Katmai national park Alaska. Would love to be on the viewing platform watching these bears but not too sure whether I would be brave enough to just walk around bumping into the bears on the pathways etc. Ha .

Great picture of the bears, Cools.

Rome, an absolutely amazing place ! I had 4 days, and would love to go back. The Colosseum was completed in 8 yrs !!!. This video, although long has no dialogue, but it does have script at times. It takes you on the ground level, the dungeons and animal pens , up onto the higher levels .. it is impossible to get the magnitude of it.
In 70 AD Rome sieged Jerusalem and took over 80,000 Jewish slaves. This building commenced in 72 AD, so no doubt it was built by the slaves. The thickness of the walls and the brickwork is amazing.
The guide we had said there have never been any remains of gladiators found, and the men in the general population were all small in those days, about 5' 4" .

Nobody is ever allowed to stand under or walk under the Arch of Constantine, because Hitler stood under it and gave a speech. At 23 mins + there are some spectacular views.

At least it beats watching 2 episodes of Eastenders !

The City I enjoyed, very much to my surprise, was Berlin. I hate hustle and bustle places like London and assumed Berlin to be yet another Capital City. The only problem I had was the food which was wild guesswork even with dual language menus yet I've never had the same problem in Austria.

The many old buildings were incredible and like Liverpool it has a bombed out church.

Did anyone ever wonder how the ancient civilizations managed to send messages to each other over hundreds of miles, to different countries without roads or transport ?

Pigeons !

Pigeons have lived alongside man for thousands of years with the first images of pigeons being found by archaeologists in Mesopotamia (modern Iraq) and dating back to 3000 BC. It was the Sumerians in Mesopotamia that first started to breed white doves from the wild pigeon that we see in our towns and cities today and this undoubtedly accounts for the amazing variety of colors that are found in the average flock of urban pigeons. To ancient peoples a white pigeon would have seemed miraculous and this explains why the bird was widely worshipped and considered to be sacred. Throughout human history the pigeon has adopted many roles ranging from symbols of gods and goddesses through to sacrificial victims, messengers, pets, food and even war heroes!

The earliest large scale communication network using pigeons as messengers was established in Syria and Persia about 5th Century BC. Much later in the 12th Century AD the city of Baghdad and all the main towns and cities in Syria and Egypt were linked by messages carried by pigeons. This was the sole source of communication. In Roman times the pigeon was used to carry results of sporting events such as the Olympic Games and this is why white doves are released at the start of the Olympic Games today



I'd like to fly with them sometimes, to wherever they go to.

I'll just keep churning them out should I ?


The Lost Gardens of Babylon.

They have been looking in the wrong place for ever, but Stephanie Dalley , a code breaker and one of very few people to be able to read ancient texts, found where the Lost Gardens were.

Benidorm. Not everyone's cup of tea but I love it.

Ha took me ages to get that up. Keep up good work Granny....Benidorm today as title says but of course we know it's not , today empty , love Beni...

No problem social distancing on the beach at Newquay, Cornwall today it's probably perishing! Sunnier than here, though. I like this webcam because it moves around a bit and you get good views of Towan bay. Copy and paste into your browser if it doesn't show up.
https://newquayactivitycentre.co.uk/towan-beach-newquay-webcam/

Had a look at this last night, Greenwood. It seemed very cold ! Much brighter today, and very relaxing to view.

Back to history. Sunday afternoon viewing, presenting more answers than questions this time. ( don't know why these videos are not loading as they should any longer )

Noah's Ark- Ron Wyatt's Story : The story of the evidence which led the Turkish authorities to recognize the discovery of Noah's Ark in the mountains of Ararat

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IoT...CvtmxA77dEkXfS_s0wOYe-J6kNucXm6gNSnt3VXU

Rainbow Mountain in Peru..never heard of this before just saw it on tv programme. It's stunning eh.

Glow worm Caves.

