The apocalypse is coming! Well, not really. According to Mayan experts, 21 December 2012 is forecast to only be the end of an era, after which a new age of human understanding will begin. So the world will go on, but the end of a calendar that’s been going for over 5 000 years can give you some perspective on time.
Here are my top 10 places to usher in a new age: from ancient churches to natural light displays, they’ve been around for hundreds of years and will probably remain long after we’re gone. And if it so happens that the planet is visited by angry gods on 21 December, at least you’ll have ticked these beautiful destinations off your bucket list.
1. Lalibela, Ethiopia
Lalibela is home to a marvel of ancient craftsmanship: rock-hewn churches. The best-known of these is St George’s Church, a cross-shaped building that was carved into red volcanic rock in the 12 century. This differs from other rock-hewn monuments in that instead of being carved vertically into a cliff-face, St George’s Church was built from the top down, so that the entrance to the church is 30 metres below the ground that surrounds it.
2. Pompeii, Italy
Maybe a visit to the site of another civilisation’s demise will calm your nerves. Maybe not. Either way, Pompeii is uniquely well-preserved because instead of being blown up or swept away, it was buried under burning pumice stones. You can still see graffiti on the walls, old loaves of bread in the bakeries, and grooves carved into the streets from ancient cart-wheels. There’s even a sign saying “Beware of the Dog” in Latin.
3. Cappadocia, Turkey
Cappadocia has been recognised as a natural wonder since it was part of the Old Persian Empire. It’s essentially a high plateau, pierced with sharp peaks and other wondrously weird stone formations. It’s dotted with the world’s best hiding places: underground cities, some of which date back to the 7th century BC. The largest of these is Derinkuyu, which can accommodate up to 20 000 people. It consists of five floors featuring stables, staircases, cellars and, most importantly, wine presses. About half of it is open to the public, so it seems like a perfect place to stow away until the madness is over.
4. Angkor Wat, Cambodia
This temple was built in the 12th century, and has such symbolic resonance for the Cambodian people that it appears on their flag. The temple was built from over a million blocks of sandstone, weighing at least 1.5 tonnes each, and how it was built within the reign of only one king is still a mystery. Sunset over the main temple is often swarming with tourists, but you can escape the crowds by exploring the smaller surrounding temples that are just as worthy of your attention. Ta Prohm, a temple that is half-crushed by hundred-year old trees, is a testament to the power of the natural world.
5. Salar de Uyuni, Bolivia
The beauty of Salar de Uyuni is its sparseness. It’s the biggest salt flat in the world, stretching for over 10 square kilometers. On clear days, it becomes a mirror that reflects the sky as far as the eye can see. It’s the perfect place to deal with the past and begin a clean slate in the new era. Also: llamas!
6. Aurora Borealis, Alaska
The Northern Lights are an eerie lightshow that occurs when electrically-charged particles from the sun collide with earth’s atmosphere. It’s capricious, and very difficult to predict, but you’ll almost definitely be in luck if that’s what you’re chasing on 21 December. Not only is that in the middle of its most active season, but the period of 2012-2013 aligns with the most sun activity for the last decade!
7. Petra, Jordan
Petra was built, colonized by the Romans, turned into a centre of industry, and destroyed by an earthquake all before AD 663. The erstwhile capital of trade was forgotten by the Western world for over 400 years, until the Swiss explorer Johann Ludwig Burckhardt managed to pass himself off as an Arab pilgrim and gain access to the fabled “rose-red city.” These days, Petra is much easier to access, and there’s so much to see: over 800 monuments carved from sandstone are scattered around the Petra basin. Afternoon sunshine highlighting the dusty pink, mauve and yellow pigments in the buildings, against a rugged desert background, is definitely one of the best images to have as your last.
8. Antelope Canyon, USA
This is the most-photographed slot canyon in the American Southwest, and for good reason. Flash-floods have been eroding the canyon for hundreds of years, leaving undulating patterns in the Navajo sandstone. Guides are essential, as there can be very little warning before sudden torrents of water consume the canyon, even without any rainfall in the area.
9. Preikestolen, Norway
Known as “Pulpit’s Rock” in English, this is a plateau which juts out of a mountain and towers over 600 metres above the Lysefjord. Not only is this one of the world’s most breathtaking sights, it’s also the site of another apocalypse prediction: there’s a large crack between the plateau and the cliff-face, and it’s said that when seven sisters marry seven brothers in the town below, the plateau will break off. The wave created by the splash into the fjord will wipe out the surrounding civilization. If Preikestolen is where you find yourself on 21 December and the apocalypse leaves you bitterly disappointed, you could recreate some adventure by BASE jumping.
10. Mexico and Central America
If you’re not the type to distract yourself from impending doom, you might as well get a front-row seat. Tourism to Mexico has almost doubled this year due to the Mayan prediction, and there are a number of tours and celebrations with that theme. We’ve already missed La Ruta Maya: The Doosmday Ride, a six-week cycling tour from Costa Rica through to Mexico, but there are plenty of other Mayan ruins to visit. How about El Tortuguero, the Mexican ruin where the original prophecy was found? If the apocalypse doesn’t arrive, at least there will be tequila and new friends to celebrate with.
