Cristales, Columbia
Cano Cristales Columbia
Cao Cristales is a river located in the Serrenia de la Macerana region of Columbia. This isn't just any river, it has been referred to as and "The Most Beautiful River in the World." For much of the year it looks just the same as any other river, but for a short amount of time between September and November - in the transition period between wet and dry seasons - it transforms into a wash of color. The reds, pinks, blues, greens and yellows that adorn the river are actually unique types of flora growing on the riverbed.
Living Tree Bridges of Cherrapunji: Unbelievable Sight
What appears to be a scene out of a Lord of the Rings movie, the Living Tree Bridges of Cherrapunji, Meghalaya, is just what the name suggests. Providing a rather mysterious and surreal sight, the rubber tree in question is said to have roots that go as long as 3000 feet.
Image Credit: t.saldanha - Flickr
And if you are wondering how on earth they got that way, the winding roots have made their way along the slopes. As the trees cling to the higher areas of the riverbank, they send their roots down to the riverbed. It is said that over the ages, humans have shaped them to aid as a natural bridge between the rivers.
The Bermuda Triangle, Atlantic Ocean
The Bermuda Triangle, Atlantic Ocean ( Ocean NOAA's National Ocean Service/flickr)
What would a list of mysterious places be without a mention of the Bermuda Triangle? For anyone who doesn't know, it's a triangular area in the Atlantic ocean, between Miami, Bermuda and San Juan. Over the years, the area has captured our imaginations, with reports of seemingly unexplainable disappearances of planes, ships and people. No one can say for sure what happened in these cases, but theories are as far ranging as sea monsters, alien abduction and simple weather conditions.
Magnetic Hill: Car Slipping Uphill
Image Credit: Kiran SRK - Flickr
We are aware of a vehicle slipping down downhill, but can it actually go up the other way around? There is a hill in Ladakh that is believed to be magnetic. If by any chance you happen to park your car and leave it on neutral on the road that climbs up the hill, it will ascend the steep road on its own at a speed up to 20kms per hour! Popularly known as Himalayan wonder', the place is rather talked about among travellers.
What appears like the doings of some magic is actually said to be due to an optical illusion. The mountains, roads, and hills are placed in such a way that it appears as if the area is an uphill terrain, but in reality, it is slightly downhill. Hence, when a car is left out of gear, it looks as if it is rolling uphill. Whatever be the reason, there is no denying the enigma surrounding it.
Jatinga: Birds commit suicide
What seems to have come straight out of an Alfred Hitchcock movie, this phenomenon is a rather depressing one. Jatinga village, Dima Hasao, Assam is where several migratory birds just drop dead.
This especially happens between 6pm to 9.30pm on moonless nights during the months of September and October. Several theories have popped up regarding the bird suicide happenings but none have managed to be accurate.
Death Valley, Nevada
Death Valley, Nevada (Wikimedia)
Death Valley in Nevada stretches into California, and offers a breathtakingly huge empty landscape to explore. The sheer scale of the park by itself is daunting, as is its forbidding sense of isolation. Here visitors can explore a number of unusual geological features. Salt flats and rock formations offer intriguing vistas, and some parts of Death Valley are actually located below sea level.
To add to the oddness, scientists have discovered mysterious rocks they call the "Sailing Stones of Death Valley." These rocks appear to move all by themselves, leaving a trail behind them which reveals the pathways they have taken. This is a major unsolved scientific mystery.
Bullet Baba: Self-starting Bike
Om Banna, an avid bike lover was on his way during the elections to meet some people on his Bullet bike. En route, he met with an unfortunate accident and passed away. The cops seized the vehicle and put it in the police station, only to discover that it was missing the next morning. After a few searches, they found it at the same accident site. Even after placing the vehicle back, the incident repeated again.
It was believed that the late owner himself rode it there. Today, they have built a temple in that location in his memory where people come to worship him as the accident preventer. Another interesting fact, some of the devotees actually offer Bullet Beer' to him. This place is located 20 kms before Pali city, in Rajasthan.
Banni Grasslands Reserve: Strange Dancing Lights
Banni Grasslands Reserve in the Rann of Kutch lends its own charm. Since centuries locals have claimed to have spotted few mysterious dancing lights. Labelled as Chir Batti, they are alleged to be as fierce as a mercury lamp and can apparently change their colour into blue, red, yellow to a pear- shaped moving ball. Sometimes they are still and other times they move at a fast pace.
There have been visitors and soldiers who complained that these lights seemed to have followed them. Scientists refute paranormal activities here and believe that the occurrences are due to oxidation of methane from the marshes.
