Five Places With Some of the Most Amazing Terrains I’ve Seen

Have you seen any of them?

I have already written an article on terrains for Globetrotters’ monthly prompt, but it didn’t quite turn out the way I had in mind. Here I am trying again.

So, terrains.

Whether it’s through very picturesque mountains, pointy cliffs, coves, fjords, or seascapes, nature has a way of asserting itself which is very often surprising and really wonderful to behold. And the thing is, this work of creating landscapes is an ongoing process and its pieces of art don’t seem to ever reach a final form as nature doesn’t ever stop chiseling, and it keeps designing and designing.

Whatever we are seeing now, all shapes and forms are just stages in a continuous evolution of terrains. And it’s been this way for very many years: one only has to think of the fact that millions of years ago, there was only this one continent called Pangea comprising all the land on Earth.

Off the top of my head, I will list 5 of the places whose terrains I found really impressive:

Lofoten

Lofoten is an archipelago in Norway and it’s situated North of the Arctic Circle. The landscape is quite distinctive: there are very dramatic mountains and peaks all around, but there are also flat portions of land, some of which are covered with water.

If you are lucky and you get some sunny days while visiting, you will be mesmerized by how the surroundings and the sky are reflected in the water. The whole place seems to turn into a giant mirror then, and if there are any clouds in sight, you literally have the feeling that you are walking on their identical, but reversed twins. (I’m tagging Viola Taffarel as I promised I would when I write anything about Lofoten.)

The Highlands

The landscape from the Highlands in Scotland was similar to the scenic one I had found in Lofoten but also different in some ways. Also, I’ve never seen such wonderful moss as the one that was cushioning almost every step while walking in the forests from Glencoe.

Very many of the places there made me think of the enchanted forests that I had read about in some stories when I was a child. And because the sky was overcast most of the time, the very picturesque hills around seemed menacing somehow, but also monumental, the way that relief only seems to be during storms.

Navaggio beach (Zakynthos)

You’ve probably seen Navagio Beach from Zakynthos on postcards, but let me tell you this: it’s way more spectacular in real life.

The white of the cliffs contrasts so beautifully with the chalky blue shade of the water that the setting seems unreal. And since this place is only accessible by boat (yacht), you get the pleasure of seeing it quite well from a distance also before the yacht gets you to this isolated beach and you get a chance to spend some hours of sunbathing and swimming.

Meteora

The cliffs in Meteora look like monoliths and they seem to have been carved the way they are on purpose by the hands of giants.

While climbing many stairs there to reach a monastery or another I had the chance to fully take in the view and I must say I was impressed with all those gargantuan rocks. This is a place I’d definitely like to go back to at least once more in this lifetime.

The Cliffs of Dover

The whiteness of these cliffs is striking and I’ve recently read that they might have been the reason why Great Britain was called Albion by the Greeks (or was it the Romans?): they were visible from mainland Europe and they were considered to be representative of the whole country back then.

When I went there I was a spectator to the sea ebbing and had the chance to walk on the ground where there had been a lot of water only a few hours earlier. So, I got to see a lot of creatures (such as little sea anemones with pink-tipped tentacles) left behind in puddles of water.

If I were to write a few sentences about all the places whose terrains impressed me, I would probably end up drafting a whole book. So, better stop here. Which did you like most?

If you want to read other articles about other interesting terrains in the world, check Aarti Tailor and Sh*t Happens - Lost Girl Travel’s articles below: