14 beautiful tourist attractions - that humans have ruined

Our world is full of amazing attractions. Be it natural beauty, or constructions from ancient civilizations, does our planet fascinate us and make us rediscover it to appreciate, and take pictures? Well, not everyone. Human intervention can be a lethal and destructive weapon. We'll see some tourist attractions that we've ruined.

In August 2016, officers found only Duckbill's rubble. This raises the question: what caused this formation to collapse? Natural erosion? Age? Big storms? The answer is no. The cause of Duckbill Rock's "death" was a group of three idiot teenagers with absolutely nothing on their minds. The vandals claimed that Duckbill was a security risk as a friend of the teenagers had broken his leg there. Unfortunately, the vandals weren't caught. The big risk is actually the stupidity of this group after breaking in seconds, such a beautiful natural formation, shaped by the deposit of sediments by the wind, in thousands, if not millions of years.

Ténéré and its days of solitude ended in 1973, because of alcoholic beverages. A drunken Libyan driver was driving a truck in the endless desert of the Sahara when he crashed into the most isolated tree in the world. The trunk broke, and in place of the tree, there is only a metal structure. Currently, the remains of the tree are in the National Museum of Niger. Moral of the story: Alcohol was not made to drink and get you drunk. Use alcohol only to protect yourself from COVID-19.

This was once the fourth largest lake in the world with 68 000 km² of surface and 1100 km³ of water volume, but it has gradually shrunk since the 1960s after Soviet irrigation projects diverted the rivers that feed it. In 2007 it had already been reduced to only 10% of its original size, and in 2010 it was divided into three smaller portions, in an advanced process of desertification. The once-thriving fishing industry was virtually destroyed, causing unemployment and economic hardship. The region was also heavily polluted by fertilizers and pesticides, with serious public health problems as a result. The retreat of the sea will also have already caused a local climate change with increasingly hotter and drier summers and colder and longer winters. An initiative is underway in Kazakhstan to save and restore the northern Aral Sea. As part of this initiative, a dam was completed in 2005, and by 2008, the water level had risen twelve meters compared to the lowest level recorded in 2003. Salinity has dropped, and enough fish are found to make fishing viable. However, the outlook for the remnant southern sea remains bleak, having been called "one of the worst environmental disasters on the planet". Today, Aral is reduced to a huge desert, with a few rusty and dismal boats scattered everywhere, aimlessly, and without the wonderful lake to give them a north.

Now, let's get to the stupid, unpalatable part of the day. In October 2013, the delicately balanced hoodoo was intentionally knocked over by a Boy Scout while two other men watched, one of whom recorded the video that was later uploaded to the Internet. The men claimed that the hoodoo appeared ready to fall, and that it was intentionally knocked over to prevent park visitors from being hurt. The hoodoo formation had existed for many millions of years, having formed out of rock that dated back as far as 165 million years. The average rate of erosion of a hood is approximately 2–4 feet (0.6-1.3 m) every 100 years. The two leaders, Glenn Taylor and David Hall, were subsequently dismissed from their leadership roles by the Utah National Parks Council, which is a local council of the Boy Scouts in Utah. The national Boy Scouts then removed the men from the scouting organization altogether. In January 2014, two of the men—the one who toppled the hoodoo and the cameraman—were arraigned on felony charges of "criminal mischief" and "intentionally damaging, defacing and destroying property." The two men pleaded guilty to lesser charges of criminal mischief and attempted criminal mischief, and received a sentence of one year probation plus fines and case-related fees. I ask myself: "What did you smoke yesterday? Damage even a window, I'll damage the faces of you three."