Hanging Pillar: Temple Complex Stands On The Pillar
Image Credit: Mahesh Telkar - Flickr
Located in the Anantapur district in southern Andhra Pradesh, the hanging Pillar of Lepakshi is a mystery indeed. Built in the 16th-century temple of stone in Vijayanagar style, you can actually swipe a piece of cloth or paper mid-air that separates the ground and the pillar.
Image Credit: Premnath Thirumalaisamy - Flickr
As a matter of fact, a curious British Engineer tried to figure out the secret of its support, consequently dislodging it a bit in the process. Some believe that the entire complex stands on the pillar.
The Tale of Twins at Kodinhi, Kerala
Image Source
The extraordinary factor about this otherwise ordinary village in Malappuram, Kerala is the strikingly large number of twin births that it witnesses. Kodinhi, or the Village of Twins', as it is now called, holds an eminent place among the mysterious places in India!
The Mystery: Once you set foot into this village, you'll start seeing doubles of almost everyone! Kodinhi is currently home to over 200 pair of twins and two sets of triplets. And that's not all! Kodinhi's women who are married outside the village also end up having twins or triplets.
The Theory: Doctors believe that the reason for this strange phenomenon lies in the chemicals of the water in the area.
The Lake of Skeletons at Chamoli, Uttarakhand
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Roopkund Lake is a glacier lake located at an elevation of 16,500 feet in the most God forsaken place in the Himalayas. But it's remote and dangerous location has got nothing to do with the gloom and despair associated with this lake. It's what lies beneath it that scares the shit out of most people.
The Mystery: Around 300-600 skeletons can be seen beneath the surface of the frozen Roopkund lake every year when the ice melts at this mysterious place in India. Radiocarbon tests and forensics date the corpses back to the 15th century AD.
The Theory: The locals believe that the corpses belong to the then king and queen of Kanauj, who were going on a pilgrimage but plunged into the lake due to a severe hailstorm and died.
The Floating Stones of Rameshwaram, Tamil Nadu
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Rameshwaram in Tamil Nadu holds immense importance in the Hindu mythology, as it is the place where, according to Ramayana, Lord Rama's Vanara Sena built a bridge of floating stones all the way to Sri Lanka. But there is something else about the bridge that makes this place one of the most mysterious places in India...
The Mystery: According to Ramayana, the bridge was built of stones that would stay afloat once the name of Lord Rama was scribbled on it. As it turns out, this wasn't just a story. The bridge was actually made of such stones, as they are still found around here and are a major tourist attraction in Rameshwaram.
The Village that Slithers, in Shetpal, Maharashtra
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Snake worship happens to be an ancient and widespread practice in India, but there's one town in Maharashtra that follows it way too religiously. The village has established a custom for every household, wherein it is mandatory for the house to have a resting place for cobras in the rafters of their ceilings.
The Mystery: The snakes here, it seems, are pretty friendly. The reason it one of the most mysterious places in India is because no snake bite has ever been reported in this village.
Loktak: Only Floating Islands in the World
Image Credit: Hemam Bishwajeet - Flickr
The Loktak Lake in Manipur offers a mysterious and spectacular sight. There are large circular clusters of vegetation that float on the surface. Termed as the only Floating Lake in the world, the formations (phumdis) are made of vegetation, soil and organic matter. This place has been a case of interest and fascination among many.
The Immortal Flame of Jwala Ji Temple in Kangra, Himachal Pradesh
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Jwala Ji temple is a holy shrine located in the lower Himalayas in Kangra district, typical of other Jwala Ji shrines in the country. Why then, is it listed among the mysterious places in India, is another matter altogether.
The Mystery: The central pit of hollowed stone inside this shrine holds a flame that has been burning endlessly for over a 100 years.
The Theory: The flame is burning off a supply of natural gases like methane under its surface.
CREDIT :
- www.thrillophilia.com
- www.conservationinstitute.org
- traveltriangle.com
PRESENTED BY SHONA
Mark and Bill
Mark was walking home from school one day when he noticed the boy ahead of him had tripped and dropped all of the books he was carrying, along with two sweaters, a baseball bat, a glove and a small tape recorder.
Mark knelt down and helped the boy pick up the scattered articles. Since they were going the same way, he helped to carry part of the burden.
As they walked, Mark discovered the boy's name was Bill, that he loved video games, baseball and history, and that he was having lots of trouble with his other subjects, and that he had just broken up with his girlfriend.
They arrived at Bill's home first and Mark was invited in for a Coke and to watch some television. The afternoon passed pleasantly with a few laughs and some shared small talk, then Mark went home.
They continued to see each other around school, had lunch together once or twice, then both graduated from junior high school. They ended up in the same high school where they had brief contacts over the years.
Finally the long-awaited senior year came and three weeks before graduation, Bill asked Mark if they could talk.
Bill reminded him of the day years ago when they had first met. "Did you ever wonder why I was carrying so many things home that day? asked Bill.
