We Deserve a Better Planet to live On
Photoalbum made by Bulgarian and Portuguese students
Bulgaria Bulgaria
Portugal
Project meeting in Bulgaria 08.03. – 18.03.2013
Vitosha mountain – 03.2013
Vitosha mountain Location: West Bulgaria, district of Sofia Vitosha mountain, located only few kilometers from the center of Sofia is a natural decor of the city. At tre area of the mountain is the Nature Park Vitosha - the 1st Nature Park in Bulgaria and some nature reserves. The mountains is very polular destination for ski or walking tourism. Very typical for Vitosha are the stone rivers, which are large aggregations of big stones.
Vitosha mountain - the stone rivers
Vitosha mountain
The Rhodopes - a mountain range
Location: South Bulgaria The Rhodopes mountain is one of the most impressive and beautiful mountains in Bulgaria. It is amazing with very beautiful, picturesque nature and great diversity of interesting places to visit. The best conifer woods in Bulgaria can be found here, as well as 15 natural reserves, some of which protected under UNESCO.
The Rhodopes
The Rhodopes
Belogradchik Rocks Location: North-West Bulgaria Area 200ha, declared nature landmark in 11. 02.1949. Every distinct rock is named after an object it is believed to resemble and the formations vary from red through yellow to grey in colour.
Belogradchik Rocks
Pirin National park • Location: Pirin mountain • There is no other mountain in Bulgaria, which influences in such a powerful and bold way the human eye. The marble giant peaks, the emerald eyes of the lakes, the stars of the edelweiss, the whisper of the white firs and the song of the rivers make the memory of the Prinin Mountain unforgettable. Thanks to its unique nature National park Pirin is acknowledged as part of the world heritage and in 1983 was included in the lists of the Convention on protection of the world cultural and nature heritage. The park was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1983.
Pirin National park
Magura cave Location: Northeastern Bulgaria. The Magura Cave offers one of the richest collections of geological formations, of all shapes and sizes – stalactites, stalagmites, columns, Geodesic formations, cave pearls, and flows of “cave milk”. According to geological studies, The Magura Cave began to take shape about 15 million years ago. The paintings date from different eras – the early Paleolithic, the Neolithic, the later Neolithic, and the beginning of the Bronze Age. A solar calendar from the late Neolithic found there is the earliest solar calendar discovered in Europe.
Magura cave
Krushunski waterfalls Location: North-West Bulgaria /Danube Valley/ The waterfalls are the biggest water cascade in Bulgaria. The cascade has many shoots and pools. The district is rich of animal and plant species. The main waterfall is falling down from 20 meters height. During the falling the waterfall is divided to several little waterfalls. In the stream of the Maarata river can be seen lots of karst shapes: whirlpools, precipices, cave galleries and halls.
Krushunski waterfalls
Seven Rila Lakes Location: North-west area of Rila mountain The Seven Rila Lakes are one of the most notable natural attractions on the Balkan Peninsula. Its popularity is due to the natural beauty of this group of glacier lakes, highest of which is located at about 2500 m. above sea level. Each lake carries a name associated with its most characteristic feature. The first lake - The Teardrop is the highest of the Rila Lakes. The lowest one is called The Lower Lake and is at 2100 m. elevation. Between them are The Twins, The Eye, The Kidney, The Fish Lake and The Trefoil. The Eye is the deepest in the group, reaching a depth of 37,5 meters. Many of its species are native to the area and are listed in the Red Data Book of Flora and Fauna which denotes them as endangered or rare.
Seven Rila Lakes
Kamchia - Reserve Location: Black sea districs - north part The dense forests along the lower valley of Kamchia river are especially valuable for the reserve. Kamchia was declared a reserve in 1951. Because of its important environmental protection and ecological importance, in 1977 it was included in the global network of biosphere reserves as a part of the program “Human and Biosphere� of UNESCO for protection of the most representative ecological systems on the planet.
Kamchia - Reserve
Kamchia - Reserve
Natural pyramids of Melnik Location: South-West Bulgaria The pyramids of Melnik are rocky formations (typical earth pyramids) in the south-westen peripheral slopes of the Pirin mountain. These magnificent natural sculptures are outlined in various forms and shapes, looking like haystacks, Egyptian pyramids, Gothic temples, minarets, ancient towers and loop-holes, giant obelisks, rising jumpers with incredible resemblance to colossal stone mushrooms. The rock pyramids are situated at area of area of 50km. They are one of the most popular place of interest for the tourist and it's realy amazing nature landmark in Pirin mountain. The Melnik Pyramids were declared a natural landmark in 1960.
Natural pyramids of Melnik
Rila Monastery Rila Monastery is the largest and most famous Eastern Orthodox monastery in Bulgaria. It is situated in the southwestern Rila Mountains It was founded in the 10th century by St John of Rila, a hermit canonized by the Orthodox Church. His ascetic dwelling and tomb became a holy site and were transformed into a monastic complex which played an important role in the spiritual and social life of medieval Bulgaria. Destroyed by fire at the beginning of the 19th century, the complex was rebuilt between 1834 and 1862. A characteristic example of the Bulgarian Renaissance (18th–19th centuries), the monument symbolizes the awareness of a Slavic cultural identity following centuries of occupation. The monastery was declared a national historical monument in 1976, while in 1983 it was inscribed in UNESCO’s list of world heritage.