In 1966, the submersion of the falls was decreed, where it would disappear with the formation of the lake of the Itaipu hydroelectric power plant. The government had decreed that the construction of the Itaipu Power Plant would flood the falls, an area in dispute between Brazil and Paraguay over a territorial demarcation. However, traces of them appear when the water level of Lake Itaipu is low, usually when several water intakes at the Itaipu plant are used simultaneously. In the months of November, December and January 2000/2001 and November and December 2012 and January 2013 a small part of one of the falls and a large part of the stones appeared in the river. During the construction of the Itaipu Dam (which, at the beginning of the surveys on the hydroelectric potential of the Paraná River, was referred to as the Guaíra Falls Power Plant), there was a huge visit to the former Sete Quedas National Park. Thousands of people, from all parts of Brazil and the world, went to Guaíra to witness the last days of the Guaíra Falls. Due to overcrowding, on January 17, 1982, the Presidente Roosevelt Bridge, which gave access to Fall 19, collapsed, resulting in the death of 32 people. 6 people survived, saved by fishermen from Guaíra.

On October 13, 1982, the closing of the floodgates of the Itaipu Diversion Channel began to bury, with the muddy waters of the artificial lake, one of the greatest spectacles on the face of the Earth: the Guaíra Falls. During the flood, the residents of Guaíra went to the riverbank to say goodbye to them. The flooding of Guaíra Falls lasted only 14 days, as it occurred at a time of flooding on the Paraná River, and all hydroelectric plants above Itaipu opened their floodgates, contributing to the rapid filling of the lake. Therefore, on October 27, 1982, 14 days after the beginning of the filling of Itaipu Dam, the lake was formed and the falls were submerged. In the days following the flooding, only the treetops were above river level. Later, the part of the rocky outcrop, near the Ayrton Senna Bridge, was dynamited to improve navigation safety conditions. Itaipu's numbers are impressive. Itaipu HPP is the second largest hydroelectric power plant in capacity, second only to the colossal Three Gorges Dam. In 2016, Itaipu produced more than 100 billion MWh of energy. It is responsible for 75% of the energy used by Paraguay, and 25% of the energy used by Brazil. Despite this, perhaps nothing can heal the wound of Guaíra Falls, and to remove it completely will be difficult, as Guaíra will be in our heart forever, including the heart of poet Carlos Drummond de Andrade, who wrote a poem dedicated to farewell to these wonders.

The statues were blown up and destroyed by dynamite in March 2001 by the Taliban, on orders from leader Mullah Mohammed Omar, after the Taliban government declared that they were idols. International and local opinion strongly condemned the destruction of the Buddhas. Some Taliban sources credited Omar's decision to blow up the Buddha Statue's to the growing influence of Osama bin Laden. Later, the Taliban placed anti-tank mines at the bottom of the niches, so that when fragments of rock broke off from artillery fire, the statues would receive additional destruction from particles that set off the mines. In the end, the Taliban lowered men down the cliff face and placed explosives into holes in the Buddhas. After one of the explosions failed to obliterate the face of one of the Buddhas, a rocket was launched that left a hole in the remains of the stone head. Replicas were built around the world, and attempts at reconstruction were carried out. I am neither Buddhist nor Islamic. I am a Protestant Christian. Despite this, we must respect other religious beliefs, even if we think that is wrong.

Uluru is certainly not a bathroom. Certainly? For some people, this is something that Uluru is. Humans seem to be talented at destroying entire species. The branchinea latzi was a rare fairy shrimp that was only found in Uluru puddles. In the 70s, they all disappeared. In 2009, a professor of wildlife science concluded that human waste was the cause of the disappearance of branchinea latzi, with people defecating in Uluru. Yeah, we don't seem to know how stupid human beings can be. To make matters worse, Uluru is considered a sacred place for the Australian Aborigines. Their culture, however, prevents them from stopping visits, as they understand that humans must distinguish right from wrong and take responsibility for their actions. Not everyone thinks that way, otherwise they would at least walk around wearing a plastic bag.

Torres del Paine is a magnet for tourists who are attracted by the natural beauty present in it. Some of the tourists flee the point and are weapons of destruction in this reserve. Several fires were registered in the park. In 2005, the park was hit by a fire that damaged 8% of the area. A tourist was using a gas stove in a pasture area, which was prohibited from camping. In 2011, another fire occurred. Another tourist was camping and he forgot the bonfire, and the fire spread. Fortunately, the rain slowed down and doused the flames, but still in 2011, another fire broke out when a tourist tried to burn toilet paper. These cases forced the temporary closure of Torres del Paine. It appears that when the park opened again in 2015, two tourists were banned from there for two years after trying to start an illegal bonfire. The administration could place fire extinguishers in Torres del Paine, and a permanent ban may already be justifiable at this point.

