Longing for the most amazing places on the planet? You can do no wrong with these lakes across the globe.

Five Flower Lake

Set in the striking karst landscape of the Jiuzhaigou Valley in Sichuan province, China, Five Flower Lake is extraordinarily clear, with visibility to a depth of 40 metres. Five Flower is one of a series of blue-, green-and sky-colored lakes blocked by rock falls, but it differs from the others as its waters change color, looking sometimes yellow, sometimes green, but usually diamond blue. In winter, Five Flower never freezes; in summer, it never dries up. Local wildlife living in the surrounding mountain forests include the rare giant panda and the golden snub-nose monkey.

Crater Lake

The deep-blue waters of Crater Lake in Oregon, US, fill the outlet of an ancient volcano that collapsed 7,700 years ago. Its strangest occupant is the “Old Man of the Lake”, a nine-metre-tall tree stump(树桩), which has stood upright in the water for more than a century. No rivers or streams enter the lake. Water loss in summer is compensated by winter snow and rain, the entire body of water being replaced every 250 years.

Lake Ohrid

Ancient Lake Ohrid has been around for about five million years and crosses the mountainous border between Macedonia and Albania. It has unique plants and wildlife, including the Ohrid “plashica”, a fish native to the lake, whose scales(鳞片) are used to make Ohrid pearls.

Lake Maggiore

Surrounded on three sides by the Lipontine Alps and touching the plain of Lombardy to the south, Lake Maggiore is Italy’s longest lake. Considered part of the country’s lake district, it is shared with Switzerland. Characterized by a Mediterranean-style climate, temperatures here are mild all year. This has given rise to some of northern Italy’s most wonderful gardens, which appear to float like flower-decked boats on the water.

THE REMARKABLE ROCKS area must-see on Kangaroo Island

accessible by air and ferry from the Australian mainland

Hop on new Kangaroo Island trail

for five-day adventure

It sounds like an amusement park.Or a portion of a zoo reserved for marsupials(有袋动物). But Kangaroo Island(KI), 30 minutes by air from Adelaide in South Australia, is just the opposite. Much of the island remained inaccessible to visitors until this year.Opened to the public in May, the Kangaroo Island Wilderness Trail, a nearly 38-mile, fie-day hike, ushers adventurous trekkers on a botanically distinctive immersion into the islands' south-west side.

Footers can expect to walk roughly four to seven hours a day, passing colorful flower, splendid sugar gum tees and massive native plant life. In this timeless setting, they'll likely sport kangaroos, goanna lizards and spiny echidna. From cliff rims， they'll overlook the Southern Ocean， where sharks lurk and schools of salmon cluster in flower like, protective formations.

The trial includes 4 camping areas,each outfitted with 24 tent platforms :12 for self-guided walkers and 12 for tour operators,who also can arrange options off the trail.

Independent trekkers pay about$124to do the walk; the cost includes the parking at the Flinders Chase visitor center ,and a trail guide and map.

KI is accessible both by air and by ferry ;www.tourkangarooisland. com.au

--Chicago Tribune/TNS

If there is one piece of advice I have for people today to experience more joy in life, it is to travel more. Making the journey out to somewhere you’ve never gone before with an open schedule, to let life show you what are waiting for you.

As Danny Kaye once said, to travel is to take a journey into yourself. As you travel you get close to more new people, cultures, and lifestyles than those in your homeland all the time. With all the newness in your life, you’re also opened to new thoughts, ways of seeing the world and living.

Saint Augustine said “The world is a book, and those who do not travel read only one page.” When you travel, you may realize how kind and friendly strangers can be. Beyond that, you have the whole world to learn about with every place you discovered, every person you met and every culture you experienced.

Tim Cahill claimed that a journey is best measured (测量) in friends, rather than miles. One of the first things you can learn from traveling is how easy it is to make friends. Something magical happens when they’re open to express themselves without feeling judged. That’s how you can become best friends with people when you’ve only known them for a few hours.

Helen Keller thought that life is either a brave adventure or nothing. Life is a wonderful gift. You can experience it and take action from now rather than say “I wish I had”, so you can say “I’m glad I did”.