The largest island, also called Socotra, is about 95% of the landmass of the archipelago. It lies some 240 kilometres (150 mi) east of the Horn of Africa and 380 kilometres (240 mi) south of the Arabian Peninsula. The island is very isolated and through the process of speciation, a third of its plant life is found nowhere else on the planet. It has been described as the most alien-looking place on Earth. The island measures 132 kilometres (82 mi) in length and 49.7 kilometres (30.9 mi) in width.

The Stone Forest or Shilin is a notable set of limestone formations located in Shilin Yi Autonomous County, Yunnan Province, People's Republic of China, near Shilin approximately 120 km (75 mi) from the provincial capital Kunming. The tall rocks seem to emanate from the ground in the manner of stalagmites, with many looking like petrified trees thereby creating the illusion of a forest made of stone. Since 2007, two parts of the site, the Naigu Stone Forest (乃古石林) and Suogeyi Village (所各邑村), have been UNESCO World Heritage Sites as part of the South China Karst.

The Kingdom of Pagan (also commonly known as the Pagan Dynasty and the Pagan Empire) was the first kingdom to unify the regions that would later constitute modern-day Burma (Myanmar). Pagan's 250-year rule over the Irrawaddy valley and its periphery laid the foundation for the ascent of Burmese language and culture, the spread of Burman ethnicity in Upper Burma, and the growth of Theravada Buddhism in Burma and in mainland Southeast Asia.

A general view of the residential area is pictured during dusk at Jodhpur in Rajasthan, April 5, 2015. Jodhpur, also known as the blue city in the desert Indian state of Rajasthan, which residents say originally, was used to show where the highest caste of priestly Hindus live, who wanted to set them apart from the rest of the population. Later the rest of the population followed suit. Another reason for the city to be blue is to keep the buildings cool during the summers, local residents said. (Photo by Adnan Abidi/Reuters)

Singer Rihanna prepares for a photoshoot with photographer Annie Leibovitz in Havana, Cuba, May 28, 2015. (Photo by Reuters/Stringer)

A member of the Africa Roho Msalaba church throws a 2 month old baby into the air during the “Throwing babies into the air” ritual in Kibera Slum of Nairobi, Kenya on March 10, 2024. The babies of the members of the Africa Roho Msalaba church, who are not taken out of the house until they are 2 months old and are not allowed to be seen by strangers, are introduced to the community by being paraded through the streets with the 'throwing babies in the air' ritual. (Photo by Edwin Ndeke/Anadolu via Getty Images)

A model poses at Checkpoint Charlie, a historic place in the German capital to promote the fashion magazine “Sous” on June 12, 2012. (Photo by Maurizio Gambarini)