Amazing facts about the world. Seeing the amazing in the ordinary: what is the secret of wonderful street photos by Shin Noguchi

Snowfalls, children, a giraffe and people sleeping on the subway - Shin Noguchi captures true and extraordinary moments in Everyday life Japan.

Passion and talent gave Noguchi the fame of an excellent street photographer. One of his photographs - a woman in a yellow skirt - was included in the book “100 Great Street Photographs” (Prestel, 2017).

A photographer who lives in ancient Japanese city Kamakura, located 70 km from Tokyo, regularly holds exhibitions of its works around the world, and is also a winner of several prestigious international photography competitions.

Noguchi says he takes to the streets almost every day hometown and just wanders around in search of interesting and striking shots. It sounds incredibly simple, but just look at how vibrant, extraordinary and unforgettable photographs are obtained as a result of such a seemingly simple creative process!

“People live desperately,” says Shin Noguchi. - Sometimes alone, sometimes helping each other, sometimes crying, sometimes laughing. I photograph people in their everyday lives because there are moments that they themselves do not notice, and these moments from the outside look more beautiful and full of human participation than the carefully staged films of Charlie Chaplin, Alfred Hitchcock, Federico Fellini or the plays of Shakespeare. I try to visualize the words of Mark Twain: “Sometimes truth is stranger than fiction.” And prove that this is really so.

I would like to write these words into my project: “I am here, only here. And you are here, only here. Something truly beautiful and unusual is happening now. We have always been connected to each other, and I would like you to feel this: you are never alone, there is always someone watching your struggle for survival."

He perfectly captures moments that are at once incongruous, strange, and yet deeply human. In a colorful and humorous way, Noguchi draws attention to the small quirks of everyday life: failures, accidents, original moments, things that people do when they think no one is watching. His eye gravitates to the personal and domestic incidents that unfold amid the hustle and bustle of Japanese city life.

On our planet there are heaven and hell, seamounts that make the Himalayas look like toys. In this land there are cities whose area is larger than Austria or Belgium, and states that do not have official capital. The strangest, most interesting and amazing facts about the world are included in today's selection.

Chongqing is called the second capital of China, and it is famous for the fact that it occupies an area larger than the whole of Austria or Belgium. The metropolis is home to 30 million people - a number that makes it the absolute record holder of the planet.

And this is not the limit, because Chongqing is growing and expanding. Beautiful city can’t even be called a stretch - narrow cramped streets, piles of ugly buildings, gloomy alleys, dozens of automobile factories and chemical production. In Chongqing, the same number of houses, buildings, bridges and other structures are built in a year as in 20 years in Moscow.

Perhaps in a few years appearance largest metropolis will change because old neighborhoods are being actively demolished, and modern skyscrapers are rising in their place. But this is unlikely to make Chongqing any more comfortable.

Countries without railways

There are many such states not only in Asia, but also in Europe. In Iceland transport infrastructure is well developed - passengers are served by buses, planes, ships, but railways there is no.

In Qatar, where the population exceeds 800 thousand people, there is also no railway communication. It is absent in Guinea, Bhutan, Nepal, and Afghanistan.

This list includes European countries Liechtenstein, Malta, Andorra. They, like Iceland, occupy a small territory. Land in the states is expensive, there is a shortage of it, and the terrain is mountainous, so the construction of railway lines is impractical.

There are no trains on the Caribbean islands, with the exception of Cuba. It is the only island in the region where a railway is built.

E, O, I, Yu

These are not vowel letters of the alphabet, but names of cities. E is located in France, on the coast of the Bresle River. It is home to about 8 thousand inhabitants. Indigenous people are called Eytsy.

In Lofoten, Norway, tourists can hear one local inviting another to go fishing in O. This is not a joke, but an unusual name for a fishing village. It comes from the word "A", which in Old Icelandic meant "river".

Mentions of locality date from the mid-16th century. It attracts tourists not only with its short name, but also with the museums of fish and the history of the village that operate here.

Ypsilonians - this is what the residents of the French commune I, located 100 km from Paris, call themselves. Its population is less than 100 people, but even in such sparsely populated places of our world there are amazing facts.

Yi, for example, has a sister village with the unpronounceable name Llanwirepullgwyngillgogerychverndrobullllantysilyogogogoch. One can only guess how customers pronounce it when they order tickets at train stations.

8 thousand people permanently live in the Swedish city of Yu. The medieval town is popular among travelers, because most of its buildings are wooden. And these are not only residential buildings, but also churches and public institutions.

