Wonders of world: December 2011

Bagan

In Bagan, the mystifying and ancient city with thousands of pagodas, it is hard to look any direction without taking sight to some sort of ancient building. The vast openness of the land will take your breath away. You can almost feel the holiness of this place as you are surrounded by earth colored temples and open farmland. Located along the grand Ayeyarwaddy River, Bagan is a cultural and historical treasure located in the heart of Myanmar.

The temples and pagodas of Bagan can be dated from the 11th and 12th centuries. This city was once called “the city of four million pagodas,” and still to this day Bagan is the world’s largest area of temples, pagodas, stupas and ruins. The exact number of temples and ruins varies depending on what is considered a temple or ruin, but the number ranges from 2,200 to 4,000. You can easily consume three or four days here wander in the awe inspiring ruins of Bagan.

The canals are now a quaint upscale neighborhood in Venice. Fully restored and remodeled homes make it a postcard scene along the canal shores. Venice California originally was to be a copy of Venice, Italy, canals and all. Few of the original canals remain today.

The original 16 miles of canals were dug in 1904 under the direction of Abbot Kinney. Man and mule worked around the clock to dig the canals in time for the grand opening of Venice on July 4, 1905. Kinney was displeased with the progress so he deployed steam dredging equipment to complete the canals on time.

When Venice of America was first conceived by Kinney, life was literately in the horse and buggy age. By the twenties, the automobile had made its mark and was here to stay. The canals were not practical for the horseless carriage. In 1929 the majority of the canals were filled in and converted to roads

St. Basil’s Cathedral in Moscow, Russia was built by Ivan the Terrible between 1555 and 1561. According to legends, the builder of this Cathedral was blinded so that such a beautiful structure could never be built again. The Cathedral is vividly colorful and contains redbrick towers that add to its beauty. The church’s design consists of nine chapels, each mounted with its individual dome that marks the assault on the city of Kazan.

The Cathedral provides a strong religious symbolism and is based on architectural designs found in Jerusalem. Eight of the domes make a circular form around the ninth dome, forming a star (if viewed from the top). The number eight is considered an auspicious number according to Jewish calendar. There is a deep contrast

The Louvre Museum is unquestionably one of the finest art galleries in the world. Home to thousands of classic and modern masterpieces, the Louvre is the jewel in the crown of French culture, a towering testament to European civilisation and history.

Its quality and importance is highlighted through its popularity as the Louvre is the globes most-visited museum.

The Forbidden City is the No. 1 of top 10 Beijing must-to-see attractions. It is the most visited and popular sight for any Beijing tour, greatly recommended by BeijingHoliday.com tour guide.

Located at the exact center of Beijing, the Forbidden City is the world's largest palace complex, covering 720,000 square meters with 800 buildings and 9,000 rooms in total. It was the home to 24 emperors during the Ming and Qing dynasties, and is recognized as one of the most attractive five palaces in the world (the

Burj Al Arab (Arabic: ??? ??????,Tower of the Arabs) is a luxury hotel located in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. At 321 m (1,053 ft), it is the fourth tallest hotel in the world. Burj Al Arab stands on an artificial island 280 m (920 ft) out from Jumeirah beach, and is connected to the mainland by a private curving bridge. The shape of the structure is designed to mimic the sail of a ship. Sometimes described as "the world's only seven-Star hotel", its star rating has been often debated.

Abu Simbel is a set of two temples near the border of Egypt with Sudan. It was constructed for the pharaoh Ramesses II who reigned for 67 years during the 13th century BC (19th Dynasty).

The temples were cut from the rock and shifted to higher ground in the 1960s as the waters of Lake Nasser began to rise following completion of the Aswan High Dam.

The Great Temple is dedicated to Ramesses II and a statue of him is seated with three other gods within the innermost part of the rock-cut temple (the sanctuary). The temple's facade is dominated by four enormous seated statues of the Pharaoh (each over 20 metres or 67 feet high), although one has been damaged since ancient times.

