Galapagos Island, Ecuador

The Galápagos Islands (official name: Archipiélago de Colón; other Spanish names: Islas de Colón or Islas Galápagos) are an archipelago of volcanic islands distributed around the equator in the Pacific Ocean, 972 km (525 nmi) west of continental Ecuador, of which they are a part.
The Galápagos Islands and its surrounding waters form an Ecuadorian province, a national park, and a biological marine reserve. The principal language on the islands is Spanish. The islands have a population of around 23,000.

The islands are geologically young and famed for their vast number of endemic species, which were studied by Charles Darwin during the voyage of the Beagle. His observations and collections contributed to the inception of Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection.

The first crude navigation chart of the islands was done by the buccaneer Ambrose Cowley in 1684. He named the individual islands after some of his fellow pirates or after the English noblemen who helped the privateer's cause. More recently, the Ecuadorian government gave most of the islands Spanish names. While the Spanish names are official, many users (especially ecological researchers) continue to use the older English names, particularly as those were the names used when Charles Darwin visited.

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Dubrovnik, Croatia

Dubrovnik (pronounced [dǔbrɔ̝ːv̞nik]; Italian: Ragusa) is a Croatian city on the Adriatic Sea coast, positioned at the terminal end of the Isthmus of Dubrovnik. It is one of the most prominent tourist destinations on the Adriatic, a seaport and the centre of Dubrovnik-Neretva county. Its total population is 42,641 (census 2011). In 1979, the city of Dubrovnik joined the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites.

The prosperity of the city of Dubrovnik has always been based on maritime trade. In the Middle Ages, as the Republic of Ragusa, also known as a Maritime Republic (together with Amalfi, Pisa, Genoa, Venice and other Italian cities), it became the only eastern Adriatic city-state to rival Venice. Supported by its wealth and skilled diplomacy, the city achieved a high level of development, particularly during the 15th and 16th centuries. Although demilitarised in the 1970s with the intent of forever protecting it from war devastation, in 1991, after the breakup of Yugoslavia, it was besieged by Serb-Montenegrin forces for 7 months and received heavy damage from being shelled.

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Petronas Towers, Malaysia

The Petronas Towers (Malay: Menara Petronas, also known as the Petronas Twin Towers or Menara Berkembar Petronas in Malay) are skyscrapers and twin towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. According to the CTBUH's official definition and ranking, they were the tallest buildings in the world from 1998 to 2004 until surpassed by Taipei 101, but remain the tallest twin buildings in the world ever built, surpassing the World Trade Center. The building is the landmark of Kuala Lumpur with nearby Kuala Lumpur Tower.

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Bu Tinah Island, United Arab Emirates

Off the western shores of Abu Dhabi, in the United Arab Emirates,  lies a unique natural treasure, wild and undisturbed by human activity: Bu Tinah Island. Bu Tinah’s thriving ecosystem forms a unique living laboratory with key significance for climate change research. An undisturbed paradise, Bu Tinah has much to teach mankind about environmental protection and survival. This distinctive natural habitat has shallow waters, seagrass beds and tall mangroves, set amid extensive coral reefs. It hosts beautiful and endangered marine life. Seabirds, including flamingos and osprey, various species of dolphins and the critically endangered hawksbill turtle live in Bu Tinah. The island’s waters host the world’s second-largest population of dugong, a large marine mammal that is threatened worldwide. Bu Tinah Island, rich in biodiversity, lies within the Marawah Marine Biosphere Reserve - the region's largest marine reserve. Its protection and survival must be ensured.

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Da Lat, Vietnam

Đà Lạt, or Dalat, (pop. 206,105 as of 2009, of which 185,509 are urban inhabitants) is the capital of Lam Dong province in Vietnam. The city is located 1,500 m (4,900 ft) above sea level on the Langbiang Plateau in the southern parts of the Central Highlands (in Vietnamese, Tây Nguyên). In Vietnam, Da Lat is a popular tourist destination.

Da Lat’s specific sights are pine wood (forming the name: “City of thousands of pine trees”) with twisting roads and tree marigold (Vietnamese: dã quỳ) blossom in the winter. The city’s temperate weather stands in contrast to Vietnam’s otherwise tropical climate. Mist covering the valleys almost year-round leads to its name “City of eternal spring”.

