September 2012 ~ Travel And See The World

Saturday, September 15, 2012

UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Jordan (PHOTOS)

Jordan is a country in the Middle East. Almost completely land-locked (save for a small outlet on the Red Sea in the Gulf of Aqaba and a frontage on the Dead Sea), Jordan is bordered by Israel and the West Bank (Palestinian Territories) to the west, by Syria to the north, by Iraq to the east and by Saudi Arabia to the south.

Here is a list of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Jordan:

Petra in Ma'an Governorate, Jordan

Inhabited since prehistoric times, this Nabataean caravan-city, situated between the Red Sea and the Dead Sea, was an important crossroads between Arabia, Egypt and Syria-Phoenicia. Petra is half-built, half-carved into the rock, and is surrounded by mountains riddled with passages and gorges.

Qasr Amra in Zarqa Governorate, Jordan

Built in the early 8th century, this exceptionally well-preserved desert castle was both a fortress with a garrison and a residence of the Umayyad caliphs.

Um er-Rasas (Kastrom Mefa'a) in Madaba Governorate, Jordan

Most of this archaeological site, which started as a Roman military camp and grew to become a town from the 5th century, has not been excavated. It contains remains from the Roman, Byzantine and Early Muslim periods (end of 3rd to 9th centuries AD) and a fortified Roman military camp.

Wadi Rum Protected Area in Aqaba Governorate, Jordan

The 74,000-hectare property, inscribed as a mixed natural and cultural site, is situated in southern Jordan, near the border with Saudi Arabia. It features a varied desert landscape, as well as 25,000 rock carvings with 20,000 inscriptions trace the evolution of human thought and the early development of the alphabet.

Source: Wikipedia

UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Jerusalem, Israel (PHOTOS)

Jerusalem has been designated as a capital city both by Israel, as well as Palestine. It is the largest city in Israel. A holy city to three religions (Judaism, Christianity, and Islam), Jerusalem is one of the oldest cities in the world. The City of Gold, as it has come to be known in Hebrew, is a fascinatingly unique place where the first century rubs shoulders with the twenty-first century, each jostling for legitimacy and space, and where picturesque "old" neighborhoods nestle against glistening office towers and high-rise apartments. It is one of those places which has to be seen to be believed.

Here is a list of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Jerusalem:

The Old City of Jerusalem and its Walls in Jerusalem, Israel

As a holy city for Judaism, Christianity and Islam, Jerusalem has always been of great symbolic importance. It is recognized by all three religions as the site of Abraham's sacrifice. The Wailing Wall delimits the quarters of the different religious communities, while the Resurrection rotunda in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre houses Christ's tomb.

Source: Wikipedia

UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Egypt (PHOTOS)

Egypt is in north-eastern Africa with its capital located in its largest city, Cairo. Egypt also extends into Asia by virtue of holding the Sinai Peninsula. Egypt is bordered by Israel and the Gaza Strip to the north-east, by Sudan to the south and by Libya to the west. The country is bounded by the Mediterranean and Red Seas (to the north and east respectively) and geographically dominated both by the Nile River and its fertile well-watered valley, and by the Eastern and Western deserts.

Egypt is perhaps best known as the home of the ancient Egyptian civilization, with its temples, hieroglyphs, mummies, and - visible above all - its pyramids. Less well-known is Egypt's medieval heritage, courtesy of Coptic Christianity and Islam - ancient churches, monasteries and mosques punctuate the Egyptian landscape. Egypt stimulates the imagination of western tourists like few other countries and is probably one of the most popular tourist destinations world-wide.

Here is a list of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Egypt:

Abu Mena in Alexandria Governorate, Egypt

The church, baptistry, basilicas, public buildings, streets, monasteries, houses and workshops in this early Christian holy city were built over the tomb of the martyr Menas of Alexandria, who died in A.D. 296.

Ancient Thebes with its Necropolis in Luxor Governorate, Egypt

Thebes, the city of the god Amon, was the capital of Egypt during the period of the Middle and New Kingdoms.

Historic Cairo in Cairo Governorate, Egypt

Tucked away amid the modern urban area of Cairo lies one of the world's oldest Islamic cities, with its famous mosques, madrasas, hammams and fountains. Founded in the 10th century, it became the new centre of the Islamic world, reaching its golden age in the 14th century.

Memphis and its Necropolis – the Pyramid Fields from Giza to Dahshur in Giza Governorate, Egypt

The capital of the Old Kingdom of Egypt has some extraordinary funerary monuments, including rock tombs, ornate mastabas, temples and pyramids. In ancient times, the site was considered one of the Seven Wonders of the World.

Nubian Monuments from Abu Simbel to Philae in Aswan Governorate, Egypt

This outstanding archaeological area contains such magnificent monuments as the Temples of Ramses II at Abu Simbel and the Sanctuary of Isis at Philae, which were saved from the rising waters of the Nile thanks to the International Campaign launched by UNESCO, in 1960 to 1980.

Saint Catherine Area in South Sinai Governorate, Egypt

The Orthodox Monastery of St Catherine stands at the foot of Mount Horeb where, the Old Testament records, Moses received the Tablets of the Law. The mountain is known and revered by Muslims as Jebel Musa. The entire area is sacred to three world religions: Christianity, Islam, and Judaism.

