Northern lights over the Pyhae Luosto National Park in northern Finnland. (Photo by Nicholas Roemmelt/Getty Images/Vetta)





Forum. Roman ruins in Rome, Italy. (Photo by S. Borisov/Getty Images/iStockphoto)





A dirt road winds through the colorful yet barren Salvador Dali desert in the Eduardo Avaroa Andean Fauna National Reserve of southwest Bolivia. (Photo by Eric Hanson/Getty Images)





Stilt fisherman balance skillfully on poles while trying to catch their daily hauls in the crystal-clear Sri Lankan waters. (Photo by Matt Munro/Lonely Planet)





A colony of gentoo penguins prepare to launch themselves into the Antarctic ocean from Cuverville Island, Antarctica. (Photo by David Merron/500px)





A cyclist and her friend stare in awe at the gloriously vivid pink blossoms, which line Japan’s sacred Philosopher’s Path in Kyoto. (Photo by Ark Tui/500px)





A young elephant swings his trunk and tail as he wanders alone down a forest trail in Malawi. (Photo by Jonathan Gregson/Lonely Planet)





Dozens of rainbow-hued hot air balloons drift gently over a ragged mountainous region in Turkey. (Photo by Fatma Barla/500px)





Monks clad in orange robes wander amid the crumbling temple ruins of Ta Prohm in Cambodia. (Photo by Mark Read/Lonely Planet)





Awe-inspiring vertical gardens illuminate the night sky at the Supertree Grove in Singapore. (Photo by BigBoom/Shutterstock)





Hundreds of dancers perform in Pyongyang, North Korea, in honour of their former leader Kim Jong II. (Photo by Eric Lafforgue/Lonely Planet)





The basalt columns and mood grey sea located at Belfast’s Giants Causeway looks like a set from Game of Thrones. (Photo by Greg Sinclair/500px)





The Maletsunyane Falls is a 192-metre high waterfall located in the Southern African country Lesotho. (Photo by Leksele/Shutterstock)





A dramatic purple sky towers above the high-rise offices and apartment buildings in downtown Seoul. (Photo by Sean Pavone Photo/Getty Images)





Pilgrims are seen nearing the cross shaped church of Bet Giyorgis in Ethiopia. (Photo by Philip Lee Harvey/Lonely Planet)





The calm lakes of the Rocky Mountains in Alberta, Canada, are famed for their strikingly clear blue waters. (Photo by Ron Caimano/500px)





The Leshan Giant Buddha, a 71-metre tall stone statue, is carved out of a cliff face in the southern part of Sichuan province in China. (Photo by Suchet Suwanmongkol/500px)





The ancient ruins in Machu Picchu, an Incan citadel in Peru, are illuminated by the morning sun. (Photo by Bérenger Zyla/500px)





Three Mongolian yurts on the Bayinbuluke grassland in China are pictured in the tranquil morning light. (Photo by Jaris Ho/Getty Images)