Coasts around the world in pictures

In summer, the water is so inviting. To take a break from the stuffy metropolis on the golden beach of the resort, or at least get out to a nearby reservoir for the weekend, many of us try to go to the coast in the warm season.

The coastlines of the seas, lakes and rivers are a combination of dynamically developing human settlements and the picturesque natural world. But often the natural beauty of coastal areas carries a hidden danger, as many of the world's major cities are below sea level and are at potential risk of flooding.

Let's take a look at the life that thrives on the coasts in different parts of the world and at different times of the year.

(Total 46 photos)

1. Christian Tio surfs at the Agro Beach Resort on the island of Bintan, Indonesia, February 23, 2013. (Xaume Olleros/Getty Images)

2. A worker clears debris from Fun Town Pier, damaged during Superstorm Sandy, in Seaside Heights, New Jersey, February 19, 2013. (Mark Wilson/Getty Images)

3. Baby vulture turtle on the beach in Litchfield Beach, South Carolina, August 17, 2012. Volunteers walk the beaches of South Carolina daily during the nesting season to keep an eye on endangered species. (Randall Hill/Reuters)

4. A man jumps into the North Sea at an air temperature of 8 degrees Celsius during the traditional New Year's swim in Ostend, Belgium, January 5, 2013. (Girth Vanden Wijngaert/Associated Press)

5. Garrett McNamara conquers the 24-meter wave on the beach of Praia do Norte in Nazar, Portugal, January 28, 2013. (Associated Press)

6. A fisherman pulls his net out of the water at sunset in Al-Habbaniya, Iraq, October 26, 2012. (Saad Shalash / Reuters)

7. A man fishes on the shores of Victoria Harbor in Hong Kong, November 8, 2012. (Kin Chen / Associated Press) #

8 Athletes lose control of their boat at Dee Why Beach in Sydney on February 2, 2013. (Cameron Spencer/Getty Images) #

9. Fishermen unload their catch on the shores of Banyuwangi in east Java, Indonesia, October 18, 2012. Indonesia belongs to the six countries of the coral triangle, which also includes Malaysia, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, Timor Leste and the Solomon Islands. (Aman Rochman/AFP/Getty Images)

10. Workers collect seaweed along Pandawa Beach in Jimbaran, Bali, November 6, 2012. Hundreds of people earn their living by collecting and selling seaweed, which is a popular dish in the region. (Sonny Tambelaka/AFP/Getty Images)

11. 77-year-old Cecilia Villegas swims up to the dock after a morning fishing on the Pacific coast of the island of Cano Ciego near Puntarenas, Costa Rica, October 3, 2012. Fishing is the only source of income for the 30 families living on this small island. (Juan Carlos Ulate/Reuters)

12. Brandt Snedeker takes part in a tournament on the golf course in Pebble Beach, California, February 10, 2013. (Ben Margot/Associated Press)

13. A man dressed as a monk jumps into the water from a 13-meter cliff on Herradura beach in Lima, November 16, 2012. The jump was in memory of a local legendary monk who committed suicide by jumping off the same cliff because of his love for a woman some 200 years ago. (Marianne Bazo/Reuters)

14. A surfer jumps into the sea from a pier in Durban, South Africa, February 6, 2013. (Kim Ludbrook/EPA)

15. A surfer falls off his board at Banzai Beach in Santa Marinella, Italy on December 5, 2012. (Max Rossi/Reuters)

16. British Kitesurfing Championship in North Devon, England, October 17, 2012. (Toby Melville/Reuters)

17. A man participates in a Halloween surf contest in Santa Monica on October 27, 2012. (Lucy Nicholson/Reuters)

18. A whale jumps out of the water overlooking Virginia Beach on January 5, 2013. (Stephen Katz/Associated Press)

19. Icicles hang on Lake Shore Drive in Chicago on February 1, 2013. (Nam Huh/Associated Press)

20. People stand against the wind on the beach in Scheveningen, the Netherlands, November 25, 2012. (Phil Neuhaus/AFP/Getty Images)

