When you think of the lack of responsibility that comes from people leaving empty beer bottles on the shores of a beach, you get angry. But in Ussuri Bay, Russia, people aren’t mad at all. In fact, they’re actually happy that Russians are throwing away their beer and vodka bottles because the ocean, which offers so many wonders, has turned the broken shards into colored pebbles made of glass. Now, people from all over the world seem eager to want to head on over to Russia to take a look at this former dumping ground that now glistens with beauty.Russians would throw away vodka bottles, and beer bottles, and at one point, the thought of walking around barefoot in this zone was frightening. So it wasn’t exactly the hotspot you wanted to visit anytime soon.
The pieces, which were once dangerous, were now polished, rounded, and smooth. They also came in different colors too. Now the area, which was once a dumping ground during the Soviet Union is a popular cliff-side beach.
Instead of repelling people, the shards now attract locals and tourists to Vladivostok’s naval port, which has also become a glass beach on the Pacific, and you better have money, because they have to charge you to experience this beautiful scenery.
Essentially, the frozen wall that forms near the beach doesn’t prevent the glass pebbles from making their way to the beach, where they can be admired by people of all ages. It’s all thanks to nature, which transformed something dangerous into something beautiful.
Folks here even hang out at the volleyball court by the beach’s play area, while millions of shards lay beneath their feet. But the beautiful polished shards may not always be around forever.
Those clear, green, red, and blue pebbles may be a thing of the past if the glass jewels are reclaimed by the sea, or if guests continue taking them as souvenirs. Some experts believe that the glass jewels will vanish in another generation.
Of course, the eminent threat of the Glass Beach going back to just being a beach hasn’t deterred tourists from visiting the port. The obvious course of action to ensure that the glass jewels don’t fade away would be to recreate the same trick and have the waves create more of the jewels.
Currently, Russia has no plans to ask that people start dumping their glass bottles on the beach again, as this would lead to a lot of people getting cut. So in the meantime, you better book your ticket to Ussuri Bay, while there’s still time.
