Clear turquoise waters, pristine sand and the world's largest pools: The idyllic MAN MADE beaches that rival Mother Nature

With white sandy beaches and clear blue waters - these beaches look too good to be real.

In fact, they are man made, created by a company which transforms a destination into an idyllic paradise.

With projects around the world, Crystal Lagoons says its unique concept can provide an unlimited size lagoon, surrounded by picturesque sandy white beaches, anywhere in the world.

Their first project, the San Alfonso del Mar tourist complex in Chile, obtained the Guinness World Record for the largest swimming pool in the world, at a size of eight hectares. 

Crystal Lagoons expects a second Guinness World Record with the 12.5 hectares mega lagoon of the Citystars Sharm El Sheikh tourist complex in the middle of the Egyptian desert. 

Following that should be a third Guinness Record with the Mohammed Bin Rashid City project in Dubai, expected to be completed by 2020, that includes the world's largest crystalline lagoon with 40 hectares.

Idyllic destination: This man-made lagoon and beach is the company's La Jolla de Asia project in Peru

Paradise found: San Alfonso del Mar project in Chile - which was awarded the Guinness World Record for the largest swimming pool in the world

Man-made wonder: The lagoon in Las Brisas, Chile, boasts clear waters and beautiful white sand

Mohammed Bin Rashid City project in Dubai, expected to be completed by 2020, includes the world's largest crystalline lagoon with 40 hectares

Record breaker: The San Alfonso del Mar in Chile boasts the largest swimming pool in the world at a size of eight hectares

Crystal Lagoons says its unique concept can provide an unlimited size lagoon, surrounded by picturesque sandy white beaches, anywhere in the world

Crystal Lagoons expects to get a second Guinness World Record with the 12.5 hectares mega lagoon of the Citystars Sharm El Sheikh tourist complex

Breathtaking design: The Diamante Cabo San Lucas project in Mexico boasts crystal-clear waters and white sand

A swim with a view: The world's largest swimming pool in San Alfonso del Mar, Chile - made by Crystal Lagoons

Beach paradise: The Diamante Cabo San Lucas project in Mexico, surrounded by guest accommodation

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Concept the world’s fastest elevator

The Japanese company Hitachi in 2016 is going to build the world’s fastest elevator. His speed is 72.4 km / h, that is just per minute he is able to overcome the 1,200 meters. Elevator, developed by Hitachi, will be used in modern high-rise buildings, and its first model will be installed in one of the skyscrapers in China. How it became known, this building has 111 floors, not counting technical. 95 floor elevator will lift visitors in just 43 seconds.
So significant velocity elevator owes its ultramodern lift. In developing its, Hitachi has adopted all the latest technology. To date,faster the elevator does not exist in the world – “Japanese” broke the record of lift from Taiwan, which overcomes 1000 meters per minute.

New lift Hitachi boasts not only high-speed lift, but also special cables, which are 30 % lighter than conventional. They are made of a special material, which makes them very reliable. Passengers of lift will not feel discomfort when climbing or descending at high speed – a cabin equipped with a large number of sensors monitoring vibration and air pressure. Representatives of Hitachi said, that the company has technology, that will avoid stuffiness in the ears of visitors, going up and down, as well as reduce the effects of shaking and rocking. Provided here and a number of technical solutions in the event of an emergency: in particular, the elevator car is equipped with ultra-modern brakes, able not only to quickly and effectively reduce the speed of the car, but also to resist the rise in temperature due to friction.

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Solvay Hut – The World’s Most Precariously Placed Mountain Hut

The Solvay Hut may be quite humble in its construction, but the view it offers its residents is priceless. This tiny hut is perched right on the narrow north-eastern ridge of Matterhorn, in the Canton of Valais, Switzerland. It is the highest mountain hut in the region, at over 13,000 foot above ground level.
The emergency refuge is owned by the Swiss Alpine club, and is intended to provide food and shelter to mountaineers, hikers and climbers. At about 1,500 foot below the summit and two-thirds up the mountain, it provides respite to many Matterhorn climbers and rewards them with the breathtaking view of all the Monte Rosa summits. It is only meant to be used during emergencies, but climbers do stop there to rest and click photographs.
The hut, which can accommodate about 10 people, is not a recent construction. It was actually built way back in 1915 and took only five days to complete. All the building materials were brought up to Hornli Hut, just 2,500 foot below, with the help of animals. A small temp cable car was used to haul up the materials from there. It was rebuilt in 1966 and an emergency telephone was installed in 1976.