21. Two women are engaged in paddle surfing on Copacabana beach in Rio de Janeiro, December 16, 2012. (Pilar Olivares/Reuters)

Nudists walk along Fora Beach in Finisterre, Spain on November 10, 2012. (Miguel Riopa/AFP/Getty Images)

23. Hindu sadhu walks among the birds on the beach on the Arabian Sea in Mumbai, November 5, 2012. (Danish Siddiqui/Reuters)

24. Kitesurfers hit the ice in Garrison, Minnesota on March 3, 2013. (Kelly Humphrey/Associated Press)

25. Hindus gather on the banks of the Ganges River during the celebration of Kumbhamela in Allahabad, February 9, 2013. In total, about 100 million believers took part in the event. (Roberto Schmidt/AFP/Getty Images)

26. Lonely goose among hundreds of gulls on the shores of Lake Erie in Cleveland, January 7, 2013. (Tony Dejac/Associated Press)

27. Sandy streets and houses in Jersey Shore after Superstorm Sandy, October 31, 2012. The total economic damage from Sandy is approximately $50 billion, making it the second costliest hurricane in US history after Katrina. (Mike Groll/Associated Press)

28. Surfers try to break the Guinness record for the most number of surfers on a wave in Meizenberg, South Africa, September 30, 2012. (Shok van Zuydam/Associated Press)

29. Horse racing at Castlepoint Beach in Masterton, New Zealand, March 2, 2013. (Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images)

30. Birds search for food on the beach in Cardiff, California, on November 6, 2012. (Mike Blake/Reuters)

31. A bird follows an olive turtle at La Flor Beach in Nicaragua on November 15, 2012. La Flor is one of the seven beaches in Central America where over 100,000 olive turtles nest each year. (Osvaldo Rivas/Reuters)

32. A woman walks her dog along Leo Carrillo Beach, north of Malibu, California on March 2, 2013. (Joe Clamar/AFP/Getty Images)

33. Drawings left by the tide in the sand, on Filey Beach, England, March 2, 2013. (Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)

34. A girl walks along a dirty beach after a fire in Kyaukphyu, Myanmar, on November 5, 2012. (Minzayar/Reuters)

35. Beach in St. Aubin, Jersey, after high tide, November 11, 2012. (Stefan Wermuth/Reuters)

36. A woman walks on a bridge over Dal Lake in Srinagar, Kashmir, on October 18, 2012. (Fayaz Kabli/Reuters)

37. A wave crashes into the Corniche during a storm in Beirut, Lebanon, January 8, 2013. (Sharif Karim/Reuters)

38. Strong waves as Superstorm Sandy approaches the coast in Winthrop, Massachusetts, on October 29, 2012. (Darren McCollester/Getty Images) #

39. People gather on the beach as the oil tanker Pratibha Kaveri ran aground in Chennai, India on October 31, 2012. (Seshadri Sukumarstrdel/AFP/Getty Images)

40. Workers explore the coast near the Ohi nuclear power plant, Fukui Prefecture, Japan, November 2, 2012. (Kyodo News/Associated Press)

41. A fisherman untangles a net on Lee Son Island in Quang Ngai province, Vietnam, August 10, 2013. (Nam Hoang Dinh/AFP/Getty Images)

42. Followers of the Afro-Brazilian Umbanda religion pay their respects to the goddess of the sea, Iemanja, in Praia Vermelhe, Rio de Janeiro, December 31, 2012. (Pilar Olivares/Reuters)

43. Children play on Clifton Beach in Karachi on November 14, 2012. (Atar Hussein/Reuters)

44. Tom Nee strengthens the foundation of his damaged home after a severe storm on Plum Island in Newbury, Massachusetts, February 9, 2013. (Elise Amendola/Associated Press)

45. The wreckage of the Japanese dock on the shore near Forks, Washington, January 3, 2013. Debris and other debris from the March 2011 Japanese tsunami washed ashore in the United States. (Associated Press)

46. A man makes a sand castle on a beach in Cadiz, Spain on January 15, 2013. (Emilio Morenatti/Associated Press)