Da Lat is also known as an area for scientific research in the fields of biotechnology and nuclear physics.

With its year-round cool weather, Da Lat supplies temperate agriculture products for all over Vietnam, for example: cabbage and cauliflower. Its flower industry produces two typical flowers: hydrangea (Vietnamese: cẩm tú cầu) and golden everlasting (Vietnamese: hoa bất tử). The confectionery industry offers a wide range of mứt, a kind of fruit preserve made from strawberry, mulberry, sweet potato, and rose.

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Milan Cathedral, Milan, Italy

Milan Cathedral is a Gothic cathedral’s second largest church in the world capable of accommodating up to 40,000 Catholic pilgrims. The cathedral is located in Lombardy, Milan, Italy, precisely located in the main square of Milan. Milan Cathedral is one of the most famous buildings in Europe, so it became a tourist attraction that can bring many tourists to spend their holiday weekend at this place.

It is most attractive to local and foreign tourists visiting the cathedral at Milan is, they can see the beauty of the architectural design of complex and highly admirable. Building Catholic church dedicated to Santa Maria Nascente has interior design and shape of the building is very beautiful when seen.

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Chaweng Beach, Koh Samui, Thailand

Chaweng Beach is a beach resort located on the eastern island of Koh Samui, Thailand. This is the most popular beach resort of the several beaches in Koh Samui. Chaweng beach resort has soft white sand like flour, with a length of about 7 kilometers. Just like any other beach resort in Thailand, in the resort area of Chaweng beach there are also lots of entertainment, luxury hotels, restaurants, souvenir shops and others that you can visit with friends or family.

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Royal Palace of Madrid, Spain

Royal Palace of Madrid is a large historic building used as a palace of the king of Spain, but most of the Palace is open to the public. Construction of the Royal Palace of Madrid was built in 1738 until 1755, this large building has a wealth of decorative art and paintings by famous artists. Travelers can obtain valuable information about the history, artistic value with a variety of Royal Arms, Porcelain, Clocks, Furniture and silver.

On the exterior of the Royal Palace there is a statue of a saint with a variety of kings are embodied in a work with a classical touch. The interior consists of many rooms like the royal library, pharmacy, building weapons, and various galleries. Tourists can enjoy the great buildings of this historic freely, because the palace is open to the public but if there are events at the state banquet, this palace will be closed temporarily.

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Osaka Castle, Japan

Osaka Castle is a beautiful castle in Japan. The fortress is located in Chuo-ku, Osaka, this is a historic tourist attractions in Japan. This Castle stands on the land area of two square kilometers. The wall at the Osaka Castle has a height of 30 meters with a steep wall. This historic building is a beautiful tourist destination with unique scenery around it.

Osaka Castle with beautiful scenery surrounded by a moat, beautiful tower, the castle of secondary and garden with blooming flowers. Wall at Castle is composed of large stone blocks which were transported from a quarry about 100 kilometers away. It is a great struggle to build, therefore the Castle of Japanese save a lot of history. Osaka Castle is a beautiful tourist destination and is historic attractions in the unification of Japan during the sixteenth century. You can visit the this Castle with all its uniqueness and history.

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Victoria Falls, Zambia

The Victoria Falls is called “Mosi-oa-Tunya” by the local people, the smoke that thunders, and constitutes one of the best spectacular natural wonders of the world. With its 1708 meters wide became it in the largest curtain of water in the world also by its remarkable falls. The waterfall is situated in southern Africa on the Zambezi River between the countries of Zambia and Zimbabwe. It boasts of being the largest waterfall in the world with the most unusual in form and having the most diverse and easily seen wildlife of any major waterfall site.

The Victoria Falls still inspires visitors as it did with David Livingstone in the 1860s. The falls and surrounding area of this remarkable preserved natural state have been declared National Parks and a World Heritage Site, thus preserving the area from excessive commercialization.

During the flood season from February to May is impossible to see the foot of the falls and most of its face, and the walks along the cliff opposite it are in a constant shower and shrouded in mist. The minimum flow occurs in November.

Two cities are part of Victoria Falls: at the eastern end of it, Victoria Falls town in Zimbabwe lies on the southern bank of the Zambezi River and at 18km south of town, Victoria Falls Airport has international services to Johannesburg and Namibia. The second city, Livingstone in Zambia is a historic colonial city and tourism centre for Victoria Falls lying 10km south on the Zambezi River. Its airport has connections to Lusaka and Johannesburg in South Africa.

