The Red Fort in India
The Sydney Opera House
Surrounded by water on three sides, at what is known as Bennelong Point, stands one of the most magnificient buildings on one of the most beautiful harbours in the world. The Sydney Opera House, originally designed by the Danish Architect Joern Utzon, is meant to look like a giant sailing ship.
The Suez Canal
The idea of a canal linking the Mediterranean to the Red Sea dates back to ancient times. Unlike the modern Canal, earlier ones linked the Red Sea to the Nile, therefore forcing the ships to sail along the River on their journey from Europe to India. It has been suggested that the first Canal was dug during the reign of Tuthmosis III, although more solid evidence credits the Pharaoh Necho (Sixth Century BC) for the attempt. During the Persian invasion of Egypt, King Darius I ordered the Canal completed. The Red Sea Canal, consisted of two parts: the first linking the Gulf of Suez to the Great Bitter Lake, and the second connecting the Lake to one of the Nile branches in the Delta. The canal remained in good condition during the Ptolemaic era, but fell into disrepair afterwards. It was re-dug during the rule of the Roman Emperor Trajan, and later the Arab ruler Amr Ibn-Al-Aas. Over the years, it fell again into disrepair, and was completely abandoned upon the discovery of the trade route around Africa.
PETRA
Petra (lit. Rock) was the capital city of the Nabataeans, a tribe of pre-Roman Arabs who dominated the region around the Sixth century BC. Located at the crossroads of ancient trade routes, the city survived on toll and taxes collected from traders. Despite several attempts to conquer their capital, the Nabataeans remained practically independent until the defeat of Antony and Cleopatra and the reunification of the Roman Empire by Octavian in 31 BC. In 106, the Romans under Trajan finally captured Petra to mark the beginning of the decline of the city. The city remained unknown to the Western World for hundreds of years until a Swiss explorer, J.L. Burckhardt, heard about its existence from the local Bedouins in 1812.
The Throne of Persepolis
Founded in the Sixth Century BC by the Kings of the First Persian Empire (the Achaemenids), Persepolis is located 60 km northeast of Shiraz in Iran. The present-day Persian name, Takht-e-Jamshid, means "Throne of Jamshid", a legendary Iranian King. However, the ancient name of the city was Parsa, or Pars' City, hence the Greek name Persepolis.
The Temple of the Inscriptions
Situated at the eastern edge of the Rio Usumacinta Basin in the foothills of the Sierra Oriental de Chiapas at an elevation of slightly less that 3000 m, Palenque looks out on a low coastal plain extending to the Gulf of Mexico about 130 km. to the north. See Map 1.
The Mayan Temples of Tikal
The Statue of Liberty
The Inca City of Machu Picchu
The Incas of Peru have long held a mystical charm for people of the western world.
BOROBUDUR TEMPLE
The Wonders of World
The Banaue Rice Terraces
The Wonders of World
The Aztec Temple
The Wonders of World