Treasure trove of world heritage sites in Japan

Given that my firsthand experience of Japan is limited to the interior of Narita International Airport, I appreciated the Japan Times' overview this week of the country's world heritage sites. While Himeji Castle, a 17th century fortified complex in Hyogo Prefecture receives pride of place, the article also includes a link to a useful map (reproduced below) showing all 19 of the country's world heritage sites. A handy resource for anyone interested in cultural heritage who is planning a trip to Japan!

Hué: A world heritage site in Vietnam not to be missed

When Vietnam's war with the United States effectively ended in 1975, who would have imagined that the country would one day become a magnet for Western tourists? Yet that is exactly what is happening as more and more visitors discover the amazing cultural and natural attractions on offer, including eight world heritage sites. And every indication suggests that visitor numbers will only continue to increase, as government authorities tirelessly promote Vietnam as a tourism destination, both regionally within Asia and further afield in Western Europe.

While my own feelings about visiting Vietnam are a little conflicted - on the one hand I met many kind and welcoming people, yet on the other I felt I had to constantly on guard against rip-offs and scams - its history and heritage are second to none, of which Hué, the country's former capital under the Nguyen dynasty and world heritage site, is truly outstanding.

And clearly I'm not alone in thinking so: Hué ranked tenth in a recent survey of "top destinations on the rise in Asia" by TripAdvisor. Furthermore, the city reportedly welcomed more than 2 million visitors in 2015, an increase of 13 percent over the previous year.

Notwithstanding the on-again off-again rain during my visit in August 2011, the complex of administrative and imperial monuments at Hué took me the better part of a day to visit, and I left feeling I could have spent even longer.

Not only was the site remarkable for its layout, which was designed according to precepts of ancient oriental philosophy, but the state of preservation of the citadel walls, palaces and other buildings was impressive. That being said, excavation and restoration work is ongoing, and war damage is still very much in evidence, including shell craters and bullet-pocked walls.

Still, this doesn't detract from the site and I look forward to my next visit...

Al-Salt: Strong contender for world heritage status

As visitors who have spent any length of time in Jordan can attest, while the country punches above its weight in terms of its cultural and historical heritage and the beauty of its natural environment, recent urban development has tended to favour function over form. That is to say, cement blocks and and other utilitarian building materials predominate while streets often are dusty and traffic-clogged. 

View of old city from municipal museum balcony

Thus, it came as a very pleasant surpise on my visit to Jordan last year to arrive in al-Salt, a small city of about 100,000 inhabitants 35km North-West of Amman. Although the locale has been inhabited since ancient times, al-Salt’s heyday came in the 19th century, when traders from Nablus settled in the area and established an architectural legacy of distinctive stone building, many of which survive lto this day. As a result, walking in the centre of al-Salt is like stepping back in time, and the feeling is only strengthened the bustling street life with local people going about their business with not a single souvenir hawker or hustler in sight. 

Market street in the old city

All in all my stay in al-Salt was a highlight of my trip to Jordan, and as such I welcome the municipal authorities’ tenacity in making a third attempt to have their city inscribed as a world heritage site. While the previous attempts, undertaken in 1994 and 2004 respectively, reportedly suffered from their dependence on local experts, the city has now engaged an international consultant with experience working UNESCO to help develop the current bid. With a little over a month to the application deadline, I certainly hope that al-Salt proves to be third time lucky.

19th century home in al-Salt

Stunning drone-based aerial photos of world heritage sites

While lately it seems that the only stories about drones in the media centre on interference with conventional aircraft by careless (or curious) operators, I was heartened to read The Australian’s recent photo feature on world heritage sites as captured by a collective of Russia-based drone photography enthusiasts.

The group is known as AirPano and they have captured some truly stunning photos of several of the planet’s best known heritage sites, including the Great Wall of China, Petra, the Roman Colosseum, Machu Picchu, Corcovado, the Taj Mahal and Chichen Itza.

The photos are well worth look as are many of the other photos posed on AirPano’s website.

Promoting tourism in Ireland via the latest Star Wars blockbuster

As the Hollywood marketing machine floods every available social medium in an effort to promote its latest Star Wars offering, Irish tourism authorities seem to be finding the urge to capitalize on the hype irresistible.