Solvay Hut is named after Ernest Solvay, a mountaineer, inventor and businessman from Belgium. The hut was actually donated by him, as a symbol of gratitude for the countless hours he spent on the mountains. He recognized the need for a place like this after sudden thunderstorms led to tragic deaths.

I suppose the chance to visit places like the Solvay Hut is a once-in-a-lifetime kind of thing. Of course, mountain climbers might get to hang out there all the time, but the rest of us can make-do with these beautiful photographs.

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Live Crabs, Gold Bars & iPods: 18 Weird Vending Machines

Forget crackers and candy bars – you could be buying live lobsters, bike parts, whole heads of lettuce and even freshly baked baguettes with the push of a button from vending machines across the world. In fact, if you’re willing to blow into a breathalyzer and show your ID to a camera, you can even get a bottle of wine. These 18 vending machines take instant gratification to surprising extremes.

Anger Release: Break a Plate

Few things are more satisfying when you’re feeling livid than smashing a fragile object to smithereens. This vending machine caters to anyone who needs to release some anger, offering your choice of statues, vases, plates and glasses in highly breakable materials – though you won’t get to break it yourself. The satisfaction comes from watching the item fall into the bottom of the machine.

Live Crabs & Lobster

Vending machines aren’t exactly the most humane places for live animals to live, but that doesn’t stop people from offering both lobsters and crabs that you can either take home and kill yourself or have cooked at a restaurant. ‘Lobster Zone’ is actually an arcade game where you have to manipulate a mechanical claw to pluck a live lobster from the bottom of the tank. The slogan is ‘You catch ‘em, we cook ‘em!’ In China, vending machines offer Shanghai Hairy Crabs in a range of sizes for $1.50 to $7.50

Bikes & Bike Parts

The Bike Dispenser will spit out a dorky looking bicycle in exchange for your cash. While it’s just a concept, the idea is that you can either bring the bike back to the original vending machine location when you’re done, or ride it one-way to another machine. The bikes are fitted with RFID chips to keep track of them.  In New York, cyclists can find another bike-related vending machine that’s actually pretty handy: Bikestock offers bike parts, tools and locks as well as food and a quick tire fill-up.

Blue Jeans & Socks

Let’s say you’ve landed at the airport in a strange city after a red-eye flight only to find that the airline lost your luggage. You might be happy to see vending machines filled with blue jeans and socks. The brand ‘Closed Jeans’ has installed vending machines in train stations across Europe. Sock vending machines offer everything from colorful, stylish options to the most basic white athletic socks. The latter can sometimes be found in bowling alleys.

Hot Pizza, Mashed Potatoes & Chicken

If you’ve ever stared at the sad, cold offerings in a vending machine, wishing you could have some hot pizza instead, you might be in luck (if you can actually find one of these.) Pizza vending machines have been common in Asia for a while, and are now popping up in the U.S. thanks to Wonder Pizza USA, which offers steaming nine-inch whole pizzas in two minutes. If you prefer to mainline your refined carbs, hoover up some instant mashed potatoes and gravy at your local 7-Eleven courtesy of Maggi’s gross mashed potato machines. Other hot foods that can be procured disturbingly quickly with the push of a button include french fries, hot dogs, fried chicken and even squid.

Eggs & Fresh Lettuce

Lettuce doesn’t seem like an ideal item for a vending machine, considering its tendency to wilt pretty quickly. But this particular machine takes care of that problem by actually growing the lettuce on sponges under fluorescent lighting. Chef’s Farm, found in Japan, can produce 60 heads of lettuce per day. In rural Japan, where convenience stores are hard to come by, it’s not uncommon to find vending machines offering cartons of eggs.

Fresh Bread in Paris

Need a freshly-baked baguette at three in the morning? If you’re in Paris, you’re in luck (for a number of reasons). A baker decided to take advantage of the August holiday season, when most bakeries close up shop, by offering a 24-hour baguette vending machine filled with partially cooked loaves that are finished off just when you need them. The baker, who lives above his shop, came up with the idea after being repeatedly disturbed by potential customers knocking on his door after hours.

Gold Bars

 

Isn’t it annoying when you need some gold bars fast, but all the banks are closed? Gold to Go has got you covered with blast-proof, camera-guarded vending machines that will dispense small wafers of gold in exchange for your cash. The prices are updated automatically every two minutes to keep up with constantly fluctuating gold prices. The machines can be found in airports and shopping malls in Abu Dhabi, Austria, Switzerland, Germany, Great Britain and a few U.S. locations.

