World's Largest Salt Mines

Khewra Salt Mines are largest salt mines in the world. Khewra Salt Mines is a salt mine located in Khewra, Jehlum District, Punjab in Pakistan. It attracts up to 40,000 visitors per year and is the second largest salt mine in the world. 

Situated in the foothills of the Salt Range, the Khewra Salt Mines are the oldest in the South Asia.Salt has been mined at Khewra since 320 BC following discovery by Alexander’s troops, in an underground area of about 110 square kilometres.

The Badshahi Mosque was built in the mining tunnels with multi-colored salt bricks about fifty years ago. And there was also built  Minar-e-Pakistan with salt bricks which a good sign of creativity.

  In khewra salt mines there are homes which are made by salt bricks . Khewra salt mines is a very beautiful place for tourists.

Minar-e-Pakistan in Khewra Salt Mines

Most Rare Animals in The World

Pinta Island Tortoise: 

Meet “Lonesome George,” the last known example of the Pinta Island Tortoise, the rarest endangered animal in the world, with only “George” left.Without argument, this turtle is one of the few species of Giant Galapagos tortoises and the rarest animal in the world since there is only one left alive. Lonesome George is the sole surviving member of the Pinta Island race, the giant tortoise being a symbol for the fragility of the Galapagos islands, and a constant reminder for vigilence and conservation of the species.

Javan Rhinoceros:

The Javan Rhino is one of five living rhinoceros types, and is part of the same genus as the Indian Rhinoceros, but they are smaller. These Javan Rhinos were once abundant in Indonesia and Southeast Asia, but they are now on the Critically Endangered list with only about sixty (broken into two known populations) in the wild. There are no Javan Rhinos in captivity.Listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List (2009), the Javan rhino (Rhinoceros sondaicus) is considered to be one of the most endangered large mammals in the world with only two populations existing in the wild, for a total number of less than 60 animals.

Okapi:

Okapi come from the rain forest in Central Africa. They are the only living relative of the giraffe, even though they have zebra like stripes. Like a giraffe they have long, dark, prehensile tongues. They have very acute hearing and are very wary of humans.The okapi is considered one of the rarest species in the world that holds the key to uncover the process of the evolution of animals. The okapi is classified as “Lower Risk (LR)” on the Red List. Download and enjoy the paper craft of the okapi with very distinct stripes on the body.

White Lion :


The White Lions are rare animals found in South Africa. They are not albinos, but a inherited scarcity, unique to one common region on the glob. Their white color is a result of rare color mutation of the Kruger breed of lion.White lions are not albinos but are leucistic. 

They have pigment visible in the eyes (which may be the normal hazel or golden color, blue-gray, or green-gray), paw pads and lips. Blue-eyed white lions exist and may be selectively bred. The leucistic trait is due to the chinchilla mutation that inhibits the deposition of pigment along the hair shaft, restricting it to the tips. 

The less pigment there is along the hair shaft, the paler the lion. As a result "white" lions range from blonde through to near white. The males have pale manes and tail tips instead of the usual dark tawny or black.

Seychelles Sheath-tailed Bat:


This particular bat is found just north of Madagascar. It is said there are fewer then 100 left on earth. If their numbers could increase to 500 or more, we may not lose them to extinction.More research needs to be done in order to understand how the species behave and what needs to be done in order to save them. 

Scientists believe that, with a heavy amount of effort, 500 individuals may be sufficient to guarantee long-term persistence of the population.The bats live in harem colonies, and have a high reproductive potential.  Unfortunately, they are very susceptible to habitat changes, and because of their need to roost in several different locations within a habitat, their survival has not been overly successful.

World's Most Beautiful Lakes

Plitvice Lake:

For adventure as well as killer views, start at one of the lower lakes and work your way up following the sturdy wooden planks that turn what could be a treacherous trek into a fun hike.The Plitvice lakes, known as "Falling lakes" have enjoyed the status of a national park since 1949, and since 1979 it has been under the protection of UNESCO. 

The lakes are divided into the upper lakes (12) and the lower lakes (4). The highest of these is Prošćansko jezero (639 metres), while the lowest is Novakovića Brod (503 metres). The upper lakes are surrounded by thick forests and are connected by numerous waterfalls, while the lower lakes are smaller, shallower and the vegetation is not so lush. Having passed over the Sastavci waterfall on the lower lakes, the lake waters flow into the River Korana, as does the Plitvice stream, tumbling down from a height of 76 metres. In the craggy rocks around the lakes there are fourteen limestone caves and six travertine.

