You will notice that most of these destinations are out of the way and rather hard to get to, but they are relatively easy to get to.
These places must have all captured your fancy for some reason or another. Save for the locations in Canada and Australia.
Here are the list of 13 places you would most like to find out :
1. Socotra (Yemen)
If you’ve seen photos from Socotra you’ll understand why this is a very special place. It is an island in the Indian Ocean located about 240km from the coast of Yemen. It is home to species found nowhere else on Earth. Moreover, they look really cool. It has been called the most alien looking place on Earth.
Indonesia is the largest archipelago and the fourth most populated country in the world. With over 17,000 different islands, Indonesia has just about every different kind of landscape imaginable. Mountains, volcanoes, rice terraces, bustling metropolitan cities, sleepy villages, beautiful beaches and so much more can be found within its borders. For those considering a trip to Indonesia, there are a few places that are must-sees that deserve special recognition.
Bali is one of those must-see places in Indonesia. With gorgeous beaches and pristine water set against a stunning backdrop of rugged coastline, volcanoes, and rice terraces, it’s easy to see why many believe that Bali is paradise on Earth. While many come to the island for its world-class surfing and other water sports, or to simply relax and enjoy one of the many beaches, Bali also has a wealth of cultural opportunities. While Indonesia as a whole is predominantly Muslim, the majority of people in Bali are Hindu, and their religion and culture shines through in their everyday life. Away from the beaches, the cultural heart of Bali is considered to be Ubud. Ubud has a number of historical sites, in addition to museums and galleries. The landscape surrounding Ubud is something to be seen as well, with rice paddies and terraces surrounding the town, enveloping the area in a sea of green.
Another beautiful and interesting cultural place to visit while in Indonesia is Borobudur. An ancient Buddhist stupa and temple complex, Borobudur is a UNESCO World Heritage Site located in central Java. No one knows for sure as to who exactly built Borobudur, or even why it was built, though it’s thought to have been constructed during the 8th century. Along with the mystery of who built it and why, there’s no clear answer as to why Borobudur was abandoned, although many believe that it may have something to do with the area’s conversion to Islam during the 15th century. Regardless of the reasons, it’s a beautiful, awe-inspiring complex and a fantastic place to visit.
For those visitors who want to experience Batak culture and see the world’s largest volcanic lake, a trip to Danau Toba is in order. Danau Toba is located in Sumatra, and its beauty must be seen to be appreciated. With a backdrop of mountains set against the cool, clear water, it’s a great place to visit. The Batak people are another good reason to visit Danau Toba, as they are friendly, relaxed, and have a rich cultural heritage.
Visitors wanting to experience modern Indonesia should take a few days to explore Jakarta. The capital and largest city in Indonesia, Jakarta is everything one would expect from a city with around 10 million people, complete with shopping, dining, and nightlife options that make it one of Asia’s most exciting cities. Visit museums, parks, mosques, and markets while you shop and eat your way through the city. Jakarta can be chaotic and overwhelming, but it’s never boring, and it’s an interesting window into the lifestyle of urban Indonesians.
Intentional resting is method developed by Dan Howard. He has been teaching people for decades how to practice intentional resting over feeding adrenaline and allowing stress to continue to manifest itself. In this article, you’ll become familiar with the techniques of intentional resting and can try it out for yourself. The aim is to ultimately relieve yourself of the guilt, worry and anxiety and to learn to rest in a way that helps you to heal and move through the tough times in life.
Begin by focusing on a part of your body that is hurting you. It can be a sore part of your body or an inflamed area such as your neck or shoulders. Or, it might be your mind if it’s full of racing, uncontrollable, negative or unhappy thoughts. Or perhaps it’s your skin, your knees, your lymphatic system, your broken heart – just pick whichever part of your body is hurting most or causing you the most discomfort in your opinion.
Focus your willpower on the part of your body that you have decided is hurting. What do you notice when you do this? For most people, you’ll find that your body as a whole, including the painful area, tenses up. Be aware that this is a common strategy that we use to try and deal with pain – yet you’ve just learned that it doesn’t work so well!
Change your strategy. This time, pretend that the pain is no longer present. Ignore the pain and tell yourself that you’re not hurting. This strategy is like playing peekaboo – first you see it but then when you no longer pay attention to it, you expect it to go away even though it’s still very much there. Consider how this makes you feel – does the pain go away? No? You’ve just discovered another common strategy for dealing with pain that doesn’t work!
Stop trying. Now say the following phrase to yourself, either in your head or out loud: “I am resting for [name the area of the body that is hurting] now.” Then just pause. Think about what you notice now. For many people, focusing on resting works far better than working at trying to fix something relentlessly or to try and hide from it. Indeed, Dan Howard says that the more you work at trying to stop the pain, the less successful you will be. Instead, intentional resting requires that you notice what is going on in your body and then choose to rest what hurts.
Try different ways of telling yourself that you’re resting. This isn’t by any means an exact science and it’ll require some trial and error on your own behalf to find what works for you. For example, Dan Howard has found that some parts of his body respond better to saying “I’m resting into my [whichever part it is]” than saying “I’m resting for [that part]“. The aim is to find a settling feeling, a feeling that you’ve landed into deep restfulness for that pained part of yourself and you’re releasing yourself from unease, anxiety and discomfort. It’s a healing process and a restorative process.
Repeat until this method works best for you. It may take a number of attempts before the pieces fall into place and you discover how intentional rest soothes you and allows you to truly rest to the point of restoring your energy and reducing any pain.
Be accepting of the value of resting like it matters. Rest does matter and yet it is tied up in so many negative connotations such as being lazy, selfish or unaware that many of us are too guilt-ridden to treat rest as the restorative we deserve. Martha Beck points out that we need to watch animals to be reminded what real rest is like. She relates an incident where she was watching a pride of lions resting after an unsuccessful hunt. Instead of sitting around down and low about it (and analyzing what went wrong if they could do such a thing), they sat, purred and rested for hours, surrendering to the need to regain strenght rather than wallow in defeat. Yes, life can be hard and sometimes life stacks up all the odds against us and causes us to feel that we never get a break. However, by choosing to rest intentionally, you can heal the scars and restore your energy to face the challenges with greater strength and sense of purpose.
