If you're planning a trip to the Philippines, pencil Bohol Island into your must-see list. With a limitless stretch of land spotted with over a thousand hilly mounds, the view on Bohol will make you want to burst out into an unbridled rendition of Julie Andrew's "The Hills Are Alive."
Dubbed the Chocolate Hills for their Hershey kiss shape, the mounds are a rich brown during the dry season and green with grass at the wetter part of the year. It's unclear how many exist — accounts range from 1,268 to 1,776 landforms in total — but the exact number doesn't matter so much. From a viewing deck, the hills punctuate the greenery, clambering off into the horizon (seemingly) indefinitely.
As miraculous as they appear, some geologists have identified the hills (called conical karst topography) as leftover marine limestone deposits from a period when smaller bodies of water, like streams and rivers, existed above sea level. Over time, rainfall and natural water sources eroded the earth, apparently leaving behind the ups and downs of the hilly terrain. Other geologists, however, are stumped, which makes the sprawling hills a bit of a mystery.
Local lore has filled in the holes (valleys?) of the Chocolate Hills' scientifically unknown origins. One legend has it that two fighting giants threw boulders at each other until they resolved their issues civilly; the other involves a a single behemoth, whose tears, shed over the death of a mortal woman he loved, became permanent "drops" on the earth.
It's not possible to climb these hills (they were declared a protected natural landmark in 1997) so you'll have to be content with a mesmerizing 360° view from a public observation deck — not much of a sacrifice, if you ask us.
[h/t Travel + Leisure
