Lonely Planet Secret Wonders of the World

Lonely Planet takes you off the beaten track with this handsome hardback coffee table book that reveals 385 extraordinary places that you might not know about. From natural wonders to unusual historical sites to places that are downright mystifying, this is a book of curiosities, arranged geographically. While the inclusions from New Zealand were already known, the book had a surprise on most pages. Perfect for curious people. 

There is so much to discover in this book. Here are just some of the things that caught my eye:

• Skeleton Coast, Namibia, where there are almost 1000 ships in the desert sand, baking in the sun since 1909.

• The Plain of Jars in Phonsavan, Laos. Historians are still debating the reason for the clusters of 2,000-year-old granite and sandstone jars that are on these plains.

• The High-Heel Church in Budai, Taiwan. Apparently, this shoe-shaped building is a symbolic stand-in for the wedding shoes women couldn’t wear during an epidemic of blackfoot disease.

• Cat Island in Tashirojima, Japan, has more cats than people!

• Weeping Rocks in West Java, Indonesia. A natural wonder to see a ‘sobbing’ cliff.

• For something very kitsch, there is Gnomesville in Ferguson Valley in Western Australia. From one lonely gnome in the 1990s, there are now around 6,000!

• It looks like the red-crab migration on Christmas Island in Australia is something to behold!

• Singing trees in Aalborg, Denmark. Press play when you stroll through the park, and you will hear artists such as Cliff Richard, Sting, Elton John and more!

• The Drina River House in Bajina Basta, Bosnia & Herzegovina, is a tiny house on a rocky inlet in the middle of the river. A curiosity for sure!

• The Lizzie Borden House in Massachusetts, USA, is not for  the faint-hearted. Allegedly, Lizzie dealt out 40 whacks with an axe, and witchy Salem is just a 90-minute drive away.

• The Vale Da Lua at Alto Paraiso de Gois, Brazil – another natural wonder of beautiful rock formations.

There is something for everyone in this intriguing book.

Reviewer: Karen McMillan

Lonely Planet