The Victoria Falls constitutes one of the most spectacular natural wonders of the world. The Local people call it "Mosi-oa-Tunya" -- the smoke that thunders and the Falls are remarkable.

There is a magic about them manifested in the towering column of spray when the river is high, the thunder of the falling water, the terrifying abyss and tranquil lagoons upstream in which hippo and deadly crocodiles lurk.

The Victoria falls is 1 708 meters wide, making it the largest curtain of water in the world. It drops between 90m and 107m into the Zambezi Gorge and an average of 550,000 cubic metres of water plummet over the edge every minute.

The Alhambra , the complete form of which was Calat Alhambra , is a palace and fortress complex located in the Granada, Andalusia, Spain. It was constructed during the mid 14th century by the Moorish rulers of the Emirate of Granada in al-Andalus, occupying the top of the hill of the Assabica on the southeastern border of the city of Granada.

The Alhambra's Moorish palaces were built for the last Muslim Emirs in Spain and its court, of the Nasrid dynasty. After the Reconquista (reconquest) by the Reyes Católicos ("Catholic Monarchs") in 1492, some portions were used by the Christian rulers. The Palace of Charles V, built by Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor in 1527, was inserted in the Alhambra within the Nasrid fortifications. After being allowed to fall into disrepair for centuries, the Alhambra was "discovered" in the 19th century by European scholars and

The Niagara Falls, located on the Niagara River draining Lake Erie into Lake Ontario, is the collective name for the Horseshoe Falls and the adjacent American Falls along with the comparatively small Bridal Veil Falls, which combined form the highest flow rate of any waterfalls in the world and has a vertical drop of more than 165 feet (50 m). Horseshoe Falls is the most powerful waterfalls (vertical height along with flow rate) in North America. Niagara Falls forms the international border between the Canadian province of Ontario and the U.S. state of New York, also forming the southern end of the Niagara Gorge. The falls are located 17 miles (27 km) north-northwest of Buffalo, New York and 75 miles (121 km) south-southeast of Toronto, between the twin cities of Niagara Falls, Ontario, and Niagara Falls, New York.

Introduction

Niagara Falls are composed of two major sections, separated by Goat Island: the Horseshoe Falls on the Canadian side and the American Falls on the American side. The smaller Bridal Veil Falls are also located on

The archaeological site of Delphi is an UNESCO World Heritage site near the modern village of the same name in Greece. In ancient times it was the site of the most important oracle of the god Apollo. Delphi was revered throughout the Greek world as the site of the ?µfa??? stone, the centre of the universe.

Burj Khalifa, formerly known as Burj Dubai, is a skyscraper in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and the tallest man-made structure ever built, at 828 m.

The design incorporates ideas from traditional Islamic architecture, while the open petals of a desert flower were the inspiration for the tower’s base.

Burj Khalifa will be home to 1,044 luxury apartments, 49 floors of offices and eventually a 160-room Armani-branded hotel. Around 12,000 people are

The British Museum, in London, is widely considered to be one of the world's greatest museums of human history and culture. Its permanent collection, numbering some eight million works,is amongst the finest, most comprehensive, and largest in existence and originate from all continents, illustrating and documenting the story of human culture from its beginnings to the present.

The British Museum was established in 1753, largely based on the collections of the physician and scientist Sir Hans Sloane. The museum first opened to the public on 15 January 1759 in Montagu House in Bloomsbury, on the site of the current museum building. Its expansion over the following two and a half centuries was largely a result of an expanding British colonial footprint and has resulted in the creation of several branch

Angkor Wat was dedicated to the Hindu god Vishnu, the preserver of the world. A gigantic three-step pyramid is adorned by nine slender towers of enormous height. The steps of the pyramid are capped by galleries. Framed by an enclosure wall and a majestic moat, the temple covers 2.5 square kilometres. King Suryavarman II (1118-1148/50) built his state temple in the southeast quarter of Yasodharapura. This is why Angkor Wat is orientated to the West.ii The biggest temple in the world and the summit of Khmer architecture, Angkor Wat has incredible dimensions, incredible spaces of reliefs; reliefs are literally everywhere. In Angkor Wat there are more than two thousand Devata (Goddesses or Deities, commonly mixed up with the Apsara).Though it is called 'Angkor Wat' ('City of the Buddhist Monastery'), it has never been a town or capital,
but it is a genuine temple, in the 16th century its name was 'Brah Bisnulok' ('Holy Place of Vishnu'). Later on

