Weird Where-Have-Yous [2] Trivia Quiz

Answer: New Zealand

Found on New Zealand's South Island about halfway down its northern coast, Fox Glacier is part of the Westland Tai Poutini National Park. Also known as Te Moeka o Tuawe, Fox Glacier was actually significantly larger, but over tens of thousands of years its movement created many of the surrounding landforms.

The surrounding area, covered in rainforests, highlights the unique setting. Because of the local ecosystem, it makes the trip to the glacier, climbed by many on the daily, one of the easiest to reach in the world.

Answer: Thailand

Found in the Sankamphaeng Range in the northeast corner of Thailand, Khao Yai National Park is one of the largest and most visited national sites in the country and is part of a larger group of UNESCO World Heritage sites in the region protected for their beauty. Aside from tigers, wild elephants, and certain breeds of primates, Khao Yai is home to an uncountable quantity of bats. Revered by the locals, they leave their caves every night in search for food, often darkening the sky with their collective flight.

Answer: Canada

Found in a provincial park in Northern Saskatchewan, Canada, the Athabasca Sand Dunes take up an area of roughly two thousand square kilometres, acting as one of the northernmost sandy deserts on the globe. The desert, near Lake Athabasca, is very much off the beaten path; to get there you'd need to head far north of the nearest provincial capitals. That said, it's because of its relative remoteness that it's a hotspot for unique biodiversity.

Answer: Turkey

Found in Southwestern Turkey, the region known as Pamukkale is named as such because it's translated to 'cotton castle'. It's an apt name; the landscape there is characterized by terraced hot springs formed by white limestone. The springs are, naturally, a major tourist destination and prone to high numbers of visitors year-round, but upon its addition to the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites, it saw numerous protective measures put in place to reduce impact.

The nearby Greco-Roman city of Hierapolis also serves to bring in a more historically-minded traveller.

Answer: Namibia

It was diamonds that started the short-lived town of Kolmanskop, which started to take in temporary citizens in the 1900s. Ultimately, the region was built up with unexpected luxuries, but its halcyon days lasted less than a decade. When World War I fully developed, the demand for diamonds diminished and no one picked up the reins to resume operations.

It took another four decades to clear out completely, and when that happened, the slow, sandy reclamation of the land commenced.

Answer: United States

A route up to what was a Very Low Frequency Transmitter installed during the Second World War, the Ha'iku Stairs stretch up the side of an O'ahu mountainside, often into the clouds. Although the trail there was closed to visitors in the 1980s, tourists exploring the steep Ko'olau Mountains of the island will find the path reaching up and over, arching through the greenery.

They're illegal to climb, however-- the region cites liability issues.

Answer: Azerbaijan

Also known by the straight-forward name 'Fire Mountain', Yanar Dağ can be found in the low hills near Baku, Azerbaijan. A site of pilgrimage for Zoroastrian followers, the mountain is one of many in the region known for being situated atop large expanses of natural gas. Permanently lit on top, the sandstone allows for consistent jets of fire to blast out.

The same porous ground is found at the Ateshgah of Baku, one of the nation's most famous landmarks.

Answer: Russia

There are many holes in the Earth's surface, but most of the big ones weren't made by people. The Mirny Diamond Mine, found in the Republic of Sakha in Siberia, is one of the largest holes ever excavated. Opened in the mid-to-late-1950s, Mirny sinks more than half a kilometer down and acted as one of the largest producers of diamonds in Russia for more than a decade.

It closed operations in 2001 before reopening again a few years later. Both Mirny and the nearby Udachnaya Pipe are some of the most northernly diamond mines in the world; they're on the edge of the Arctic Circle.

Answer: China

Found in the county of Shilin in Yunnan Province, China, the Stone Forest is an expanse of karst rock formations that were part of a sea several hundred million years ago. What resulted over years of geological transformation was sharp, jutting stone pillars jutting up from the ground.

The unique landscape is both a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a revered tourist spot for the region. To get there, you'd need to head due east from Kunming.

Answer: Japan

If you head to Nagano, Japan, then you're only a stone's throw away from Jigokudani Park, a location known for its high population of Japanese Macaques. The name Jigokudani, translating to 'Hell's Valley', refers to the region's geothermal hot springs and boiling baths. Every winter, the macaques head into the pools there to keep warm, coming down from their normal summer home to bask in the water. Considering the attractions, it's no surprise that Jigokudani is one of Hokkaido's most unique and most visited health tourism destinations.