I can’t even begin to wrap my head around the skill that was required to execute this marble masterpiece. To create the illusion of transparency with the veil in this medium is unbelievable. Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Spanning over 1200 sq meters and made up of geometric shapes and non-repeating figures. Was probably created as a public space at the time. One of the most fascinating aspects of this mosaic is curved rug like surface which grew curved as a result of earthquakes in 526 and 528 AD. Despite the earthquakes the mosaic never broke and survived to the present date intact and unbroken. It took 9 years to unearth.

When branches or roots from different trees are in prolonged intimate contact, they often abrade each other exposing their inner tissues, which may eventually fuse. This process is called inosculation, a natural phenomenon in which trunks, branches or roots of two trees grow together. It is biologically similar to grafting. Such trees are referred to in forestry as gemels, from the Latin word meaning “a pair”.

Always amazed at this skill, required patience and delicate hand needed to create these sculptures. I can barely see what I’m writing let alone even attempt something like this.

The golden leaves start falling around mid November, turning the temples ground into a yellow ocean. This particular tree grows next to the Gu Guanyin Buddhist temple in the Zhongnan Mountains. The ginkgo tree, also known as the maidenhair, is sometimes referred to as a living fossil because despite all the climate changes, it remains unchanged for 200 million years. It’s a living link to the times dinosaurs ruled the planet.

The yellow Labrador Retriever lived at the Cote Canal bed and breakfast with his owner Caroline Van Langeraet. He could usually could be seen lounging half-asleep on a windowsill facing the Groenerei canal.

(Spanish for The Tree of Tule) located on the church grounds in the town of Santa Maria del Tule in the Mexican state of Oaxaca. It was originally believed to be several trees but DNA tests have proven it’s one tree. The age of the tree is unknown but is believed to be 1200 to 3000 years old.

They have formed a crust around the skylight likely due to a loss of heat around the area. What’s a Lava skylight? Molten lava can flow through underground channels called lava tubes. These tubes become visible when part of the roof collapse, causing a lava skylight.

In the Middle Ages after farmers found out that ladybugs helped wipe out swarms of aphids that were destroying their crops, they thanked the Virgin Mary and referred to them as the “beetle of our lady”. This was eventually shortened to “lady beetle” then to “ladybug” which stuck. In the UK they are referred to as “ladybirds”.

Fuller built three experimental prototypes with naval architect Starling Burgess using donated money as well as an inheritance. Not as an automobile per say but as a vehicle that one day might be designed to fly, land and drive.

With massive over-pronounced chromed out grills. Note only the top right one has a padded steering wheel protector. So if you got slammed straight on your whacked your noggin pretty against the steering wheel.

Attributed to the architect Sir William Chambers. It is considered one of the most bizarre buildings in the country. Pineapples were first brought to Europe by Christopher Columbus from the Caribbean island of Guadalupe in 1493. Pineapples became a rare delicacy in Europe with associations of power, wealth and hospitality. The pineapple structure is 46 ft high and constitutes a stunning example of the stonemason’s craft, being a remarkable depiction of the fruit. The pineapple became a universal symbol of welcome and hospitality.

Before the 16th-17th century almost all cultivated carrots were purple with mutated versions in yellow and white. Orange carrots are believed to have been cultivated by Dutch growers who took mutant strains of the purple carrot and developed them into the modern day orange variety. The Dutch are also credited with selling the seeds to the British who then brought them to early America. Orange carrots get their bright orange color from beta-carotene. The origins of the cultivated carrot is rooted in the purple carrot in the region around modern day Afghanistan.

The costume was made of what was referred to as a new form of malleable “plastic wood”. The costume was extremely uncomfortable and sitting in it was difficult. At the time it was the most expensive movie ever made which at the time was aprox $1.2 million dollars. Brigette complained about the many retakes Fritz Lang was known to request saying “no one will even know it me in the costume”. To which he replied. “I’ll know”

The wind is so intense and relentless that the trees are bent, warped and twisted forever along the direction the wind blows. That is because the region is constantly being hit with fierce cold winds that blow up from Antarctica. Slope Point is predominantly used for sheep farming. Aside from a few sheep, no humans or other animals live on that part of the island. In photos 2 and 3 you can see abandoned shacks that built under the protection of the windswept trees. But even those could not stand up to the wind.