Solivagant

Member since December 2005

#None 0 0

I am now retired but have been "travelling" for a "hobby" since I was 15 (1957!) whilst pursuing otherwise normal mundane career and "home" things in UK - thus being limited by "annual leave" allowances. During that time I have visited 164 "independent countries" - defined by me as the 193 full UN members plus (somewhat illogically, but they are generally accepted as "sovereign") Taiwan and Holy See (but am not pursuing "193"!). Unfortunately quite a few relatively easily accessible current WHS got "missed" along the way. If only I had known they would get chosen - they are not all obvious choices! Despite the weaknesses in the list and the politics involved in the selection and voting mechanism they provide a quick means of grasping the highlights of many countries and sometimes lead down interesting knowledge and research "avenues" which would otherwise have remain unexplored. 
Proposal for a new WHS:- Roca Agostino Neto Cocoa Plantation Sao Tome.
There are just too many European WHS relative to the rest. Little Sao Tome became the world's greatest producer of cocoa under the Portuguese. So poor were the social conditions that Cadbury boycotted Cocoa from there in early 20C. At Roca Agostinho (and other crumbling colonial sites on Sao Tome) you might just get a feeling for the economic system which created it and "fed" Europe with a raw material so often taken for granted - a really atmospheric place. But it isn't even on the "Tentative list"!

My most impressive site: Machu Picchu. I would like to choose somewhere

My proposal for a new site: See under

Recent Visits
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    July 28, 2024
    Beijing Central Axis, Funerary and memory sites of the First World War, Gedi , Hegmataneh, …
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    4
    Jan. 1, 2020
    City Walls of the Ming and Qing Dynasties, Dunhuang Yardangs, The Lijiang River Scenic Zone …
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    5
    Jan. 1, 2020
    Ancient cities of Upper Myanmar, Bago, Inle Lake, Shwedagon Pagoda, Wooden Monasteries of Konbaung Period
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About Solivagant

First name
Solivagant
Member since
December 2005
Country of Origin
None
Visits
Rank
#None
WHS
0
Tentative Sites
0
Website Participation
Reviews
442
Ratings

Ratings

World Heritage Sites
855 0
Photos
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Locations
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Zones
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Reviews by Solivagant

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Wadi Rum by Solivagant

Wadi Rum (Inscribed)

Wadi Rum

Unfortunately I can’t say our visit to Wadi Rum in 1999 has left us with particularly good memories. We went there with high hopes and the images from the Lean …

Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus by Solivagant

Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (Inscribed)

Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus

Our previous visit to Victoria Terminus had been from the “business-end” – arriving on an overnight train from Aurangabad in 1996. The site wasn’t WHS-inscribed at the time and we …

Qoahito Cultural Landscape by Solivagant

Qoahito Cultural Landscape (On tentative list)

Qoahito Cultural Landscape

The addition of Qohaito (UNESCO says “Qoahito”) to Eritrea’s T list in Mar 2011 came as something of a surprise to us as we had visited it in late 2006 …

Hampi by Solivagant

Hampi (Inscribed)

Hampi

If you are liable to get “Templed out” by a surfeit of historic ruins it could happen to you here! The site consists of the monumental remains of an entire …

Churches and Convents of Goa by Solivagant

Churches and Convents of Goa (Inscribed)

Churches and Convents of Goa

In Goa Velha we occasionally had to pinch ourselves to remember that we were in tropical India rather than Latin America – but there were large numbers of Indians in …

Champaner-Pavagadh by Solivagant

Champaner-Pavagadh (Inscribed)

Champaner-Pavagadh

The count on this Web site under “most visited sites” for Champaner was a mere 2 visits before we added our 2 from this February 2011. That places Champaner as …

The Twin Monastery of Wearmouth Jarrow by Solivagant

The Twin Monastery of Wearmou… (Removed from tentat…)

The Twin Monastery of Wearmouth Jarrow

If UK’s nomination for 2012 does gain inscription many people who go out of their way to see it might be surprised at how little is “on view”! It consists …

Plain of Jars by Solivagant

Plain of Jars (Inscribed)

Plain of Jars

Many Prehistoric sites attract the description “Enigmatic” – meaning that the exact purpose of the objects on view is unclear - and those of the “Plain of Jars” certainly justify …

Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo's Home-Study Museum by Solivagant

Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo'… (On tentative list)

Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo's Home-Study Museum

Mexico City already has 2 WHS built in the 20th century – and Mexico’s T list contains 2 more! On of these is described by Wikiarquitectura.com as “one of the …

Fortress of the immaculate Conception by Solivagant

Fortress of the immaculate Co… (On tentative list)

Fortress of the immaculate Conception

The Fortress of the Immaculate Conception is better known simply as “El Castillo” after the small village over which it towers, and should be on the “see list” of anyone …

Sagarmatha National Park by Solivagant

Sagarmatha National Park (Inscribed)

Sagarmatha National Park

Very few of us are going to reach the summit of Sagarmatha/ Qomolangma/ Mt Everest (though news of 40 climbers passing a dying man during 1 morning in May 2006 …

Paysage culturel d'Azougui by Solivagant

Paysage culturel d'Azougui (On tentative list)

Paysage culturel d'Azougui

Having visited Azougui in 2007 without noticing anything particularly “special” about the place it was a surprise to discover that it had in fact been nominated in 2005. The second …

Svalbard Archipelago by Solivagant

Svalbard Archipelago (On tentative list)

Svalbard Archipelago

For anyone wanting to experience the “high Arctic”, Svalbard is the place to go. With the right sort of trip and a bit of luck you will get above 80 …

Island of Gorée by Solivagant

Island of Gorée (Inscribed)

Island of Gorée

Goree is a small pleasant island situated a 30minute ferry ride offshore from crowded ugly Dakar. Free of vehicles, its sandy streets are lined with pleasing old houses and flowering …

Camino Real by Solivagant

Camino Real (Inscribed)

Camino Real

Well, with the inscription of this site Mexico has really outdone France both in getting places inscribed twice (5 here are already on the list - Mexico City, Queretaro, San …

Jantar Mantar by Solivagant

Jantar Mantar (Inscribed)

Jantar Mantar

My last visit to the Jantar Mantar at Jaipur was as long ago as 1992 so the accompanying photo has had to be scanned in from a 35mm slide!! But …

Central Highlands by Solivagant

Central Highlands (Inscribed)

Central Highlands

We visited 2 of the 3 elements of this site during a trip to Sri Lanka in 2005.

Horton Plains NP is particularly noted for its bird life including a …

Kujataa by Solivagant

Kujataa (Inscribed)

Kujataa

The Norse settlement of Greenland and the North American mainland remains one of history’s great “what ifs” so it was interesting to visit Bratthalid and Gardar (on the same day) …

St. Kilda by Solivagant

St. Kilda (Inscribed)

St. Kilda

The previous reviews cover the 2 main ways of visiting St Kilda (Beyond having your own yacht!) – a day trip from Lewis and a longer (often c 1 week) …

Surtsey by Solivagant

Surtsey (Inscribed)

Surtsey

As indicated in the previous review, a “tourist” visit to Surtsey involving a landing is not possible - and even such visits by scientists are strictly limited. We did however …

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