Who would have ever in their untamed thoughts, thought that such magnificently beautiful places would ever turn into abandoned zones! These are places which were once bustling with activities and now everything is suddenly still and hush.The fields, the old towns, the quiet streets, along with the dust, stories and memories of life long gone is what the abandoned places exhibit before us.These places though abandoned, they prove to be prominent tourist destinations. Also they have instigated many theories and stories among Historians and researchers. The one thing that is common in all these places is the waft or mystery that they possess. Standing still and perpetually, day and night these lonely structures have a lot to allege.
The top 10 abandoned places of Earth are considered below:
1. Pripyat, Ukraine
Pripyat is an abandoned city in northern Ukraine. It acquired its name from the Pripyat river. It was founded in 4 February 1970, as the ninth soviet union for the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant.It received the status of a city in 1979. It grew to have a population of 49,360. It had to be evacuated a few days after 26 April 1986 Chernobyl disaster.
Unlike cities of military importance, entry in Pripyat was not restricted before the disaster. The reason being nuclear power stations were seen by the Soviet Union as safer than other types of power plants. Pripyat was a well established and designed city. There was city hall (or city council), the largest shopping centres, major recreational and public catering facilities and the Polissya hotel were located. One notable landmark often featured in photographs of the city and visible from aerial-imaging websites such as Google Maps, is the long-abandoned Ferris wheel located in the Pripyat amusement park.
2. Pollphail, Scotland
This village was brought to life in the 1970s. The budget of this village was more than £3 million. Pollpail village was created to provide housing to around 500 oil platform workers. The pollpail project was postponed without anyone ever having accommodated there. This happened because concrete platforms fell foul of steel structures and the latter side of the industry nosedived. It has been abandoned for more than 35 years now. It is now proved to be an area for bats, sheep and vandals. It has smashed building and daubed walls with graffiti.In 2009, it was announced that the “ghost village” was to be demolished to allow development of a marina.
3. House of Bulgarian Communist Party
Located up on a mountain top, that looks like a flying saucer or some Headquarters of a villain in some Cartoon series, this structure looks outlandish. The house of Bulgarian communist Party was constructed in another epoch. After the fall of the Iron Curtain in 1989, Bulgaria moved into a new age of parliamentary democracy.The Buzludzha monument – or to give the building its official name, the ‘House-Monument of the Bulgarian Communist Party’ – was envisaged as a symbolic meeting place for the communist regime.
4. Kolmanskop, Namib Desert
Kolmanskop is an isolated town located in the Namib desert in Southern Namibia. The naming of this town has an esoteric story behind it. It is named on a transport driver Johnny Coleman. It is believed that he abandoned his ox wagon during a sand storm.
It was once a very small but wealthy mining village. Now it is a popular tourist destination and is run by the joint firm Namdeb. Once upon a time, after realizing that this area was rich in diamonds, lots of German miners settled in this area and soon after the German government declared a large area as a “Sperrgebiet”, starting to exploit the diamond field.
5. Varosha Famagusta, Cyprus
Varosha is an area in the Cypriot city of Famagusta. This area is located within Northern Cyprus. It was an attractive tourist area of Famagusta before the Turkish Invasion of Cyprus in 1974. The citizens deserted the place during the invasion and ever since it has been abandoned. The reason why Varosha is abandoned is due to the UN Security Council Resolution 550 (taken in 11 May 1984), which in short states that: “attempts to settle any part of Varosha by people other than its inhabitants is inadmissible”.
The TRNC is not allowed to emigrate in that area and the area is under TRNC. Due to these circumstances Varosha remains deserted.Famagusta was not only the number one tourist destination in Cyprus, but between 1970 and 1974 it was one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world, and was a favorite destination of wealthy, rich and famous stars such as Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton, Raquel Welch and Brigitte Bardot.
6. Wonderland Amusement Park, China
Wonderland is an amusement park in Chenzhuang Village, Nankou Town, Changping District, People’s Republic of China, about 20 miles outside Beijing. This Amusement Park was originally put forward by the Thailand based property developer Reignwood Group,and designed to be the largest amusement park in Asia. It was casted to be the largest amusement park in Asia and covers 120 acres.
The construction was interrupted in 1998 leading to financial problems with local officials. There was an attempt for reconstruction in 2008 which also failed.The amusement park exhibited a number of abandoned structures, including the frame work of a castle-like building and medieval-themed outer buildings, was being reclaimed by local farmers to grow their various crops while the site was abandoned.
7. Dome houses, Southwest Florida
The story of the Dome houses is a bizarre one. This house was built in 1981 and sold to John Tosto in 2005. It is believed to be a long term victim of decay. Since then it has been the subject for redevelopment conflict. This dispute could have stuck tosto which heavy monetary fines.
The domes that have slowly drifted apart and into the Gulf were once a fully functioning home equipped and had amenities such as the satellite television and even a hot tub.
8. Holland Island, Chesapeake Bay
Holland Island is an Island in the Chesapeake Bay in Dorchester County, Maryland, west of Salisbury. This Island is quaggy and it is swiftly eroding. This island was once believed to be five miles long. The major occupants of this island belonged to the fishing community and had a population of around 360 people. It had over 60 homes, a Church and other buildings. Due to the erosion the inhabitants had to flee. For many years this island has been diminishing in the bay and only one abandoned home remains. The inhabitants were forced to move to the mainland.
9. The Maunsell Sea forts, England
The maunsell forts are small defended forts. These forts are built in the Thames and Mersey creeks. They were put up during the Second World War. These forts were built to safeguard the United Kingdom. The names of these forts are called after their their designer Guy Maunsell. The forts were demilitarized in the 1950’s and since then they were used for other purposes.One became the Principality of Sealand; Occasionally there are boats and ships that visit the fort. There is a syndicate called as the the Project Redsands and they are outlining to preserve the fort.
These forts were larger coronation and they comprised of 7 mutually dependent steel platforms, 5 carried guns and accommodation and in addition is a searchlight tower.
10. Remains of the Pegasus in McMurdo Sound, Antarctica
A C-121 Lockheed Constellation named “Pegasus” crashed at a remote airstrip in Antarctica on On October 8, 1970. The crash took place when Pegasus attempted to land in almost zero visibility conditions. No one on board was heavily injured during this disaster, fortunately. The ice strip Pegasus Field was thereby named in this air crafts honor.
Till date the Constellation Pegasus can be seen concealed beneath a coat of snow. Hunters and travelers have been scrutinizing and observing the air craft.a United States Air Force C-17 Globemaster III successfully completed the first landing in Antarctica using night-vision goggles at Pegasus Field on September 11,2008.Previously air transport in the permanent darkness of the winter was only used in emergencies. They used empty burning barrels for this landing.
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