Bondi Beach

Top Romantic places for your lovers

1.Tahiti.

Tahiti is the largest of the Polynesian islands loacted in southern Pacific Ocean. It is a small tropical island that specialley for your and your beloved.  You and your lovers could enjoy beautiful sunshines, beaches, ressorts and delicious local food all in this isolated and romantic island. 

 

2.Rome

 Rome is always treated as one of the most mysterious places in the world. If you and your lover are looking for some places with ancient myth and cultural experience, Rome is a place for you

 

 3.Hawaii

The fresh, floral air energizes you. The warm, tranquil waters refresh you. The breathtaking, natural beauty renews you. Look around. There’s no place on earth like Hawaii.

4.Bahamas
An Island with ease and comfort, Bahamas is a perfect place for you and your lovers. You can see your toes as easily as you can the world’s third largest barrier reef.
 

5.Japan

In Japan,here are many buildings influenced by the unique sensitivities of the Japanese people, and in experiencing the precision and the dynamic design. Feel the unique Japan.

Top 10 views around the world

Top 10 views around the world

1. Acropolis - Athens, Greece

The prime-city view hundreds of feet up from Athens' Acropolis is something to behold on its own, but it's nothing compared to the UNESCO World Heritage Site you see when you turn around. The ancient remains date back centuries with the Parthenon, Temple of Athena Nike and other remains intriguing.

2. Lipu Mountains and Yaoshan Mountains - Guilin, China

In the area around the northeastern city of Guilin, the views have been revered for centuries with panoramas of the Lipu and Yaoshan Mountains from the Lijiang River.

3. Lanikai Beach - Lanikai, Hawaii

Hawaii's Lanikai Beach is widely regarded as one of the best beaches and the sunrise views are stunning.

4.Eiffel Tower - Paris, France

An excellent way to take in the view while soaking in a truly Parisian experience is by dining at Georges Restaurant in Centre Pompidou from where the views of the Eiffel Tower and Notre Dame are some of the best.

5.Grand Canyon - Arizona

There's something about the austere American desert that can clear your mind in an instant and restore peace. Try the Grand Canyon Skywalk, opened in early 2007. Over at the west end of the canyon, the Hualapai Native American tribe will take you on a 14-mile ride.

6.Red Square/Kremlin/St. Basil's Cathedral - Moscow

The view of Red Square in Moscow with the Kremlin and St Basil's Cathedral is as impressive as it is intimidating.

7.Mount Everest - Tibet

Rather than spend tens of thousands of dollars to climb Mount Everest, an alternative is to view it from Kalla Pattar, Nepal. It's no less awe-inspiring.

8.Times Square - New York City, U.S.

Twenty years ago, you had to either be brave or clueless to wander in Times Square after dark but today it's commercialized and even somewhat sanitized.

9.White cliffs of Dover - England

It's often the last thing seen of the UK as one leaves, as well as the first sight upon return. On a clear day across the English Channel, the cliffs are even visible from France.

10.Corcovado Mountain - Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

For the best view you need to put some altitude between yourself and the city and a summit just shy of 2,300 feet, Corcovado Mountain, is up to the task. This is also the home to the iconic 130-foot Christ the Redeemer statue.

World's Most Livable Cities TOP 10

World's Most Livable Cities

The Economist Intelligence Unit's livability also uses data from the Mercer consulting group and shows cities in Canada, Australia, Austria, Finland and New Zealand as the ideal destinations thanks to a widespread availability of goods and services, low personal risk and an effective infrastructure. The Economist Intelligence Unit has been criticized by the New York Times for being overly anglocentric, stating that "The Economist clearly equates livability with speaking English."[10]

The report placed Vancouver, Canada as the most livable city in the world, with Vienna taking second place followed by Melbourne. The survey said "In the current global political climate, it is no surprise that the most desirable destinations are those with a lower perceived threat of terrorism."[11]

Three other Australian capital cities (Sydney at 7th and Perth and Adelaide at equal 8th) claimed positions in the top ten. Other Canadian cities also ranked highly in the survey. In addition to Vancouver, the Canadian cities Toronto and Calgary were also placed within the top 10. In the 2010 results, the Swiss cities Zurich and Geneva slipped out of the top 10, replaced by Adelaide and Auckland, New Zealand.

