Sandalsand Norge >>
Inspirations
Most of the posts in this section are part of a series. In the following bullet list, the links are to the first post in the series:
- This Week in Nature: The basic four elements of nature
- Defensive Structures: Fortresses and the like
- European City Breaks: 32 cities
- Religious Buildings: Religions all over the world
- Iron Wheels: Trains and other vehicles on rails
If you are looking for regular travelogues, head for the Destinations page. If you want to learn more about the world around us, and how Sandalsand deals with it, look into the other pages in the Specials menu: Writing and publishing and Travelling. Did you know that Sandalsand is on YouTube?
The illustration above is from a flight along the Himalayas.
The New World Heritage Sites of 2024
UNESCO’s World Heritage Committee announced 24 new World Heritage Sites in 2024. The List now includes 1223 sites of a cultural, natural or mixed...
The New World Heritage Sites of 2022 and 2023
UNESCO’s World Heritage Committee announced 42 new World Heritage Sites in 2022 and 2023. The List now includes 1199 sites of a cultural, natural or...
The New World Heritage Sites of 2021
UNESCO’s World Heritage Committee announced 34 new World Heritage Sites in 2021. The List now includes 1154 sites of a cultural, natural or mixed...
The New World Heritage Sites of 2019
UNESCO’s World Heritage Committee held its 2019 annual meeting in Baku. It promoted 29 sites to the rank of World Heritage. The List now includes...
Horizontal lines on world maps – the special ones
Maps of the Earth include many latitudes. They are the lines which divide the globe horizontally. Five of them have names. Sandalsand has crossed...
The New World Heritage Sites of 2018
In 2018 we welcomed 19 new World Heritage Sites. UNESCO's World Heritage Committee has held its annual meeting, this time in Bahrain. The new sites...
If Facebook was to shape our image of the world
The Facebook image of the world is not real. The physical world with continents, coastlines, islands and rivers has been with us for longer than we...
Another 10 European city breaks
Here are another 10 European city breaks. This is the third article in my series of European city breaks, the places you can fly or drive to in a...
World Heritage Day 18 April
Today is the World Heritage Day. 18th of April is the "International Day for Monuments and Sites". In 1982 the International Council for Monuments...
The world’s documentary heritage
Everyone is familiar with the UNESCO World Heritage List. It has over a thousand places of unprecedented universal cultural or natural value. The...
Intangible cultural heritage, what is it?
It's like a mystery: What part of our cultural heritage is characterised by the representations, the expressions, the knowledge and the skills that...
Nature: Air
This is the last part in my series of photo essays dealing with the classic four elements of nature. The fourth element is Air. It goes without...
Nature: Snow and ice
Snow and ice. This is an article in a series about nature. Water comes in three forms, gas and liquid water are two. This is a look at "stiff"...
Nature: 5 Important Straits
Let us visit 5 important straits. I have been exploring various aspects of nature with regard to the four classic elements. A strait represents a...
Nature: 11 Picturesque Lakes
Let's have a look at 11 picturesque lakes. Lakes come in all sizes and some even contain salt water. This article illustrates and describes some...
Nature: 26 Mighty rivers
Join me and visit 26 mighty rivers This article might be a mistake, because it is going to mention a large number of rivers across almost the entire...
Nature: 9 Fascinating Beaches
I bet you know many beaches. This article is about my selection 9 fascinating beaches. With about 70% percent of the Earth covered by water, there...
Nature: 4 Dramatic waterfalls
Get to know 4 dramatic waterfalls. I am exploring nature in terms of the classic elements of nature. This is a combined water and earth element....
Nature: 7 Active Volcanoes
Here are 7 active volcanoes. Have you seen them? All through the history of mankind fire has fascinated, terrified and calmed us all, and we have...
Nature: 8 Dry Deserts
Have a look at this selection of 8 dry deserts. The Earth's surface is predominantly wet, covered by water. Some areas are on the other hand...
12 more European city breaks
This is a list of 12 more European city breaks. It continues the previous list of 10 European city breaks. The list is purely alphabetical, and you...
Nature: 6 Great highlands
Some mountain plateaus or plains are more adventurous than the average. My examples of 6 great highlands are from different parts of the world....
