Mysterious by humans for centuries

Many of us go for a walk in the mountains to find solitude. But as the following pictures show, it could be a bit creepy – the mountain itself might be watching. Mountain faces are not only beautiful, but have been regarded as something mysterious by humans for centuries. As a result, there are many legends entwined around them.

One such popular legend is that of Lover’s Rock in Antequera in Andalusia, Spain. The hillock resembles a face lying down and is said to be that of an Indian warrior. According to the legend, the mountain witnessed the tragic love affair between a young Christian man from Antequera and a young woman from Africa. Because of their different religions, society did not tolerate their love. With troops on their heels, the couple is said to have fled to the mountain where they threw themselves off in a loving embrace rather than spend a lifetime without each other.

Image: Mountainus7

This is Mount Yiouktas in Heraklion, Crete. The Greek head of the gods, Zeus, is supposed to have been born on Crete and as legend has it, also died there, leaving his profile imprinted on the mountain as a mythical tomb.

Image: Pavaan Solanki

This astonishingly real looking mountain face is located in Junagadh in Gujarat, India. The mountain is also known as Girnar Hill and is here seen from Bhavnath Temple. The photographer cheated a bit by turning the picture by 90 degrees, but the result is stunning. The five peaks of the mountain range are each adorned by intricately carved stone temples. As a pilgrimage, Hindus and Jains climb from peak to peak (around 8,000 steps). Legend has it that climbing Girnar barefoot will earn the pilgrim a place in heaven.
Image: Christopher Fay

Now, leaving the legends, this awesome mountain face includes a whole mountain range and numerous fir trees. Unfortunately, Florida-based photographer Christopher Fay did not include any information about the location. Maybe someone will recognize it. What does the face remind you of, is it more Yoda or Gremlins?

Image: Manos2036

This is another mountain showing a face in profile, also on Crete. It looks similar to Picture 2 but look at that nose and the elegant forehead! Crete seems laden with legends, but we knew that already from reading Greek mythology.

Image: Daoi

Here, the snow on this mountain in Iceland contributes in forming a rather grumpy looking face. No wonder mountaineers talk about the ‘north face’ of a mountain.

Image: Shea Photography

The guard of this mountain seems to have been immortalized as a face jutting out of the mountain. No wonder it was popularly known as the ‘Old Man of the Mountain’. This rock face could be found in Franconia Notch State Park in New Hampshire until May 2003. Then, after hanging around for 12,000 years, the whole face fell off, just like that.

Image: Kostas Pagiamtzis

This rock face in Kings Canyon National Park in California does not look that extraordinary but if you look really closely, on top of the green moustache, huge nose and sleeping eyes, there seems to be a third eye, making him a cyclops!

Image: Rudolf Henning

In this picture of Lookout Mountain in Rock City, GA, the top of the mountain seems to be the headgear for the face underneath. Gives the term stone faced a whole new meaning.

Image: kthschsslr

This mountain top in Estes Park, Colorado does not only have a face, but doesn’t the top part going to the right look like a howling bear? Or maybe one starts seeing hidden faces and animals everywhere after looking at too many rock faces…

Forex Update :-
US Dollar Forecast for Recovery Will be Put to the Test

The US Dollar finished the week higher against the Euro and other key counterparts, but a sharply disappointing Nonfarm Payrolls report nearly derailed the nascent Greenback recovery through Friday’s close. The trade-weighted US Dollar Index hit fresh monthly highs near 77.50 just ahead of the release. Immediate declines in the US S&P 500 initially sent the dollar higher, but markets clearly expressed their displeasure with the worse-than-expected payrolls release and sold USD through in subsequent trading. Sudden USD losses complicate our otherwise bullish near-term Dollar forecast, but we continue to forecast further Greenback recovery through near-term trade. Comparatively limited event risk in the days ahead has left volatility expectations lower, but flare-ups in financial market tensions could nonetheless force major moves across USD currency pairs.

Earlier in the week we argued that the US Dollar set an important bottom against the Euro on fairly clear sentiment extremes. US CFTC Commitment of Traders data shows that Non-Commercial traders—a group mostly comprised of hedge funds and other large speculators—remained the most net-long the Euro/US Dollar since it traded near 1.6000 in early 2008. Though sentiment can and does remain extreme for extended periods of time, early signs of EURUSD reversal support our calls for a broader US Dollar reversal. Strong correlations between the US Dollar and key risky asset classes nonetheless leave the currency at the throes of the recent upheaval in the S&P 500. It will subsequently be critical to watch for any signs that the recent equity market tumble is the start of a larger decline.

US Dollar traders should almost certainly keep an eye out for abrupt shifts in risk sentiment, but a relatively empty US economic calendar leaves limited scope for major day-to-day shifts. The notable exception is Monday’s US ISM Non-Manufacturing report, which will shed further light on the state of the domestic services industry. According to 2008 estimates, the Services industry accounts for nearly 80 percent of US GDP. Suffice it to say, any noteworthy surprises in the highly-anticipated report could force major moves in the US Dollar and broader financial markets. Indeed, the ISM Non-Manufacturing survey tends to be one of the most market-moving events on release.