During writing my last few posts I was thinking where would I go with pleasure and why. The idea came to me after seeing the photos exhibited at the last exhibition, which had as title: "Islands". Based on the comments I got, I'm not the only one to prefer these less visited places, that can be considered hidden gems of nature.
Europe has a lot of such gems. I bet other continents have a lot of gems too, but different ones. This is good as we all have our preferences and the world is big enough to have a nice place for everyone.
Laukvik, Austvågøya
Laukvik is a fishing village in Norway. This part you see on the photo is not a village scene, but it looks amazing. Look at how Zsolt Timár, the photographer framed the photo, that road (I think it's a road) is located diagonally in the photo, almost perfectly dividing the photo in two. I was wondering what the place looks like from the ground and I bet it looks very different, most likely a good part of the beauty of it is lost.
Jotunheimen National Park
This is another photo that proves my point I stated above. You need to take these photos from a higher spot, or with a drone as from the ground you get a different picture. I'm not saying the beauty of the place is lost, just that you see the place differently. I love how the photographer choose to frame the photo, not talking about the wooden frame :)
Skútustaðir Crater
Another crater in Iceland, but this is a bit different. There's no lake inside the crater and it rises above the water. A volcano crater is nature's miracle in itself, let alone a nice one like this or the other one, that had blue or green water in it. You don't see these on every corner.
Fjallabak Nature Reserve
Fjallabak Nature Reserve was established in 1979. The Nature reserve is 47.000 hectares and is over 500 meters above see level. The land is mountainous, sculptured by volcanoes and geothermal activity, covered by lavas, sands, rivers and lakes.
The objective of Nature Reserves is to protect natural features so that forthcoming generations will have the opportunity to enjoy them as we do today. In order to achieve this the country code of conduct is enforced to prevent damage to nature and to the appearance of the land. The desolate wilderness and tranquility are the main characteristics of the Fjallabak Nature Reserve, which thousands of travellers enjoy every year. Guests in the area are reminded to abide by the code of the Nature Reserve so as to conserve its natural features and to support recreation in this popular area for the enjoyment of future generations as our own. source
When I first looked at this photo, my first thought was, this all is the work of mother nature and it's wonderful. This is a nature reserve park and the keyword here is reserve for a good reason. I was thinking how would this place look like with the traffic of hyped beaches with millions of visitors per year. Better not think of the damage those people would do there. This is why these areas are protected and I love what the quote says. We should see these banners more often and people should take the matter seriously. If we don't protect what we have now, our children, grandchildren will be in deep trouble.
Lyngen Alps
The Lyngen Alps are a mountain range in northeastern Troms county in Norway, east of the city of Tromsø. The mountain range runs through the municipalities of Lyngen, Balsfjord, and Storfjord. The mountains follow the western shore of the Lyngen fjord in a north-south direction. The length of the range is at least 90 kilometres (56 mi) (depending on definition—there are mountains all the way south to the border with Sweden) and the width is 15–20 kilometres (9.3–12.4 mi). The mountains dominate the Lyngen Peninsula, which is bordered by the Lyngen fjord to the east, and the Ullsfjorden to the west.
There are 140 glaciers in the mountains covering about 141 km2 of the Lyngen Peninsula at present. source
Another wonderful place that is most likely not a hyped tourist destination, which is good. Untouched nature, something we have less and less these days.
Þakgil
Some people incorrectly spell the Icelandic name Þakgil as “Pakgil”, but it’s not “P”, it’s “TH” as Thór. And Thakgil is a hiking paradise full of canyons, ravines, waterfalls and even melting glaciers! Þakgil is located pretty close to Vik, a very popular city in southern Iceland, very well accessible to all tourists. There are three main hiking trails and several possible detours. source
Last time I wrote about this exhibition, I mentioned the language similarities between Hungarian and Icelandic and that both languages are falling in the 4th category of difficulty. Well, this letter Þ is something I've never seen, but now I know how to pronounce it.
Back to the photo, I'm really sorry for the reflection, but regardless, the place is gorgeous! Look at the pattern formed on those hills and how the nice green matches the other colors. It's just perfect!
These are places I would definitely want to visit and this post on my blog will serve as a not for my future self :)
What about you? Which is your favorite? I mean those who prefer these quiet, but wonderful places.