It seems that residents are satisfied with short names, although the authorities of the countries periodically raise the topic of their possible renaming. They believe that the renaming will make it easier for users to find information of interest on the Internet.

The resort to which they usually send

In the southwestern part of Mexico there is a beautiful resort with pristine coastline. It stretches for almost 4 km along the Pacific coast. Beach areas wide, sandy, secluded bays created especially for lovers. They are protected from the wind by green hills and a transparent blue sky.

In this resort location, anyone can buy a villa or condominium apartment with stunning views from the windows. A 2-room apartment costs 30-40 thousand dollars. This place is called Nahui and looks very picturesque.

Nauru is a country without a capital

This state can be walked around in 2 hours - length 6 km, width 4 km. Nauru is located on the coral island of the same name in western Oceania and is considered the only country in the world that does not have an official capital. The compact territory is divided into districts.

The first people appeared in Nauru more than 3 thousand years ago. When Captain Firn discovered the island in 1798, it was already inhabited by 12 tribes. They had no idea about state system and way of life, they survived by fishing, growing coconuts and knew how to do without the benefits of civilization.

Today the tiny country is barely surviving - tours to the island are not popular due to the lack of local color, high humidity and heat of 40-42 degrees. Nauru is located almost on the equator. The state of the ecology is deplorable - over the decades that phosphorites were mined here, instead of soil, a “lunar landscape” remained.

The longest mountains are at the bottom

Sometimes, to find the most amazing facts in the world, you need to go down to the ocean floor. In our case - to the bottom Atlantic Ocean, which the Mid-Atlantic Ridge divided into two almost equal parts - western and eastern.

The mountain range under water is a world record holder for the longest. Its length is 18 thousand km, its width is almost a thousand km, and its height is small for mountains - at the peaks it does not exceed 3 km.

While exploring the terrain mountain range Scientists have discovered an interesting pattern: the further from the rift valley, the older the basalt rocks. Their age was determined by archaeologists and geologists - 70 million years.

Mississippi changed direction

In 1811, an earthquake occurred in New Madrid, and in 1812, another occurred in the town of Missouri. Seismologists estimated the power of the elements at 8 points on the Richter scale.

Those earthquakes were the most powerful in North America– as a result, huge areas went underground, and new lakes formed in their place. Mississippi River behind a short time changed course and flowed into reverse direction. Its waters formed the Kentucky Bend.

There are no rivers in Saudi Arabia

They were there before, but they dried up. During rains, dry river beds fill with water, but this water is stagnant and there is no flow in it. The Saudis are careful about fresh water.

In total, there are 17 states in the world that do not have a single river. Except Saudi Arabia the list includes Oman, Kuwait, Yemen, UAE, Monaco, Vatican and others.

There are no rivers in Monaco and the Vatican, because the territory of the states is small, there are no channels from which they could appear.

Sea without shores

The Sargasso Sea is the only one that has no shores. It is located in the western part of the Atlantic Ocean and poses a mystery to humanity. The fact is that the water in the Sargasso Sea has unique properties, not typical for ocean waters.

The weather here is calm all year round and the sea is never stormy. For this property the reservoir has earned notoriety ship graveyards. In the Middle Ages sailing ships could not move in the calm. The sailors were also unable to row with their hands - numerous algae got in the way. So, waiting for a fair wind, entire teams died.

This line is considered the longest railway in the world. Great Siberian way, as he was called in Tsarist Russia, connects Moscow and St. Petersburg with largest cities in Siberia and the Far East.

The railway route stretches for almost 9.3 thousand km, crosses 3901 bridges, which is also an absolute record.

UFO exists

The fact of its existence was recognized by Chile, Italy and France. But Japan came first. This happened on April 17, 1981. Japanese crew cargo ship I saw a disk rising into the sky from the ocean waters. It glowed blue.

While taking off, the UFO shook up such powerful wave that it completely covered the ship. After this, the luminous plate circled over the ship for about 15 minutes, sometimes moving quickly, sometimes hovering in the air.

Then the UFO went into the water again, and the second wave damaged the ship's hull. Based on the results of the case, the press attache of the service coast guard officially stated that the atypical injuries were due to a collision with a UFO.

Uganda is the youngest country

Experts predict that in 2100, 192.5 million people will live in Uganda.

It is curious that half of the residents are children and teenagers under 15 years old. Uganda is considered the youngest country on the planet.

Hell and Heaven on earth

Anyone can see what Hell looks like. True, for this you need to come to Norway and get to the city of Trondheim. From there it is 24 km to Hell.