Vancouver

Vancouver is a coastal city located in the Lower Mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is named for British Captain George Vancouver, who explored the area in the 1790s. The name Vancouver itself originates from the Dutch "van Coevorden", denoting somebody from Coevorden, a city in the Netherlands.

Vienna

Vienna is the capital of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.7 million[1] (2.3 million within the metropolitan area,[citation needed] more than 25% of Austria's population), and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre. It is the 10th largest city by population in the European Union. Vienna is host to many major international organizations such as the United Nations and OPEC.

Melbourne

Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia.[2] The Melbourne City Centre (also known as the "Central Business District" or "CBD")[4] is the hub of the greater geographical area (or "metropolitan area") and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater geographical area had an approximate population of 4.00 million.[1][5] Inhabitants of Melbourne are called Melburnians.

Toronto

Toronto is the largest city in Canada and the provincial capital of Ontario. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. With over 2.5 million residents, it is the fifth most populous municipality in North America. Toronto is at the heart of the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), and is part of a densely populated region in Southern Ontario known as the Golden Horseshoe, which is home to over 8.1 million residents—approximately 25% of Canada's population. The census metropolitan area (CMA) had a population of 5,113,149, and the Greater Toronto Area had a population of 5,555,912 in the 2006 Census.

Calgary

 Calgary is the largest city in the Province of Alberta, Canada. It is located in the south of the province, in an area of foothills and prairie, approximately 80 km (50 mi) east of the front ranges of the Canadian Rockies. The city is located in the Grassland region of Alberta.

Helsinki

Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the southern part of Finland, in the region of Uusimaa/Nyland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, by the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is 584,420 (31 March 2010),[2] making it the most populous municipality in Finland by a wide margin. Helsinki is located some 400 kilometres (250 mi) east of Stockholm, Sweden, 300 kilometres (190 mi) west of St. Petersburg, Russia and 80 kilometres (50 mi) north of Tallinn, Estonia. Helsinki has close connections with these three cities.

Sydney

Sydney is the largest and most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. With an approximate population of 4.5 million in the Sydney metropolitan area the city is the largest in Oceania.[5] Inhabitants of Sydney are called Sydneysiders, comprising a cosmopolitan and international population of people from numerous places around the world.

Perth

Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of 1,659,000

Adelaide

Adelaide is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of South Australia, and is the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.28 million.[3] The adjective form of Adelaide used to describe residents or other qualities of the city is "Adelaidean".

Auckland

The Auckland metropolitan area, in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with a population approaching 1.4 million residents, 31 percent of the country's population.[2]  Demographic trends indicate that it will continue to grow faster than the rest of the country. Increasingly cosmopolitan, Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world,[3] and has seen many people of Asian ethnicity move there in the last two decades. In Māori Auckland's name is Tāmaki-makau-rau, or the transliterated version of Auckland, Ākarana.

The top 10 countries for 2010

The top 10 countries for 2010

Want a sneak peek into the future?

We’ve just released our newest edition of Best in Travel. We’re delighted at the attention it’s getting, so we’ll share some of the hot lists inside - and get your thoughts.

To start with a bang, here’s our list of the ten hottest countries for next year - and why.

El Salvador

El Salvador sneaks up on you: in lefty lounge bars in San Salvador, at sobering war memorials and museums, and along lush cloud-forest trails; it’s a place of remarkable warmth and intelligence, made all the more appealing for being so unexpected. Travellers tend to skip El Salvador, wooed by marquee destinations such as Guatemala and Costa Rica, and unnerved by stories of civil war and gang violence. But the war ended almost 20 years ago, and crime, while serious, is almost exclusively played out between rival gangs; tourists are virtually never involved. And though El Salvador has fewer protected areas than its neighbours, you get them practically to yourself – including pristine forests, active volcanoes and alpine lakes.

