This year's UNESCO world heritage sites

I saw this article about the newly-designated UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, of course) World Heritage sites.

(Of course, the United States pulled out of UNESCO, due to our present Presidential predicament.)

From Babylon to Rajasthan, here are the newest UNESCO World Heritage sites


Places on the list that caught my eye:

VATNAJÖKULL NATIONAL PARK, ICELAND

JAIPUR CITY, RAJASTHAN, INDIA

JODRELL BANK OBSERVATORY, GREAT BRITAIN

FRENCH AUSTRAL LANDS AND SEAS, FRANCE

BUDJ BIM CULTURAL LANDSCAPE, AUSTRALIA (where an Australian aboriginal culture raised eels)

MEGALITHIC JAR SITES IN XIENGKHUANG, PLAIN OF JARS, LAOS

Here's what it says about the French Austral Lands and Seas:

"The French Austral Lands and Seas comprise the largest of the rare emerged land masses in the southern Indian Ocean: the Crozet Archipelago, the Kerguelen Islands, Saint-Paul and Amsterdam Islands as well as 60 small sub-Antarctic islands. This “oasis” in the middle of the Southern Ocean covers an area of more than 67 million ha and supports one of the highest concentrations of birds and marine mammals in the world. In particular, it has the largest population of King Penguins and Yellow-nosed albatrosses in the world. The remoteness of these islands from centres of human activity makes them extremely well-preserved showcases of biological evolution and a unique terrain for scientific research."

Here's a picture from NASA of Amsterdam Island.

Actually, St. Paul Island is more interesting.