• Tagged architecture, Bali, Balinese temples, directional temples, Hindu, Indonesia, nature, rock-cut architecture, sea temples, temples, waterfall

Beautiful Bali has been called the famed island of the Gods. With its varied landscape of sandy beaches, hills and mountains, rugged coastlines and cliffs, gorgeous waterfalls, as well as lush rice terraces and barren volcanic hillsides, some people claim that Bali is a paradise on earth. But Bali also has a colorful and deeply spiritual culture, which is why it is known as the “island of a thousand temples.” There are sea temples, directional temples and so many others so that 1,000 is an understatement. In fact, everywhere you go, you see a temple. “There are so many temples that the Government does not bother to count them.” There are also monkeys guarding the temples, monkeys in the rain forest, and even bats in a cave temple. Here’s a look at the sea temples, some wonderfully cute wildlife like monkeys, and some other stunning temples on the paradise on earth known as beautiful Bali. [51 Photos]

• Tagged animals, birds, Common Starlings, enivronment, Europe, European Starlings, flocking, flocking behavior, marsh, murmuration, nature, Otmoor, phenomena, phenomenon, science, starling murmuration, starlings, swarming, swarming behavior, swarms, wetlands

In the winter, over Europe, massive starling flocks, from thousands to millions of birds, swarm, swoop, shift, swirl and twirl, moving as one while performing amazing aerial acrobatics. Although a previous Love These Pics post was full of bird flocks and flying swarms that seemed to be attacking like Hitchcock’s The Birds, some were, in reality, a starling murmuration. This extraordinarily beautiful ballet at dusk is a pre-roosting phenomenon known as starling murmuration. Although this is science, the phenomenon is more math and physics than biology. The ‘Black Sun’ is hypnotic to watch as the starlings fill the evening sky, twisting and turning in a incredible and unpredictable waltz. [37 Photos, 13 Videos]

• Tagged holiday, How to Support Our Troops, military, people, Santa, support our troops, Thanksgiving, U.S. Air Force, U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Marines, U.S. Navy

Thanksgiving is a great time to list out the things for which we are grateful. One of the reasons the pilgrims came to America was to have freedom. As families gather together to give thanks on Thanksgiving or see each other on Christmas, some deployed soldiers are apart from their families to ensure our freedom and protect the security of America. Even if you never see the men and women in the military, they are heroes. It is hard to be away from loved ones and family over the holidays, so if you enjoy random acts of kindness, then wouldn’t it feel great to send a smile, a little bit of cheer over the holiday season? It is a perfect time to say thank you by letting soldiers and veterans know that we appreciate them. When it comes to giving, you may be surprised how often the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines and Coast Guard help out Santa Claus. Here’s a list of ways you can help support our troops and a look back at how some of our service men and women celebrated the holiday season in years past. [40 Photos]

• Tagged Angkor, archaeological, Cambodia, Indiana Jones, Laura Croft, rock-cut architecture, Ta Prohm, Temple of Doom, Tomb Raider, UNESCO World Heritage Site

