Hiking and driving options are limited in Yosemite in the wintertime, but the crowds are much smaller. From December to February, only 9 percent of the park’s 5 million-plus annual visitors show up, according to park visitation statistics. Yosemite’s winter weather can be cold, especially at the higher elevations. The Yosemite Valley is at 4,000 feet elevation and even if it snows. The Yosemite Ski and Snowboard Area is at Badger Pass. It includes a terrain park along with beginner and intermediate slopes, making it a good place for kids and others just learning to ski.

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Dating back to the 12th century, Wells Cathedral stands as a fine example of Gothic architecture. Wells is the earliest English Cathedral to be built in the Gothic style and has an international reputation. The current building is a significant landmark in Somerset and the South West. The cathedral boasts a magnificent west front covered in medieval sculptures of saints and kings. The pretty Early Gothic interior is dominated by the love-em-or-hate-em “scissor arches,” seen nowhere else. Wells Cathedral is open daily and they invite all of their visitors to join any of their services and events.

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The history of Salisbury Cathedral goes back well before the first foundation stone was laid in 1220. To understand the history of the cathedral you have to travel north from the city centre a distance of several miles, to Old Sarum. Salisbury Cathedral was built after the clergy abandoned the Cathedral at Old Salisbury (Old Sarum) on the hill above modern day Salisbury. Moving down into the valley by the River Avon. The cathedral is stunning and very accessible to all ages. The Chapter house with the Magna Carta is very interesting. The font in the centre of the cathedral is incredible. Salisbury Cathedral is the perfect way to spend your day – just 8 miles from Stonehenge and only 5 minutes from Old Sarum, the original site of the cathedral. Every year over 600,000 visitors come from all over the world to the Cathedral and Close, the largest and best preserved Cathedral Close in Britain.

Admission:
Adult – £12.50
Child (7-17yrs) – £8
Family – £30

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Bodiam castle looks exactly like the popular image of a medieval castle. It is quadrangular in shape and has a tower on each end of the wall. Being surrounded by a moat. The moat thus served as an almost impregnable defence, and although the castle was never attacked, the moat would have negated the effectiveness of siege warfare. It was built in 1385 by Sir Edward Dalyngrigge, a former knight of Edward III, with the permission of Richard II, ostensibly to defend the area against French invasion during the Hundred Years\’ War.

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Cwm Pennant is a little known valley firmly on the unfashionable side of Snowdonia. The valley was home to slate workings in the late 19th century employing up to 200 workers. The slate was quarried, brought to be dressed and then shipped off in trams down the valley to its destination. The valley is mainly used for farming nowadays with farming stock indiginous to the area – Welsh Black cattle and Welsh Mountain, Welsh Mule and Lleyn sheep

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Gullfoss is a massive waterfall on the river Hvita which originates in the glacial lake Langjokull. Gullfoss means ‘golden falls’ because the glacial sediment in the water turns the falls golden in the sunlight. The water falls 105 feet (32 meters) in two steps. The average of water running down this waterfall is by 100 – 180 m3/s in the summertime and 50 – 110 m3/s in the wintertime. The highest flood measured was 2000 m3/s. On a sunlit day, the mist clouds surrounding the hammering falls are filled with dozens of rainbows, providing an unparalleled spectacle of color and motion. The place is together with Þingvellir and the geysirs of Haukadalur part of the most famous sights of Iceland, the Golden Circle.

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The Qalawun complex in Cairo, Egypt includes a madrasa, a hospital and a mausoleum. It was built by the Sultan Al-Nasir Muhammad Ibn Qalawun in the 1280s. The complex is the earliest example of a new Syrian style of those times, and displays typical Mameluke architecture. The Mausoleum is one of the most spectacular in Cairo, huge, breathtaking and ornate, notice the 4 massive granite pillars, which were originally part of a pharaonic structure. The mausoleum’s central, domed plan is connected to the madrasa by a long entrance passage, and the plan of both spaces is shifted to accommodate the qibla orientation.

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Rovinj is situated on the western coast of Istria in Croatia, the largest peninsula on the Adriatic coastline, a one hour drive from Trieste and 2.5 hours from Zagreb. The car-free old town is made up of Venetian-era pastel coloured houses built around a pretty fishing harbour and overlooked by a hilltop church. Town offers the largest baroque building in Istria, the tower of St. Euphemia is also the highest point in Rovinj, offering an enchanting view of the town and the archipelago that surrounds it. The church tower is a replica of the bell tower of St. Mark’s Basilica in Venice, with a bronze statue of Saint Euphemia on its spire. The statue spins around to show the direction of the wind with her right hand. Rovinj is also the most Italian town on this coast: there’s an Italian high school, the language is widely spoken, and street signs are bilingual.

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Chand Baori in Abhaneri village in eastern Rajasthan, India, is one of the most overlooked landmarks in the country. It is one of the oldest stepwell in India, and is considered to be among the biggest in the world. This incredible square structure is 13 stories deep, and lined along the walls on three sides are double flight of steps. 3,500 narrow steps arranged in perfect symmetry descends to the bottom of the well 20 meters deep to a murky green puddle of water. It was commissioned by King Chanda in the 9th century to give the local population easy access to clean ground water at the bottom of the well.

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The most powerful photos ever taken that perfectly capture the United States life. Capturing a good photo is not just a matter of knowing the right settings but you need to feel the atmosphere and composition.

Monument Valley

Sunset over the Nevada desert

MGM Grand Las Vegas

Grand Canyon

Hoover Dam

Petrified Forest, Arizona

Arches National Park-Utah

Garden of the Gods, Denver

Hiking in Boulder, Colorado

Capitol Hill, Washington DC

Arlington Cemetery

Storm over Central Park, New York City

World Trade Centre Memorial, NYC

Times Square

Empire State, NYC

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