PLANNING TO TRAVEL ELSEWHERE? These books
are excellent guides to places and events for us to enjoy. Despite its thickness
and weight (almost one kg for each book), these publications provide invaluable
source of information for travellers and the like searching for future
escapades or looking for another getaway to experience different cultures,
festivals and sporting events.
"501
Must-Visit Destinations" contains 544 pages divided into 5 major
sections: Africa;
With the beautiful iconic shot of the
magnificent Taj Mahal (India) as the front cover, aside from a descriptive page
(with a photo) for each attraction, it also provides brief description – what
is it to explore, where is it located, what is there to see, when is the best
time to go or visit, and how to get there. Some of them contain additional
short notes of the historical importance and interesting trivia of the featured
places.
Interestingly, some of the places featured
in the book that I want to go are as follows:
Africa: Mount Kilimanjaro and Zanzibar (Tanzania ),
Victoria Falls (Zambia ), The
Valley of the Kings at Luxor (Egypt ), El Djem (Tunisia
For Asia: The Great Wall (China), Mt Fuji
(Japan), Varanasi (India), Taj Mahal (India), Angkor (Cambodia), Komodo
National Park (Indonesia), Palawan Island (Philippines), Phang-Nga Bay
(Thailand), The Tunnels of Cu Chi (Vietnam). While for Australasia & Oceania: Uluru (Australia ), The Great Barrier Reef (Australia ), Blue Mountains (Australia
Finally, for Europe & the Middle East:
Mont-St-Michel (France), Berlin (Germany), Octoberfest (Germany), Amsterdam
(The Netherlands), The Van Gogh Museum (The Netherlands), Geneva (Switzerland),
The Scottish Lochs (UK), Oxford (UK), Stonehenge (UK), Prague (Czech Republic),
St Petersburg (Russia), The Kremlin and
Red Square (Russia), The Acropolis (Greece), Venice (Italy), Assisi (Italy),
Ohrid (Macedonia), Barcelona (Spain), Cordoba (Spain), The Blue Mosque
(Turkey), Jerusalem (Israel), The Dead Sea (Israel), Petra (Jordan).
On the other hand, "501 Must-Be-There Events" features
an amazing array of events being celebrated all year round in different parts
of the world. The book is divided into 8 sections highlighting the selection of
celebrations, festivities and sporting events from North America to Africa, and
from Europe to
Of course, there are
interesting events that I want to attend in the future such as: Celebration of
Light Festival (Canada), Sundance Film Festival (US), The Super Bowl (US), The
New York Marathon (US), Rio Carnival (Brazil) – as the front cover of the book,
Nobel Peace Prize Concert (Norway), Gothenburg Book Festival (Sweden), The Boat
Race (UK), Edinburgh Festival (UK), St Patrick;s Day (Ireland), International
San Sculpture Festival (Netherlands), Cannes Film Festival (France), San Isidro
Bullfighting Festival (Spain), Easter Mass in St Peter's Square (Italy), Dubai
World Cup (UAE), Dubai Shopping Festival (UAE), Dragon Boat Festival (China),
Singapore Lantern Festival (Sngapore), Sinulog and Ati-atihan Festivals
(Philippines), Gold Coast Indy 300 (Australia)
After reading these books, I feel that
there are so many places to discover in this amazing world and more years to
discover them. I understand that the collections included in the books are only
selection of the writers. Yes, there are more desired and interesting places and events to
be added in the list that each one of us wants to visit and experience in the future.
