Posted on April 5, 2011
Tags : bay, japan, matsushima, ocean, sendai, templesMatsushima consits of over 250 pine covered islands in the Miyagi Prefecture of Japan, just north of Sendai.

  

To the left, on one of the many small islands, is Godaido Hall. This beautiful, small temple is an icon of Matsushima due to its location on the water. The original tempe was built in 807 and reconstructed in 1604 by Date Masamune, who was a feudal lord. There are five statues inside the temple which are only displayed to the public once every 33 years.

On March 11, 2011, the areas of Sendai and Matsushima were severely damaged by a tsunami created by a 9.0 earthquake located 45 miles off the coast of Japan.

Posted on February 11, 2011
Tags : hotels, las vegas, las vegas strip, united statesA view of some of the world famous resorts located on the Las Vegas strip in Las Vegas, Nevada as viewed from the Planet Hollywood hotel.

Some of the largest casinos and resorts in the world can be found on this 4.2 mile long stretch of road in the desert of southern Nevada. Nineteen of the world's 25 largest hotels and resorts are located on the Las Vegas Strip. In total, there are almost 70,000 hotel rooms which attract millions of tourist each year who flock to Las Vegas for the gambling, entertainment, nightlife, food, and shopping.

The Bellagio can be seen on the left with its world famous water fountain show. To the right is Caesar's Palace. The Paris can be seen on the far right, along with its replica Eiffel Tower which stands 541 feet above the strip.

Posted on February 8, 2011
Tags : baseball, stadium, texas, united statesThis view is of Rangers Ballpark in Arlington, home of the Texas Rangers, during a game between the Texas Rangers and Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.

The ballpark is located in Arlington, Texas, just south of Dallas. It opened in 1994 at a cost of $191 million and can fit over 52,000 baseball fans. In the past, the stadium has also been known as The Ballpark in Arlington and Ameriquest Field in Arlington.

The ballpark is retro in style and designed similarly to that of old Tiger Stadium and Yankee Stadium. Left field measures in at 332 feet, center field at 400 feet, and right field at 325 feet. Interestingly, Rangers Ballpark in Arlington does not have a retractable roof to protect players and fans from the intense Texas summer heat.

The Texas Rangers lost the 2010 World Series to the San Francisco Giants. 52,419 fans set a new attendance record after packing the stadium on October 30, 210 during game 3 of the World Series.

Posted on November 14, 2010
Tags : ice skating, manhattan, new york, new york city, united statesA view of ice skaters, both young and old, enjoying the holiday season at the world famous ice rink located at Rockefeller Center in New York City.

Rockefeller Center is located in Midtown Manhattan, between 48th and 51st streets. The center was built by the Rockefeller family. Construction on the center started in 1930 and was completed in 1939.

The ice skating rink seen here was opened on the concourse level of Rockefeller Center on December 25, 1936. Today, ice skating at this rink is a popular activity and tourists come from all over the world to ice skate at the iconic ice rink at Rockefeller Center.

Posted on November 12, 2010
Tags : croatia, europe, lakes, plitvice lakes, waterfallWhen one thinks of Croatia, the first thoughts that come to mind are war and destruction. Today, more and more people are discovering the natural beauty of the Plitvice Lakes National Park in Croatia and consider one of the most beautiful waterfall systems in the world.

Plitvice Lakes is a combination of sixteen lakes located in the Dinaric Alps region of Croatia, about 125 miles south of Zagreb, the capital of Croatia. Today, almost one million tourists visit the lakes, which has become Croatia's most popular tourist destination.

Humans have lived and occupied this area for thousands of years. Those who claimed the land surrounding the lakes include the Slavs, Turks, Celts, Ottomans and was even once part of the Hasburg Empire.

Plitvice Lakes first became a tourist destination in the 19th century. The first hotel for tourists was built in 1896. In 1949, Plitvice Lakes became a Croatia's first national park. In 1979, the park became a UNESCO World Heritage site. In March 1991, the lakes became ground zero of the Plitvice Lakes incident which started the Croatian War of Independence and brought control of the region to the Serbs. In 1995, the Croatian Army reclaimed the region and the Croatian war was over.