Once upon a time, or around 1580, while cutting a path through the thick Cambodian jungle, Portuguese missionaries came upon huge towers carved into rocks that were in ruins and covered in roots and vines. Continuing on, they discovered an ancient lost city that was twice as large as Manhattan and that nature was trying to swallow. The missionaries had discovered abandoned Angkor Wat—the 500-acre site is one of the world’s largest religious monuments and the most elaborate of the Angkor’s temples. There are more than 1,000 Temples of Angkor which were built from the 9th to 13th centuries during a time when the Kingdom of Cambodia was one of the most powerful civilizations on the planet. There were rarely any inscriptions found in later centuries after 1431, when Angkor was seized by the Thai army. During its prime, as many as 750,000 – one million people lived in Angkor, making it one of the greatest vanishing acts of all time. Archaeologists now know that Angkor Wat and many of its surrounding structures were built to appease “devas” and “asuras” which are angelic demi-Gods of the Hindu religion. Thousands upon thousands of these demi-god beings are carved into every single rock temple at the site. Both Tomb Raider and Indiana Jones Temple of Doom were filmed here. Angkor Archaeological Park was declared a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1992. New research claims to have solved the mystery of how the huge stones of Angkor Wats were moved. “The massive sandstone bricks used to construct the 12th-century temple of Angkor Wat were brought to the site via a network of hundreds of canals. The findings shed light on how the site’s 5 million to 10 million bricks, some weighing up to 3,300 pounds, made it to the temple from quarries at the base of a nearby mountain.” The mystique of Angkor may cry out to the adventurer in us all, but the roots and trees are now being cut back as Angkor is being restored. So many people come here, about 2 – 3 million a year; all that walking and climbing on the (mostly) sandstone monuments caused additional damage to the archaeological sites at Angkor. These photos hearken to ancient Angkor as the Temples of Doom for a Tomb Raider to explore. [41 Photos, 4 Videos]

• Tagged bioluminescence, bioluminescent jellyfish, box jellyfish, jellyfish, jellyfish pictures, oceans, underwater, underwater monsters

500 – 700 million years ago, even before dinosaurs roamed the Earth, jellyfish were drifting along on ocean currents. Jellies are among the most spectacular and mysterious marine species in the world. They are the oldest multi-organ animal and have morphed into more than 2,000 different jellyfish species. Some live in freshwater, but jellies can be found in every ocean. Some sea jellies survive close to the surface while others dwell in extreme depths, glowing with bioluminescence in the pitch black water near the bottom of the ocean. Many scientists and deep ocean explorers expect to discover countless more beautiful jiggly jellyfish as they explore deep sea canyons, and other extreme water conditions near underwater volcano vents and in the harsh frozen temperatures of arctic waters. [72 Photos]

• Tagged full moon, Harvest Moon, moonrise, moonscape, phenomena, space

La luna makes folks seem like lunatics, and a bunch of people worldwide definitely cut loose and act crazy when there is a full moon. Harvest moon is real, but it is just as often a name referring to huge, orange moons. Red moons seem a bit like a bad premonition and blood red moons seem to be foretelling the end of the world. It’s a trick of light though. Full moons, supermoons and even lunar eclipses are all known for ‘the locals’ going temporarily looney. There are blue moons, Hunter moons and all kinds of beautiful full lunar moonscapes in these photos. Does looking at a magnificent moonrise in pictures, or only in real life, make you feel like barking or howling at the moon? [40 Photos]

• Tagged autumn, climbing, fall foliage, forests, Garden of the Gods, Garden of the Gods Wilderness, nature, Pounds Hollow, Rim Rock, rock climbing, Shawnee National Forest, Southern Illinois

Most folks have heard of the Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs, but did you know that there is also a Garden of the Gods in Illinois? Nestled within the Shawnee National Forest, this spectacular wilderness area is over 320 million years old and covers over 3,300 acres of amazing old growth forest and humongous rocks that call out to scramble over and climb here. The landscape is drastically different than most of southern Illinois because it is unglaciated. The fractured bedrock at Garden of the Gods, along with erosive forces like windblown sand, rain, freezing and thawing actions, have created beautiful hoodoos and fascinating rock formations. Cave In Rock is not too far away, so you can both climb and cave if you are so inclined, but today we’re exploring three “must see” areas with hills and hollows, magnificent bluffs and massive mossy boulders: Garden of the Gods, Rim Rock, Pounds Hollow. Other areas near Garden of the Gods and Pounds Hollow Recreation Area, include Rim Rock National Recreation Trail, River, River Trail, High Knob Picnic Area and the Illinois Iron Furnace, But all of Shawnee, the only National Forest in southern Illinois, is gorgeous. Take a backpack, wear shoes you can climb in that are comfortable, some water, your thirst for adventure, maybe a picnic, and, oh yes, your camera. [58 Photos]