The holidays are approaching and that means cold weather, traveling, and spending time with family and friends. Even though for some traveling is the last thing you want to do before the holidays, it could be worse. Imagine spending your holiday or vacation traveling to an asbestos mine or an active volcanic island. Here are eight places you would not want to be for the holidays.
1. Great Pacific Garbage Patch
Also known as the Pacific Gyre, this patch of trash can be found floating between San Francisco and Hawaii. Thought to be the size of Texas, 3.5 million tons of trash floats in this accidental dump site. Birds and mammals are dying of starvation and dehydration with their bellies full of plastics; while fish ingest leftover toxins released from these plastics.
2. Izu Islands
Two towns and six villages situated on volcanic islands within Tokyo, Japan make the list of the last places you’d never want to visit. Their volcanic nature ensures that the islands are constantly filled with the stench of sulfur. Residents were evacuated from the islands in both 1953 and 2000 due to volcanic activity and dangerously high levels of gas. Many people returned in 2005, but are now required to carry gas masks with them at all times in case gas levels rise unexpectedly.
3. The Door to Hell
With the perfect name for a horror movie, geologists in Derweze,Turkmenistan, discovered an underground cavern more than 40 years ago. Filled with natural gas, scientists thought that setting fire to the hole that was created when the cavern collapsed would help avoid poisonous gas discharges. Unfortunately, their plan backfired and the spot has been burning ever since, prompting locals to name it The Door to Hell because of the fiery glow seen at all times.
4. Asbestos Mine
Canada has Mounties, national health care, and a love for hockey. Although not many people consider our neighbors to the north to be a place to visit, the Asbestos Mine in Quebec, makes the list of places that should be on your never visit list. The enormous open pit is fully operational; however, it’s widely known that exposure to asbestos cause’s cancer and a variety of other diseases. The mine offers bus tours of the deadly environment during the summer months, and tickets are free.
5. Ramree Island
This swamp is home to thousands of the most dangerous salt water crocodiles. If that wasn’t bad enough, malaria carrying mosquitos and venomous snakes inhabit the island, making it all the more intense. During World War II, 1,000 Japanese soldiers entered the swampy island, and only 20 were found alive. Even Paul Hogan’s Crocodile Dundee wouldn’t visit this island.
6. Yakutsk, Russia
This environmental extreme would be a shock to even those who experience 3 months of sunlight a year. Temperatures here drop to an unbelievable -58°F and visibility in this city of ice and snow isn’t any better; there’s a thick fog that reduces visibility to no more than 10 meters in front of you, and if that wasn’t bad enough this town is out in the middle of nowhere, literally. Yakutsk is six time zones away from Moscow.
7. Chernobyl, Ukraine
With the worst nuclear accident in the history of the world, this small town no longer welcomes travelers, as it has not recovered from the accident that occurred more than 20 years ago. A trip here would include visiting hundreds of miles of uninhabitable space, deserted buildings, and poisoned lakes and rivers. There’s even an exclusion zone of more than 30 km that is almost entirely uninhabited.
8. Linfen, China
Everyone has their own opinions on what causes pollution and what the real consequences are, however, in 2007, Linfen, China made Time magazine’s list of the most polluted places. The air is filled with burning coal, and more than three million people are said to be affected by the worst air in the country. Reports even advise people to hang their laundry out to dry as it will turn black before dry. Four years later, government crackdown has helped to clear the air some. Unfortunately, much more work needs to be done before the air is safe to breathe.
Family can often be the cause of stress during the holidays, but most would agree that one day spent with family and friends beats fighting off crocodiles, wearing masks outdoors to prevent breathing in gas and coal particles, or seeing how much waste produced affects not only the oceans but animal life as well. So this holiday season, be thankful for the wonderful things you have.