10 European city breaks
This is a list of 10 European city breaks. City breaks or city escapes have become increasingly popular and there are many possible destinations. If...
Nature: 8 Amazing Mountain Views
Have you been to these 8 amazing mountain views? If you take nature as the basis and exclude skyscrapers, constructed "skywalks" and such, we are...
Nature: 8 Dramatic Cliffs
Here you will find 8 dramatic cliffs. Steep mountain slopes hitting the waves on a coastline are always dramatic, especially in rough weather....
Nature: 7 Strange Rock Formations
What do I mean by 7 strange rock formations? Well, the Earth’s surface is full of loose stones and boulders and solid rocks. Some have over the...
Nature: 10 Great Caves
A cave is a hollow place in the ground, often very deep but also quite small like a grotto. Here is a nice selection av 10 great caves. This...
Nature: Introduction
This is the introduction to a series about nature, or inspiring natural phenomena. We'll be dealing with the classic elements of nature. Human...
Defensive structures (3) The protection of civilians
The protection of civilians is the key to some kinds of defensive military structures. However, the term protection may not be correct. Some of the...
Defensive Structures (2) The smaller ones
Some defensive structures are basically walled military compounds on a limited area, like fortresses. Others include entire towns. The fortresses...
Defensive Structures (1) The huge ones
There are some historically significant and physically huge defensive structures around the world. They built them to protect entire countries...
Religious Buildings (12) After death – Special memorials, with no identified dead persons
What happens to a person after death? For some there are special memorials, with no identified dead persons. Military and political authorities have...
Religious Buildings (11) After death – Taking care of human remains
In this serious about religious buildings we have come to what happens after death, when it comes to taking care of human remains. Mummification...
Religious Buildings (10) After death – Burial sites as World Heritage Sites
What happens after death? Some burial sites are also World Heritage Sites. Rich people, like kings, emperors and nobles have for thousands of years...
Religious Buildings (9) After death – Cemeteries as final resting places
What happens after death? We will have a look at cemeteries as final resting places. All religions and cultures have rites in dealing with death and...
Religious Buildings (8) Houses for the deity or its premier representative on Earth
What do we mean by houses for the deity or its premier representative on Earth? This chapter in the series about religious buildings is a rather...
Religious Buildings (7) Monasteries and educational institutions
In this serious of religious buildings we have to come to monasteries and educational institutions. They belong to different religions. In most...
Religious Buildings (6) Places of worship for extinct religions
Around the world we find several places of worship for extinct religions. This article is based it on my own photographed visits. There is a host of...
Religious Buildings (5) Other contemporary places of worship
This chapter finishes the presentation of contemporary religions with a look at Shinto, Tao, Hindu and Jewish places of worship. Shintoism Shintoism...
Religious Buildings (4) Buddhist places of worship
Buddhist places of worship: Buddhism spread out of India from around the 4th to 6th century BC based on the thoughts and principles of the awakened...
Religious Buildings (3) Muslim places of worship
Muslim places of worship: Some Muslim mosques are more important than others. The most important ones in Mecca and Medina are out of reach for...
Religious Buildings (2) Christian places of worship
Christian places of worship: Christianity is a religious faith that has triggered the building of some of the world's largest and most magnificent...
Religious Buildings (1) Introduction
This is an introduction to a series of articles presenting religious buildings in a wide definition of the term. They are based on my own visits....
Iron Wheels (2) Special rails
There are many varieties of rail transport; metro, cable car, cog track and tram to mention some. There are actually a lot more than you think of,...
Iron Wheels (1) Exciting train journeys
This is an introduction to exciting train journeys. I have registered my travels on a world map and the distance travelled on trains has been...
Traveling, you realize that differences are lost: each city takes to resembling all cities, places exchange their form, order, distances, a shapeless dust cloud invades the continents. (Italo Calvino)
Every man can transform the world from one of monotony and drabness to one of excitement and adventure. (Irving Wallace)
The road must eventually lead to the whole world. (Jack Kerouac)
We live in a wonderful world that is full of beauty, charm and adventure. There is no end to the adventures we can have if only we seek them with our eyes open. (Jawaharal Nehru)
