River of Five colours – Columbia

Every year in the remote backwoods of Colombia, an ordinary river erupts into a spectacular rainbow-coloured waterway. The river looks colorful. Caño Cristales in Colombia’s Serranìa de la Macarena National Park is nicknamed the “River of Five Colors,” or “liquid rainbow,” or “melted rainbow” because of the many hues you can see beneath its clear waters. In certain light and water conditions, bright greens, yellows, reds, and purples may appear to flow down the river. Sometimes, the river can also appear a bright blue, hot pink, orange, or a deep maroon. The vibrant coloration can be attributed to a weed called Macarenia clavigera, a kind of tropical aquatic plant that is different from algae or moss. The right water level and weather conditions make all the difference as to which colors you can see in the water.

Cotton Castle in Turkey

Pamukkale city is also called Cotton Castle, a perfect name for the magnificent site in southwestern Turkey. The terraces and hot springs in this area were created by carbonate minerals over centuries, leftover by streaming, calcite-weighty waters developed from a nearly 700-foot cliff overlooking the plain. The landscape is unreal, almost mysterious in its purity and intense whiteness. Terraced basins, mineral forests, and a collection of petrified waterfalls blanket the terrain creates spawned look. The Hierapolis thermal spas, part of this natural phenomenon, were created when the 2nd century BC ended during the Attalids dynasty. The Byzantine and Roman spa city, Hierapolis is one of the most fascinating ruins in Turkey, well protected and preserved by its UNESCO status. The ruins of the Greek monuments, baths, and temples are located at the UNESCO World Heritage Site. Though visitors cannot walk directly on terraces, the small, cerulean pools are open for dips.

Upside down trees – Madagascar

One of the world’s most famous outdoor alleys, the Avenue of the Baobabs is Madagascar’s is most established natural wonder. The fairytale trees are found in the Menabe region, covering an old dirt road, and are one of the continent’s most impressive sights. Madagascar, one of Africa’s Island countries, is laden with rainforest and featuring deserts, beaches, and fantastic wildlife. Getting there is not easy. The place is known as the “Upside down trees” baobabs are also called bottle trees, boab trees, and boaboa trees, some of which are more than 800 years old. The circumference of the baobab can reach around 160 feet and the diameter of larger specimens near 40 feet, making them some of the biggest in Africa.

Caves of crystals – Chihuahua, Mexico

Located 980 feet below the Chihuahua Desert, the enormous Cave of Crystals is home to the largest formations discovered on Earth, these are formed over ages, and the biggest being 39 feet long and 55 tons in weight. I n 1910, in Naica, Chihuahua, Mexico, a group of miners discovered a cave underneath the Naica mine workings. It was named the Cave of Swords. In April 2000, while miners were excavating a new tunnel, drilling through the Naica fault line, they discovered another cave which was named Cave of Crystals or Giant Crystal Cave.

The Cave of Crystals is a horseshoe-shaped cavity in limestone. Its floor is covered with perfectly faceted crystalline blocks. Huge crystal beams project out from both the blocks and the floor. The caves are accessible today because the mining company’s pumping operations keep them clear of water. If the pumping were stopped, the caves would again be submerged in water. The crystals depreciate in air, so the Naica Project is attempting to visually document the crystals before they deteriorate.

Bermuda Tringale – USA 

This stretch of Atlantic Ocean is enchantingly beautiful. It is one of the few places in the modern world that remains wrapped in an aura of superstitious mystery. It is hidden in mythos and mystery, the infamous 500,000 square miles stretch of ocean is also called the Devil’s Triangle which is physically the area between Bermuda, Florida, and Puerto Rico. Over the centuries, many ships and planes have been reported to have mysteriously disappeared in the region. Also, this Devil’s Triangle has been blamed for the disappearance of thousands of people in the past decades. However, the US Coastguard argues any such area exists from where about unusual magnetic readings and ships, planes and people who have disappeared here without a trace.