The discovery attracted thousands of people visiting the cave. They carried moisture, carbon dioxide, and heat. This deteriorated some rock paintings and led to the growth of a fungus on them. Given the signs of deterioration of the paintings, in 1963, the decision was taken to close the cave for tourist visits. Fortunately, 20 years later, in 1983, Lascaux II was opened, which is a replica of the original cave. Despite this, and all efforts, unfortunately, the remains of Lascaux II will never be like the "mother".

Due to human-caused climate change, 80% of the glacier disappeared in 20 years, and the rest went extinct in 2009, 6 years ahead of schedule. The area is currently just a peak, which is sometimes covered in ice. With the melting of the glacier, the place became a ghost town with an abandoned building. Tourism was not the only point affected, but water sources became scarce. Chacaltaya feeds the Milluni Lagoon, one of the main sources of drinking water in the region. It is also the source of the Choqueyapu River, which generates part of the electricity distributed in La Paz, and El Alto. Yeah, we're more self-lethal than we think.

From what we've learned today, this place must be mutilated by humans, not once, but several times. And here we have the MMCDLIX chapter of the series “Activism: The Weapon of Destruction”, starring the beloved GreenPeace. In 2014, the Peruvian government repudiated an act of the entity on the Nazca Lines. During UN negotiations on climate change in Lima, activists pasted letters next to the figure of Hummingburd. The sign read “Time for Change. The future is renewable. GreenPeace”. It wasn't just the activists who ruined Nazca, but the cars too. A road was built between the figures, and to make things worse, a truck driver INTENTIONALLY left that road, and damaged three geoglyphs. He was arrested.

Pavlopetri is heavily threatened by pollution and looting. When boats pass the site, they expel waste and harmful chemicals. When they drag anchors, the damage is more significant. The place is also vulnerable to theft and looting. The situation is so delicate that in 2016, UNESCO even included Pavlopetri in the list of international monuments in a last-minute effort. We hope that it works, but that these events will stop and the site will be protected. 

Get ready to hear the stupidest thing of the day. In 2013, Nohmul was almost completely destroyed. To build a road, bulldozers removed the stones and limestone from the pyramid, severely damaging it. The detail is that the road planning had a section that passed in Nohmul. It seems that building a little further away from there is impossible... how stupid. 

As soon as the film was released, Maya Bay saw a huge influx of tourists, attracted by the beaches, mountains, and crystal clear waters. It is estimated that the place received 5000 tourists, and 200 boats daily. This caused the ecosystem to deteriorate because of pollution, garbage, and other contaminants, which were damaging the corals. Thai authorities were hesitant to close the beach as it generated a large income, but in 2018 it was temporarily closed for 4 months. This hardly helped Maya to recover after so much activity, and in October of the same year, the beach was closed again, until the ecosystem returned to normal. Unfortunately this can take years or even decades, and volunteers are trying to contribute to rehabilitate the area further.

I would like to point out that the next 3-6 picks will be posted on Brasileirão Picking's next blog. I will already be releasing part 3, and the way the things stand, I will be updating the blog. Check every day if a new round will be launched, and follow all the rules.

Another thing, is that in next week, from Sunday 13, to Sunday 20, I'll be travelling to Bahia (once again). I hope this don't be controversial. My dad got vaccinated yesterday with Astra-Zeneca (some collateral effects), so, is a little bit better, as he is a little bit protected. This means, I'll be less active on JetPunk. I'll still be using, but not 10909022764874585303893785297548768^10²⁹ times per day. I'll still be JetPunking though.

Liked? Well, I think you hated after now these stories, but anyways, stay open to the news here on my blog! Thank you very much for that minute of attention, and until the next post!