The Sistine Chapel ceiling is a work of art like no other. The image of Adam's hand reaching out to God has become representative of Renaissance art, along with the Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci. "The Creation of Adam" is just one of the Michelangelo paintings in the Sistine Chapel, a soaring space that seems to span both heaven and earth.

Cappella Sistina, as it's called in Italian, is a part of the Apostolic Palace in Vatican City. The expansive space was first built in the Middle Ages and redesigned beginning in the fifteenth century. Michelangelo began work on the Sistine Chapel ceiling in 1508. After successful sculpting commissions in Florence, the artist was summoned to Rome in 1505 by Pope Julius II to begin work on the Pope's tomb. This project, located at Rome's Church of Saint Pietro in Vincoli, took 40 years to finish because of the interruptions, including the paintings on the Sistine Chapel ceiling.

Restoration on the hall began some decades earlier, featuring the paintings and tapestries of such luminaries as Botticelli and Raphael. But the Sistine Chapel ceiling was far from the masterpiece it would become—it was painted blue and adorned with gold stars. When the Renaissance master began to work on the Sistine Chapel, the ceiling was transformed into the visual masterpiece that has been admired by so many

The Ngorongoro Conservation Area covers 8,292 square kilometers. It is one of the three divisions that comprise Ngorongoro District in Arusha Region.

NCA was established in 1959 by the NCA Ordinance No 413 of 1959 as a multiple land use area, designated to promote the conservation of natural resources, safeguard the interests of NCA indigenous residents and promote tourism. NCA is a

Ladakh is located at the western side of Himalayas and is protected by four mountains ranges namely Himalayan, Zanskar, Ladakh and Karakoram. The place is surrounded by a labyrinth of extremely elevated flurry capped peaks and the principal glaciers exterior to the glacial area, rule the topography where gorge depth array from a mere 8000 ft. to 15000 ft. while passes of up to 20000 ft. and peaks getting above 25000 ft. be able to be seen all about. The world's biggest glacier external to the glacial county, Siechen is at this time. Such intimidating stature, establish the land's temperature.

The main watercourse of Ladakh is Indus which penetrates India from Tibet at Ldemchok. Opening in

Hong Kong is a huge city with several district articles containing sightseeing, restaurant, nightlife and accommodation listings — consider printing them all.

Hong Kong (?? Heung góng in Cantonese, meaning fragrant harbour) is a place with multiple personalities, as a result of being both Cantonese Chinese and under a more recent contemporary ex-British influence. Today, the former British colony is a major tourism destination for China's increasingly affluent mainland population. It is also an important hub in East Asia with global connections to many of the world's cities. It is a unique destination that has absorbed people and cultural influences from places as diverse as Vietnam and Vancouver and proudly proclaims itself to be Asia's World City.

Great Barrier Reef

Barrier is not only the main tourist attraction of Queensland’s, but also one of the natural wonders of the world. It is the largest coral reef in the world – and one of the most accessible.

The largest coral reef in the world is made up of 2,500 separate reefs, interconnected, that extend over an area of over 2,900 km, from the northern end of Australia‘s continental shelf to Bundaberg in the south. The barrier is comprised of numerous layers of polyps – small marine invertebrates that reproduce very

Golden Pavilion Kyoto Japan: The Golden Pavilion (Kinkakuji) is literally covered in gold - gold leaf. The Golden Pavilion is World Heritage listed and surround by beautiful gardens.