Lake Superior:

Lake Superior Canada forms the border between Michigan’s Upper Peninsula and the coast of Ontario. The biggest of the Great Lakes, and one of the largest lakes in the world, Lake Superior is a scenic playground in any season. 

Lake Superior's colder water temperatures make getting caught in rip currents more dangerous. Colder water temperatures can be prohibitive to swimming (water temperatures in the 60s F). As a result, swimmers that are caught in rip currents are susceptible to Hypothermia. There have been 11 drowning deaths and 18 rescues attributed to rip currents and channel currents between 2002 and 2010 in Lake Superior.


Lake Victoria:

Located in East Africa, Lake Victoria (locally known as Lake Nyanza) is the second largest fresh water lake in the world and is the source of the longest branch of the Nile RIver, the White Nile. 

Despite its huge size, the murky lake is quite shallow - only 100 metres at its deepest. As the world's largest tropical lake, Lake Victoria lies within an elevated plateau in the western part of Africa's Great Rift Valley. Lake Victoria facts are the lake has a shoreline of 3,440 km (2138 miles), and has more than 3,000 islets, many of which are inhabited. Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda are the countries border lake victoria.Lake Victoria is accessible year round during the Dry season, June-August and the Wet season November-March.

Peyto Lake:

Peyto Lake is at an elevation of 1,860 m (6,100 ft) and the maximum length of the lake is 2.8 km and the maximum width is 0.8 km. with a surface area of 5.3 km, this lake accounts to be one of the most beautiful lakes in the world.

                           

Some visitors believe the lake to be shaped like the head of a wolf, while some people say it is formed in a necklace like form. The most spectacular aspect that makes this lake a favorite among tourists is its incredible blue color.

Lake Huron:

Lake Huron is the third largest of the Great Lakes by volume, holding nearly 850 cubic miles of water. The shores of Huron extend more than 3,800 miles and are characterized by shallow, sandy beaches and the rocky.coasts of Georgian Bay. Lake Huron is 206 miles wide and approximately 183 miles from north to south. Home to many ship wrecks, the lake averages a depth of 195 feet.At 579 feet above sea level, it averages 195 feet deep with a maximum depth of 750 feet and has a flushing time of about 22 years. About two-thirds of the lake's 51,700-square-mile watershed is still covered by forests, and the lake contains more than 30,000 islands.

Lake Huron mainly functions as a conveyer within the Great Lakes system, carrying both water and ships from the other two upper lakes to the urban and industrial centers along the lower two lakes. The region is a major U.S. forest industry area, and some of the world's largest nickel reserves are located in Ontario just north of the lake.


Loch Lomond:


Loch Lomond is the largest single inland waterway in Britain. People for years have been coming to the shores of Loch Lomond to escape the pressures of the city. Picturesque towns surround the loch with unique accommodations from castle hotels to family lodges.

 In the town of Bolloch you will find many activities available in the Loch Lomond Shores visitors centre. Loch Lomond Shores is a recently opened (2002) complex offering a variety of activities such as an aquarium, bike rental, canoe, kayak, pedal boat hire, hiking information and cruises.




Lake Baikal:


Lake Baikal sits in Southern Siberia in Russia, located between Irkutsk Oblast to the northwest and the Buryat Republic to the southeast, near the city of Irkutsk. Also known as the "Blue Eye of Siberia," it contains more water than all the North American Great Lakes combined.

At 1,637 meters (5,371 ft), Lake Baikal constitutes the deepest lake in the world, and the largest freshwater lake in the world by volume, holding approximately 20 percent of the world's total surface fresh water.

The lake is completely surrounded by mountains, with the Baikal Mountains on the north shore and the taiga technically protected as a national park. It contains 22 islands; the largest, Olkhon, measures 72 kilometers (44.7 mi) long. The lake has as many as three hundred and thirty inflowing rivers, the main ones draining directly into Baikal include the Selenga River, the Barguzin River, the Upper Angara River, the Turka River, the Sarma River and the Snezhnaya River. The Angara River serves as its single drainage outlet. Despite its great depth, the lake's waters have excellent oxygenation throughout the water column compared to the stratification that occurs in such bodies of water as Lake Tanganyika and the Black Sea.


Lake Matheson:


Lake Matheson, New Zealand’s most famous photograph stop and a must-do visitor attraction.  Situated 6km west of Fox Glacier Township in the heart of Glacier Country.