A Time-lapse of New Zealand’s Glowworm caves as they have never been seen before. Filming this involved sleeping in caves for multiple days in complete darkness with just the sounds of the cave to keep us company (and the occasional eel). Read the full story of how we pulled this off on our blog: http://www.stokedforsaturday.com/2015/07/glowworms-in-motion/

Have I posted this before ? .. powerful thoughts.

Delightful. Giethoorn, Netherlands.

Rainbow Mountain, Cools. It's the best I can find at the moment. Takes us to another world .

All these wonderful places.

Here's another of Rainbow Mountain. Colours are more vibrant.

New Guinea. Really interesting but I do wish we could leave these people to their own ways of life in peace. They don't need us, they've managed without us for eternity.

Have a look at Keukenhof in Holland.

https://keukenhof.nl/en/

It's a truly wonderful bulb garden open for only eight weeks each year, and of course no-one can visit it this year! They have put up videos on their website though, showcasing some of the 7 million bulbs planted each autumn to create the display. I was lucky enough to visit some years ago, and it is just gorgeous.

Rainbow mountains in Peru - extraordinary! Very mixed feelings about the tribe thing. Access to the modern world - medicine, dentistry etc - might help them, but access could also destroy them - diseases etc.

Beautiful, gardens, Greenwood.

Probably one of the biggest bulb adverts in the world! You come home desperate to recreate some of that glory, then next spring you look at your three little pots of tulips and think...hmm....

.
Easter Processions in Russia.

Where do you think this might be ? It looks very comfortable and relaxing .

Turkey, clue crescent moon and star, hubble bubble pipes, do I get a reward?

Almost Casper, but no prizes . It's Lebanon .

...and this ? There's a clue .( a very old clue)


Most people live on a lonely island
Lost in the middle of a foggy sea
Most people long for another island
One where they know they would like to be

Bali

Spot on Mikeeb, well done ! Otherwise known as Ambae Island, Vanuatu . Have you been there ? Always a place I wished to visit after seeing South Pacific at a young age. (it was on this pm, that's what gave me the idea)

Next.

Liscard?

Hamilton Square?

I haven't been to Bali, will this do?

Good guess Fidelio, but not Liscard.

Excellent try, Snowshoes, but sorry not Hamilton Square

The best bar in the world, apparently ! Is that were they had girlie boys Casper.?

Madeira, Portugal?

Well done, Fidelio. Madeira it is, although I don't think they have these oxen pulled carts any longer .

What and where ? (no cheating please )

What is a girlie boy granny? I used to go to the local places of interest, and to answer your question no I never made the mistake.

Lady Boys, have you never heard of them ? Blimey, what a sheltered life you led ! I think you are just playing the ' innocence game'. Of course you knew of them if you went to Thailand. It's at least 45 yrs since I heard of them, and they weren't so glamorous as they are today, and I don't think they went on tour either. In fact today, it's nothing unusual really everyone seems to have a different identity.

Lady Boys, have you never heard of them ? Blimey, what a sheltered life you led ! I think you are just playing the ' innocence game'. Of course you knew of them if you went to Thailand. It's at least 45 yrs since I heard of them, and they weren't so glamorous as they are today, and I don't think they went on tour either. In fact today, it's nothing unusual really everyone seems to have a different identity.

[/quot

Have you ever heard of the Bangkok Fairies? not the bent kind, delivered by canoe, just like a takeaway.

New Menai Bridge

Good try, Fish. No , it's not the New Menai Bridge.

The secret bridge from Birkenhead Priory to Speke?

Another good try, DD, but no, it is not the secret bridge from Birkenhead to Speke.

Somewhere in the far east, China? give us a clue granny.

A Chinese province has shut all 32 of its glass attractions - including bridges, walkways and viewing decks - as safety checks are carried out.
The attractions, spread across 24 sites in Hebei province, have been shut since March 2018, said state media CCTV.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-50230971

Well done, Mikeeb. The longest glass bridge, somewhere in China. Pretty scary !

Next :

Granny's rock?

Sorry Casper, another good guess but wrong.

