Places Not in the Bucket List By EJ Galura
All good things come to an end. What a pessimistic way to start, right? The reality, however, has its own way of emphasizing this truth. We have to constantly say our goodbyes even for something we truly treasure. Our resistance to letting go may only give us more pain and agony than acceptance itself. So why bother? Besides, life goes on whether we like it or not.
The world is truly a wonderful place to explore. We have so many breathtaking sights to see and intricate mountains to climb. Not to mention the remarkable beaches we can adore and even dip in. With a whole lot of places to discover, you just can’t help but stand in awe of this world’s endless wonders.
What if you are deprived of the privilege to go on and visit an amazing tourist destination? Wouldn’t it be heartbreaking to know that such a wonderful place existed but you can’t experience it anymore?
You can easily find bloggers, Instagram posts and various articles telling you all about the places you should visit. What about those destinations you can’t go to anymore? Here, we have listed 5 famous places forever lost and inaccessible, much to our dismay.
Love Locks on Pont Des Arts – Paris, France
Are you a hopeless romantic finding love in everything life has to offer? Do you get all mushy at the thought of experiencing love at first sight? What about having a candlelight dinner with the love of your life?
Paris and romance, they go together like bread and butter. It has always been considered as one of the best places to propose and a must-see destination for hopeless romantics at heart.
Love Locks on Pont Des Arts became a love tradition in Paris since 2008. Tourists engrave their names on love locks and then attach them to the railing on the side of the bridge. They even seal the deal by throwing the key into the Seine River below. This romantic gesture immediately gained popularity among tourists as it is believed to symbolize a couple’s, committed love. Quite charming, isn’t it? But not long after it started, the thrill began to wear off within a few years. Sections of the railings of the bridge started to collapse under the whopping 45-tonnes weight of the locks. It surely is not a good sight to see, not to mention the safety risk that comes with it.
With these growing concerns, the city decided to put an end to this in 2015. All of the panels with locks were taken out despite the unwavering demands of tourists to keep it. Just imagine how devastated lovers with a lock in there felt as they tore the bridge to pieces.
Efforts were made to prevent the love locks craze from its return. Padlock-proof glass panels were installed leaving thousands of lamenting tourists over the missed opportunity. So if you plan on declaring your love on Pont Des Arts, you just have to be extra creative in finding other ways of doing it.
Wedding Cake Rock – National Park, Australia
What’s a good travel experience without a great photo? According to studies, only 20% of our memories remain in our minds as we grow older. But with all the experiences we accumulate every day, it is quite a waste for them to fall into oblivion. Photographs act as our reminders when we reminisce a distant past. It captures a glimpse of our memories that we can never take back.
Named for its astounding white appearance, Wedding Cake Rock became a haven for photography lovers. It immediately gained its popularity on Instagram due to the dramatic and daredevil shots it offers. Thrill seekers and adventure lovers even pull off death-defying stunts on the cliff to produce more deviant photos. However, as the news on this breathtaking scenery began to circulate on social media, tourists increased in number. From 2,000 tourists visiting the site every month, it grew to over 10,000 and at least one person had died from the picturesque cliff.
The site was eventually closed in 2015 due to the aforementioned safety concerns. Immediately after, geotechnical assessment and evaluation showed that Wedding Cake Rock is indeed unstable and was certain to crumble within the next 10 years or so. Get ready to say your goodbyes to this photogenic precipice as it remains closed to the public until its eventual demise.
Chacaltaya Glacier – Bolivia
If you’re looking for a thrilling and chilling adventure, the world’s highest elevation ski resort is the place to go. With a ski area summit at 17,785 feet, Chacaltaya Glacier stands relatively higher than Mt. Everest’s base camp.
This intricate landmark sits at 16° Latitude placing 2nd closest ski resort to Earth’s equator. But being on top isn’t always the best place to be. Thanks to global warming, mother nature is experiencing unprecedented glacier retreats over the past decades. Unfortunately, Chacaltaya Glacier was prompted to reach its unavoidable meltdown last 2009 despite its estimated demise at 2015. What remains now are good old buildings and modest huts having few traces of what once was a place filled with snow. Even the ice gave up too early on climate change. Guess we need to start thinking about what we’re doing to our world?
Vidampark – Budapest, Hungary
Your childhood will never be complete if you never had to visit an amusement park at least once in your life. It’s truly a delight to see families gather together to create lasting memories. You’ll hear screams and laughs fill the place as they try on all sorts of rides and creepy horror houses. Friends and lovers also enjoy as they explore different fun games and experience many other attractions all in one place. There’s just this amazing charm that we feel when we hear of amusement parks.
Welcome to Budapest’s Vidampark! The largest amusement park in Hungary which now resembles ancient ruins as it sits abandoned, forgotten and deserted. You’ve read it right! In 2013, this tourist attraction ceased its operations following several financial difficulties leading to its final shutdown.
The park started to operate at the beginning of the 19th century. It even survived the Second World War despite of the severe damages suffered by many of its attractions. However, most of the rides were already torn down and dismantled since they’ve started closing down the park. The good news though? A number of its historical buildings were saved and remain operational but reviving the amusement park is not a possibility anymore.
Guaira Falls – Paraguay- Brazil Border
They say that if you don’t sacrifice for what you want, what you want will be the sacrifice. It is a choice all of us have to take in one way or another. No matter how much we avoid this path, we are still bound to encounter it.
Once upon a time, in the vast border of Brazil and Paraguay lies the astonishing beauty of Guaira Falls. Before we decided to erase it from the face of the Earth in 1982, it was recognized as one of Brazil’s best-known tourist attractions. The amount of that breath-taking cataract’s volume even doubles that of the infamous Niagara Falls. It was adorned with 18 waterfalls with a drop of about 375 ft which was much-loved by locals and tourists alike. Deafening roars from the massive cascade could reach 20 miles and the amount of mist generated createdcaptivating rainbows.
Despite all the love Guaira Falls receive from people, it was the sacrifice they had to make to start a hydroelectric project. They destroyed the rock face of the falls using dynamites during the damming process, burying what once was a great sight to behold. It was truly a cringe-worthy event seeing the waterfalls disappear knowing that this natural wonder is forever lost. Some may not agree, but for most of us, that’s quite tragic and heart-breaking.
Saying goodbye sure isn’t fun but it always teaches us lessons. It makes us realize that we have to value things while we can still enjoy them. Our world has so much more to offer. It is now up to us how we can help protect amazing places like these from their extinction.