Beer & Wine with a Side of CCTV

Show your ID to a real live person watching you via CCTV from a call center, blow into a breathalyzer to prove you’re not already drunk, and you can get a bottle of wine from a vending machine in Pennsylvania. The kiosks, introduced in response to the state’s archaic liquor laws, can be found in grocery stores. In Japan, some vending machines will pour you a pint of draught beer, while others offer a range of cans. For a promotion, Amstel offered free beer to any customer who could stand completely still in front of a vending machine for three minutes.

iPods & Other Gadgets

Best Buy’s airport kiosks are an increasingly common sight, offering last-minute, travel-oriented gadgets like digital cameras, phone batteries, headphones and pre-paid international cell phones. Better hope you press the right button, because if you need to return something, you’ll have to call an 800 number and wait for a prepaid label to come in the mail. Vending machines offering virtually every iteration of the iPod have also been spotted, and it’s almost guaranteed that they aren’t endorsed by Apple. 

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Video Provides a Terrifying Look at Verruckt, the World's Tallest and Fastest Waterslide

Verruckt means insane in German, and that's exactly what this crazy water slide is, at 17 stories high. It's taller than Niagara Falls and the Statue of Liberty from toes to torch, as well as twice the height of the tallest wave ever surfed. Before even reaching the ride, you'll need to climb a towering 264 stairs, and then, a specially designed raft will take you and three other riders plummeting down in speeds excess of 65mph. This attraction is set to open in May 2014 at Schlitterbahn in Kansas City.

According to Layne Pitcher, Schlitterbahn's director of marketing and sales: "Verruckt is designed to attract adrenaline junkies who are always looking for that next biggest, coolest thrill. The company decided to go with four-person rafts because they want to encourage people to share the experience. It's more fun if someone is screaming in your ear."

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The World's Tallest Waterslide

This is the world's tallest waterslide being built at the Schlitterbahn park in Kansas City. When opened next summer, the Meg-a-Blaster will drop thrill-seeking bathing suit wetters 140-feet, reaching speeds over 62MPH. You know, I've been on these kinds of slides before. They wedge your bathing suit so far up your ass you can taste the fabric.

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World's first floating apartment build to commence in 2014

Designed for developer ONW/BNG GO, The Citadel is a flotilla of apartments in one modern luxury development. The project, which will begin building work early next year, will consist of 60 units in a high density arrangement (30 units per acre of water). Part of the project means halting some flood defenses and letting the water back in. Olthuis points out that Holland has as many as 3,500 polders (patches of low-lying land that are protected by artificial dikes) which are below sea level and kept dry by pumping water out 24/7. This new development, dubbed New Water, will essentially be re-flooded after centuries of being kept artificially dry.

Waterstudio's design for the Citadel

Visualization of an apartment interior

The project, which will begin building work early next year, will consist of 60 units in a high density arrangement

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Scientists discover the world's oldest globe of the New World - carved on OSTRICH eggs (and it could have been crafted in Leonardo da Vinci's workshop)

An intricate etching on ostrich eggs joined together to make a sphere is the oldest globe of the New World ever to be discovered.
Latin inscriptions and delicate outlines of countries informed by knowledge of explorers such as Christopher Columbus, made in the early 1500s cover the sphere, but the origin of the globe is a mystery.
A cartographer believes the globe could have been made in Florence, Italy and claims that the skilful engraver could even have crafted the object in the workshop of Leonardo da Vinci.

An intricate etching on ostrich eggs joined together could be the oldest globe of the New World to ever be discovered. The delicate outlines of countries are informed by knowledge of explorers such as Christopher Columbus, made in the early 1500s. It's origin is a mystery

Just seven names mark the Western Hemisphere (pictured) and none denote North America, which is shown as a group of islands. However, three names are marked in South America: Mundus novus, - New World - Terra de Brazil and Terra Sanctae Crucis, which translates as 'land of the holy cross'

The globe contains different types of ships, monsters, waves, a marooned sailor struck by a shipwreck, 71 place names and one sentence that reads 'hic svnt dracones' or 'here be dragons'. Cartographers have said that for many countries, including Japan and Brazil, the globe is the oldest that marks their country

The globe (pictured) is about the size of a grapefruit and is constructed from the lower halves of two ostrich eggs to make it almost spherical. A cartographer believes the globe could have been made in Florence, Italy and claims it could have come from the workshop of Leonardo da Vinci. It is pictured with plain ostrich eggs

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10 Awesome Bottle Openers From Around the World

A bottle opener is not much more than a simple lever, but it’s incredibly efficient, and left in the hands of designers it can take some unexpectedly beautiful forms. In an ode to the tool, Okolo, a Czech-based creative collective, curated 25 bottle openers from around the world and put them on display for their new exhibition, Open & Drink!

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