Where Is This Place?

From a hotel on a dizzying mountain pass to a pink lake that hardly seems real, here are offbeat places around the world that spark curiosity from a single photo.

Words Hur Taewoo

Hotel Belvedere

❶ An iconic hotel you come across while driving along the Furka Pass in the canton of Valais, Switzerland.
❷ It opened in 1882, riding the wave of European enthusiasm for travel in the Swiss Alps, and it still retains its 19th-century Belle Époque façade. After a series of twists and turns, however, it ceased operations in 2015.
❸ Lodgings around the Furka Pass once prided themselves on their views of the Rhone Glacier, but the glacier has shrunk drastically over the past century or so, and today guests look down on the rocks and grass of the valley.
❹ It appeared as a backdrop in the 1964 film <Goldfinger>. More recently, it is said to have inspired the films of director Wes Anderson.
❺ The Furka Pass is still counted among the best driving and cycling routes. The hotel has closed its doors, but the parking area in front is always crowded with people hoping to take photos.
📍 3999 Obergoms VS.

Chandelier Tree

❶ A drive-thru tree in the Redwoods National Park in northern California, USA.
❷ It is about 84 meters tall and is estimated to be more than 2,000 years old. The tunnel is about 1.8 meters wide and about 2 meters high.
❸ Why was a tunnel cut through a tree? In the late 19th century, the idea was to use the redwood, the tallest-growing tree in the world, to promote tourism in the region.
❹ In the late 1930s, the owner of the land where the Chandelier Tree stands cut a hole in the tree and built facilities for tourists around it. People flocked from all over the United States, driving through the tree tunnel and taking countless photos.
❺ Of course, you can no longer cut a tunnel through a tree. It is, naturally, illegal.
❻ The Chandelier Tree is the tallest and sturdiest drive-thru tree in existence. Including this one, only three drive-thru trees remain. The other famous drive-thru trees have already fallen or are in poor condition. Not surprising, considering that enormous holes were cut into their bases.
❼ Walking through the Chandelier Tree tunnel costs $10; driving through costs $15.
📍 67402 Drive Thru Tree Road, Leggett, CA 95585

Prada Marfa

❶ It stands alongside U.S. Route 90 in the middle of the desert, about 40 kilometers from the small town of Marfa, Texas. From Austin, the state capital, it is a 6.5-hour drive.
❷ It is not a real Prada store. It is a permanent art installation created in 2005 by the world-famous artist duo Elmgreen & Dragset. It cost about $120,000 to make and measures 4.6 m x 7.6 m.
❸ The “interior” (?) of the work is actually stocked with shoes and bags from Prada’s 2005 collection, provided by Miuccia Prada. Of course, you can’t go inside.
❹ On the night Prada Marfa was officially unveiled, someone smashed the glass door and broke in to steal Prada goods. After the incident the work was repaired, and the Prada items were fitted with alarm devices.
❺ After its installation, there was a debate for a while over whether it was an advertisement for Prada or a work of art. The verdict: a work of art.
❻ About 40,000 travelers visit each year to see the piece. There is no admission fee.
📍 U.S. Route 90, Davis County, Texas

Pink Lake

❶ Lake Hiller sits on Middle Island, one of the islands of the Recherche Archipelago in Australia.
❷ The lake is about 600 meters long and about 250 meters wide.
❸ The reason Lake Hiller is pink is said to be its extremely high salinity, along with bacteria, archaea and several species of Dunaliella algae.
❹ Separated from the Southern Ocean by a strip of beach, the lake’s pink color stands out all the more. It is even visible on Google Maps.
❺ Members of the public cannot enter the lake without permission from Western Australia’s Department of Environment and Conservation. We recommend viewing it from above by helicopter or light aircraft.
❻ The nearest town to Middle Island is Esperance, which is about 720 kilometers from Perth, the capital of Western Australia.
❼ Besides Lake Hiller, Australia has several other lakes famous for their pink hue, including Lake Bumbunga, Lake MacDonnell and Hutt Lagoon’s Pink Lake, as well as Lake Hillier’s lookalike, Lake Hart.
📍 Western Australia 6450

Statue of Liberty in Paris

❶ A Statue of Liberty stands at the tip of Île aux Cygnes, an artificial island in the Seine in Paris, France. It is one-quarter the size of the Statue of Liberty in New York (11.5 meters tall).
❷ The Statue of Liberty that France gave to the United States to mark 100 years of American independence was completed in 1886. The statue on Île aux Cygnes is a replica presented in 1889 by the American community in Paris as a token of gratitude.
❸ In Paris you can find a total of four Statues of Liberty and one replica of the statue’s torch. The one you can photograph with the Eiffel Tower in the background is the statue on Île aux Cygnes.
❹ The original creator of the Statue of Liberty was Auguste Bartholdi. Gustave Eiffel designed the safety structure needed to build the colossal statue.
❺ The statue on Île aux Cygnes originally faced east. When it was moved in the 1960s, its direction was also changed to face west, in keeping with the wishes of its creator. As a result, the statue on Île aux Cygnes and the Statue of Liberty in New York look toward each other.
❻ To see the front of the statue on Île aux Cygnes properly, you need to take a boat. A river cruise is the most convenient way.
❼ The official name of the Statue of Liberty is ‘Liberty Enlightening the World.’
📍 All. des Cygnes, 75015 Paris, France

White Sands National Park

❶ White Sands National Park in New Mexico, USA.
❷ It is the largest gypsum dune field in the world, and the park covers about 590 square kilometers.
❸ Designated a national park in 2019, it is the youngest (?) national park in the United States.
❹ About 12,000 years ago, indigenous people lived in the Tularosa Basin, where White Sands lies. There were lakes and greenery, but they dried up as temperatures rose.
❺ Because it is surrounded by a U.S. military missile test range, access is often restricted during military exercises.
❻ About 780,000 people visit each year, and the desert is a stark white expanse.
❼ A 13-kilometer scenic drive stretches out from the visitor center.
❽ In a landscape that is white in every direction, it is easy to lose your sense of direction. A guided tour is recommended, and night tours held under the full moon are especially popular.
❾ Thanks to its unique scenery, it has appeared as a filming location for many films and TV shows, including <Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen> and <The Last Mission>.
❿ From Albuquerque, New Mexico’s largest city, it takes 3.5 hours by car to reach the park entrance.
📍 New Mexico, USA

Sólheimasandur

❶ The wreckage of a U.S. Navy airplane on Sólheimasandur beach in southern Iceland.
❷ The aircraft, a Douglas DC-3, made an emergency landing in 1973 after running low on fuel while flying over Iceland. All of the crew members were reportedly rescued.
❸ Left on the beach for decades, the wreckage blends into the surrounding landscape to create a surreal scene.
❹ People flock here from all over the world to photograph the sight and see it with their own eyes.
❺ It sits about 4 kilometers from Iceland’s Route 1. There is a marker by the roadside, and the site can only be reached on foot after parking in the designated lot.
❻ In winter, bitter cold and blizzards make access difficult. Several travelers have even died from exposure.
❼ In truth, the real owner of this place is nature. The black sand beach around it overwhelms visitors with scenery found only in Iceland.
❽ It takes about 2 hours by car from Reykjavik to the parking area.
📍 The exact coordinates of the wreckage are 63°27’32.8”N 19°21’53.2”W