Located in Japan’s Tomamu Resort, on the island of Hokkaido, the Unkai Terrace is a unique scenic spot perched high atop a mountain peak that is often above the clouds, offering tourists breathtaking views of the white, fluffy sea beneath them.
The “unkai” (sea of clouds) phenomenon has been attracting tourists to the resort town on Tomamu for years. The natural hot springs in the area and the differences in temperature during the few hours when night turns into day determine the formation of an immaculate white blanket of clouds over the mountainous region, but only a few people had the chance to see the unique effect from above, until a gondola system was put in place. It takes early-bird tourists up the mountain to the Unkai Terrace, right above the sea of clouds, where they can watch the sunrise, take photos of the Hidaka and Tokachi mountain peaks as they pierce the fluffy fog and enjoy a refreshing cup of coffee or a bowl of soup. Although the gondola fare is pretty expensive (around $20), the view from Unkai Terrace is definitely worth every yen.
The terrace is open for tourists during the summer months until late September, but even during this short season the sea of clouds can only be observed about 40 percent of the time. On cloudy days, the entire scenic spot is engulfed by thick fog, but you can still have a fun time trekking the winding mountain slopes, and gondola operators are kind enough to give tourists a postcard of what the view from Unkai Terrace would be like if weather conditions were appropriate. And even on clear days, you have to get up pretty early in the morning to catch the clouds in action. The gondola starts transporting visitors at 4 in the morning until just 8.30 am, so if you plan on going above the clouds, make sure to set your alarm clock.
A twelve-year-old girl who has been dubbed the real-life Rapunzel after refusing to cut her hair for her whole life is to cut it all off - and plans the 5ft 2in mane of hair for £3,500 to be made into extensions.
Natasha Moraes de Andrade, 12, says her 5ft 2in hair makes her life a misery - and she plans to cut it off to sell for extensions
Natasha Moraes de Andrade, who lives in an impoverished shanty town in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil, has never had a haircut. At 5ft 3in, she is just one inch taller than the length of her wavy chestnut hair - and the maintenance it requires sees her use a full bottle of shampoo every week.
Natasha, who has to hold her hair up when she walks, hopes to make up to £3,500 from the sale of her hair, which she says she will put towards a 'better life'
Natasha spends an hour and a half every day brushing her mane
Natasha spends four hours per week washing her hair and up to an hour-and-a-half brushing it each day. She has to carry it around when she walks, and fold it onto her lap when she sits down.
Despite Rio's 40-degree heat Natasha's family cannot switch on a fan in the house because her hair gets caught in it.
And children often stand outside her house and shout 'Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let down your hair.'
Her mother Catarina Moraes de Andrade, 42, said admirers told her never to cut her daughter's beautiful hair as it was so thick and long.
Children in her local neighbourhood chant 'Rapunzel, let down your hair' at her window, and passersby frequently take photographs
Natasha's mother Catarina Moraes de Andrade implored her daughter to cut her hair so that she could join in with the other children
'At the moment she is like a prisoner. She just goes from school to home again,' Mrs Moraes de Andrade said.
But now she's urging her girl to chop it off because it's interfering with her life.
Mrs Moreas de Andrade said: 'At the moment she is like a prisoner. She just goes from school to home again.
'She can't do anything else, like sports, because her hair gets in the way. The school told me she should get it cut so she can have her freedom like other girls her age.
'People stare. Sometimes, they call out at Natasha in the street and try to touch her hair.
'We spend about about £400 a year on shampoo, which is a lot of money for us.
Natasha, who has to hold her hair up when she walks, hopes to make up to £3,500 from the sale of her hair, which she says she will put towards a 'better life'
'I've let her keep it this way because she likes having such long hair, but the time has come to get it cut.
Natasha has been offered £1,750 for her hair once it has been lopped off but hopes to make more.
She said: 'I love my long hair and I'll be sad when it's gone. But it's a pain looking after it.
'I can't do a lot of things, like P.E. lessons at school.
'I hope to sell it for £3,500 and refurbish my bedroom. I hope it can give me a new life.'
Natasha plans to cut it into a bob before she starts the next term of school.