Norwegian Hell has its own railroad station, shops, a blues music festival takes place every September. The village inherited its unusual name from the Old Scandinavian word “hellir”, which is interpreted as “cave”, “rock”. But local residents I prefer the meaning of the homonym – “luck”.

Earthly Paradise is located in Great Britain, 80 km from London. It is permanently home to 4 thousand people. This compact town is built on a hill. Previously he was surrounded sea ​​water, and now that there is no sea, there are only 3 rivers left.

Paradise - ancient city, the first mention of it is in the sources of 1024. The amazing thing is that its ancient streets, alleys, fortresses, houses, windows, roofs have been preserved almost in their original form. Rai has several charming cafes and shops where you can enjoy delicious coffee, tea and desserts. There is a complete feeling that time has turned back - to the 16-17th centuries.

RUSSIAN SUPERMAN.

Vasily Nikolaevich Kochetkov (1785–1892), “soldier of three emperors,” lived 107 years, of which he spent more than 60 years in active service military service soldier Kochetkov’s uniform was unique: on his shoulder straps were intertwined the monograms of the three emperors to whom the old campaigner swore allegiance. On the sleeve of the uniform there were eight rows of gold and silver stripes for service and distinction, and on the neck and chest there were barely 23 crosses and medals.

Vasily Nikolaevich Kochetkov was born in the Simbirsk province of Kurmysh district in 1785. Kochetkov was one of the cantonists (a soldier’s son). Cantonists were on the lists of the military department from the day they were born.
He began serving on March 7, 1811 as a musician.

He fought through the entire Patriotic War 1812. Then, as part of the Life Guards of the Pavlovsk Regiment, he fought with the Turks in the war of 1828-1829. The horse-pioneer (engineering) division was transferred to the Life Guards. In 1836, during the life of A.S. Pushkin, Vasily Kochetkov had already served his allotted 25 years, but did not leave the army.

In 1843, a 58-year-old soldier finds himself in the Caucasus. He is instructed to use his extraordinary military experience and teach soldiers to direct, strengthen and breed pontoon bridges on fast rivers. Vasily Kochetkov was enrolled in the glorious Nizhny Novgorod Dragoon Regiment. In the Caucasus, he was wounded three times: twice in both legs and right through the neck. Heavily wounded and unable to move, he is captured.

Having recovered, Kochetkov escapes from captivity, showing rare resourcefulness, foresight and courage. At the age of 64, according to the exam, the experienced soldier was promoted to officer. However, Kochetkov refused the epaulettes; his soldier's shoulder straps, and retired two years later, after 40 years of active service, at the age of 66.

In 1853 the so-called Crimean War. Vasily Kochetkov asks to go to war and fights in the ranks of the Kazan Jaeger Regiment on the Kornilov Bastion, in the very heat of the Sevastopol defense. Here he was wounded by an exploding bomb.

By personal decree of the tsar, who was already familiar with Vasily Nikolaevich, Kochetkov was again transferred to the guard and serves in the dragoons. Almost ten years have passed, and Vasily Nikolaevich Kochetkov submits a memo to the tsar and asks for “the highest permission” to go to war. So he ended up from the guard again in his beloved field army in the Turkestan horse artillery brigade as a first class fireworksman. He was 78 years old.

For twelve years Kochetkov served in Central Asia, participated in the battles for Turkestan and Samarkand, and in 1874, in a detachment under the command of Adjutant General Kaufman, marching through the desert, he took Khiva. In 1874, by order of the sovereign, he was transferred to convoy duty. imperial train.

In 1876, Serbia and Montenegro rebelled against the Turkish yoke. Five thousand Russian volunteers went to help their fraternal Slavic peoples. Kochetkov again persuaded the tsar to let him go to war. “Servant”, at 92 years old, fought in the front ranks, drawing volunteers along with him.

Before he had time to rest in his homeland from military affairs, the Russian-Turkish war 1877-1878. 93-year-old Kochetkov fought on Shipka as part of the 19th Horse Artillery Brigade. On Shipka, Kochetkov lost his left leg from a bomb explosion. He survived and also served in the Life Guards of the Horse Artillery Brigade and lived to be 107 years old.

He died “on the march”, while passing through the city of Belozersk, Novgorod province, on May 30, 1892 from cardiac paralysis. In his belongings they found a copy of his resignation order listing all ranks, awards and campaigns. This one is brilliant achievement list together with a respectful obituary, in which Vasily Kochetkov was named the most honored veteran of the Russian army, was published on the pages of the Government Gazette.