Have a lovely journey!

Following my previous blog post Rabbit Island , we remain in Japan to discover an enchanting star sand beach. It’s Hoshizuna-no-Hama (which literally means “star sand beach” ) , in Japan's Okinawa prefecture, and if you l ook closely, you’ll see that the sand of this beach is very special:  the sand grains really are stars! According to a local legend these tiny star creatures are the offspring of the North Star and Southern Cross. It was said that their children were born in the sea of Okinawa, but a serpent swallowed them leaving only their skeletons behind. See also  Touching a rainbow The truth is that these unique grains are not really sand but actually the exoskeletons of tiny unicellular organism, called Foraminifera that live among the sea grass. Their exoskeleton (or shell) is shaped like a star with 5 or 6 pointed spines that help them, move from one place to another. When they die, they leave their star shaped shells behind to be

Touching a rainbow Can you touch a rainbow? You just need to fly to Colombia. Caño Cristales River, also known as Colombia’s liquid rainbow, is the most beautiful river in the world and for a brief period of time every year, from July through November, the river blossom in a vibrant explosion of colours: yellow, green, blue, black, pink and red appear from the bottom. The liquid rainbow is due to a unique plant, the Macarenia clavigera, that in this period of the year turn red. Other colours come from green algae, yellow sand, blue waters, black rocks, producing the rainbow effect, which, together with the waterfalls, pools and caverns that the river features, make a whole stunning visual experience! Caño Cristales is located in a remote area not easily accessible. The site was closed to tourists for several years because of guerrilla activity. Nowadays it is safer and tourists can fly to La Macarena and from there they need to reach the national park S

Bunnies … who doesn’t like these little cute, fluffy and cuddly animals? Be prepared to the incredible: there is even an entire island where rabbits rule undisturbed… and I’m not talking about Alice in Wonderland and the white rabbit! Welcome to Japan’s Rabbit Island , Okunoshima, an island with a dark history, which is now home to hundreds of wild adorable rabbits. The Japanese army, during World War II, secretly produced over 6,000 tons of lethal gas on Okunoshima, which was even removed from maps as the mission was top-secret and they brought a colony of rabbits to the island in order to test the effects of the poison. It is believed that those rabbits were all, unfortunately, killed when the island was abandoned at the end of the war and that the rabbits that are now on the island are the descendant of just eight rabbits, brought to the island by schoolchildren in 1971, which multiplied until they reached their present population of seve

Welcome to the Republic of San Marino: the fifth smallest country in the world and sole survivor of Italy's once powerful city-state network. According to tradition, it was founded by a Christian stonemason named Marinus in 301 and it's the world's oldest republic.   The site "San Marino: Historic Center and Mount Titano" has become part of the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2008. All lovers of history, and those who love picturesque panoramas, must visit this tiny nation.  Three fortresses - Guaita, Cesta, and Montale - crown the long ridge of Mount Titano; they are linked by a paved path and each of them has a tower from which there are splendid views of the Apennines, the coastal plain, Rimini and the sea. The capital, San Marino city, is set high on the western side of Mount Titano, beneath the fortress, and is encircled by triple walls. Borgo Maggiore, further down, was for centuries San Marino's commercial centre, and Serravalle, beneath its

They are all crooked ! A journey among some of the most incredible crooked buildings in the world Morena Giannascoli “There are no straight lines or sharp corners in nature. Therefore, buildings must have no straight lines or sharp corners.” Antoni Gaudi Here is an interesting list of crooked buildings that challenge the laws of gravity every day with their inclination giving their cities that touch of peculiarity. Some of them have become crooked over time while others are deliberately constructed by architects. ITALY , The Leaning Tower of Pisa is the most recognized leaning tower. The tower's tilt began during construction in the 12th century, caused by an inadequate foundation  on ground too soft on one side to properly support the structure's weight. The tilt increased in the decades before the structure was completed in the 14th century. It gradually increased until the structure was stabilized (and the tilt partially corrected