Germany

Some countries are simply allowed to be, but Germany has had to reinvent itself more times than Madonna. And it has done so again since 1990, when reunification brought an end to more than four decades of division (thanks for the correction, conetop!). In year 20 after its latest rebirth, Germany is still a country where you can witness history in the making. Head to Hamburg, where an entire new quarter is being wrested from the detritus of a 19th-century harbour. Or to Dresden, where the domed Frauenkirche church is once again the diamond in the shining tiara that is the city’s famous skyline. And, of course, to Berlin, whose climate of openness spawns more creative experimentation than a Petri dish on Viagra.

Greece

Seldom does a travel destination satisfy the blurbs that shout ‘has something for everyone’ - but Greece truly does. Whether you’re there to poke around ancient ruins, soak in the sun on idyllic beaches, or party till you drop, Greece will leave you clamouring for more. It’s guilt-free travel – a slice of history served alongside a healthy slice of hedonism – and everyone seems happy. You get to marvel at the dazzling clarity of the light and the waters, the floral aromas that permeate the air, the pervading sense of spirit – and then sit down to contemplate it all while consuming that great Greek combination of ouzo and octopus!

Malaysia

Malaysia often gets criticised as being mild in comparison with its grittier neighbours, Thailand and Indonesia. It’s true, natural disasters and coups only seem to happen across its borders, the roads don’t have too many potholes, buses and trains have air-con and plush seats, and hotels are of international standard. While troubles are few, visiting Malaysia lets you leap into the jaws of one of the most interesting parts of Southeast Asia’s roaring cultural smorgasbord – and not be too worried about it. Cheap connections to Europe and great exchange rates mean that you won’t get eaten up by your wallet either.

Morocco

‘Hello, bonjour, salaam alaykum, labes?’ Street greetings sum up everything you need to know about Morocco in a word: it’s Berber and Arab, Muslim and secular, Mediterranean and African, worldly wise and welcoming. Morocco sees how the Middle East is portrayed via satellite news and the internet, and is as concerned with violent threats and abuses of power as anyone else in the modern world. But as you’ll see, most Moroccans are plenty busy working to get by, get their kids through school and greet the king’s planned 10 million visitors by 2010 with the utmost hospitality. Every visitor helps Moroccans realise these goals by creating new economic opportunities, and can make a Moroccan’s day by returning the greeting: ‘Hello, good day, may peace be upon you, are you happy?’

Nepal

But for the Himalaya, Nepal would probably be stuck in the shadow of India – but it’s hard to cast a shadow on a country that includes the highest point on earth, the summit of Mt Everest. Over the last decade, Nepal has seen its share of troubles, but 2008 was a watershed year – the rebels became the government, the kingdom became a republic and the king became a civilian. With the fall of the monarchy, the sound of temple bells has replaced the stomp of army boots and peace has returned to Shangri-La.

New Zealand

Recommending New Zealand’s too obvious, right? You’re looking for something a bit edgier, under the radar or further off the beaten track. But there’s wisdom in the old saying, ‘If it ain’t broke, don’t fi x it’, and last time we checked the land of Maori and hobbits certainly didn’t need repairing. NZ’s checklist of essential experiences remains as strong as ever. Spectacular landscapes abound, from sea-level rainforests to plunging glaciers, geothermal springs and barren volcanic plains. Add a hearty pinch of lens-friendly wildlife, proud Maori culture, and fine food and drink, and it’s easy to see why the natives are so chilled.