Rila Monastery
Bachkovo Monastery – the second largest Bulgarian monastery • Bachkovski Monastery is situated in the village Bachkovo, about 7 km south of Asengovrad in Chaya river valley (the valley of the Chepelare River) and 25 km south of Plovdiv in the foothills of the majestic Rhodope Mountain.
Bachkovo Monastery - 03.2013
Project meeting in Portugal 07.03. – 17.03.2014
SITIO DA HORTAS In Alcochete, is one of the places in Tagus River Estuary that is more accessible since it’s only for observation of species.
Tagus River Estuary Protected Area The Tagus estuary is the largest wetland in the country and one of the most important in Europe. It is a sanctuary for fish, mollusks, crustaceans, and especially for birds because is where they stop when they are in migration between northern Europe and Africa. It is the largest estuary in Western Europe with about 34 thousand of hectares and the habitat to 50,000 waterfowl (flamingos, ducks, waders, etc.).
Species we can find in The Tagus River Estuary
Peneda-Gerês National Park Location: Peneda-Gerês National Park is situated in the north-west of Portugal at the border of Spain. Peneda-Gerês National Park is the refuge of some of Europe’s last surviving great predators. A transition zone between the Mediterranean and the Euro-Siberian regions with a hotch potch of microclimates and new plants on every new trail. Wild boars, otters, roe deers and foxes exist side by side with badgers, eagles and the last surviving wolves on the continent.
Serra da Malcata Nature Reserve The Nature Reserve is located between the towns of Penamacor and Sabugal. The main reason why the Serra da Malcata Nature Reserve was created was preservation of the Iberian lynx and its habitat. This endangered feline is an endemic species of the Iberian peninsula. It is considerably smaller than Eurasian lynxes and its most marked characteristic is its black brush-like tufts of hair on top of its triangular ears. For its habitat, it prefers quiet places covered in dense and creeping vegetation, far from humanity, where it can freely hunt wild rabbits and hares - its favourite source of nourishment.
Serra da Malcata Nature Reserve
Sado Estuary Natural Reserve The River Sado is born in the Serra da Vigia, near Beja. The river’s estuary begins close to Alcåcer do Sal, a highly fertile humid zone, where the landscape is marked by rice fields, cultivated in platforms, and nests of white storks. This elegant bird always chooses the highest places in order to build its nests and is one or 200 bird species that inhabit the Sado Estuary, which has been declared a Nature Reserve and a zone of special protection in order to protect the species. The most friendly local inhabitants and symbol of the Nature Reserve are the dolphins. It's rare to find them in Europe, freely swimming in their natural habitat.
Sado Estuary Natural Reserve
Arrabida Natural Park Arrábida Natural Park extends over an area of 10,800 hectares , The Originality of the landscape is due not only to its natural but also the remote humanization features of these spaces , which generally gone developing in harmony with the natural environment . The number of accidents that constitute the relief Arrábida chain includes several elevations. The climate is temperate, with their patents more Mediterranean characteristics . The Arrabida’s fauna presents great diversity. In the park there is the existence of species such as the wild cat ( Felis silvestris ) , the halide ( Genetta Genetta ) , badger ( Meles meles , ) the fox ( Vulpes vulpes ) , hare ( Lepus capensis ) , rabbit ( Oryctulagus cuniculus ) , bats , Bonelli's eagle ( Hieraetus fasciatus ) , the eagle wing round ( Buteo buteo ) , the eagle owl (Bubo bubo) among others.
Arrabida Natural Park
Troia Peninsula
Troia, next to Setubal and Arrabida Natural Park, is one of the best places in Portugal. This particular region of Portugal has a very warm weather and its beaches and landscape are very welcoming and friendly. Troia’s beaches are very searched by tourists every year, being Troia-Mar the most popular one.
The Azores
The Azores are one of the two autonomous regions of Portugal. The Azores were formed by volcanic eruptions so it have lots of wonderful landscapes that allow us to see the volcanic “work”. We have the examples of the Lagoa das Sete Cidades (with hot water), Lagoa do Fogo, Algar do Carvão and Vale das Furnas. The São Miguel Island still has an active volcanism.
Algar Vale das das Furnas Furnas
Lagoa das sete cidades
Algar das Furnas
Vulc達o dos Capelinhos
Serra da Estrela (Mountain Star) Serra da estrela is the second highest mountain in Portugal. Together with the Serra of Lousã is the westermost constituent range of the Central System and also one of the highest. It includes mainland Portugal’s highest point at 1.993 m ( it’s like 6,539 ft) above sea level. Natural Park of Serra da Estrela is the largest natural conservation area in Portugal and occupies about 1.000 km2. More than half of its area is located above an altitude of 700 m.
