Underground Wonders of the World: Lost Caverns and Buried Cities

Saturday, October 4, 2008 @ 8:27 AM | comment (0)

History and Geography were one my favorite subject way back in elementary and high school. It's a bit odd. Because a lot of people don't quite like it because of too many things to remember. The dates, the names and everything that goes with it. I don't know what's with the subject that makes me want to prefer reading a 12-volume history book all day compared to all those super-thick nursing books that I have at home. Compared to history, Geography one the other hand is a more interesting subject for most people. But still, you'll be memorizing places - countries and their capitals. There are maps and atlases. It can be a bit tiring to look at an atlas if you're not at all interested with what you're seeing. Perhaps, except for those who really love traveling like myself.

It's quite interesting to see these things and recall them. The world is full of wonders, from abandoned towns and deserted settlements, to underwater cities, and underground architecture. Humans burrow into the Earth out of anything from necessity to superstition. Here are some of the underground wonders of the world:

Pembrokeshire, Wales is home to a family with a house straight out of The Hobbit. Remember "The Lord Of the Rings"? Haha! This amazing architectural wonder is created virtually completely from the natural materials found around the residence. The walls are made out of stone, and mud and water enters the house by gravity from a nearby spring.




Edinburgh, Scotland has a long and strange history, though perhaps the oddest story of all is the tale of a bridge that was buried underground. After this bridge was built, superstition following a prominent death led to its disuse. As property values in the area grew, however, people first built under and then even on top of the bridge. Eventually leaks forced the abandonment of the spaces below, which were subsequently filled in. They were recently rediscovered and opened for tourists.





Seattle, Washington’s Pioneer Square district has a very peculiar historical quirk: a century ago, they raised the streets by an entire floor. People actually died falling off of the street to the lower sidewalks below before they managed to raise the sidewalks to the same level. Eventually, what was street level became completely unused and abandoned, though it was recently reopened for visitors.




Wieliczka, Poland sits atop one of the world’s oldest salt mines, in continuous operation for over 800 years until just this year. As these images show, the mine is now open to tourists, with winding paths and bridges as well as art, much of which is carved right out of the salt in the mine. Over 1,000 feet deep, the mine even housed an airplane factory run by the Polish resistance during World War II.




Xi’an, China is now famous for featuring the Mausoleum of Qinshihuang, the biggest imperial tomb known to Chinese history. This subterranean wonder was constructed in 38 years by 700,000 laborers, and is perhaps best known for the host of terracotta warriors buried with the Emperor. The latest installment for "The Mummy" was based and filmed on this one.

Saturday, October 4, 2008 @ 8:27 AM | comment (0)

History and Geography were one my favorite subject way back in elementary and high school. It's a bit odd. Because a lot of people don't quite like it because of too many things to remember. The dates, the names and everything that goes with it. I don't know what's with the subject that makes me want to prefer reading a 12-volume history book all day compared to all those super-thick nursing books that I have at home. Compared to history, Geography one the other hand is a more interesting subject for most people. But still, you'll be memorizing places - countries and their capitals. There are maps and atlases. It can be a bit tiring to look at an atlas if you're not at all interested with what you're seeing. Perhaps, except for those who really love traveling like myself.

It's quite interesting to see these things and recall them. The world is full of wonders, from abandoned towns and deserted settlements, to underwater cities, and underground architecture. Humans burrow into the Earth out of anything from necessity to superstition. Here are some of the underground wonders of the world:

Pembrokeshire, Wales is home to a family with a house straight out of The Hobbit. Remember "The Lord Of the Rings"? Haha! This amazing architectural wonder is created virtually completely from the natural materials found around the residence. The walls are made out of stone, and mud and water enters the house by gravity from a nearby spring.




Edinburgh, Scotland has a long and strange history, though perhaps the oddest story of all is the tale of a bridge that was buried underground. After this bridge was built, superstition following a prominent death led to its disuse. As property values in the area grew, however, people first built under and then even on top of the bridge. Eventually leaks forced the abandonment of the spaces below, which were subsequently filled in. They were recently rediscovered and opened for tourists.





Seattle, Washington’s Pioneer Square district has a very peculiar historical quirk: a century ago, they raised the streets by an entire floor. People actually died falling off of the street to the lower sidewalks below before they managed to raise the sidewalks to the same level. Eventually, what was street level became completely unused and abandoned, though it was recently reopened for visitors.




Wieliczka, Poland sits atop one of the world’s oldest salt mines, in continuous operation for over 800 years until just this year. As these images show, the mine is now open to tourists, with winding paths and bridges as well as art, much of which is carved right out of the salt in the mine. Over 1,000 feet deep, the mine even housed an airplane factory run by the Polish resistance during World War II.




Xi’an, China is now famous for featuring the Mausoleum of Qinshihuang, the biggest imperial tomb known to Chinese history. This subterranean wonder was constructed in 38 years by 700,000 laborers, and is perhaps best known for the host of terracotta warriors buried with the Emperor. The latest installment for "The Mummy" was based and filmed on this one.