Asia

Most people are content to view Nature's more extreme spectacles, such as burning fields of lava or pinnacles of frozen rock, from a distance. Others feel compelled to savour them first-hand, to take up the challenges they present. What draws these ...

Since our earliest days on Earth, we have expressed our relationship with the landscape in art, music, literature - even dance. And in the 20th century, a new medium arose: the moving picture. Since the turn of the 20th century, filmmakers ...

Today Surin Province shares its southern border with Cambodia but once it was part of the Khmer empire. Its ethnic population is largely Suay, who for thousands of years have been recognised for their tradition of capturing and training the elephants ...

Lopburi, the ancient capital of the province that bears its name, is located about 150 km (94 mi) northeast of Bangkok. Known as Lavo in the 6th century, it was part of the Dvaravati Kingdom but was conquered by the Khmers ...

Some melancholy mournings; some enraged rumblings started to increase from an exotic, yet stunning Indonesian isle called Krakatoa in April 1882. A few months later the morning got more boisterous. Passing vessels and ships heard explosions so deafening they could barely ...

Some 40 km (25 mi) from Krabi, off Thailand's southwestern coast, Ko Phi Phi is a group of limestone islands that just sharply from the surrounding turquoise sea. Phi Phi Don is both the largest and the only one with a ...

It looks like a train, but the Enoshima Electric Railway has the soul of the much-appreciated local tram it used to be. It runs from Fujisawa, 51 km (32 mi) southwest of Tokyo, to the popular seaside resort of Enoshima and ...

The highest volcanic summit in Asia and the Middle East is Mount Damavand, which is also the highest peak in Iran. It is the first Iranian natural landmark to be listed on Iran's National Heritage List having a height of 5,610 ...

In the far north of Japan; off the northwest coast of the island of Hokkaido, lie two smaller islands famed for their natural beauty, abundant wildflower and hiking trails. The islands of Rebun and Rishiri form part of a national park, ...

Shinkansen, the High-speed Bullet train is the pride of Japan and the heart of its entire railroad system. It has many variants and its own ranking. Though it traverses across the country, all of Japan's major metropolia; its smartest, most contemporary, ...

Until its independence in 1991, Azerbaijan was ruled by great powers including Persia, Mongolia and Russia. Now, this beautiful, hospitable little country is a Muslim state with a relaxed attitude to women's dress, alcohol and other faiths, and it's become an ...

By anybody's reckoning, Bhutan is a most extraordinary country. Tucked away in the folds of the eastern Himalayas, and surrounded by China and India, This remote, mountain kingdom is the last place in the Himalayas where Mahayana Buddhist culture survives intact, ...