paya's User Profile - Atlas Obscura
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Iceland

Garðar BA 64

The oldest steel ship in Iceland has been beached for years and is now a rusting ruin.
Taiwan

Lotus Lake Taoist Complex

This collection of lakeside pagodas and temples are flanked by giant lions, tigers, and dragons as well as their welcoming maws.
Xiulin Township, Taiwan

Taroko Gorge

An extraordinary natural landscape of mountains, waterfalls, and rocky cliffs riddled with tunnels.
Berlin, Germany

AquaDom

The largest free-standing aquarium in the world resides in a hotel lobby in Berlin.
Iceland

Hekla

A stratovolcano located in the south of Iceland, with a long history of charted activity and a rich mythology attached.
Thingvellir, Iceland

Þingvellir Church

This beautiful, historic church looks like something out of a simpler past.
Heimaey, Iceland

Volcanic Island of Heimaey

A modern Nordic Pompeii on the Icelandic island of Heimaey.
Reykjanes, Iceland

Gunnuhver

Iceland's largest geothermal mud pool is a little bit haunted and a little bit dangerous.
Wanaka, New Zealand

That Wanaka Tree

A solitary tree has grown up all alone on Lake Wānaka, backdropped by the beautiful Southern Alps.
Milford Sound, New Zealand

Milford Sound

Dolphins, ancient clams and hundreds of waterfalls make this one of the world's top tourist destinations.
Lake Tekapo, New Zealand

Takapō (Lake Tekapo)

A perfect turquoise lake colored with glacier dust.
Rotorua, New Zealand

Rotorua

Major tourist destination known for its bubbling mud-pools and hot thermal springs.
Dunedin, New Zealand

Baldwin Street Houses

One of the world's steepest streets seems to have houses sliding down it.
Hampden, New Zealand

Moeraki Boulders

Highly spherical boulders on the shores of New Zealand.
Christchurch, New Zealand

Re:START Mall

After the devastating 2011 earthquake, historic Christchurch begins to recover, starting with the pop-up Re:START mall.
Iceland

Svartifoss

The unique waterfall in Iceland's south features a backdrop of geometric black lava columns.
Iceland

Krýsuvíkurbjarg (Krýsuvík Cliffs)

The summer tourists on these cliffs are thousands of seabirds.
Iceland

Jökulsárlón

Iceland's largest lagoon is home to stunning multi-colored icebergs.
Grindavík, Iceland

Blue Lagoon

Medicinal spa created with the discharge from a geothermal energy plant.
Iceland

Bridge Between Continents

Walk in the footsteps of the gods and straddle two tectonic plates.
Iceland

Haukadalur Geothermal Field

This valley of hot springs and boiling mud pots is home to the record-holding "Geysir," which originated the English word.
Thingvellir, Iceland

Þingvellir

The picturesque birthplace of Icelandic democracy is drenched in the blood of its brutal past.
Iceland

Gullfoss (Golden Falls)

If a glacial river suddenly diving into a sheer chasm via a dramatic, multi-stage waterfall isn't peak Iceland, it's certainly close.
Hveragerði, Iceland

Reykjadalur

Iceland's "Smoky Valley" is a beautiful river that is shrouded in a constant cover of steam clouds.