A few months ago, I was turned on to the concept of World Heritage Sites. Someone I know is backpacking and made it his mission to visit a lot of these special landmarks.
A World Heritage site as described by Wikipedia is: "A site (such as a
forest,
mountain,
lake,
desert,
monument,
building,
complex, or
city) that is on the list that is maintained by the international World Heritage Program administered by the
UNESCO World Heritage Committee... A World Heritage Site is a place of either cultural or physical significance."
It gives travelers a good idea of interesting places to check out. Talk about making my "Things I Must Do Before I Die" list.
Every week, we'll feature a new World Heritage Site so you too can be familiar and let people know you've been to one, you live near one or would like to visit one!
Uluru, or Ayers Rock was something I found rather interesting on the list.
It is a huge sandstone rock in Central Australia. You drive for miles into the heart of Australia to see a rock. Doesn't sound too interesting enough? For those who are hard to please, it is more than just a rock.. It is sacred to the native Australian tribes. It has many springs, rock caves and ancient paintings.
Oh and did you know it changes color?
With the various times in the day and the location of the sun, the rock appears to change color. How?
Why does Uluru appear to change color at sunrise and sunset ? The color changes have more to do with the effects the earth’s atmosphere has on the sun’s rays than with the geological make-up of the rock. When the sun is low in the sky the atmosphere acts as a giant prism, splitting the sun’s rays into a color spectrum.
The light reaching Uluru (and also the nearby Kata Tjuta) near sunrise and sunset is mainly from the RED end of the spectrum and its reflection from the rock gives the spectacular color. The reddish-brown color of the rocks and surrounding sands enhance these effects. (
Link source)
That is pretty cool. A little mixture of science, nature and history at its best.
Would you see Ayers Rock? Did you know it existed?
That is pretty cool. A little mixture of science, nature and history at its best.
Comments (7)
I've been on top of it!
I would. This is one of the places on earth that has Mana. I like going to those places, because I can feel it around me. Like at Kilauea Caldera. It's wonderful.
Yes, I've known about it all my life. My uncle's run up it before.
I wanna go. And yes I know it existed. Who doesn't?
I studied in Australia and so of course, going to see Uluru was mandatory. The experience was definitely memorable, but was somewhat dampened when I saw people climbing all over it. I cannot stress enough the importance of NOT climbing Uluru. The local Indigenous people told me how climbing this landmark was highly discouraged because they considered Uluru to be sacred. It was just so sad to see all these tourists having no respect for the culture and beliefs of the Aborigines.
I went to Chi chen itza 2 yrs ago, it was a life changing experience....
Could it be the source of the red dust storms?