Golden Pavilion is the popular name for one of the main buildings of a Buddhist Japanese temple in Kyoto Japan. The name Golden Pavilion comes from the Japanese term Kinkakuji, which literally means the temple of the Golden Pavilion(???). Rokuon-ji (??? Deer Garden Temple) is the formal name of the temple complex in which the Golden Pavilion is found.

Golden Pavilion - History

In the 1220’s it was the comfortable villa of Kintsune Saionji. Yoshimitsu, the 3rd Shogun of Ashikaga,

The Valley of the Kings in Upper Egypt contains many of the tombs of pharaohs from the New Kingdom, including Tutankhamun and Ramesses the Great. (See the end of this article for recent discoveries.)

The Valley of the Kings occupies the lower centre of the image.

The Valley of the Kings actually has two components - the East Valley and the West Valley. It is the East Valley which most tourists visit and in which most of the tombs of the New Kingdom Pharaohs can be found. (The West Valley has only one remote tomb open to the public, that of Ay who was Tutankhamun's successor.)

One of the dilemmas for the normal tourist is trying to decide which tombs to enter. The normal ticket permits three tombs and that will probably suffice for one visit. If you rush, you won't appreciate or remember the details of each tomb. The tomb of Tutankhamun (KV62) requires a separate ticket.

The Gallery is housed in the building built by Cosimo I of Medici and designed by Vasari in 1560. But the collection was started in 1574 when Cosimo's son, Francesco I, transformed the second floor of the Vasarian building into a place 'to walk in with paintings, sculptures and other precious things' and entrusted Buontalenti with the creation of a Tribune where art objects could be exhibited.

Vasari, who died that same year, could hardly have imagined that inside that building, born to house the Magistracy, almost all the major painters (not just Florentine) whose biographies he had written in one of the most interesting documents on the history of art, Lives, would have been on show.

Marrakesh the red city, is the former imperial city of Morocco. The city has two parts, an ancient walled city, Medina and the modern city-adjacent Guéliz or New Town. Both cities have a lifestyle that contrasts with the outside world. Medina has long, narrow streets with traditional shops full of life and character. On the contrary, has a modernist vision Guéliz with fast food chains, brand stores, homes and fantastic modern hotels.

With the population of 1,070,838, the city is served by Menara International Airport. Direct flights to Marrakesh are from London or Paris, however, all other parts of the world, the land of flights from Casablanca where they depart for Marrakesh. Several airlines such as Ryanair, Royal Air Morocco and respiratory Thompson operate from the city.

Royal Air Morocco provides the cheapest rates anywhere in the world to Marrakesh. It offers very cheap flights from UK to Marrakesh

The Eiffel Tower (French: La Tour Eiffel, [tu? ?f?l], nickname La dame de fer, the iron lady) is a puddle iron lattice tower located on the Champ de Mars in Paris. Built in 1889, it has become both a global icon of France and one of the most recognizable structures in the world. The tower is the tallest building in Paris[10] and the most-visited paid monument in the world; millions of people ascend it every year. Named after its designer, engineer Gustave Eiffel, the tower was built as the entrance arch to the 1889 World's Fair.

The tower stands 324 metres (1,063 ft) tall, about the same height as an 81-storey building. During its construction, the Eiffel Tower surpassed the Washington Monument to assume the title of the tallest man-made structure in the world, a title it held for 41 years, until the Chrysler Building in New York City was built in 1930. However, due to the addition, in 1957, of the antenna atop the Eiffel Tower, it is now taller than the Chrysler Building. Not including broadcast antennas, it is the second-tallest structure in France, after the Millau Viaduct.

The tower has three levels for visitors. Tickets can be purchased to ascend, by stairs or lift, to the first and second levels. The walk from ground level to the first level is over 300 steps, as is the walk from the first to the second level. The third and highest level is accessible only by elevator. Both the first and second levels feature restaurants.

The tower has become the most prominent symbol of both Paris and France, often in the establishing shot of films set in the city.

