The -est List

A list of the highest, tallest, largest, oldest, etc. places that I’ve been for both personal and world bests:

Directional

Northernmost: Ivalo, Finland (68°N, above the Arctic Circle)

Southernmost: Port Arthur, Tasmania, Australia (43°S)

Closest to the Equator: Singapore (1°N) 


Laguna 69

Elevation

Highest Elevation: Laguna 69, Áncash Region, Huasacarán National Park in the Cordillera Blanca Mountain Range, Peru (15,100 ft / 4,605 m)

Lowest Elevation (on land): New Orleans, Louisiana, USA (-7 ft / -2 m);

(in ocean): Great Barrier Reef, Queensland, Australia (-80 ft / -25 m)


Distance / Travel Time

Greatest Distance Traveled: Around the World in 30 days = 25,753 miles / 41,444 km

Longest Travel Time / Most Connections: 28+ hours flight time (35+ hours total travel time) / 6 connections = Chiang Mai > Bangkok > Sydney > Brisbane > Los Angeles > Philadelphia (15,060 miles / 24,235 km)


Highest / Tallest

El Alto Airport in La Paz

Tallest Mountain: Mt. Everest, Nepal* (seen from plane);

Dhaulagiri (7th tallest) and Annapurna I (10th tallest) (seen in range);

Tallest from sea floor: Mauna Kea, Hawai’i, USA*

Tallest Building: Burj Khalifa, Dubai, UAE

Tallest Waterfall: Gocta Cataracts, Peru (5th in world, disputed)

Highest Capital City & Highest International Airport: La Paz/El Alto Airport, Bolivia* (13,323 ft / 4,060 meters)


Deepest

Deepest Lake: Crater Lake, Oregon, USA (9th in the World, 2nd in N. America)


Oldest

Oldest Structure: Stone Circle, Scotland (~900 BCE)


Smallest

Smallest Country: Vatican City*

Smallest City: Vatican City* (smallest by area)


Biggest (Nature)

Largest Mountain & Largest/Most Active Volcano: Mauna Loa, Hawai’i, USA* (largest in mass/volume)

Largest Waterfall: Mosi-oa-Tunya / Victoria Falls, Zambia & Zimbabwe*  (largest sheet of falling water)

Largest Salt Flats: Salar de Uyuni, Bolivia*

Largest Tropical Lake: Lake Victoria, Tanzania* (and 2nd largest fresh water lake)


Biggest (Non-Commercial)

Largest City: Tokyo, Japan* (largest urban area)

Largest Church: St. Peter’s Basilica, Vatican City*

Largest Gothic Cathedral:  Seville Cathedral* (3rd largest cathedral in world, disputed)

Largest Temple: Angkor Wat, Siem Reap, Cambodia*


Biggest (Commercial)

Largest Museum: Smithsonian Institutes, Washington DC, USA*

Largest Zoo: Berlin Zoo & Gardens, Germany*

Largest Mall: The Dubai Mall* (largest total area)


* First in the world, within respective category