99 Words

Himalayas is a complex of over a hundred mountains in Asia that divides the Tibetan Plateau and the Indian subcontinent. Such sizable the Himalayan mountain range is that it branches out to six countries namely Tibet, India, Nepal, Afghanistan, Bhutan, and Pakistan. Himalayas is also a great watershed to three of the world’s major river systems: the Yangtze, Ganga-Brahmaputra, and Indus. In Sanskrit, Himalaya means is a collective meaning for “an abode of snow”. The rugged Himalayas has abundant lakes, grasslands, glaciers, and permanent ice caps. It is also the habitat of the endangered snow leopard. As a great physical barrier, remote villages on the Himalayas has less contact with outsiders thus they have well-preserved their customs and traditions.

Bermuda Triangle has earned its moniker the Devil’s Triangle after a number of ships and airplanes disappeared without a trace over the its waters on the Strait of Florida, Bahamas and the Caribbean islands. The area is one of the world’s busiest nautical highway. Likewise, numerous flights from North America to the Caribbean fly over it daily. Strong currents up to six knots have been known to capsize vessels. It might have been human error that have caused the disappearances but most sailors claim that the Triangle posses paranormal forces unexplainable by science. Famous myths are that the legendary city of Atlantis is underneath the Bermuda Triangle while others say that the phenomenon of disappearances are credited to aliens or UFOs. Famous incidences include the disappearance of USS Cyclops, one of the largest loss of life in the US Navy during peace time.

Mauna Loa is the world’s largest volcano. It is one of the five volcanoes that comprise the Island of Hawaii. “Mona Loa” means long mountain in Hawaiian, a befitting word since it is a shield volcano with extensive sloping slides. Its peak is only 120 feet (37 m), diminutive compared to its nearby Mauna Kea . The volcano is active and has been spewing out lava for 700,000 years. However, the largest active volcano rarely has fierce eruptions lately. The last outburst on 1984 did not cause casualties. The volcano produces low-silica lava that are low in viscosity but since the volcano’s sides are not steep, lava flows pose a great threat to neighboring villages. Observatories were built on the volcano to monitor its activities.

Lake Sommen is located in the very heart of the Sommen Lake District on the border to Östergötland and Småland. It has an area of 132 km and it’s greatest depth is 60 m. The lake has one of the most finest and clearest lakes in Sweden , with a visibility of 9-11 m in the eastern parts of the lake. The lake has it’s own spicies of fish, the Sommen char. There is an estimated 350 small and big islands in the lake. According to an Urban Legend, a lake monster inhabits Lake Sommen.

Lake Bangweulu is a shallow depression about 50 miles long and 30 miles wide, located in northern Zambia. Much of the area to the south and southeast is swamp, which floods during the rainy days. It is one of the world’s great wetland systems. Bangweulu means “where the water sky meets the sky”. The lake is important to both northern Zambia’s economy and biodiversity. Those who inhabited the area near the lake is called the Bemba people. It was during the exploration of missionary David Livingstone 1868 that the lake was discovered by the Europeans.

Java is an island of Indonesia where the nation’s capital city, Jakarta is located. Java Island is situated on southern Indonesia and bounded on the north by the Java sea, Bali straight on the east, Indian Ocean on the south and on the west by Sunda Straight. It is considered to be Indonesia’s fifth largest island and the world’s 13^th largest. It’s total land area is 134,045 sq km. Aside from Jakarta other important cities can also be found in the island like Malang, Surakarta, Cirebon, Bandung and many more. Java was once the centre of powerful Hindu kingdoms and the core of the colonial Dutch East Indies, in recent times it now plays an essential role in the economic and political activities of Indonesia.

Ångerman River or Ångermanälven in Swedish is one of Sweden’s longest rivers with a length of 490 kilometers; also the river has the largest amount of water running through it. Ångerman River starts in the Scandinavian mountain range, in the southern parts of the Swedish province of Lapland and continues through Jämtland. As soon as it reaches the province of Ångermanland, the river increases it’s power, from which the name of the river is derived. After the town of Sollefteå, on it’s last 30 kilometers it flows through a scenic valley known as Ådalen. Finally. the river empties into the Baltic Sea near the town of Kramfors.

The Mekong River is considered to be one of the world’s major rivers. It is ranked 11^th among the longest rivers in the world and the 7^th in Asia. It’s estimated length is 4,350 km. The Mekong flows generally southeast to the South China Sea passing Yunnan Province, China, forms the border between Myanmar and Laos and most of the border between Thailand and Laos, flows across Cambodia and southern Vietnam before emptying into the South China Sea. It was French explorer Michel Peissel who discovered the source of the river in 1994.

No other river beside Mekong is home to so many species of huge fish; the Giant River Carp, Giant pangasius,the Siamese Giant Carp and the endemic Mekong Giant Catfish are just some of the very large species of fish that can found in the river. Reports of the endangered Siamese crocodiles showing up in the Mekong has aslo been recorded but is very rare.

Birka was an important trading center on the island of Björkö in Sweden during the Viking Age, which handled goods from Scandinavia as well as Central and Eastern Europe and the Orient. It was established during the 8^th century and became an important international port for visitors from different places. It’s name was said to be derived from an old Norse word “birk” which means a market place. Birka, together with Hovgården has been considered a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1993 and has been regarded as Sweden’s oldest town. Today. Birka and Hovgården are owned by the Swedish government and managed by the Swedish National Heritage Board.

The River Congo is the largest river in Western Central Africa and the second longest in Africa after the Nile; it’s overall length is about 4,700 km. Since it is located in the heaviest rainfall belt in Africa, the river carries more water than any other river in the world except the Amazon in South Africa. The river system is divided into four sections: The Upper Congo, the Middle Congo, Lower Congo and the headwaters. The Congo River serves as a main artery for transportation and is a prominent figure in the region’s history. The rich wildlife of Congo includes numerous fish species and crocodiles.