Although she lives close to one of the city's beaches, she can't go swimming because sea water damages her hair and takes hours to clean out.
Natasha, who hopes to be an illustrator when she is older, has drawn a picture of the fairy tale princess Rapunzel, which is on the front door of the house.
The Guinness World Record for the world's longest hair belongs to China's Xie Qiuping whose hair measures 5.63 metres.
November 10, 2012 marked the golden jubilee of Kuwait’s constitution and the country celebrated it with a spectacular $15-million fireworks display which earned the wealthy Gulf state a place in the Guinness Book of World Records. Tens of thousands of Kuwaitis and expatriates filled the seaside Arabian Gulf Road to watch the dazzling display of colors and light that saw a staggering 77,282 fireworks launched over a period of one hour. The visual presentation marked 50 years to the day since the late emir Sheikh Abdullah al-Salem al-Sabah announced that Kuwait had become the first Arab state in the Gulf to issue a constitution and have a parliament.
During the past 50 years, parliament was dissolved nine times, six of them since mid-2006, while some articles of the constitution itself were frozen twice to suspend parliament for a total of 11 years in the 1970s and 1980s.
The celebration came as the government and opposition are locked in one of the worst showdowns in the OPEC member's history, amid accusations by the opposition that the government has staged a coup against the constitution.
More than 150 people and 24 policemen were slightly hurt during three massive demonstrations held by the opposition to protest against the amendment of the electoral law ordered by the emir last month.
The opposition claims the amendment is in breach of the constitution and allows the government to influence the outcome of parliamentary polls slated for December 1.
Most Married Woman World Record set by Linda Wolfe
American grandmother Linda Wolfe has become "the most married woman in the world" after walking down the aisle 23 times, and is now "on the lookout for number 24".
Mrs Wolfe, 68, is included in the Guinness Book of World Records for the dubious honour of being wed more times than anyone else alive. More after the break...
She has said that she is "addicted to the romance" of getting married.
Born Linda Lou Taylor, the American first married in 1957 aged 16, to a 31-year-old called George Scott.
The union lasted for seven years, the longest and happiest of any of her marriages.
Since then things have tended to go downhill.
Over the subsequent decades she married a one-eyed convict, a preacher, barmen, plumbers and musicians.
Two turned out to be homosexual, two were homeless and one beat her. Another put a padlock on her fridge.
One marriage lasted just 36 hours because "the love wasn't there".
But Linda, from Indiana, once married the same man, Jack Gourley, three times.
She has had seven children by her different husbands and been a stepmother to many more.
Her last marriage, a decade ago, was a publicity stunt.
It was to Glynn Wolfe, who in taking Linda as his bride meant he was the world's most married man, at 29 times.
He died a year later aged 88.
Consequently she said that she was "on the lookout for number 24".
She told The Sun: "It's been years since I walked down the aisle. I miss it."
The serial bride, who now lives in a retirement home, said she had never cheated on a husband. She said if she had her life over again she would "never, ever" marry so many men.
Mrs Wolfe, 68, is included in the Guinness Book of World Records for the dubious honour of being wed more times than anyone else alive. More after the break...
She has said that she is "addicted to the romance" of getting married.
Born Linda Lou Taylor, the American first married in 1957 aged 16, to a 31-year-old called George Scott.
The union lasted for seven years, the longest and happiest of any of her marriages.
Since then things have tended to go downhill.
Over the subsequent decades she married a one-eyed convict, a preacher, barmen, plumbers and musicians.
Two turned out to be homosexual, two were homeless and one beat her. Another put a padlock on her fridge.
One marriage lasted just 36 hours because "the love wasn't there".
But Linda, from Indiana, once married the same man, Jack Gourley, three times.
She has had seven children by her different husbands and been a stepmother to many more.
Her last marriage, a decade ago, was a publicity stunt.
It was to Glynn Wolfe, who in taking Linda as his bride meant he was the world's most married man, at 29 times.
He died a year later aged 88.
Consequently she said that she was "on the lookout for number 24".
She told The Sun: "It's been years since I walked down the aisle. I miss it."
The serial bride, who now lives in a retirement home, said she had never cheated on a husband. She said if she had her life over again she would "never, ever" marry so many men.
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