Blood Falls – Antarctica

While Antarctica is known for its virgin white snow cover, there is a part that stands out for its blood-red colour. Known as the Blood Falls, this unique phenomenon was first discovered by an Australian geologist Griffith Taylor. The waterfall looks red (bleeding) because of a hypersaline discharge phenomenon. And it flows bold streaks of bright-red saltwater from within the glacier onto the ice-covered surface of Lake Bonney. The rare natural phenomenon is a result of a complex chemical reaction that has occurred over 1.5 million years. When the iron-bearing saltwater meets oxygen, the iron takes on a deep red colour. Blood Falls is an outflow of an iron oxide–tainted plume of saltwater, flowing from the tongue of Taylor Glacier onto the ice-covered surface of West Lake Bonney in the Taylor Valley of the McMurdo Dry Valleys in Victoria Land, East Antarctica.

Dhanushkodi – India

Once the lost land of Tamil Nadu, Dhanushkodi has once again emerged as one of the best places to visit in India. This beach destination is known for its matchless serenity that is away from hustle and bustle. Dhanushkodi is called the last land of India as Dhanushkodi is just 25 km away from Sri Lanka. Here the Indian Ocean and the Bay of Bengal meet.

As per mythology, Dhanushkodi was the spot where Lord Rama and his army-built Ram Setu, otherwise known as Adam’s Bridge across the sea connecting Rameshwaram Island (Tamil Nadu) and Mannar Island (Sri Lanka), to rescue his wife Sita from the clutches of the demon king Ravana.  According to legend, the bridge was built using floating stones, with name of Lord Rama engraved on it, which made it unsinkable. The bridge was built by vanar-sena (troop of monkeys).  The architects of Ram Setu were Nal and Neel. Nal and Neel were the monkey sons of Lord Vishwakarma. According to the epic Ramayana, both were cursed by the sages, this curse later proved to be a boon for them.

Rainbow Mountains, Zhengyi Danxia National Geopark, China

The mountainside of Zhangye National Geopark looks like the painting on wall.  Splashes of rainbow appear in thick straight lines. It has been declared UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2010, the rainbow mountains have maintained their vibrancy because of the viewing platforms and trails created by the tourism of China. The steepness and peculiar looks deter tourists from stepping directly onto them. They can be viewed from far by standing on another mountain. They look stunning.  They are the result of deposits of sandstone and other minerals that occurred over 24 million years. They are formed into cake shape angled by the action of the same tectonic plates responsible for creating parts of the Himalayan range of mountains.

Our heritage is all that has been passed to us by previous generations. Heritage refers to something inherited from the past. The word has several connotations. Natural heritage refers to, an inheritance of fauna and flora, geology, landscape and landforms, and other natural resources. Cultural heritage refers to the legacy of physical artifacts and intangible attributes of a group or society – man-made heritage. Food heritage refers to recipes and ingredients and procedures of cooking, industrial heritage refers to monuments from industrial culture. Virtual heritage refers to an ICT (information and communication technology) work dealing with cultural heritage. Inheritance of physical goods after the death of individual; of the physical or non-physical things inherited. Heredity refers to biological inheritance of physical characteristics. Birthright refers to something inherited due to the place, time, or circumstances of someone’s birth. And, Kinship refers to the relationship between entities that share a genealogical origin.

It is all around us. It is in the houses we live in, our educational institutions, our places of work, the transport we use, our places of worship, our parks, our gardens, beaches, the places we go to for our social life, in our language, literature, music, sports, in the ground beneath our feet, in the shape of our landscape and in the placing and arrangement of our fields, villages, towns and cities. Heritage is also found in our moveable possessions, from our national treasures in our museums, to our own family businesses, and in the intangible such as our history, traditions, legends and language. While all that we inherit is strictly our heritage, the term has become synonymous with the places, objects, knowledge and skills. I strongly feel that we must learn to value our inheritance for reasons beyond their mere utility and their functional use.