Mosi-oa-Tunya National Park in Zambia is an UNESCO World Heritage site along is twinned to the Victoria Falls National Park in Zimbabwe. It covers 66km2 from below the falls in a north-west arc along about 20km of the Zambian river bank.

Both Parks contain abundant wildlife including sizable population of elephant, buffalo, giraffe, zebra, vervet monkeys, baboons and a variety of antelope. Lion and leopard are occasionally seen. The river above the falls contains large populations of hippopotamus and crocodile. Klipspringers and clawless otters can be glimpsed in the gorges, but they are mainly known for 35 species of raptors. The Taita Falcon, Black Eagle, Peregrine Falcon and Augur Buzzard breed there. Above the falls, herons, Fish Eagles and numerous kinds of waterfowl are common. The most notable aspect of the area's vegetation though is the rainforest nurtured by the spray from the falls, containing plants rare for the area such as pod mahogany, ebony, ivory palm, wild date palm and a number of creepers and lianas.

Some activities can be undertaken such as the “Flight of Angels” providing an superb vista of the falls, the upstream river and its many islands. For more adventurous the “Microlighting” with stunning views of Victoria Falls. Rafting is the most popular adventure. Visitor can also kayak, canoe, go on guided walking safaris, ride on horseback and lunch on Livingstone’s Island.

The Devil´s Swimming Pool is a famous feature naturally formed, near the edge of the falls, accessed via Livingstone Island. People can swim as close as possible to the edge of the falls without continuing over the edge and falling into the gorge due to a natural rock wall that stops their progress despite the current. 

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Hagia Sophia, Turkey

Hagia Sophia (from the Greek: Ἁγία Σοφία, "Holy Wisdom"; Latin: Sancta Sophia or Sancta Sapientia; Turkish: Ayasofya) is a former Orthodox patriarchal basilica, later a mosque, and now a museum in Istanbul, Turkey. From the date of its dedication in 360 until 1453, it served as the Greek Patriarchal cathedral of Constantinople, except between 1204 and 1261, when it was converted to a Roman Catholic cathedral under the Latin Patriarch of Constantinople of the Western Crusader established Latin Empire. The building was a mosque from 29 May 1453 until 1931, when it was secularized. It was opened as a museum on 1 February 1935.

The Church was dedicated to the Logos, the second person of the Holy Trinity, its dedication feast taking place on 25 December, the anniversary of the Birth of the incarnation of the Logos in Christ. Although it is sometimes referred to as Sancta Sophia (as though it were named after Saint Sophia), sophia is the phonetic spelling in Latin of the Greek word for wisdom – the full name in Greek being Ναός τῆς Ἁγίας τοῦ Θεοῦ Σοφίας, "Church of the Holy Wisdom of God".

Famous in particular for its massive dome, it is considered the epitome of Byzantine architecture and is said to have "changed the history of architecture."It was the largest cathedral in the world for nearly a thousand years, until Seville Cathedral was completed in 1520. The current building was originally constructed as a church between 532 and 537 on the orders of the Byzantine Emperor Justinian and was the third Church of the Holy Wisdom to occupy the site, the previous two having both been destroyed by rioters. It was designed by the Greek scientists Isidore of Miletus, a physicist, and Anthemius of Tralles, a mathematician.

The church contained a large collection of holy relics and featured, among other things, a 49 foot (15 m) silver iconostasis. It was the seat of the Patriarch of Constantinople and the religious focal point of the Eastern Orthodox Church for nearly one thousand years. It is the church in which Cardinal Humbert in 1054 excommunicated Michael I Cerularius – which is commonly considered the start of the Great Schism.

In 1453, Constantinople was conquered by the Ottoman Turks under Sultan Mehmed II, who subsequently ordered the building converted into a mosque. The bells, altar, iconostasis, and sacrificial vessels were removed and many of the mosaics were plastered over. Islamic features – such as the mihrab, minbar, and four minarets – were added while in the possession of the Ottomans. It remained a mosque until 1931 when it was closed to the public for four years. It was re-opened in 1935 as a museum by the Republic of Turkey.