Wadi Al-Hitan (Whale Valley) in Faiyum Governorate, Egypt

Located in a desert, the site contains fossil remains of the now extinct Archaeoceti, a suborder of whales, showing the evolution of the whales from a land-based to an aquatic mammal.

Source: Wikipedia

UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Bahrain (PHOTOS)

The Kingdom of Bahrain is a Middle Eastern archipelago in the Persian Gulf, tucked into a pocket of the sea flanked by Saudi Arabia and Qatar. It's an oasis of social liberalism – or at least Western-friendly moderation – among the Muslim countries of the region. It's popular with travelers for its authentic "Arabness" but without the strict application of Islamic law upon its non-Muslim minority. Case in point: alcohol is legal here. Although it has a heavily petroleum-based economy, its more relaxed culture has also made it a social and shopping mecca (so to speak), which has helped it develop a fairly cosmopolitan middle class not found in neighboring countries with just a rich elite and subsistence-level masses.

Here is a list of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Bahrain:

Qal'at al-Bahrain – Ancient Harbour and Capital of Dilmun in Northern Governorate, Bahrain

The site was the capital of the Dilmun, one of the most important ancient civilizations of the region. It contains the richest remains inventoried of this civilization, which was hitherto only known from written Sumerian references.

Source: Wikipedia

The Most Beautiful Pictures of New Orleans, Louisiana, USA

Here are some beautiful photos of New Orleans, Louisiana, USA:

St. Louis Cathedral in New Orleans, Louisiana by Kevin Labianco

Saint Louis Cathedral (French: Cathédrale Saint-Louis), also known as the Basilica of St. Louis, King of France, has the distinction of being the oldest continuously operating cathedral in the United States. First established in 1718, it is the cathedral Basilica in the French Quarter of New Orleans, Louisiana, USA. It is located on the Place John Paul II (French: Place Jean-Paul II), a promenaded section of Chartres Street (rue de Chartres) that stretches one block between St. Peter Street (rue Saint-Pierre) on the upriver boundary and St. Ann Street (rue Sainte-Anne) on the downriver boundary.

Lights are Up by Justin in SD

The Christmas lights are up in New Orleans Square. Too bad the Blue Bayou is still closed. Either way, this is the start of the Christmas season at Disneyland, which without a doubt is my favorite time of year at Disneyland.

Haunted Mansion Holiday by Brett Kiger

Season's Screamings! From Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas, Jack Skellington and his crew give the Haunted Mansion a Christmas makeover. Don't miss the ginger-dread house as the Oogie Boogie Man and others scare up festive fun. Beware!
-Disneyland
Alight, so before leaving for DIsneyland, Carrie and I had never seen The Nightmare Before Christmas. We had a vague idea what it was about from seeing all of the merchandise in the parks, but we didn't know the whole story. Since we knew the DIsneyland Haunted Mansion undergoes a transformation this time of year, we rented it on iTunes and watched it on the plane.
Wow, are we glad we rented it! First, we had no idea that the entire attraction would be re-themed. We figured they decorated the facade and maybe added a few things to the ride, but boy were we wrong! It was very cool to see the complete transformation and it would have made no sense had we not seen the movie.
It's worth the trek to Disneyland during the holidays to check this out for sure!

UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Algeria (PHOTOS)

Algeria is an Arab and Berber country in North Africa. It has a Mediterranean Sea coastline in the north. It is surrounded by Morocco to the northwest, Tunisia to the northeast, Libya to the east, Niger to the southeast, Mali to the southwest, Mauritania and Western Sahara to the west. After the secession of South Sudan from Sudan, Algeria became the largest country in Africa.

Here is a list of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Algeria:

Al Qal'a of Beni Hammad in M'Sila Province, Algeria

In a mountainous site of extraordinary beauty, the ruins of the first capital of the Hammadid emirs, founded in 1007 and demolished in 1152, provide an authentic picture of a fortified Muslim city.

Djémila in Sétif Province, Algeria

Situated 900 m above sea-level, Djémila, or Cuicul, with its forum, temples, basilicas, triumphal arches and houses, is an interesting example of Roman town planning adapted to a mountain location.

Kasbah of Algiers in Algiers Province, Algeria

The Kasbah is a unique kind of medina, or Islamic city. It stands in one of the finest coastal sites on the Mediterranean, overlooking the islands where a Carthaginian trading-post was established in the 4th century BC.

M'zab Valley in Ghardaïa Province, Algeria

A traditional human habitat, created in the 10th century by the Ibadites around their five ksour (fortified cities), has been preserved intact in the M’Zab valley.

Tassili n'Ajjer in Illizi Province and Tamanrasset Province, Algeria

This site has one of the most important groupings of prehistoric cave art in the world. More than 15,000 drawings and engravings record the climatic changes, the animal migrations and the evolution of human life on the edge of the Sahara from 6000 BC to the first centuries of the present era.

Timgad in Batna Province, Algeria

Timgad lies on the northern slopes of the Aurès mountains and was created ex nihilo as a military colony by the Emperor Trajan in AD 100.

Tipaza in Tipaza Province, Algeria

Tipasa was an ancient Punic trading-post conquered by Rome and turned into a strategic base for the conquest of the kingdoms of Mauritania. It comprises a unique group of Phoenician, Roman, palaeochristian and Byzantine ruins alongside indigenous monuments such as the Kbor er Roumia, the great royal mausoleum of Mauritania.

Source: Wikipedia