Portugal

Skirting along the southwestern edge of the Iberian Peninsula, the once-great seafaring nation of Portugal today straddles two very different worlds. For purists, this is a land of great tradition, of saints-day festivals where ox-drawn carts still lumber through flower-strewn streets, and ancient vineyards bring sleepy medieval villages to life during the annual harvest. Meanwhile, in other parts of the country, something decidedly more modern is transpiring. Old city centres, long ago abandoned by the young and upwardly mobile in favour of the suburbs, are slowly being revitalised. A new wave of boutiques, art galleries and cafes are finding new homes in once crumbling old buildings, and locals are beginning to rediscover the allure of vibrant downtown areas.

Suriname

South America’s smallest country, both in area and population, is easily one of its most diverse. Some three quarters of Suriname’s people are descended from Chinese, Javanese and Indian labourers that arrived in the 18th century, and West African slaves in the 17th. Add indigenous Amerindians and Lebanese, Jewish and Dutch settlers, and you have the makings for a lot of ethnic tension, right? Fortunately, wrong. Suriname is known for its peacefully coexisting cultures, most emblematically represented by the country’s biggest mosque and synagogue situated side by side in the capital Paramaribo. With everyone speaking different languages, celebrating different holidays and worshipping in different temples, visiting Suriname is really like hitting several countries at once.

USA

Suddenly the USA is cool again! Be it from Barack Obama, Abraham Lincoln’s 200th birthday last year, or just tightened budgets during the recession, but more Americans (even hipsters) are looking backwards – and foreigners too – and taking in traditional American historical sites, beginning with Washington DC’s freebie zone of museums and heroic monuments.

Seven Wonders of the Ancient World

Seven Wonders of the Ancient World

The historian Herodotus (484 – ca. 425 BCE), and the scholar Callimachus of Cyrene (ca. 305 – 240 BCE) at the Museum of Alexandria, made early lists of seven wonders but their writings have not survived, except as references. The seven wonders included:

    Great Pyramid of Giza

    Hanging Gardens of Babylon

    Statue of Zeus at Olympia

    Temple of Artemis at Ephesus

    Mausoleum of Maussollos at Halicarnassus

    Colossus of Rhodes

    Lighthouse of Alexandria

The earliest lists had the Ishtar Gate as the seventh wonder of the world instead of the Lighthouse of Alexandria.

The list that we know today was compiled in the Middle Ages—by which time many of the sites were no longer in existence. Today, the only ancient world wonder that still exists is the Great Pyramid of Giza

Great Pyramid of Giza

The Great Pyramid of Giza (also called the Pyramid of Khufu and the Pyramid of Cheops) is the oldest and largest of the three pyramids in the Giza Necropolis bordering what is now El Giza, Egypt. It is the oldest of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, and the only one to remain largely intact. It is believed the pyramid was built as a tomb for fourth dynasty Egyptian Pharaoh Khufu[1] (Cheops in Greek) and constructed over a 20-year period concluding around 2560 BC. Initially at 146.5 metres (480.6 ft), the Great Pyramid was the tallest man-made structure in the world for over 3,800 years, the longest period of time ever held for such a record. Originally, the Great Pyramid was covered by casing stones that formed a smooth outer surface; what is seen today is the underlying core structure. Some of the casing stones that once covered the structure can still be seen around the base. There have been varying scientific and alternative theories about the Great Pyramid's construction techniques. Most accepted construction hypotheses are based on the idea that it was built by moving huge stones from a quarry and dragging and lifting them into place.

Hanging Gardens of Babylon

The Hanging Gardens of Babylon are considered to be one of the original Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. They were built in the ancient city-state of Babylon, near present-day Al Hillah, Babil, in Iraq. They are sometimes called the Hanging Gardens of Semiramis (in reference to the legendary Queen Semiramis).

The gardens were supposedly built by the Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar II around 600 BC. He is reported to have constructed the gardens to please his homesick wife, Amytis of Media, who longed for the trees and fragrant plants of her homeland Persia.[1] The gardens were destroyed by several earthquakes after the second century BC.