Natural Park of Serra da Estrela
Glaciar Valley, in Zêzere Corresponds to the largest glacial tongue in Serra da Estrela, reaching 13 km long. It can easily be observed the place where the glacier exceeded the area of the present village of Butters, having dissolved at about 680 m altitude. The sheer length of the glacial valley, is due to the fact that it was fed by the tongues of the Nave de Santo António, Covão of Ametade, Candieira, Covões and so on.
The Serra de Sintra The Serra de Sintra (also known as Moon Hill ) is approximately 10 kilometers from east to west and about 5 km wide, and its highest peak at an altitude of 529 meters, in Cruz Alta. It has a rich fauna, with her example, ​ the fox, the genet, the mole salamander, the peregrine falcon , the viper and various species of scaled reptiles. Its climate is temperate with many oceanic influences, and hence presents a higher rainfall compared to the rest of the Greater Lisbon area. Hence also follows a unique vegetation. About nine species of flora are native and 10 % are endemic. Some of them are oak , cork oak and pine wood.
The Serra de Sintra
Madeira Madeira is a Portuguese archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, in southwest of the Portuguese coast, and together with Porto Santo, Desert Islands and the Savage Islands formed Madeira Islands. The capital of the island and the autonomous region is the city of Funchal. The island of Madeira is of volcanic origin. Its climate is subtropical with extensive exotic flora . Economically is largely devoted to tourism .It is a popular year-round resort, being visited every year by about one million tourists, noted for its Madeira wine, flowers, landscapes and embroidery artisans, as well as for its annual New Year celebrations that feature the largest fireworks show in the world. It was officially recognised by the Guinness World Records, in 2006.
Madeira
Grutas de Mira de Aire (Caves) Grutas de Mira de Aire are Portugal's largest caves. Just 15 km from Fatima and 110 km from Lisbon. This authentic underground cathedral awaits your visit. To visit these caves can be a very special experience, and we get to know the bowels of the Serra d'Aire and enjoy the beauty of its unique formations.
Douro River The Douro River is a river that rises in Spain in the province of Soria, the peaks of the Sierra de Urbi達o (Sierra de Urbion), to 2.080 meters high and spans the north of Portugal. The mouth of the Douro is near the cities of Porto and Vila Nova de Gaia. It has 927 km long and is the third longest river of the Iberian Peninsula. UNESCO included, on 14 December 2001, the Alto Douro wine region on the list of places that are a World Heritage Site in the category of cultural landscape. On its banks are planted vineyards whose grapes give rise to Port Wine
Alentejo Sothwest and vicentina coast natural Park
The Natural Park of Southwest Alentejo and Costa Vincentian is located in the southwest coast of Portugal, with a length of 110 km. Apart from the coastline and underwater area 2 km from the coast, the park includes the valley of the Mira River. In the park area there are different types of landscapes, natural and semi-natural habitats such as cliffs and abrupt jagged cliffs, beaches, numerous islets and reefs and unusual coral reef. The Mira estuary, the Sardão cable, the promontory of Sagres and Cape St. Vincent, sand dunes, moors, marshes, salt steppes, temporary ponds, ravines (valleys with dense vegetation cover), etc.. In the park we can find special places such has Porto Covo Village and Amoreiras Beach among others. Sines, western Alentejo coast. Porto Covo is a small village in the western Alentejo Coast, which is quite well known by it’s three-day long religious festival in honour of Nossa Senhora da Soledade, that includes shows, dances, concerts and traditional fireworks.
Porto Covo and Sines
Amoreira Beach
Nazaré
Nazaré can fool you like any other fishing villages, but passing the fortress it can be really just a miracle of nature , most famous for the giant 30m wave caught by big wave rider Garrett “GMAC” McNamara back in January of 2013 breaking his previous world record on the same wave back from 2011. Since that Nazaré became Known in all world.
Examples of Portuguese Coastline between Porto
Lisbon and
Portugal has an area of 92117 ​ square kilometers and it is located on the west facade of the European continent. It is bordered by Spain (east and north) and the Atlantic Ocean (West and South). It has an extensive coastline (1,400 km) and the sea influences the natural, economic and human aspects of this country. We can not speak of Portugal, or Portugal environment without speaking of the shoreline. The coast and the sea, are part of our history and our beaches dependent on tourism, our waves and water sports are a reality. But the coastline is very sensitive, the erosion process is very aggressive and it is a track that must be preserved.
Peniche
Peniche is a very interesting geological phenomenon on the Portuguese coast. This region emerged from the amalgamation of an island with the mainland through the process of accumulation of sediments. This geological formation is called a tombolo. This place became a very small and cosy fishing village, . The villagers are very friendly and they welcome surfers from all over the world to bring life to their beautiful beaches. It is one of only two cites in Europe to have an official Prime event from Association of Surfing: Professionals (ASP) one of 11 stops of the World Championship Tour (WCT)