History

The structure was built between 1887 and 1889 as the entrance arch for the Exposition Universelle, a World's Fair marking the centennial celebration of the French Revolution. Three hundred workers joined

The Amazon rainforest, also known as Amazonia, is one of the world's greatest natural resources. Because its vegetation continuously recycles carbon dioxide into oxygen, it has been described as the "Lungs of our Planet". About 20% of earth's oxygen is produced by the Amazon rainforest.

The Amazon rainforest gets its name from the Amazon River, the life force of the rainforest. The Amazon River begins in the Peruvian Andes, and winds its way east over the northern half of South America. It meets the Atlantic Ocean at Belem, Brazil. The main river is about 4,080 miles long. Its drainage basin covers 2,722,000 million square miles, and lies in the countries of Brazil, Columbia, Peru, Venezuela, Ecuador, Bolivia, and the three Guyanas. Sixteen percent of all the world's river water flows through the Amazon delta. Twenty eight billion gallons of water flow into the Atlantic every minute, diluting the salinity of the ocean for more than 100 miles offshore. The Amazon rainforest watershed is home to the world's highest level of biodiversity.

Taj Mahal is regarded as one of the eight wonders of the world, and some Western historians have noted that its architectural beauty has never been surpassed. The Taj is the most beautiful monument built by the Mughals, the Muslim rulers of India. Taj Mahal is built entirely of white marble. Its stunning architectural beauty is beyond adequate description, particularly at dawn and sunset. The Taj seems to glow in the light of the full moon. On a foggy morning, the visitors experience the Taj as if suspended when viewed from across the Jamuna river.

A building form closely associated with New York City is the skyscraper, which has controversially shifted many commercial and residential districts from low-rise to high-rise. Surrounded mostly by water, the city has amassed one of the largest and most varied collection of skyscrapers in the world.

New York has architecturally significant buildings in a wide range of styles spanning distinct historical and cultural periods. These include the Woolworth Building (1913), an early Gothic revival skyscraper with large-scale gothic architectural detail. The 1916 Zoning Resolution required setback in new buildings, and restricted towers to a percentage of the lot size, to allow sunlight to reach the streets below.The Art Deco design of the Chrysler Building (1930) and Empire State Building (1931), with their tapered tops and steel spires, reflected

The greatest collection of Egyptian antiquities is, without doubt, that of the Egyptian Museum in Cairo. It is a place of true discovery and, even after many visits, I continue to make new and delightful discoveries every time I venture into its many galleries.

To be sure, the museum can be daunting in the sheer numbers of its antiquities on show, but there is an order within its layout and it is a dream come true for anyone wanting to study Egyptian antiquities.

However, the negative side is that the environmental and display conditions leave a great deal to be desired. Labels on some exhibits date from early in the century and many items have no labels at all. Guidebooks are available at the museum, although they are limited to some of the major items.

Dubrovnik is an old city on the Adriatic Sea coast in the extreme south of Croatia. It is one of the most prominent tourist resorts of the Mediterranean, a seaport and the center of the Dubrovnik-Neretva County. Its population is about 43,000 in 2011. Dubrovnik is nicknamed "Pearl of the Adriatic" and is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1979.

Dubrovnik

The city of Dubrovnik (Latin: Ragusa) was built on maritime trade. In the Middle Ages it became the only

Damascus, the oldest continuously inhabited city in the world

Damascus is the capital of Syria and one of the most ancient cities in the world. Controversial explanations have been made to guess etymological origin of the name of the Syrian capital city. Some hold that ?damashaq? means the fast-moving camel

What's the meaning of Damascus

Controversial explanations have been made to guess etymological origin of the name of the Syrian

Borobudur is a Buddhist stupa and temple complex in Central Java, Indonesia dating from the 8th century, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This is one of world's truly great ancient monuments, the single largest Buddhist structure anywhere on earth, and few who visit fail to be taken by both the scale of place, and the remarkable attention to detail that went into the construction. Set as it is in the heart of the verdant Kedu Plain, the backdrop of mighty active volcanoes only enhances the sense of awe and drama.