The lush Hanging Gardens are extensively documented by Greek historians such as Strabo and Diodorus Siculus. Through the ages, the location may have been confused with gardens that existed at Nimrud, since tablets from there clearly show gardens. Writings on these tablets describe the possible use of something similar to an Archimedes screw as a process of raising the water to the required height.[2] Nebuchadnezzar II also used massive slabs of stone, which was unheard of in Babylon, to prevent the water from eroding the ground.

statue of zeus at olympia

The seated statue, some 12 meters (43 feet) tall, occupied half of the width of the aisle of the temple built to house it. "It seems that if Zeus were to stand up," the geographer Strabo noted early in the first century BC, "he would unroof the temple."[2] The Zeus was a chryselephantine sculpture, made of ivory and gold-plated bronze. No copy in marble or bronze has survived, though there are recognizable but approximate versions on coins of nearby Elis and on Roman coins and engraved gems.[3] A very detailed description of the sculpture and its throne was recorded by the traveler Pausanias, in the second century AD. The sculpture was wreathed with shoots of olive worked in gold and seated on a magnificent throne of cedarwood, inlaid with ivory, gold, ebony and precious stones. In Zeus' right hand there was a small statue of crowned Nike, goddess of victory, also chryselephantine, and in his left hand, a sceptre inlaid with gold, on which an eagle perched.[4] Plutarch, in his Life of the Roman general Aemilius Paulus, records that the victor over Macedon, when he beheld the statue, “was moved to his soul, as if he had seen the god in person,” while the first century AD Greek orator Dio Chrysostom declared that a single glimpse of the statue would make a man forget all his earthly troubles

Temple of Artemis

Model of Temple of Artemis, Miniatürk Park, Istanbul, Turkey.

The Temple of Artemis (Greek: ?ρτεμ?σιον, or Artemision), also known less precisely as Temple of Diana, was a Greek temple dedicated to a goddess Greeks identified as Artemis that was completed, in its most famous phase, around 550 BC at Ephesus (in present-day Turkey). Though the monument was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, only foundations and sculptural fragments of the temple remain. There were previous temples on its site, where evidence of a sanctuary dates as early as the Bronze Age. The whole temple was made of marble except for the roof.

The temple antedated the Ionic immigration by many years. Callimachus, in his Hymn to Artemis, attributed the origin of the temenos at Ephesus to the Amazons, whose worship he imagines already centered upon an image. In the seventh century the old temple was destroyed by a flood. The construction of the "new" temple, which was to become known as one of the wonders of the ancient world, began around 550 BC. It was a 120-year project, initially designed and built by the Cretan architect Chersiphron and his son Metagenes, at the expense of Croesus of Lydia.

Mausoleum of Halicarnassus

 

Fanciful interpretation of the Mausoleum, from a 1572 engraving by Marten Heemskerk

The Mausoleum at Halicarnassus or Tomb of Mausolus[1] (in Greek, Μαυσωλε?ον τ?? ?λικαρνασσο?) was a tomb built between 353 and 350 BC at Halicarnassus (present Bodrum, Turkey) for Mausolus, a satrap in the Persian Empire, and Artemisia II of Caria, his wife and sister. The structure was designed by the Greek architects Satyros and Pythis.[2][3] It stood approximately 45 m (148 ft) in height, and each of the four sides was adorned with sculptural reliefs created by each one of four Greek sculptors — Leochares, Bryaxis, Scopas of Paros and Timotheus.[4] The finished structure was considered to be such an aesthetic triumph that Antipater of Sidon identified it as one of his Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.

The word mausoleum has since come to be used generically for any grand tomb.

Colossus of Rhodes

The Colossus of Rhodes was a statue of the Greek god Helios, erected in the city of Rhodes on the Greek island of Rhodes by Chares of Lindos between 292 and 280 BC. It is considered one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Before its destruction, the Colossus of Rhodes stood over 30 meters (107 ft) high, making it one of the tallest statues of the ancient world.