"You see, I cleaned out my locker because I didn't want to leave a mess for anyone else. I had stored away some of my mother's sleeping pills and I was going home to commit suicide. But after we spent some time together talking and laughing, I realized that if I had killed myself, I would have missed that time and so many others that might follow. So you see, Mark, when you picked up those books that day, you did a lot more, you saved my life.
credit: http://shortstories.co.in
Howrah Rajdhani
I, as middleclass Indian, am blessed with many typical "Indian characteristics. (No hard feeling bro my other Indian brothers and sisters if you do not agree, I fully agree to that. But being an Indian, I have right to classify my own atypical characteristics as "Indian).
My first characteristic is "be cautious. I confirm everything at least 3-4 times whatsoever the case to be. Let a simple case of locking the main door when I, with family, started for a trip (to attend a family function as we middleclass "rarely waste our valuable earnings for exotic vacations), leaving our "so called valuables in "soon to be temporarily deserted house on mercy of a 7 lever "Godrej lock. Firstly I pulled the poor rusted lock multiple times after locking the door to stress test reliability of the lock, then looked back just after taking four-five steps before lock goes out of our sight to again cross verify whether lock was still there, and the most irritating one was asked again by wife in auto-rickshaw when nearing railway station, "did you lock the door properly.
Until we reached railway station, everyone tried utmost effort to badly entangle my cautious mind further with layers of confusion, "have you taken the tickets... "Did you switch off fans and lights... "Papa, did you inform my class teacher... "Count the bags... it must be seven including two children (Five bags are minimum count of bags we travel with light journey is always better two suitcases, one big bag as eatery even in Rajdhani Express in which Railway ministry provides food and beverages not free price included in tickets, one bag for both kids they are still small, and one with all remaining valuables the purse of the lady of house)...
My cautious characteristic was still dominating when we reached Mughalsarai railway station at 11:45 PM total one hour fifteen minutes before schedule departure of Howrah Rajdhani Express. But it was totally acceptable better early than never. I was busy in counting our bags and kids while taking help of coolie to carry our luggage to board in our reserved 3-tire AC compartment. Suddenly I could clearly see my second characteristic, doubt everyone, started going hand-to-hand with the first one. I took out the ticket to verify train number and timing, and kept doubting knowledge of coolie who, as per generally accepted Indian principles, seemingly knows more than the sophisticated computer system and the babus sitting at Enquiry Window. I looked at every computerized and manual display, demonstrating my cognizance to my wife and kids, and finally declared when the coolie turned to step down on platform number three, "On Platform number Three at 1:00 Hrs.
Train arrived at right time (until now I had not paid to coolie my second characteristics. You never know these coolies, they will disappear once they get money, leaving you helpless on the crowded platform with seven big bags including two sleeping children). We pushed everyone to locate (to be precise, "capture) our already reserved births. Third characteristic woke up in late midnight "always be in hurry. The train was still standing. (I already checked with many co-passengers it was Howrah Rajdhani. My brother-in-law had warned me that there would be many Rajdhanis going at the same time.) Within less than three minutes, we locked our bags with railways chain, brought bedsheets and blankets after a small fight with coach attendant who was asking us to wait for few minutes, changed our clothes including those of our already sleeping children to sleeping dress, and lied down on our births covering us with Indian Railways' typical blankets.
Suddenly a "pehalwaan (wrestler) looking person with his wife and ten big bags including two children entered in our section and shouted, "This is my birth, get down. I was intimidated by his physique and voice but sill gave him free suggestion (my fourth characteristic) in imperceptibly protesting voice, "Bhai sahib (respected brother), it is my seat... please check your ticket again... many Rajdhanis go at this time... my brother-in-law told me already... it is Howrah Rajdhani... I could not complete... he dragged me down from my upper seat. My wife could not protect me from falling... all four kids were fully awake and frightened (to be honest... not more than I was) and started crying loudly in chorus.
Suddenly God sent my savior (ticket checker). He checked our tickets and addressed to me, vindicating the pehalwaan looking person,
"Sir, your ticket was for yesterday's Howrah Rajdhani see November 3, 1:00 AM
I put forth my argument (my fifth characteristic), "Today is November 3
"No... after midnight date changed... it is November 4... 1:00 AM. Now train may start anytime... please get down quickly... hurry up!!!
This was no problem... my already awaken third characteristic "always be in hurry first time in my life helped me to get down with my light luggage and also with family safely. Train was almost running when I jumped out of it...
My wife, "I told you many times, check the tickets... check the tickets... but you never listened...
But I was busy in counting my luggage, "...5, 6, uhhh... the purse 7... Complete!!! Thank God
credit: http://yourstoryclub.com
SHONA 🤗 FOR THESE WONDERFUL STORIES 👏
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