History

There is no definite written record of who built Borobudur or why it was built. It was likely founded as a

Bali is a small tropical island and is one over twenty thousand islands that make up Indonesia. Getting there by plane is fairly easy from any country. Before you decide to book your flights or Bali Hotels, you need to find out what the status is with regards Bali visa requirements for your specific country. If you are coming from an Indonesian country then you don’t need a visa but may need to pay airport tax as you enter the country, whatever your visa is or the type of ticket you bought you will have to pay an entry and exit tax.
Even if your ticket specifies that airport tax has been paid, you will still have to pay at the airport before boarding your flight and when you land, so keep some local Indonesian Rupiahs handy.

The Church – Cathedral of Cordoba Spain, popularly know as the Mosque of Cordoba or the “Mezquita”, stands over a Christian church built in the Visigothic period (5th C).
In 711, after Moorish conquest of the Iberian Peninsula, it was used as a Mosque. In 786, Abd al-Rahman I tore down St Vicente church and erected the first section of the Great Mosque in its place, re-using much of the church’s materials. His descendants expanded the building twice towards the river, and the ruler Almanzor made a final enlargement in 988. In 1236, following Cordoba’s fall to Ferdinand of Castile and after over 500 years of use as a mosque, the site was re-consecrated Christian. The Cannons decided to erect a cathedral in the center of the mosque in 1523, tearing down the center to make room. The enclosed choir area now blocks some of the original views, yet the Mosque remains sublime. With the richest areas still untouched and its extensive vistas of columns and double arches, it is the foremost Islamic monument in Spain and a unique example of the inter-play of Christian and Moslem cultures in Spain.

The Matterhorn (German), Monte Cervino (Italian) or Mont Cervin (French), is a mountain in the Pennine Alps on the border between Switzerland and Italy. Its summit is 4,478 metres (14,690 ft) high, making it one of the highest peaks in the Alps. The four steep faces, rising above the surrounding glaciers, face the four compass points. The mountain overlooks the town of Zermatt in the canton of Valais to the north-east and Breuil-Cervinia in the Aosta Valley to the south. The Theodul Pass, located at the eastern base of the peak, is the lowest passage between its north and south side.

aller than Niagara Falls, twice as wide with 275 cascades spread in a horsehoe shape over nearly two miles of the Iguazu River, Iguazú Falls are the result of a volcanic eruption which left yet another large crack in the earth. During the rainy season of November - March, the rate of flow of water going over the falls may reach 450,000 cubic feet (12,750 cubic m) per second.

These matter of fact details do nothing to describe the grandeur of the falls, the tremendous amount of water (an average of 553 cubic feet per second) thundering down 269 feet, the tropical location and the sheer beauty that led Eleanor Roosevelt to say

Yellowstone National Park is the flagship of the National Park Service and a favorite to millions of visitors each year. The park is a major destination for all members of the family. By driving the grand loop road, visitors can view the park from the comfort of their vehicle and also take a rest at one of the many roadside picnic areas. For the active visitor, the park has thousands of miles of trails from dayhikes to backcountry explorations. The main attractions are all located on the grand loop road and here are some of the top reasons to visit the park. This site has a lot of the information you need for your trip and you may also consider our dvd "The Wonders of Yellowstone" to help you plan your visit.

Saint Peter's square is the greatest piazza in Rome. In Roman time it was the place where the Circus of Nero stood, and where in 65 was crucified St. Peter. After 250 years he was buried in the point where Costantine built the first Basilica in 326. Notice that up to that epoch Rome was of pagan faith and the bodies were buried in the catacombs outside the walls of the city, and only after the edict of Milan in 313 Costantine and Licinius allowed the Christians to freely observe their religion and to bury the bodies inside the city boundaries: that's why St. Peter was buried in the homonymous area more than 250 years later.

St.Peter's Basilica belongs to the Vatican City, the smallest State of the world, and it is independent from February 11 th 1929, date in which was resolved the Roman Question, with the ratification of the Lateran Treaty, between the Church and the Italian State.