Lighthouse of Alexandria

Drawing by archaeologist Hermann Thiersch (1909).

The Lighthouse of Alexandria, also known as the Pharos of Alexandria, was a tower built between 280 and 247 BC on the island of Pharos at Alexandria, Egypt to guide sailors into the harbour at night. With a height variously estimated at between 120–140 m (390–460 ft)[1], it was for many centuries among the tallest man-made structures, and was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World

Love Nature? Here are the places for you

Are you an eco-adventurer? If your idea of a perfect trip is getting up close and personal with the natural world, you'll want to check out one of these dream destinations for ecotourists. From lush jungles and colorful coral reefs to sprawling savannas and fabulous fjords, the five regions we've selected encompass some of the earth's most distinctive ecosystems.

To make our list, it wasn't enough for a place to be blessed with extraordinary natural resources; it was equally important that those resources are being cared for. We chose these five destinations not only for their unique biodiversity but also for a local commitment to maintaining the beauty and integrity of these places through sustainable tourism. And remember — visitors must do their part as well, as the parts of the earth with the greatest ecological diversity are often the most threatened.

Palau Long before it was featured on the 10th season of "Survivor," the island nation of Palau was recognized as one of the world's foremost diving destinations. In the crystal-clear sea just off the coast is a colorful underwater wonderland, featuring more than 500 species of coral teeming with some 1,400 kinds of fish. On land, travelers can wander along unspoiled beaches or go trekking through dense jungles. Palau's remote location in the westernmost corner of Micronesia has helped to shield both its natural resources and its cultural traditions from the detrimental effects of mass tourism, and the locals are working to make sure their island paradise stays pristine well into the future.

Costa Rica Misty cloud forests, black sand beaches and rushing river rapids offer outdoor activities for both casual nature enthusiasts and hardcore adventure travelers. A dazzling array of creatures live in Costa Rica's national parks and wildlife refuges, including monkeys, sloths, crocodiles, manatees, herons, sea turtles and poison dart frogs. Environmentally conscious travelers have their choice of eco-friendly accommodations.

Norwegian Fjords Their remote location and strict environmental regulations have helped preserve the pristine beauty of Norway's famous fjords, with their snowcapped mountains, tumbling waterfalls and crystal-clear waters. Visitors can go hiking or biking over the rugged terrain, or take a scenic boat ride through the towering fjords. A wide variety of wildlife lives here, including eagles, seals, porpoises and seabirds. Along with the region's natural attractions, the fjords are also home to many small fishing villages where local cultural traditions have survived for hundreds of years.

As an international leader in environmental policy, Norway has taken care to protect its unique coastline by regulating the fishing, whaling, sealing and petroleum industries.

Kenya

Kenya is best known for its wide savannas teeming with lions and elephants, but most travelers don't know that it's also home to mountains, lakes, rain forests, deserts and beaches, each with its own unique ecosystem and wildlife. Kenya's incredible natural diversity is protected in some 50 national parks and reserves across the country, from the virgin rain forests of the Kakamega Forest Reserve to the wildebeests who migrate to the Maasai Mara National Reserve every July and August.

Worst Cities to Travel

Sadly, there was only limited space available and we had to apologise to Cairo, San Salvador, Lagos, Warsaw and Delhi – it’s tough at the top and the Road Junky decision is final.

Let it not be said that we’re not democratic, though – if you would like to suggest any other candidates for nuclear annihilation, we’ll happily listen and perhaps add your city to the list under ‘notable contenders’

1.Bombay

Bombay is the logical conclusion of everything that’s gone wrong in India. The pollution, the over-population, the communal violence, the corruption – it’s like a bad dream that never ends and it seems unlikely that India will ever wake it from it.

There are parts of Bombay with over a million inhabitants per square mile, breathing the air here is like smoking 20 cigarettes a day and whilst the money rolls into the country from outside investors, the poor get even poorer than they were before with no reliable water supply, no sewage system and no rights.

