Top 20 Strangest Places in the World – Part 2
Welcome back to our top 20 strangest places in the world series! The world is a wonderful and a very weird and unique place, indeed, and there are many remote lands and out-of-this-world backdrops you can explore and enjoy. If you are feeling adventurous, or simply curious about some of the most quirky, yet breathtaking places, areas and cities in the world, this article is just for you, so make sure to stay tuned for a bit more inspiration!
Fly Geyser, Nevada, USA
This geyser is located on a private land on the edge of the infamous (and equally mysterious and dramatic) Black Rock Desert in Nevada and it is created accidentally in 1964. After an energy company drilled down into geothermal waters, the result is that today a fountain of thermal water erupts up to five feet high in brilliant hues of red and green.
Chocolate Hills, Bohol Island, the Philippines
Bohol’s area is popular with the 1700 oddly shaped and rising hills in the middle of the island. These hills range in height, but all of them are so perfectly regular in shape that is hard to believe that these are not created by a human, but by the Mother Nature herself. Chocolate Hills are part of the UNESCO’s natural heritage and they are the uplift of coral deposits and a result of rainwater erosion. In the dry season the lush greenery topping the hills dry out and turns brown, where is the nickname of the area comes from.
Red Beach, Panjin, China
Famous as one of the very few (if not the only one) red beach in the world, Red Beach in Panjin deserves its nickname because of the unique type of seaweed that covers the beach and which turns bright red in autumn. The place is also a very important nature reserve for the migrating birds, hence why only a small part of the beach if open to the public.
The Catacombs, Paris, France
We have already mentioned this place in our previous article dedicated to the most scariest places in the world, but the Parisian underground city of catacombs is a very bizarre place worth mentioning here too. The atmosphere there is extremely creepy and it couldn’t be any other way, because the place is where more than six million dead bodies are found over the years in the hundreds of underground tunnels of Paris. The skulls and bones found there are later arranged in displays that today attract many tourists with their weird yet unique appearance.
Plain of Jars, Laos
Yet another enigmatic place surrounded by the mists of the mystery, myths and century-old stories, Plain of Jars is located in Laos and is a land in Xieng Khouang Province, where thousands of megalithic stone jars are dotted around in groups from one to one hundred. One of the theories is that the stone jars have been used for ancient funeral ceremonies. However, if you are curious about the most fascinating legend, it explains the existence of the stone jars and their usage for brewing rice wine for giants.
Goblin Valley State Park, Utah, USA
The great lands of the USA are popular for many fascinating and breathtaking nature reserves and parks and despite the fact that Goblin Valley State Park in Utah is not the most popular out of them, it is nevertheless a very bizarre and exciting place to visit. And no, this is not where most of the Mars-inspired Hollywood movies are done, although it would be a very good idea, because the Goblin Valley State Park is exactly how we imagine Mars or other distant planets to look like. If you wonder how the out-of-this-world backdrop has been created – soft sandstone has been eroded by wind and water for many years to finally form the strange pinnacles that many people think resemble goblins. This is a perfect example of the creativeness and art talent of Mother Nature, indeed!
The Hand in the Desert, Chile
Definitely one of the weirdest, yet very spectacular pieces of art ever existing. The sculpture of a hand is created by Mario Irarrazabal from Chile and it is located in the Chile’s Atacama desert, 46 miles away from the city Antofagasta. The hand sculpture is magnificently rising from the desert’s sand and the art represents the feeling of loneliness, especially because of the remote and secluded location. However, we doubt it that it could be very lonely there, because many tourists and adventure seekers are visiting the place all year round to have a look at this dramatic piece of art.
Whale Bone Alley, Siberia
Let’s visit one of the most remote, distant and unique areas of the world, Siberia, where you can find many quirky places, people and traditions, but Whale Bone Alley is certainly a highlight! Only 82km of the Alaska’s coast and not far away from the northern shore of Yttygran Island, the Whale Bone Alley attracts a great number of tourists with its impressive appearance. Massive whale jaw bones, ribs and vertebrae form a strange and excitingly impressive setting that reminds us of a Hollywood movie. It is still not known for sure what used to be the function of this place centuries ago.
Glass Beach, California, USA
The Glass Beach in California is a remarkable evidence for how the destroying power of people still could create something beautiful. The glittering sea glass beach is a result of years of rubbish being dumped on the beach. The practice was stopped in the 60s, but by then the sea is already full of all sorts of rubbish – from bottles to appliances. However, over the time the nature managed to overpower the human’s stupidity by breaking everything down into colourful pebbles that create the distinctive and unique appearance of the beach today.
Cat Island, Japan
Just a short ride to the Japan’s east coast will lead you to this rather strange and bizarre island of fishermen. But the people are not the main population of the island that is inhabited by thousands of cats, hence the name. Originally, the cat population is encouraged on the island, because in the centuries the island was a home to silk production and mice are natural predators of silkworms.