For almost 500 years the principal mosque of Istanbul, Hagia Sophia served as a model for many other Ottoman mosques, such as the Sultan Ahmed Mosque (Blue Mosque of Istanbul), the Şehzade Mosque, the Süleymaniye Mosque, the Rüstem Pasha Mosque and the Kılıç Ali Paşa Mosque.

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Roman Colosseum, Italy

Rome was a center of learning, trade and commerce for ages and has contributed significantly in the development of these areas. The origination of the word “Coliseum”, probably come from colossal statue of Nero which once stood near the stadium.

The discussion of Rome would be unfinished without the description of so the much talked Roman Colosseum. But non doubt the architecture and the concept is definitely a matter of appreciation and pride.

Originally was the Flavian Amphitheatre, an elliptical amphitheatre located in the heart of the city of Rome. It is one of the greatest works of Roman architecture and Roman engineering. The building was constructed by emperors of the Flavian dynasty, hence its original name. In antiquity, Romans may have referred to the Colosseum by the unofficial name Amphitheatrum Caesareum; this name could have been strictly poetic.

The Colosseum or Coliseum occupies a site just east of the Roman Forum, its construction started between 70 and 72 AD under the emperor Vespasian, opened by Emperor Titus in 80 AD with 100 days of games which roughly have taken the lives of some nine thousand animals and remodeled by Domitian who constructed the hypogeum, a series of underground tunnels used to house animals and slaves. Also he added a gallery to the top Colosseum to increase its seating capacity.

The Coliseum was used for gladiatorial contests and public spectacles, with a capacity of 50 000 spectators. It was used for the next 500 years with the last recorded games being held there. As well as the traditional gladiatorial games, many other public spectacles were held there, such as mock sea battles, animal hunts, executions, re-enactments of famous battles, and dramas based on Classical mythology. It ceased to be used for entertainment in the early medieval era and it was later re-opened for such varied purposes as housing, workshops; quarters for a religious order, a fortress, a quarry and a Christian shrine. 

Today the Colosseum is in a ruined condition, due to damage caused by an earthquakes and stone-robbers. For a long time it has been seen as an icon symbol of Imperial Rome. It’s one of modern Rome’s most popular tourist attractions and still has close connections with the Roman Catholic Church, as each Good Friday the Pope leads torchlight “Way of the Cross” procession to the amphitheatre. The Coliseum is depicted on the Italian version of the five-cent euro coin.

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Christ the Redeemer, Brazil

The statue of Christ the Redeemer is located at the top of Corcovado Mountain. The entire monument of statue of Christ the Redeemer is 38m high with the statue accounting for 30m and overlooking the city of Rio de Janeiro is one of the tallest statues in the world; the span from finger tip to fingertip is 28m and there is a small chapel housed in the base.

The reason why it was built was to show that Christ loves all. In Portuguese, this iconic monument is known as Cristo Redentor. Christ the Redeemer was designed by a French sculptor by the name of Paul Landowski and a local engineer named Heitor da Silva Costa was chosen to supervise the entire construction. The statue was built not out of steel but from reinforced concrete as that was considered a more suitable material for the cross shaped statue. The external caps of the idol were constructed in soapstone due to the resistance of this material to the extreme time and also due to its malleability.

The statue of Christ the Redeemer can be accessed by the 2.4 meter Corcovado Railway that has the capacity to hold 360 passengers every hour. The trip by rail is approximately 20 minutes and leaves the base each half hour. From the road or the train terminal Christ the Redeemer statue is reached by 222 steps. For those not wishing to make the arduous trek up the mountain, reaching the statue is possible by escalators and elevators.

Christ the Redeemer is one of the tourist attractions that every year attracts to more and more visitors. The best time to visit the Christ the Redeemer statue is late afternoon or evening when you can enjoy the splendour of the setting sun while taking in one of the most important landmarks in the world.

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Chichen Itza, Mexico

The famous Mayan pyramids of Chichen Itza (chee-chehn eet-sah) in Maya literally means: "Mouth of the well of the Itza", the name Chichen Itza is a Mayan word: CHI (mouth), CHEN (well) and ITZA (of the Itza tribe), it is located a 75 miles east of Merida, the Capital of the State of Yucatan, Mexico. This archaeological site is rated among the most important of the Maya culture and covers an area of approximately six square miles.