Santorini (Greek: Sa?t?????, pronounced [sado'rini]), officially Thira (Greek: T??a ['?ira]), is an island located in the southern Aegean Sea, about 200 km (120 mi) southeast from Greece's mainland. It is the largest island of a small, circular archipelago which bears the same name and is the remnant of a volcanic caldera. It forms the southernmost member of the Cyclades group of islands, with an area of approximately 73 km2 (28 sq mi) and a 2001 census population of 13,670. The municipality of Santorini comprises the inhabited islands of Santorini and Therasia and the uninhabited islands of Nea Kameni, Palaia Kameni, Aspronisi, and Christiana. The total land area is 90.623 km2 (34.990 sq mi). Santorini is part of the Thira regional unit.

Santorini is essentially what remains after an enormous volcanic explosion that destroyed the earliest

Coral reefs

As late as 2000, some coral reefs were discovered along the bottoms of the Norwegian fjords. These reefs were found in fjords from the north of Norway to the south. The marine life on the reefs is believed to be one of the most important reasons why the Norwegian coastline is such a generous fishing ground. Since this discovery is fairly new, little research has been done. The reefs are host to thousands of lifeforms such as plankton, coral, anemones, fish, several species of shark, and many more. Most are specially adapted to life under the greater pressure of the water column above it, and the total darkness of the deep sea.

New Zealand's fjords are also host to deep sea corals, but a surface layer of dark fresh water allows these corals to grow in much shallower water than usual. An underwater observatory in Milford Sound allows tourists to view them without diving.

The Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple is located in the heart of Madurai city, Tamil Nadu in India covering an area of around 45 acres. The greatest architectural marvel of India is dedicated to Lord Shiva in the form of Sundareswarar and his wife the Goddess Parvati in the form of Meenakshi.

Also called Meenakshi Amman Temple was built by Pandya King Kulasekara and reconstructed later by Ruler Thirumalai Nayak, the temple has patronized literature, art, music and dance ever since its inception. It is a significant symbol for the Tamil people attracting six thousand visitors a day and gets an annual revenue of rupees sixty million. Recently nominated in the list for the new Seven Wonders of the World and the temple was selected one of the Seven Wonders of India.

According to tradition, Chartres Cathedral has housed the tunic of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Sancta Camisia, since 876. The relic was said to have been given to the cathedral by Charlemagne, who received it as a gift during a trip to Jerusalem. Because of this relic, Chartres has been a very important Marian pilgrimage center and the faithful still come from the world over to honor it.

The present cathedral is one of several French Gothic masterpieces built because fire had destroyed its predecessors. After the first cathedral of any great substance burnt down in 1020, a glorious new Romanesque basilica with a massive crypt was built under the direction of Bishop Fulbert and later Geoffroy de Lèves.

There are no indigenous people on Antarctica. The population varies from fewer than 1,000 in winter to over 51,000 in summer: 5,000 scientists from 27 of the countries party to the Antarctic Treaty, plus 46,069 tourists last season - 2007/2008.

Antarctica surrounds the South Pole. The nearest landmass is South America, which is over 620 miles from the tip of the Antarctic Peninsula.

Surface area: 14 million square miles (36 million square kilometers).

Skywalk, is Arizona's newest and probably most controversial attraction. Since it's opening in march 2007 misconceptions about its location, logistics and cost have abounded, which has left some visitors with a less than favorable impression of the Grand Canyon.

You might be under the impression, that the Grand Canyon Skywalk is located near Grand Canyon Village. The truth is, it is a long way from Grand Canyon Village, and getting there is by no means easy.

The key to a positive experience with the Grand Canyon Skywalk is information about its location, what it takes to get there, and how much it will cost. Skywalk is located at Grand Canyon West, which is a native American tribal park owned and operated by the Hualapai Indian tribe, located about 3 hours from Las Vegas, NV.

A trip to the Galapagos Island will be the journey of your lifetime. Located 1,000 km from the Ecuadorian mainland, the archipelago consist of 13 major islands, of which 5 are inhabited. Find out more about the famous Islands by taking virtual trip with us!