The lake itself is a short five minute drive west of Fox Glacier, along the Cook Flat Road which branches off from the main State Highway 6. A path leads from the car park through native rainforest towards the lake.This forest is full of ferns and tall pines (kahikatea and rimu), and the paths are in good condition and undemanding, well suited to people of all ages and walking constitution.The surrounding forest not only gives the lake shelter and context, it's also the source of the water's dark brown colour, which comes from organic material leaching into the lake from the forest floor. And so the forest is also responsible for the wonderful reflective quality of the water surface. The dark colour and protection from the wind provide a smooth surface which projects a mirror image of its surrounds.


Lake bled:


With its emerald-green lake, picture-postcard island church, cliff-topping medieval castle and its mountain backdrop, Bled is Slovenia’s most popular resort and its biggest tourist money-spinner. Not surprisingly, it can be overpriced and swarming with tourists.

Lake Bled has all the ingredients for the perfect Lakes and Mountains holiday with its stunning scenery, reliable weather, good quality accommodation and great service. Lake Bled is famous for its island in the middle of the lake with its baroque church whose bell when rung is said to make wishes come true, is a popular landmark. 

Weddings in Lake Bled are becoming more and more popular due to great venues such as Bled Castle which is situated on the outskirts of the Lake and is the perfect venue for couple looking to get married abroad either during the summer or winter months.


Great Bear Lake:


Great Bear Lake is the largest freshwater lake that lies wholly in Canada. It is situated on the edge of the Canadian Shield, is transected by the Arctic Circle, and is bordered to the south by boreal forest and to the north by tundra. Water from Great Bear Lake drains into Canada's longest river, the Mackenzie. The northern shores of this lake have been inhabited for at least 6000 years by peoples whose livelihoods depended on the caribou.Great Bear Lake has been little impacted by development. In fact, scientists use it as a model of a young pristine lake. 

Its deep, clear, cold waters have very low productivity because nutrient levels are low. The main inhabitants of the lake are the four-horned sculpin, and various amphipods and copepods.

Lake Nyasa:


Lake Nyasa (also known as Lake Malawi) is the third largest African Great Lake (after Lake Victoria and lake Tanganyika), the eighth largest lake in the world and has a total surface area of about 29,600 km?. It is 550 kilometers long and 75 kilometers wide.

 Lake Nyasa is situated between Malawi, Mozambique, and Tanzania bordering all three. It is the second deepest lake in Africa and its tropical waters have more fish species than any other lake on Earth.

                                  

Lake Nyasa in the East African Rift Valley where the African tectonic plate is splitting in two (a divergent plate boundary). The lake was formed around 40,000 years ago.A fresh southeasterly wind (the mwera) prevails from May to August, causing short gales and restless waters; the coastline offers little shelter. Halfway up the lake is Likoma Island, a mission headquarters and site of an imposing Anglican cathedral (completed 1911). 

Top Zoos of The World

Singapore Zoo:

The Singapore Zoo is famous for their incredible landscape design, with habitats simulating life in the wild for each of their animal species. The zoo features dozens of fun and unique attractions, including the famous Jungle Breakfast! Enjoy your breakfast with the animals in the distance.

 You may get to feed the elephants, but more often than not you’ll find yourself entertained by the orangutans as they mingle throughout the crowd! And finally, we have The Singapore Zoo. The open concept and incredible landscape design makes it top trumps in the zoo world! They have really been able to simulate life in the wild for their animals making it spectacular to see. 

In this 70-acre rain forest landscape, all animals are kept in large landscaped open air areas and are separated from visitors by ‘hidden’ barriers that include vegetation, streams, moats, and rocks. 

SMITHSONIAN NATIONAL ZOOLOGICAL PARK, WASHINGTON, DC

The Smithsonian National Zoological Park in Washington DC has rightfully earned the title of the country’s National Zoo. 

The zoo can be found in Rock Creek Park and houses over 400 species totaling at least 2,000 animals. The coolest thing about the zoo is that regular admission is free.

The world’s largest museum and research complex. Admission is always free which makes it a great visit for the family during the kids summer holidays and it wont cost the earth! Set in 163 acres, the zoo is home to nearly 2,000 individual animals of 400 different types of species.

Toronto Zoo

The Toronto Zoo also ranks amongst the largest in the world, spanning over 700 acres and housing over 5,000 animals! 

Why not visit the award winning African Savanna, New Great Barrier Reef, and the award-winning Gorilla Rainforest, Eurasia outdoor exhibits, home to the Prezwalski foals, Snow leopard and Siberian tiger cubs, and Zellers Discovery Zone featuring Kids Zoo, Splash Island and Waterside Theater.