Bombay is just manic. Around 400 people die each month just from overcrowding on the internal train system. The only miracle is that the poor just take the shit they’re given with such calm and good grace – but then comes a Hindu-Muslim riot and thousands are slaughtered in a day while the police look the other way.

2.Dubai

Whatever nobility and stout spirit the Arabs had in their Bedouin days, they lost it with the discovery of oil. Done with chewing old dates and slurping camel milk, the easy money of oil wealth ensured that they could do whatever they wanted.

So they imported a million cheap workers from India and Pakistan to do the actual work and set about transforming Dubai from a fishing village to a messy excuse for a city, with garish architectural monstrosities designed to pull in tourists dumb enough to visit for reasons like that.

The cities feel like they’ve been grafted on top of the dust and the sand, the sky scrapers just glued on to a construction site. As you drive around the country, you get the feeling that the desert is just waiting to claim it all back.

The local Arabs strut around lifting nothing heavier than a spoon, lock the women away, treat the workers like shit and maintain legions of Russian prostitutes flown in for their exotic white flesh.

3.Liverpool and Manchester

Liverpool may have produced the Beatles and Manchester the worlds most famous football team but those are scarcely reasons for actually visiting the places. Whilst the cities do actually have a good deal more humour and wit then some of the industrial towns in northern England – it’s grim up north – Liverpool and Manchester are as depressing places as you’re likely to find anywhere.

To begin with, the scousers (the inhabitants of Liverpool, so named after a truly revolting sauce called scouse) and the Mancunians are renowned for being incorrigible scallywags and conmen. Take Bez, the Freaky Dancing guy from the Happy Mondays who used to take a pork pie into a pub, ask for a sip from a friend’s beer and then cough a mouthful of crumbs into the glass – which he naturally ended up inheriting.

But whilst the locals can be entertaining on a good day, the weather is shit, heroin is epidemic (but meth is catching on) and you’ve got a better chance of thugs putting you in hospital for no apparent reason than in any other part of England – and that’s saying something.

4.Guatemala City

Guatemala City is about a dangerous a place as the traveler is ever likely to pass through. The buses have bullet holes in them, gangs rule the streets and scars from the civil war and deaths squads of the 80’s (largely thanks to US financial and military backup) have left a legacy of violence that shows no signs of abating.

Just down the road from appealing Guatemala destinations like Lake Atilan and Antigua, Guatemala city is the kind of place you want to pass through for no more than about 20 minutes and then only in the morning. Every year backpackers make the mistake of walking down the street in search of a cheap hostel only to be mugged and possibly hospitalised after less than 20 metres.

Of course, you might not get mugged. There’s always the chance of just being beaten up, raped of even kidnapped, the latter being Latin America’s fastest growth industry.

That said, if you’re tough as shit, speak Espanol chingon and don’t mind walking around with a can of mace in each pocket, we’d rate your chances as 50/50. But whatever you do, don’t walk around after dark.

5.Sao Paulo

Sao Paulo is the kind of city for which the word ‘metropolis’ was invented. It’s home (for want of a better word) to over 25 million people and there are more lurching skyscrapers than you could fly a fleet of planes into. (Not that Brazil has any kind of foreign policy that could provoke such a reaction if they wanted to, they’re far too busy oppressing their own people)

Even the Paulistas rarely have a good word to say about the crowded, unjust city in which they live in, quite a thing in a country where people are fiercely proud to be Brazilian. They even sound apologetic for living in Sao Paulo in the first place but shrug and mention the good salaries and leave it at that.

Naturally, there are some cool night clubs to service the people making the money (they hardly cater to the millions who aren’t sure what they’ll eat tomorrow) but it’s common enough that Brazilians from Sao Paulo will even fly out to somewhere cool in Brazil for the weekend before returning back for the slog on Monday morning.

Oh, and did we mention that it’s really dangerous?