I'd guess at Anglesey, there are a large number of neothlitic type things on the island?

Very good, DD. Yes it is Anglesey , but I'm not sure where.

We did a tour of a few things in Anglesey some time ago, always meant to back to have a look at the various barrows, tombs etc, thought I recognised it and the landscape looked barren enough.

We did a tour of a few things in Anglesey some time ago, always meant to back to have a look at the various barrows, tombs etc, thought I recognised it and the landscape looked barren enough.

If anyone wishes to join in .. please do. I'll post my last for now and give time and space for another 'keen supporter' to challenge us with their own places of interest !

Sorry, didn't mean to ignore you, just missed your post. I thought the cottages might have given a clue to region. They looked typically Welsh to me.

Pompei, been round it and fascinated at the same time sad at seeing these casts.

Well done, Cools. It is indeed a fascinating place, where time stopped. Have you read the letters from Pliny The Younger to Tacitus ?

http://www.pompeii.org.uk/s.php/tou...n-79-a-d-history-of-pompeii-en-238-s.htm

I would love a trip round Pompei, an eerie and thought provoking place.

Yes it was , I found the Roman Baths and other things so clever and very beautiful. No good though if you just a servant ha not forgetting the brothols they were a must see ha. Well worth a visit.

Anyone like to take a guess at this?

Is it somewhere in Norway ?

I agree it looks more Northern Europe than Southern Europe, so I'll go for Italy

Sorry DD, first prize goes to granny, a view from Mount Floyen Bergen.

The mystery piccies from around the Wirral that you clever people posted used to be fun.

Nobody can get out now to take pics ! It was good. This is easier, as we a) probably all have pics stored, or b) can use pics from the internet.

Thank you, Casper. It was a guess as the only slight give away was the little church. That to me looked typically Norwegian.

A very easy one from Wirral , can you guess Fidelio?

Brimstage maze Granny?

Absolutely , told you it was easy and I'm cools Fidelio ha...

Sorry Cools, I got over excited knowing the answer.

Quite amazing how they can map out the maze. I wonder how they do it ?

Da Nang in central Vietnam
That was an easy one that Granny

Very good, Mikeeb.

p.s. take a break in Rome if you can at some point, you would certainly no be disappointed. Incorporate a trip to Pompeii. Pompeii is amazing, but I found far more to explore in Rome, which was also amazing, .and therefore spending more time there makes sense. Lots of walking.

Eughhhh! Wherever it is Granny I don't want to be there, scary....

I have seen this happening on a TV documentary a few years back in India somewhere.
In a Sikh or Hindu temple if my memory serves me right.

It is in India, Mikeeb. Well done.

Karni Mata Rat Temple. A total of 20,000 plus rats !



https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karni_Mata_Temple

Yes mikeeb, I also remember seeing this on the goggle box, it’s a Temple in India where they worship rats, they also worship old cows, it’s similar to modern day Celebrity worship.

Next : Easy peasy

Bodnant gardens, poisonous don’t ya know.

Correct, Fidelio . Very good. Many beautiful things are poisonous with lecherous tendencies.

.

Very profound granny.

I think I remember the story of this one, some person looking after it and then eventually getting grants or something - but I can't remember where.

Obviously looks very North-Wales and I'm in two minds whether to say north or south of Holywell, I'll go south and guess Penmenmaur area (if I could spell it).

Not bad, DD. Right country, wrong town.

Smallest Church in the British Isles

It is St. Trillo's Chapel in Rhos -on-Sea. St Trillo's cell dating back to the 6th century, with a spring inside once used for baptisms and healing .

I remember visiting it when on holiday and about the age of 9 or 10. Just a simple visit with the usual photograph taken outside, but for some reason it was imprinted on my memory.


https://historypoints.org/index.php?page=st-trillo-s-chapel

The well is underneath the altar.

How interesting, I never knew that little chapel and spring existed!