The architectural characteristics of Chichen Itza and that have a direct relationship with the Mayan Toltec style are: "El juego de la Pelota", "El Castillo", "El Grupo de las Mil Columnas", "El tzompantli", El Edificio de las Aguilas", "El templo de los Guerrerros", and "El Mercado". All of these buildings have the same decoration motives found in Tula. The most frequent representations are warriors and Quetzalcoatl.

The main attraction is the central pyramid, a square-based, stepped pyramid that is approximately 75 feet tall, El Castillo de la Serpiente Emplumada, which means "Castle of the Plumed Serpent," and is pictured at the top. The plumed serpent is a popular deity in various Mesoamerican cultures. "El Castillo" is surely the place where the ceremony of the descent of Kukulkan was held. The pyramid has special astronomical layout so that a game of light and shadow is formed. On March 21st the body of the serpent metaphorically descends from the temple on top of the pyramid and arrives at the heads at the foot of the staircase. 

Just beyond El Castillo you will find a large ball court where Mayan men played a game called pok ta pok. Anthropologists believe that the object of the game was to hurl a ball through a ring that was mounted on a wall, seven meters above the ground. The largest Ball Game in Mesoamerica is 168 meters in length and 70 meters in width.

The Temple of Chac Mool, upon whose walls and interior pillars there are richly colored carvings of plumed serpents, warriors, and priests. The upper building only partially reflects its true grandeur. There are three sculpted masks with extremely long noses on the outer walls and at the corners. On the inner walls of the vaults there were murals with scenes of war and daily life. The altar tables and benches may have served as seats and thrones for dignitaries.

In the "Templo de los Guerreros" there is a temple on the top part where the entrance columns are typically Toltec. Another one of the buildings that have a Toltec seal without is the "Muro de los Craneos". These buildings were destined to be the mausoleums of the tying up the years. Every 52 years the ancient Mayans and other cultures would tie up a sheaf of years to end a cycle. Platform of Venus or of the Dance, Sacred Well or the Well of the Sacrifices, Tzompantli, that displays figures of skulls in relief.

In the Central Group of the Ruins you can find:

The Red House or Chichan Chob, the name of this building, situated upon a high platform, is derived from the fragments of red paint that were found in its interior. The word "Chichan Chob" means "small holes" and probably alludes to its Lime roof comb. The structure is comprised of an antechamber and three rooms and has a sculptured hieroglyphic inscription in the main chamber. The building must have had a religious and public use, since there is a Ball Court joined to its eastern side, with bas-reliefs in the Maya-Toltec style.

The Caracol or Observatory This structure is known as the Observatory due to its shape and some possible astral associations, since astronomical events concerning the planet Venus and the setting of the sun during the three windows in the upper section. The name "Caracol" (conch) comes from the spiral stairs that lead to the upper part of the building.

The Church, This small building with only one chamber owes its name to its proximity to the so called "convent" of the Nunnery and to the exuberant decoration on its upper facade, which rises even higher due to its lofty roof comb. One can observe large areas covered with the original stucco on the Grecian frets of the central panel. "Bignosed" masks constitute the main element of the facade, with a seated figure, god or ancestor integrated upon the nose of the central mask. There also are figures of the four carriers of the corners of the sky, "bacabes" or "pauahtunes", kneeling in the side panels. It’s appearing that the builder had certain difficulties in placing the three large masks rescued from earlier buildings on the roof comb and opted to suppress detail. Up to now, it is not known what the function of this building was, and in spite of the overloaded decoration of the building, it is one of the best architectural examples of the Puuc style in Chichen Itza. 

Temple of the Carved Panels, the name of this building comes from the relieves carved on the north and south walls of the colonnade, depicting scenes of numerous people, plants, and animals, both real and imaginary, which are dominated by two warriors. The building is made up of a temple erected on a slab foundation with a colonnade in front of it. The offerings discovered during exploration of the fire - related rituals. 

All areas can be seen comfortably in one day. Also you should enjoy the wonderful Light and Sound Show that is held every evening. At the entrance to Chichen Itza, there is an informative museum, a dining room, clean restrooms, a few gift shops and vendor stands.

