Welcome to the second World Heritage Site newsletter

This edition deals mostly with this year's new additions to The List. 34 sites were inscribed over the past few days. Iceland, Andorra, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, St. Lucia and Togo are mentioned for the first time. You can read more about them on the website, where I also introduced a News section recently.

These are the 34 new entries for 2004:
1. Madriu-Claror-Perafita Valley (Andorra)
2. Royal Exhibition Building and Carlton Gardens (Australia)
3. Capital Cities and Tombs of the Koguryo Kingdom (China)
4. Ilulissat Icefjord (Denmark)
5. Complex of Koguryo Tombs (DPR of Korea)
6. Dresden Elbe Valley (Germany)
7. The Town Hall and Roland on the Marketplace of Bremen (Germany)
8. Muskauer Park/Park Muzakowski (Germany)
9. Žingvellir National Park (Iceland)
10. Champaner-Pavagadh Archaeological Park (India)
11. Chhatrapati Shivaji Station (formerly Victoria Terminus) (India)
12. Tropical Rainforest Heritage of Sumatra (Indonesia)
13. Pasargadae (Iran)
14. The Bam Citadel (Arg-e Bam) and its Related Sites (Iran)
15. Etruscan Necropolises of Cerveteri and Tarquinia (Italy)
16. The Landscape of Val d'Orcia (Italy)
17. Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage Routes in the Kii Mountain Range (Japan)
18. Um er-Rasas (Kastron Mefa'a) (Jordan)
19. Petroglyphs within the Archaeological Landscape of Tamgaly (Kazakhstan)
20. Kernavė Archeological Site (Cultural Reserve of Kernavė) (Lithuania)
21. Tomb of Askia (Mali)
22. Luis Barragįn House and Studio (Mexico)
23. Orkhon Valley Cultural Landscape (Mongolia)
24. Portuguese City of Mazagan (El Jadida) (Morocco)
25. Vegaųyan - the Vega Archipelago (Norway)
26. Landscape of the Pico Island Vineyard Culture (Portugal)
27. Natural System of Wrangel Island Reserve (Russian Federation)
28. Ensemble of the Novodevichy Convent (Russian Federation)
29. Pitons Management Area (Saint Lucia)
30. Dečani Monastery (Serbia and Montenegro)
31. Cape Floral Region Protected Areas (South Africa)
32. Varberg Radio Station (Sweden)
33. Koutammakou, the Land of the Batammariba (Togo)
34. Liverpool - Maritime Mercantile City (United Kingdom))

Some observations after a glance into these new world heritage sites: quite a number of 'cold' destinations (Iceland, Greenland, Wrangel Island), the news-link with the archaeological remains of Bam (like last year's Bamiyan Valley) and the introduction of a telecommunications subcategory (Varberg). The goal to make the World Heritage List less eurocentric and more representative is achieved only partly: although there are well-deserved inclusions for the Orkhon Valley, Sumatra's Rainforest and the Cape Floral Region, still almost half of these new entries come from European countries.

Additions to the website
From these new sites, I have visited three over the last few years. The Mongolian Orkhon Valley (http://www.worldheritagesite.org/sites/orkhonvalley.html) to me is the most remarkable. My travels in May and June took me to Bulgaria (take a look at the Rila Monastery, http://www.worldheritagesite.org/sites/rilamonastery.html), and Belgium. There I was able to go underground and way back in time at The Neolithic Flint Mines at Spiennes (http://www.worldheritagesite.org/sites/flintminesspiennes.html), one of the more obscure world heritage sites. However, it's certainly worth a visit. And yes, contrary to some other visitors, I found it and could get in. Visitors keep adding their contributions too. Five people in total now have written about their trip to the remote Aldabra Atoll (http://www.worldheritagesite.org/sites/aldabra.html). I wonder if Wrangel Island or Greenlands Ilulissat Icefjord can ever catch up with that. Thanks a lot to Rob Wilson, who has entered a number of reviews of sites he visited in Asia. Read for example his views on Ancient Kyoto (http://www.worldheritagesite.org/sites/ancientkyoto.html).



That“s it for this edition
Els
webmaster www.worldheritagesite.org