10- Asiate, New York City - The view
9- Ambrosia , Santorini , Greece - The view
8- Rossellinis, Ravello, Italy - The view
7- Le Jules Verne, Paris - The view
6- Baan Rim Pa, Phuket, Thailand - The view
5- Felix, Hong Kong - The view
4- Eagle’s Eye Restaurant, B.C Canada - The view
3- Ngorongoro Crater Lodge, Tanzania - The view
2- Sierra Mar, Big Sur, California - The view
1- El Tovar Dining Room, Grand Canyon - The view
According to CNN
10-
Tri-State Tornado - March 18, 1925
9-
Talladega County, Alabama Tornado - March 21, 1932
8-
Gainesville, Georgia Tornado - April 6, 1936
7-
Indiana Tornadoes - April 11, 1965
6-
Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada Cyclone - June 30, 1912
5- Edmonton, Canada Tornado - July 31, 1987
4-
Bulahdelah Tornado, New South Wales, Australia - January 1, 1970
3-
Tennessee Tornado - November 21, 1900
2-
Carolinas Tornado Outbreak - March 28, 1984
1-
Pennsylvania-Ohio Tornadoes - May 31, 1985
According to Nelson Doyle
1-
Circle Interchange, Chicago - Read about it
2-
Brooklyn Bridge, New York - Read about it
3-
Canal Lock, New Orleans - Read about it
4-
Water System, Atlanta - Read about it
5-
Alaskan Way Viaduct, Seattle - Read about it
6-
Lake Okeechobee, Florida - Read about it
7-
Dover Bridge, Bonner County, Idaho - Read about it
8-
Wolf Creek Dam, Kentucky - Read about it
9-
Sacramento River Levees, California - Read about it
10-
O’Hare International Airport, Chicago - Read about it
10- Netherlands
9- Austria
8- Canada
7- Denmark
6- Australia
5- Switzerland
4- Germany
3- Fineland
2- Sweden
1- Iceland
10- Seattle, Wash.
Though Seattle doesn’t suffer from oversupply, inventory last year doubled to 1.8%, from 0.9%, which would be more problematic if 1.8% wasn’t the eighth lowest rate in the country.
9- Charlotte, N.C
While prices here continue to climb both on a square foot and median price level, there was a slight increase in unsold inventory last year.
8- Providence, R.I.
Though prices here are falling, vacancy rates are extremely low and falling further (dropping to 1.6% at the end of 2007, the sixth lowest rate in the nation, from 1.8% at the end of 2006).
7- Denver, Colo.
Overbuilding and a high foreclosure rate stymie Denver’s housing market, which last year saw a 6.3% drop in prices.
6- San Antonio, Texas.
Prices here rose 7.9% last quarter, based on National Association of Realtor estimates, and its foreclosure rate was only 1% (problem markets like Atlanta have a rate of 2.5% and crashing markets like Detroit are over 4%).
5- Kansas City, Mo.
Prices in Kansas City reached highs in the second and third quarters of 2007, before dipping in Q4.
4- Austin, Texas.
In this affordable Lone Star State market, construction rates are in line with job growth and population increases, and as a result vacancies have remained steady at a healthy 1.5%.
3- Salt Lake City, Utah.
Through the housing boom, Las Vegas and Phoenix lead the nation in job growth, largely as the result of a flood of construction-related jobs.
2- San Francisco, Calif.
The city by the bay’s conforming loan limit recently jumped from $417,000 to the maximum $729,750, which makes credit a simpler affair for many of the city’s home buyers.
1- San Jose, Calif.
In what is largely one of the least affordable markets in the country, sellers continue to see high returns from real estate as tech money and venture capital money lift that economy.
1-
Elsewhere; Goa, India
Price: $100
What it’s like: In 2003, Mumbai-based fashion photographer Denzil Sequeira opened up his ancestral compound, Elsewhere, to paying guests. Four colonial beach houses and three candy-colored tents sit at the water’s edge; for the most affordable option, book one of the latter, outfitted with a muslin-draped four-poster bed, a fully modern bathroom, private lanai, and your own wooden pier.