The Island's interesting volcanic geology, as well as its rich flora and fauna have been admired and studied by numerous travelers, scientist, and nature-lovers. Scientist are still faced with a mystery how such a large diversity of species could develop in a remote location like the Galapagos Islands.

On the Islands, a multitude of animals, by most people only known from the Discovery Channel, are romping about: the main reason for tourists and nature lovers to pay the Galapagos Islands a visit.

Located on the Churun river, which is a tributary of the Carrao, Angel Falls is the highest freshwater, freefalling waterfall in the world.

It has an uninterrupted fall of 2,648 feet with an overall fall of 3,212 feet. First seen by and explorer Ernesto Sanchez La Cruz, the western world was not aware of this natural wonder until it was brought to our attention by a pilot James Crawford Angel, who sighted it while he was flying over looking for an ore bed in 1935.

The Amalfi Coast, or Costiera Amalfitana in Italian, is a stretch of coastline on thesouthern side of the Sorrentine Peninsula of Italy in the Province of Salerno, extending from Positano in the west to Vietri sul Mare in the east. Amalfi is of course, as the name suggests, the main town of the coast and today an important tourist destination together with other towns such as Ravello and Positano.

Cappadocia which is unique in the world and is a miraculous nature wonder is the common name of the field covered by the provinces of Aksaray, Nevsehir, Nigde, Kayseri and Kirsehir in the Central Anatolian region.

In the upper Myosen period in the Cappadocia region as a result of the vulcanic eruptions occurred in Erciyes, Hasandag and Gulludag, in the region was formed a large tableland from the vulcanic tufas and together with the erosion of the Kizilirmak river and wind over ten thausands of years there appeared the chimney rocks which are a wonder of the nature. In the old Bronze Age the Cappadocia which was the population zone of the Assyrian civilization later has hosted the Hittite, Frig, Pers, Byzantine, Seljuk and Ottoman civilizations. The first Christians escaped from the persecution of the Roman Empire in the 2nd century B.C. came to the Cappadocia over the Antakya and Kayseri and they have settled here. The first Christians finding the underground cities from Cappadocia have been hidden in these underground cities which gates were made in such way in which they couldn't be easily observed and they have escaped from the persecution of the Roman soldiers. Due that they had live in the underground cities for long duration without being able to go out they have developed these underground cities by making provisions rooms, ventilation chimneys, wine production places, churches, abbeys, water wells, toilets and meeting rooms.

Istanbul's history dates back to 633 B.C. when Doric settlers from Megara founded a small, commercial colony here that became known as Byzantion. Two major constraints dictated the siting of ancient cities: topography and strategic considerations. The site of this new town was located at the tip of a peninsula that commanded three waterways. With the formal establishment of the polis, a city wall measuring five kilometers in length and having twenty-seven towers was built as protection. Within the walls, a hill within the walls was selected as its acropolis. This was the first of the city's eventual seven hills - apparently a topographical "must" for legendary ancient cities.

Every one who has a chance to see nearly two million animals on the move has
been touched by the magic of this place. What is it that gets under our skin? – the
urgency of the movement of the wildebeest ?– the wide-open plains? – the African
light? Or maybe it is the fact that we all come from here not such a long time ago
and our deepest unconsciousness remembers the time, 6000 generations ago when
we all lived in Olduvai? Or maybe it is just the sheer numbers of the migrating
animals as they move in the world’s last surviving great migration.
Today more animals move through the Serengeti plains and woodlands than the
Grzimek’s dreamed about. At least for the time being, their fears have not come
true and the Serengeti lives as a true dynamic ecosystem, defined by the long lines
of the wildebeest trek.

Step into the Old Town Square in Prague and journey back in time, 600 or 700 years. As you stand in awe, the dramatic history of Prague permeates the air.

The Old Town Square (Staromestské námestí) is one of two main squares in Prague (Wenceslas Square is the other, just 5 minutes walk away).

With its ancient buildings and magnificent churches, this is one of the most beautiful historical sights in Europe.