nickfranssen's User Profile - Atlas Obscura
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nickfranssen's activity rankings
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Places visited in Yekaterinburg, Russia
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Places edited in Tajikistan
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Places visited in Afar Zone 2, Ethiopia
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Places visited in Iran
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Places edited in Kazan, Russia
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Places visited in Semey, Kazakhstan
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Places visited in Kazakhstan
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Places visited in Tajikistan
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Places visited in Ethiopia
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Dakar, Senegal

Gorée Island

This tiny, tranquil Senegalese island serves as a powerful symbol of the Atlantic slave trade.
Mbour, Senegal

Fadiouth Shell Island

An island made out of shells, including a cemetery.
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Red Terror Martyrs' Memorial Museum

A powerful tribute to the victims who suffered under Ethiopia's most devastating regime.
Afar Zone 2, Ethiopia

Gaet’ale Pond

The Earth's saltiest natural body of water belches toxic gas.
Arsi, Ethiopia

Tiya Stelae

Ethiopian standing stones featuring remarkably preserved carvings of swords and people.
Malindi, Kenya

Gedi Ruins

Abandoned city hidden from the world by tropical forest and isolation on the coast of Kenya.
Malindi, Kenya

Marafa Depression

Strange sandstone canyon known as the "place broken by itself."
Iten, Kenya

Iten: Home of Champions

The Kenyan town where the best distance runners in the world are trained.
Kenya

Mara River Crossing

Life and death are on parade at the most reliably perilous site of “the Great Migration.”
Kenya

Lake Turkana

The world’s largest permanent desert lake is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Dire Dawa, Ethiopia

Chemin de Fer Railway Museum

Rusting railcars and locomotive equipment fill this Ethiopian train graveyard.
Aksum, Ethiopia

Obelisk of Axum

Massive stele returned to Ethiopia after 70 years in Rome.
Lalibela, Ethiopia

Bete Giyorgis of Lalibela

An Ethiopian "Jerusalem" featuring a church hewn out of a single rock.
Afar Zone 2, Ethiopia

Dallol

The hottest place on the planet.
Afar Zone 2, Ethiopia

Erta Ale

Ethiopia's "smoking mountain" is in one of the hottest regions on the planet and is home to two lava lakes.
East Tigray, Ethiopia

Abuna Yemata Guh

Reaching the "Church in the Sky" requires scaling the cliff face of a sandstone pinnacle with a 650-foot drop.
Mezairaa, United Arab Emirates

Singing Sand Dunes of Liwa

Over the dunes of the Empty Quarter, the mysterious music of the desert.
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque

Whitewashed mosque contains the world's largest carpet.
Liwa, United Arab Emirates

Moreeb Dune

One of the largest sand dunes in the world is nicknamed the "Scary Mountain" due to its steep slope and sharp incline.
Al Madam, United Arab Emirates

Buried Village of Al Madam

An abandoned desert hamlet swallowed up by sand.
Dubai, United Arab Emirates

The Dubai Frame

The world's largest frame offers spectacular views of the city's past and present.
Maqabil, Oman

Beehive Tombs of Bat

Groups of prehistoric tombs that dot the mountains of northern Oman.
Qurayyat, Oman

Bimmah Sinkhole

A sinkhole and now a swimming hole, too, full of dazzling turquoise water.
Muscat, Oman

The Muttrah Souq

This bazaar is one of the oldest in the Arabian world.