~ The Most Influential Places in History ~

[MysteRy]

Sequoia National Park



The ability of the sequoias to survive and grow for 3,000 years is a testament to nature's ability to conjure up ever more creative and elegant ways to embody resiliency in the face of lifelong adversity.

[MysteRy]

Silicon Valley



The name is synonymous with innovation. Hard against the southern end of San Francisco Bay, Silicon Valley is the birthplace of Apple, Google and eBay, among other tech giants.

[MysteRy]

The Grand Canyon



The beauty and scale of the Grand Canyon put all of our man-made creations and problems into perspective. When one stands on the edge of this true wonder of the world, it is impossible not to feel a great sense of awe as well as a sense of connection to the universe.

[MysteRy]

Sutter's Mill



The home of the American Gold Rush — amazing stories of hope and discovery.

[MysteRy]

Central Park



The streets of Manhattan surround Central Park in New York City

[MysteRy]

Wall Street



A ribbon of lower Manhattan, Wall Street is the financial capital of the U.S. and a worldwide symbol of wealth and power.

[MysteRy]

New York City



The city that, more than any other in modern times, has been the magnet for people from all around the world, wanting to build a new life, fulfill their ambitions and realize even unanticipated dreams.

[MysteRy]

Cape Canaveral



Space shuttle Atlantis blasts off from launch pad 39A at Kennedy Space Centern July 8, 2011 in Cape Canaveral, Florida.

[MysteRy]

Iguaçu National Park, Brazil



Home to some of the most beautiful waterfalls on the planet. UNESCO designated the park a World Heritage Site in 1986.

[MysteRy]

Vatican Museums, Vatican City



The museums house Raphael's The School of Athens, Leonardo da Vinci's St. Jerome in the Wilderness and the Belvedere Torso as well as Michelangelo's masterpiece, the Sistine Chapel. More than 4 million people visit each year.

[MysteRy]

Stonehenge, Britain



In 2008 archaeologists found cremated remains that suggest that the prehistoric monument Stonehenge, in County Wilshire, could have served as a burial ground as early as 3000 B.C.

[MysteRy]

Dublin



The Samuel Beckett Bridge in Dublin, Ireland

[MysteRy]

Mainz, Germany



Where Johannes Gutenberg invented the printing press, thus enabling social media, and thus the Reformation, the British and American revolutions, the Obama election and the Arab awakening.

[MysteRy]

Waterloo



At the Battle of Waterloo, fought on June 18, 1815, an Anglo-Prussian army defeated Napoleon, ending the Napoleonic wars. The Emperor was exiled to St. Helena, and after the Treaty of Paris was signed, a nearly 100-year period of relative peace — Britain's imperial century — ensued.

[MysteRy]

The Galápagos Rift



It was there, in 1977, that scientists diving in the submersible Alvin discovered the black smoker vents and the clams, crabs and giant tube worms with red plumes huddled around the formations. These discoveries revolutionized our understanding of the adaptability of life and opened our eyes to the possibility of biology beneath the icy rind of Jupiter's moon Europa. It's ironic and apt that this remarkable discovery was first made so close to another influential place, the Galápagos Islands, where Charles Darwin first described the finches that would play such a pivotal role in his formulation of the theory of evolution and ultimately how the human species came to exist in this wondrous universe.