With the opening of the film just a day away, Skellig Michael - a world heritage site on an island off the Irish coast - is being promoted as the location of a "key scene" in the movie. The excitement has even reached the halls of the Irish parliament, where Minister for the Arts Heather Humphrey is reportedly "looking forward to seeing how Sceilg Mhichíl will feature on the big screen."

While the attempt to promote tourism via a Hollywood blockbuster is nothing new, the risk - as always - is to do so in a respectful and sustainable manner, given the environmental sensitivity of sites like Skellig Michael.

Canadian world heritage sites rendered in postage stamp form

Canada Post follows a well-worn tradition in Hollywood by recycling and repackaging past successes. In this case, a stamp series featuring five world heritage sites, previously issued in 2014, will be reprised next month in a new (and lower) denomination.

According to Linn's Stamp News & Insights, Heritage sites featured include Nova Scotia’s Old Town Lunenburg and Landscape of Grand Pre, Alberta’s Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump, Ontario’s Rideau Canal and S’Gang Gwaay on Anthony Island off the coast of British Columbia.

With Thailand having issued its own world heritage site stamp series in October, I wonder which country will be next to showcase its cultural and natural heritage in philatelic fashion?

Cause(way) for celebration in Northern Ireland

In what the Belfast Telegraph is calling a "gigantic accolade", the Giant's Causeway, a unique volcanic formation and world heritage site on the edge of Northern Ireland's Antrim plateau, has been named the United Kingdom's best heritage attraction, according to the British Travel Awards.

The awards are determined by consumer polling, which makes the win all the more impressive given that the UK boasts many well-known historical sites. Apparently other short-listed contenders included the National Maritime Museum in Cornwall and Stirling and Edinburgh Castles in Scotland.

And for anyone interested in knowing the Giant's Causeway got its name, you will the story of Irish Giant Fionn MacCumhain here.

Visit Petra virtually with Google Street View

While I use Google Street View chiefly for the mundane task of locating addresses in my home town of Ottawa, Google announced this week that it is adding the ancient Nabatean City of Petra to its catalogue of maps, allowing virtual tourists the pleasure of roaming about this world heritagesite without the hassle of in-person travel, not to mention the souvenir hawkers and camel ride hustlers featured on my blog earlier this week.

Although it took me a few minutes to get used to the interface, I was impressed with Google has accomplished.

James Bond: Chief marketer for VisitBritain

With marketing for the latest instalment of the James Bond franchise - Spectre - in high gear, I learned a new turn of phrase today: "set-jetting." Used by news portal India Today to describe those whose idea of a holiday is travelling to popular film sets, Spectre offers a seemingly not-to-be-missed opportunity for VisitBritain to market the country to film fans. 

Front and centre of course is world heritage site Blenheim Palace, built in the 18th century for the first Duke of Marlborough, and in the film doubling as the Palazzo Cadenza in Italy.

Marketing India's world heritage sites

New Delhi newspaper The Sunday Standard has reported on the launch of a new website by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) to promote the country's treasure trove of world heritage sites. At present, a handful of sites attract huge crowds each year (the Taj Mahal comes to mind), while others receive relatively few visitors.

Through its new website, the ASI hopes to broaden the appeal of "lesser" sites, thereby showcasing the amazing breadth of India's cultural heritage while at the same time boosting revenue from entry fees at all 32 of India's world heritage sites.

The annotated map accompanying the website, which is reproduced above, is slickly produced and a handy reference to anyone planning a trip to India who is interested in visiting some (or perhaps all!) of its world heritage sites.

Machu Picchu's new twin

Twinning with a city or town in another country is a favourite way for municipal governments to try to promote themselves on the world stage, yet Otama in Fukushima Prefecture in Japan has done better than most by twinning with Machu Picchu, a world heritage site in Peru featuring the ruins of an 500-year old sanctuary high in the Peruvian Andes.

A testament to the longstanding history of Japanese immigration to Peru in the last century, authorities in Machu Picchu agreed to the twinning after turning down many other requests. According to the Japan Times, the arrangement is meant to honour Yokichi Nouchi (1895-1969), who was born in Otama and contributed substantially to tourism development in Machu Picchu after immigrating to Peru in the early 20th century. 

Congratulations to both parties in the twinning!