Zoos around the world are participating in an effort to increase awareness about the dangers threatening amphibians. The Toronto Zoo has dozens of activities planned throughout the entire year in honor of the frog and his friends!

Tiergarten Schonnbrunn Zoo, Austria

Vienna zoo opened in 1752 making it the oldest zoo in the world today. Again, this is also one of the few zoos in the world to house giant pandas named Yang Yang, Long Hui, Fu Long, and Fu Hu. Fu Long’s birth on 23 August 2007 was the first natural insemination panda birth in Europe.

Fu Hu was born exactly 3 years later, and he was also conceived via natural mating. Also, On July 14, 1906, the zoo saw the birth of the first elephant in captivity.The mother bear had two beautiful cubs in late November of 2007. She brought them outdoors for the first time in March of 2008. If you’re lucky, she’ll bring them outside while you’re there.

BRONX ZOO, NEW YORK

The Bronx Zoo in New York is the largest zoo you’ll find in a metropolitan location in the United States. The park itself takes up over 250 acres of land and includes a number of endangered and rare species in its collection of over 4,000 animals. 

Stop by Tiger Mountain to meet the Siberian tigers, visit the stunning 6.5 acre Congo Gorilla Forest for an African safari adventure, or visit Madagascar to meet the lemurs and hissing cockroaches.It is particularly famed for housing a rare snow leopard and thousands more animals including tigers, gorillas, lemurs and bears. It also boast the largest man made rainforest and a mono rail for ease getting around this mammoth place.

NATIONAL ZOOLOGICAL GARDENS OF SOUTH AFRICA

Opened in 1899, this is Africa’s finest zoological park. Itis large enough that you may want to hire one of the available golf carts in order to get around to each exhibit! The zoo is situated on relatively flat ground but half is located on the slopes of the hill. 

A cable car is available to take you from the top slopes to the entrance at the bottom.

 It houses 97 mammal species, 161 bird species, 279 fish species, 106 reptile species and seven amphibian species for a total of approximately 4500 animals. 

Apart from the atmospheric pathways, lush greenery, and natural exhibits, the park also features South Africa’s largest aquarium.

BASEL ZOO, SWITZERLAND

Located in the city of Basel in Switzerland, this zoo is the oldest in the world. Receiving around 1.7 million visitors each year it has become the most paid visitor attraction in Switzerland. It is situated in 24 acres of beautiful parkland sat right in the heart of the city.

 It is certainly a place you will encounter strange and astonishing forms of marine, desert and rainforest life.Basel Zoo in Switzerland was opened in 1874, allowing it to rank as one of the oldest zoos in operation today. The zoo is, in fact, the second most visited attraction in all of Switzerland. 

There are more than 6,000 animals in this popular Swiss destination, including Somolian wild donkeys and dwarf hippopotami!

Animal Kingdom, Orlando Florida Zoo

Animal Kingdom is part of the Disney Theme Park collection in Orlando, Florida. While it’s obviously a commercial zoo, the zookeepers do their best to make sure each animal feels as though he is in a realistic habitat, with plenty of space and as little human distraction as possible.

Disney’s Animal Kingdom covers an astounding 500 acres and is consequently Disney’s largest theme park in the world. Animal Kingdom subtly combines a theme park with a zoo but you would not know it.

 The zoo was founded in 1975 and is a fun day out for all the family with so many things to do which is why it ranks so highly throughout the world.

Zoo Praha, Prague, Czech Republic

Prague does not seem like a destination that automatically screams “zoo” when you arrive but let me assure you it is well worth sacrificing one day of your holiday to check it out. With around 1.3 million visitors annually I am not the only one who would agree. 

There are 5000 animals and 650 species at the zoo. The grounds stretch from a lush river valley up a steep, rocky escarpment to rolling meadows. 

The views at the summit are spectacular. A mere 5 Euros will give you all-day access and highlights include Monkey Island and the Indonesia Jungle.

BEAUVAL ZOO, FRANCE

The Beauval Zoo in France originally opened in 1980 as an aviary, housing over 2,000 species of birds alone. 

It wasn’t until over 10 years later when other animals were introduced to the habitat and the zoo has since grown to over 4,000 animals. Favorites include the zoo’s two white tigers, known as Gorby and Raisa; and the pair of twin manatees, known as Quito and Luna. Make sure you stop by and say hello when you visit.