2-
Bellavista Bed & Breakfast; St. Thomas
Price: $175
What it’s like: Bellavista Bed & Breakfast, a 1930’s West Indian–style villa overlooking Charlotte Amalie harbor. The four rooms are done up in floral prints and bright hues, some with a canopy bed.
3-
Awaroa Lodge; New Zealand
Price: $230
What it’s like: Set deep within the Abel Tasman National Park, the 26-room eco-lodge is in harmony with the great outdoors: earth-toned interiors, recycled-driftwood banisters, balconies that overlook wetlands teeming with native birds (including rare white herons).
4-
Azul del Mar; Key Largo, Florida
Price: $189
What it’s like: Just past the Everglades is the six-room Azul del Mar, Art Deco villa. The property is decidedly quiet, thanks to its small adjacent private beach and an adults-only policy.
5-
Whale Sanctuary Lodge; South Africa
Price: $240
What it’s like: It’s all about whales in this sleepy hamlet 90 minutes up the coast from Cape Town. To offer guests the best vantage point, Whale Sanctuary Lodge is set on a cliff above Walker Bay, where you can spot orcas, southern rights, and humpbacks out at sea.
6-
Breakwater Inn & Spa; Kennebunkport, Maine
Price: $159
What it’s like: The recently revamped Breakwater Inn & Spa feels like a traditional Maine cottage, though its 34 cozy rooms are totally up-to-speed: free Wi-Fi, pillow-top mattresses. The pebbly beach is lined with Adirondack chairs that overlook the mouth of the Kennebunk River.
7-
Puako Bed & Breakfast; Big Island, Hawaii
Price: $98
What it’s like: Tucked among the pricey resorts of Hawaii’s southern Kohala Coast is one of the big island’s best-kept secrets: a tiny village with access to prime snorkeling and surfing beaches. Puako Bed & Breakfast is as low-key as its location; host and hula performer-instructor Punahele Andrade has outfitted the four guest rooms with tropical furniture and bright Hawaiian quilts.
8-
Sol é Luna Inn; St. Martin
Price: $125
What it’s like: Between Grand Case and Orient Bay on the French half of this multicultural island, the cliffside Sol é Luna Inn delivers a modern twist on rustic Provençal style—an ocher-hued stucco exterior covered in bougainvillea, washbasins reminiscent of the Danish designer Verner Panton, colorfully tiled plunge pools.
9-
Pousada Sage Point; Brazil
Price: $108
What it’s like: You’ll feel like you’re on the set of The Blue Lagoon at the Pousada Sage Point, on the palm-studded Tiririca Beach in Bahia. The two-story, secluded tree-house property is made entirely from Brazilian noble wood.
10-
Sea View Inn; Carmel, California
Price: $135
What it’s like: The floral prints and canopy beds are a little frilly, but the real draw here is the hospitality—a fireside breakfast, tea in the garden. The eight-room Victorian bungalow Sea View Inn lives up to its name; it’s only steps from a broad beach on the Monterey Peninsula.
According to Travel Leisure on www.msn.com
1- Miami, Fla.
Healthy ozone levels, low pollution and high-quality water boost Miami.
2- Seattle, Wash.
The nearby Cascade Mountains keep pollution low. Seattle also spends more per capita on waste management than any major city.
3- Jacksonville, Fla.
The only major city with a top 10 ranking in all the categories.
4- Orlando, Fla.
The family-friendly land of Disney scores big on ozone and air pollution levels.
5- Portland, Ore.
Portland has spent $2 billion over the last decade cleaning up the Willamette River. Adding light rail and more sidewalks has cut down on auto emissions.
6- San Francisco, Calif.
The City by the Bay ranks in the top five in waste-management spending and water quality.
7- Oklahoma City, Okla.
One of the few land-locked cities on the list, Oklahoma City ranks in the top 10 for both particle pollution and ozone levels.
8- Tampa-St. Petersburg, Fla.
