1 . Nowadays, over 6,000 national parks exist in the world. Of all, these are the ones that have been around for hundreds of years and should be on everyone’s bucket list.

It is surrounded by striking natural beauty and can be explored by land. But the river national park, as the name suggests, is best explored through leisurely boat rides and cruises that take visitors through many canals and ancient towns that come along the way of the river.

While most go to France for the twinkling Eiffel Tower, few tour plans involve a stop at the Calanques National Park, which is made up of both land and sea, with over 140 protected species of animals and plants that reside inside. Because of its topography, the park is unique in that it can be explored through a mix of activities both for those who like waterbodies and those who’d rather stay on land.

Contrary to the popular association of national parks with the wilderness it is filled with winding valleys, hills and villages where over 24,000 people live and work. Yorkshire Dales is also home to several food shops, and the park hosts cheese festivals and farmers markets regularly, so it’s best to go hungry.

It is a delight for those who like a bit of history mixed with the biodiversity of national parks. While it houses thousands of species of wildlife, there’s more to the national park than that.

Thanks to social media recommendations, Zibo barbecue has become     1     overnight hit, with large numbers of visitors     2     (pour) to the city on weekends. People joked that the last time this many people showed up in the city     3     (be) during the Siege (围攻) of Qi, a famous battle in the area in 284 BC.

Taking advantage of the barbecue craze, Zibo has gone all out to promote local tourism resources, while working to ensure the     4     (safe) of visitors and the quality of tourism products. Many areas have been changed into dining halls for the massed crowds.     5     (ease) restrictions on the supplies of meat and grills, local banks have started handing out low-interest loans designed     6     (special) for barbecue-related industries.

This barbecue fever in Zibo should be helping China recover from its zero-covid era. Since the end of zero-covid, many tourists have described     7     (they) as “special-ops” travelers. This means dropping into a location, spending as little time and money as possible,     8     then moving on to the next spot.

Zibo barbecue has been one of the top items to tick off from travel lists. People eat and drink at low tables with a small stove,     9     (heat) by coal. The craze is about more than the simple food.     10     people across the country are seeking out in Zibo is Shandong’s big-hearted hospitality.

A white winter in Beijing is nothing new. The city is    1    （frequent）enveloped in snow over the colder months. However, the snowfall last weekend led    2    a unique combination of the seasons and a contrast of colours.

Famous places, especially with unique    3    （nature）beauty, were blanketed with a layer of snow and visitors. Camera in hand and braving the cold, I headed off to two of my favourite scenic    4    （spot）.

My first stop was Jingshan Park. The artificial park    5    （build）in the Ming Dynasty offered remarkable views of the Forbidden City. The coating of snow, contrasting with the colours of the autumn leaves and ancient structures only added to    6    （it）elegance and mystery. It is a view I    7    （see）countless times over the past decade and remains one of my favourite in the city.

Next up was Xiangshan Park,    8    dates back to the Jin Dynasty. There was a significant increase in    9    number of visitors. People traveled from all over China    10    （witness）the tree-covered hillsides transforming from their rich summery greens into yellows and reds like a blanket of fire. This created a picture I wouldn't soon forget.

9 . What Is Your Next Destination?

One of the oldest cultural landscapes in China is chosen to become one of the country’s newest UNESCO World Heritage sites in 2022. The Ancient Tea Plantations of Jingmai Mountain in Pu’er features about 1.13 million tea trees. Located in China’s Yunnan Province, the region was a sating point of the legendary Ancient Tea Horse Road. Many of the region’s tea plantations remain, as do the four local ethnic minority groups — the Blang, Dai, Hani, and Wa people — who preserve their own languages, customs, and festivals.

When you arrive here, the stamp in your passport will include the Palau Pledge (誓约), which all visitors must sign, promising that “the only footprints I shall leave are those that will wash away.” The eco-pledge was drafted by and for the children of these remote western Pacific islands to help preserve Palau’s culture and environment from the negative impacts of tourism. Eighty percent of the nation’s waters is preserved as the Palau National Marine Sanctuary.

Green shoots of regeneration are appearing in Australia, of which some 72,000 square miles were, burned during the 2019-2020 bushfires, leading to the deaths of nearly three dozen people and more than a billion animals. Drive the Great Ocean Road, in Victoria’s Otways region, and then take a hike at Wildlife Wonders, an educational ancient forest and waterfalls. Wandering through bushes gives a chance to spot koalas unique to this ecosystem.

Mining and steel production once dominated the crowded Ruhr Valley, in Germany’s western state of North Rhine-Westphalia. Today, the region is repurposing previous industrial sites as parks and open air cultural spaces. The most famous is the UNESCO Word Heritage site of Zeche Zollverein, now home to an outdoor swimming pool, ice rink, and walking tails. You can rent a bike in Essen for a car-free Ruhr Valley trip along cycling routes.