This is because each heritage is unique and exceptional; it is the responsibility of the current generation to preserve it. It’s so sad that due to us – the citizens of this nation and our government’s sloppy attitude we have lost a lot of historical, geographical, cultural heritage. This clearly shows we lack respect for our history. In order to build a great future every nation must connect with its past. Our past is loaded with brilliance, heroism, ethnicity, empires, inventions, also a lot of suffering and sorrows. The peaceful native people were massacred and virtually wiped out by invaders. Our history has experienced slavery in its most brutal and oppressive form. I have this strong belief that all generations born after independence have taken governance, rules and regulations, law & order for granted. They grew up in a very different world where a transition began towards Western culture.

We achieved independence but forgot the freedom fighters, we won so many wars but forgot the warriors, we believe in equality today but forgot those great rebellions who struggled for it,   and we are enjoying industrialization today but forgot the first generation of industrialists who had to bear the brunt of the Britishers; who were not given good treatment and equal chances. We have some of best musical inheritance, paintings, artifacts which we are hardly bothered about. We are so callus to not even make a mention of all those mammoth contributions made by thousands of people to create a powerhouse economy in our country due to which we can boast of many other laudable achievements today.

Our national accomplishments are the result of long journeys and numerous processes. It is these processes and journeys that we have no detailed records of and the very few persons who still remember may not be around much longer. There were long and sometimes painful steps that had to be taken to create the country we have today.

India is home to some great traditions. What are they? The first is spirituality of India. Nowhere else in the world will you find such profound and deep spirituality that can win over the hearts of people and make them blossom from within. The second is Ayurveda, it is such a unique tradition in which the medicines have no side effects, and only work to protect and enhance our mind and body. The third is Yoga; regardless of the country, people all over world are rapidly adopting and incorporating Yoga in their lives. The fourth tradition is music. India is home to so many different types and schools of music. I don’t think in any other part of world you will find such a rich diversity in music and dance.

The other mentionable heritage is of the language and dialect. You will find that after every 200-300 kilometers, the language or the dialect changes; the music and dance changes; the local culture and beliefs change. You will not find such diversity anywhere else in the world. Music, dance and drama (full of Navarasas) are inseparable from our culture. How can we forget our food? India has a fantastic basket of variety of recipes across the country. Next is our dressing and attire; you will see such a variety of clothes and dressing styles, and even the opulence of ornaments and accessories worn along with them. We decorate our idols in temples also with beautiful fabrics and ornaments. Due to such fascinating diversity in all aspects of life Indian tourism stands tall in the world. I have to mention proudly about our Sanskrit language. Do you know that Sanskrit fits the bill to become a computer language? Forbes in 1987 reported that Sanskrit is very suitable to use in computer as a programming language, because of its perfect syntax. Interestingly, Sanskrit has very little room for error as well. We have to take all efforts to nurture and conserve Sanskrit by compulsorily teaching it from primary standards in schools.

Our national anthem mentions about all regions, language, geographical inheritance, natural resources and culture of India and it advocates the people of India to preserve and cultivate its rich cultural heritage.

Albert Einstein said “We owe a lot to the Indians, who taught us how to count, without which no worthwhile scientific discovery could have been made.”

Max Mueller, German scholar has quoted “If I were asked under what sky the human mind has most fully developed some of its choicest gifts, has most deeply pondered on the greatest problems of life, and has found solutions, I should point to India”.

Anthropology, as a discipline of Humanities can do quite a lot in treasuring and nurturing our rich heritage. Universities can take some positive steps to stimulate Anthropology branch with adequate facilities and infrastructure; so that many youngsters opt for this branch of study. Besides collecting and preserving the narrative of our past, we should also be proud of it. We lack any real nationalism and pride. This is ruthlessly demonstrated in the way we treat our environment, how shabbily we have kept our heritage monuments, forts, architectural sites. We are very poor because we have not preserved our rich heritage.

Ignorance and shame regarding our own country is not only limited to the younger generations, the older generations are no less to hold closer the western culture with much fervor. Look at any Indian soap operas – they project unreasonable and unsound culture and customs.

I feel unless we wake up from our deep slumber to accept who we are, our authenticity, and begin to take pride in it, we may lose whatever little inheritance is left with us. We should take enormous efforts to maintain our uniqueness of heritage. We cannot displace our past, and if do so, we will become a bland and soulless country.