The hike to the lost Incan city of Choquequirao is one of the most difficult in Peru. From the town of Cachora, which is 161km west of Cusco, it's an 18km walk to Capuliyoc Mountain, then down to Playa Rosalina, where travelers camp for the night. Waking early, travelers then have to cross the Apurimac River and walk uphill to camp close to the ruins. Then, the next morning, it's another 2km walk up to the ruins, 3,100 m above sea level. To get back? Well, it's the same way you came.
"I've had people in their 60s and 70s do it," said Juan Barrios, a guide from the Adventure Life company."But some people come out thinking that because it's only 28km from the drop off they can do it in a day. Six or seven days for the hike is best."
It makes sense, then, that Choquequirao draws only about 30 people a day during the high season (June through August). Compare that to the 2,500 people who arrive each day at the famous Incan city of Machu Picchu.
But for those who make the journey, the rewards(回报) are great: beautiful mountain views at every turn, and the chance to explore the wonderful ruins nearly alone.
Believed to be created around the same time as Machu Picchu, in1445, Choquequirao is actually larger than better-known Machu Picchu. But very little has been written about Peru's other lost city and researchers are still uncovering new parts of the ruins, leaving life on the mountain relatively untouched.
But officials say that the building of the first cable car(缆车) to Choquequirao will shorten the several-day walk to a 15-minute cable car ride. As a result, the number of travelers that now make the journey each week could turn into 3,000 visitors per day.
Choquequirao is beautiful now because of how untouched it is. Even though the lost city was discovered by Spanish explorer Juan Arias Diaz in 1710, the ruins still make you feel as though you're the first to find them. Will it be the same when more travelers flood in (大量涌入)?
Many travellers are familiar with the UNESCO's World Heritage List. However, less is known about the organization's List of World Heritage in Danger. It currently specifies 53 World Heritage sites under threat of "serious and specific dangers"due to factors such as climate change, armed conflict, and development pressures. The accelerated degeneration of these cultural treasures is a reality that should concern the world, since the younger generation may not have the opportunity to visit them.
For this reason, insurance company Budget Direct, and NeoMam Studios, a creative studio based in the UK, have created a series of GIFs to restore World Heritage sites and demonstrate (表明) what these ruins would have looked like if they had been preserved (保护).
Drawing attention to sites at risk, the project aims to give everyone the opportunity to visit these sites virtually. It started with in-depth research around the sites on the List of World Heritage in Danger. Based on the results, the team made a selection according to two main criteria: First, they were man-made places. Second, they still had standing elements(元素). Focusing on the selected sites, the team worked with architects Jelena Popovic and Keremcan Kirilmaz and industrial(工业的) designer Erdem Batirbek to research and illustrate six of these legendary (传奇的) locations.
In this series of GIFs, six sites are digitally restored to their former glory. They include Hatra in Iraq, Leptis Magna in Libya, Palmyra in Syria, Portobelo-San Lorenzo in Panama, Nan Madol in the Federated States of Micronesia as well as the Old City of Jerusalem and its Walls.
Time does not stand still, and neither does technology. Thanks to these photorealistic images and electronic devices, we can travel, without leaving home, to those places that, whatever their future may be, will always be part of the collective memory.
While traveling from New Zealand to Newcastle in the UK, I arrived in London to have my plane transfer. But unfortunately, the flight to Newcastle had been 1 because of weather conditions.
The airline was 2 —offering me a choice between a night in a hotel or a six-hour bus ride to my destination. With no 3 as to whether a flight to Newcastle would happen in the next two days,I4 the bus ride.
I 5 all my bags in the luggage compartment of the bus, 6 I would need nothing on the way. A young lady sitting beside me could see how tired I was and asked me if anyone would be 7 me when I arrived.
I realized that I had left my cell phone in my bag and had no 8 to get in touch with my relatives. Without hesitation, the young lady 9 to lend me her cell phone.
When the bus made a rest stop, she asked me if I was getting out.I 10 that I couldn't as I still had sandals on, which was not. 11 for the cold weather. When she got back on, with a 12 smile she'd bought me some tea and some sweets.
When we finally arrived in Newcastle, the lady 13 that someone was there to meet me.I asked her to wait a moment while I got my wallet to repay her, but when I looked up she had14 .I was unable to 15 say thanks to her.
