分类必应美图下的文章

山毛榉树林里的蓝铃花，英国赫特福德郡 (© Dan Tucker/Alamy)

the Pura Meduwe Karang神庙中雕刻艺术家W.O.J.Nieuwenkamp的作品，印度尼西亚巴厘岛 A carving of artist W.O.J. Nieuwenkamp in the Pura Meduwe Karang temple in Bali, Indonesia (© John Elk III/Getty Images)

Work out on your way to work

The third Friday in May is National Bike to Work Day, which encourages commuters to try biking as a healthy and safe alternative to driving. The carving we're looking at is in Bali, Indonesia. It depicts W.O.J. Nieuwenkamp, a Dutch landscape and portrait artist who rode his bike around Bali in the early 1900s, painting as he went—essentially biking to work each day. Nieuwenkamp was the first European artist to visit Bali and was influential in introducing Balinese art to Europe. The carving is part of the Pura Meduwe Karang, one of the largest temples in Bali. The temple served as an entrance to the island in the early 20th century and contains several symbols of international influence to reflect that.

Abu Simbel temples on the west shore of Lake Nasser, Egypt © George Steinmetz/Getty Images

3,000 years of history

These massive temples - known today as Abu Simbel - were built in the 13th century BCE by the pharaoh Ramesses II. He left a legacy of monuments and temples across Egypt, many of which, like Abu Simbel, featured Ramesses II himself as the star attraction. But over the centuries, these temples were almost completely buried in sand and forgotten. It was not until the early 1800s when an explorer saw the heads of the colossal statues poking through the sand that the temples were again ‘discovered.’ Then, in the 20th century, rising waters of the Nile threatened to flood the site. The temples were disassembled and relocated to a nearby hill. The process took almost five years and required that workers cut the temples into pieces and reassemble them exactly as they were built 3,000 years ago. We think Ramesses II would approve.

Midnight sun at North Cape, Norway © Ron Bennett/Shutterstock

Basking in the glow

Norway may not be top of mind for most sun seekers, but around the middle of May until late July, head to the Arctic Circle and you can experience a natural phenomenon known as the midnight sun. During these few months the sun is visible at midnight local time, like you see in today's image of Norway's North Cape. Of course, as nature strives to maintain a balance, during winter many of these same places experience polar night, when the sun never rises above the horizon.

戛纳，法国 Cannes, France, where the annual film festival begins today (© Manjik Photography/Alamy)

Cannes, France, in the spotlight

The Cannes Film Festival is known for the glamour and luxury of its host city, which sparkles day and night. Celebs come to hang out on yachts and be seen on the red carpet at the Palais des Festivals convention center. But it's not all about the glitz—Cannes is considered one of the three most prestigious European film festivals, along with the Venice Film Festival and Berlin International Film Festival. This year, the French Directors’ Guild will honor horror legend John Carpenter ('Halloween,' 'Christine’) with the Golden Coach Award (Carrosse d’Or) for his body of work. New films will compete for the festival's top prize, the Palme d'Or.

松木国家森林，佛罗里达州 Pine Log State Forest, Florida (© plainpicture/Cavan Images)

In praise of bogs, swamps, and marshes

Swamps and bogs probably aren’t the first that comes to mind when it comes to America’s celebrated landscapes. That’s a shame, since wetlands like these play a crucial role in the health of our ecosystems. In addition to providing unique habitat to the many species that call wetlands home, they filter water, provide a natural buffer from storms, absorb flood waters, and capture carbon from the atmosphere—helping to protect our planet from climate change.

Each year in the month of May, environmental groups and partners celebrate the humble bog as part of American Wetlands Month. You can find some of the country’s healthiest examples of wetlands in Florida, home to swamps, which are dominated by forests, and marshes, which are home to grasses, rushes, and weeds. Today’s homepage comes from Pine Log State Forest, located near the town of Ebro in the Florida Panhandle. Established in 1936, it’s Florida’s oldest state forest, and a fine place to explore.

Bringing together history and technology

On the second Saturday in May, the Dutch celebrate an iconic national structure—the windmill—like these historic ones at Zaanse Schans. With hundreds of windmills across the country, many sites use the day to demonstrate how windmills work and host art exhibits. But the concept of using wind power isn’t just a historical anecdote—this renewable energy is experiencing a boom, and by 2050 is predicted to provide one-third of the world's electricity.

Looking back on 150 years of rail travel

In 1986, work began to convert an old railyard in Scranton, Pennsylvania from a relic to a heritage preservation site now known as Steamtown. A donated collection of train engines, some dating back to the 1800s, gave Steamtown some exhibits to show off, while the fully functional railyard provides a live demonstration of how trains work—and how rail transit greatly changed the United States.

On this day 150 years ago, in 1869, the Golden Spike was hammered into the First Transcontinental Railroad. It created the first rail line to link the established railways of the eastern United States with the rapidly expanding railroads of the West, making transcontinental travel via train a reality. Need some context? The alternative at the time would be to traverse the nearly 2,000 mile stretch between Omaha, Nebraska and San Francisco by horse, wagon, or your own two feet. With rail travel now an option, America’s Westward Expansion was suddenly in high gear.

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