Tampa spends more per capita on waste management than any major city other than Seattle, helping make up for lower rankings on water quality.
9- Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minn.
The Twin Cities rank first among major metros for healthy ozone levels, which counters so-so rankings for waste removal spending and water quality.
10- San Jose-Sunnyvale, Calif.
Like San Francisco up the road, San Jose is among the nation’s leaders in water quality. The area also cracks the top 10 for lowest levels of air pollution.
According to Tom Van Riper on www.forbes.com
10- Brazzaville, Congo
Air pollution from emissions, lack of potable water and the contamination of the city’s water from raw sewage contribute to the laundry list of health and sanitation concerns for Brazzaville, the capital of Congo. Each of these press upon the life expectancy of the local population
9- Almaty, Kazakhstan
The marriage of petroleum-based industry and insufficient safeguards against pollution sets the stage for an environmental crisis in this city. Toxic waste dumps require a huge price tag for improvement and an even larger price for neglect.
8- Baghdad, Iraq
Poor water quality in Baghdad threatens to exacerbate the the transmission of water-borne diseases in the city. Fatal outbreaks of cholera struck several provinces of the country, including Baghdad from August 2007 to December 2007. The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) also says air pollution, resulting from burning oil and aggravated by war, is cause for concern.
7- Mumbai, India
India’s government hopes to transform Mumbai back into a burgeoning metropolis after recent economic decline. A recent private-sector report, Vision Mumbai, proposed changes in infrastructure, pollution control and economic growth strategy, which contributed to the seeking of approximately $1 billion of aid from Indian government.
6- Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia, faces one of the worst sanitation problems on both the continent of Africa as well as in the world. The lack of adequate sanitation programs results in infant mortality, low life expectancy and the transmission of water-borne diseases.
5- Mexico City, Mexico
Mexico City, the capital of Mexico, and the capital of North American air pollution, estimates unhealthy ozone emissions nearly 85% of the year. Mexico’s geographical location–in the center of a volcanic crater and surrounded by mountains–only serves to lock in the air pollution, causing smog to sit above the city.
4- Port au Prince, Haiti
The country’s politically inspired violence and corruption are well documented. Equally dangerous: its air and water. Serving as one of the main ports on the island of Hispaniola, Port au Prince is central to Haiti’s economic development. A lack of pollution controls, however, contributes to the widespread environmental problems confronting the Haitian city.
3- Antananarivo, Madagascar
Madagascar, located off of the southeastern coast of Africa in the Indian Ocean, makes this year’s list with its capital city, Antananarivo. Well known for its variety of unique flora and fauna, Madagascar has often been referred to as the world’s eighth continent, but the effects of the human population are quickly leaving their footprint.
2- Dhaka, Bangladesh
Located in southern Asia, between Burma and India, Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh battles with the constant threat of water pollution. Surface water is often thick with disease and pollutants from the use of commercial pesticides. With an estimated 150 million people living in a relatively small area, cleaning up the problem won’t be easy.
1- Baku, Azerbaijan
Surrounded by Iran, Georgia, Russia and Armenia on the Caspian Sea, Azerbaijan has long been an oil hub. As a consequence, Baku, the capital, suffers from life-threatening levels of air pollution emitted from oil drilling and shipping.
According to Tiffany M. Luck on www.forbes.com
1- Anguilla, British West Indies
2- Aspen, Colorado
3- Bora Bora, French Polynesian islands
4- The Caymen Islands
5- Fiji
6- Jackson Hole, Wyo.
7- Jamaica
8- Miama, Florida
9- St. Barthelemy
10- St.Moritz, Switzerland
According to Sophia Banay on www.forbes.com
1 - Stem Cell Breakthroughs
2 - Human Mapped
3 - Brightest Supernova Recorded
4 - Hundreds of New Species
5 - Building a Human Heart Valve
6 - “Hot Jupiters” Discovered
7 - A Big Birdlike Dinosaur
8 - Man’s Migration Out of Africa
9 - The World’s Oldest Animal
10 - Real-Life Kryptonite
According to Time magazine.