Walked past it a number of times - my memory IS getting bad

Here's another one, but where is it ? Decorated with sea shells, pebbles and broken glass. Measuring 16ft x 9 ft

That would go nicely in Portmeirion - no idea.

I think I remember seeing one like this in Guernsey many moons ago, could this be the one?

Good try DD, but sorry to say it's not at Portmeirion.

Bravo, Fidelio Very good.

It is in Guernsey, known as The Little Chapel.. A miniature version of the basilica of Lourdes , the original build began in March 1914, the second build began in July 1914 . Sadly Brother Deodat never saw his third building completed , as he went to France with ill health and passed away .

https://www.visitguernsey.com/see-and-do/things-to-do/the-little-chapel/

Probably tricky but if you guess the country rather than the place , you can have one point.

Gracie Fields favourite place , isle of Capri..

Spot on, Cools. Well done. It's a beautiful little island . I feel it would be nice sitting in that restaurant at this very moment. We can dream.

And then a huge big lemon drops and lands on ones head

Wouldn't mind one of those fresh lemon drinks.

Too easy to work out where granny by cheating.
Lovely pictures though.

Granny's garden due to lockdown boredom?

Very naughty boy, Mikeeb..

Instead of keeping all the other wonderful participants in suspenders, it is 'Columbus Topiary Garden' in Ohio .

Some nice pics on this link

http://www.randallschieber.com/parks/topiary/147_topiary.026.htm

Of course I didn't expect anyone to know that, just thought it looked a nice place and keeping myself amused..

I wish !!

?

Nice garden Granny, your house is quite small though.

Is that your Granny annex ha, beautiful garden a lot of work though...

Thank you both. I love it, but yes, Cools it is becoming a task, to say the least. I leave the clover for the bees in the summer time and cut paths through the grass.

Little house for little people, but I could sleep in the bunk if push comes to a very big shove.

Is it clue time yet Granny?

The Dead Sea Granny?

Correct , Fidelio.. it is becoming more dead as it dries up.

Video.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/world-middle-east-36503038/dead-sea-the-buildings-left-abandoned

Is that you in the piccie Granny?

No, don't be silly !!

In that case she’s got very hairy legs hasn’t she?

Haha ! I didn't notice that. You obviously take a closer look at certain things !

.

Portmeirion in Welsh Wales?

Some subtle changes since we were there.

Correct again Fidelio, but it was an easy peasy one . Pleased DD is still paying attention . It was a test case

. Another test case.. Written in Sumarian cuneiform , language that had died out by approx. 200AD.

You probably won't get the place but could do it, you have to think back to biblical times ,and if anyone is eager enough to try and translate into meaning, (some I have managed) .There is a clue between these two pictures.

No guesses ? It is in a tiny place of prayer where Paul was converted on the road to Damascus. About 8 miles outside and still in a very remote place and not on the tourist trail.
The cuneiform signs depicted are some earliest Christian and some Sumarian. (pre Christian) The star means God, another means Son, another means bird, and not sure about the Y's. They can also be used numerically . The crosses are very similar to those found in Ephesus in Turkey where Paul travelled to after his conversion, which are slightly more elaborate with a triangle shape on each of the points, rather than just as a base.
The star with eight points(near the bottom) is Sumerian religion Dingir Anu Cuneiform script, God, The star with a P is Chi -Rho meaning Christos and the earliest form of christogram also later used on Roman currency. Superimposing the first two letters of the Greek Chi (X) and Rho (P) XP .

I find it very interesting, and wish I could start all over again, and learn so much more.

Forgot to say.. if the cuneiform is as old as it would appear to be, it pre dated the Christian bible which was not compiled until the 4th/5th century.
The Muratorian Canon, which is believed to date to 200 A.D., is the earliest compilation of canonical texts resembling the New Testament, but there is nowhere in texts that actually pinpoints where he had his conversion. We only know it was on the road to Damascus.
The rest is history.

That was all on the tip of my tongue Granny.

Haha ! How about this , Fidelio ?

No cheating !

A place I'd love to visit . Easy