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Preah Vihear Temple, Cambodia

Preah Vihear Temple (Khmer: ប្រាសាទព្រះវិហារ) is a Hindu temple built during the reign of Khmer Empire, that is situated atop a 525-metre (1,722 ft) cliff in the Dângrêk Mountains, in the Preah Vihear province, Cambodia. In 1962, following a lengthy dispute between Thailand and Cambodia over ownership, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague awarded the temple to Cambodia.

Affording a view for many kilometers across a plain, Prasat Preah Vihear has the most spectacular setting of all the temples built during the six-centuries-long Khmer Empire. As a key edifice of the empire's spiritual life, it was supported and modified by successive kings and so bears elements of several architectural styles. Preah Vihear is unusual among Khmer temples in being constructed along a long north-south axis, rather than having the conventional rectangular plan with orientation toward the east. The temple gives its name to Cambodia's Preah Vihear province, in which it is now located, as well as the Khao Phra Wihan National Park which borders it in Thailand's Sisaket province and through which the temple is most easily accessible. On July 7, 2008, Preah Vihear was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

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Angkor Wat, Siem Reap Province, Cambodia

Siem Reap is home to the world famous heritage ofthe Angkor temples including the magnificent Angkor Wat. It is a vibrant city with many moderm hotels and old colonial buildings boasting awesome architecture. Much of the town's image, culture and traditions are conserved despite the influx of tourists from all over the world.

There are restaurants of almost every culture and also bars and café of nearly every fashion and size all about town. The Psar Leu area is where one can find great bargains in jewellery and handicraft from precious stones to wonderful woodcarvings. There are also many shops offering traditional massage and reflexology to help relieve those tired feet after a day's tour of the temples.

Siem Reap Province is basically the cradle of Angkorean civilization and it is a province that offers plenty of opportunity to tourists enthralled by the Khmer culture.

The ruins of Angkor, located amid forests and farland, are now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. There are over one thousand temples ranging in scale from nondescript piles of brick rubbles scattered through rice fields to the magnificent Angkor Wat which is said to be the world's largest single religious monument. There are dozens of temple ruins in the Siem Reap area and it depends largely on how much time one has and one's level of interest to determine how long one should spend to explorer them.

Angkor Wat

Banteay Srei Temple 

Cultural Village 

Pub Street 

Night Market 

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Independence Monument, Cambodia

Erected in 1955, the Independence Monument symbolizes Cambodian Independence gained from French colonialism in 1953. This monument is a copy of the Bakong Temple (a temple from the Roluos group of the 9th century). The one-hundred Nagas and snake motif can be seen in historical, cultural, archeological, and business contexts.

On 9th November each year, government officials from the various ministries and institutions would congregate here to jubilantly celebrate the anniversary of the national independence.

In commemoration of the souls of brave combatants and heroes who had laid down their lives for the freedom of the country.

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Royal Palace of Cambodia

The Royal Palace of Cambodia is a complex of buildings although it is generally understood to be the royal abode of the King of Cambodia. The compound was the citadel of King Ponhea Yat (1393-1463) and rebuilt to its present state in 1886, when King Norodom (1834-1904) relocated the royal capital from Oudong to Phnom Penh. The buildings with beautiful towering spires are a great example of classic Khmer architecture found in Cambodia today.

Along with numerous other interesting buildings, with the 183,135 square meter (421m x 435m) compound is of course The Khemarin Palace, known as Prasat Khemarin meaning the “Palace of the Khmer King”. This is officially the residence of His Majesty, King Norodom Sihamoni.

Tourists can visit the Throne Hall (Preah Tineang Tevea Vinichhay) where coronations and official ceremonies take place, the Temple of the Emerald Buddha (Wat Preah Keo Morakot), Stupas (Chedei), a Royal Dining Hall, the Chan Chhaya Pavilion and a French-style building that was a gift from Napoleon III.

Silver Pagoda

Preah Tineang Tivea Vinichhay

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The Golden Gate Bridge, United States

The Golden Gate Bridge is a suspension bridge spanning the Golden Gate, the opening of the San Francisco Bay onto the Pacific Ocean. As part of both U.S. Route 101 and State Route 1, it connects the city of San Francisco on the northern tip of the San Francisco Peninsula to Marin County.

The Golden Gate Bridge had the longest suspension bridge span in the world (4,200 foot) when it was completed in 1937 and has become an internationally recognized symbol of San Francisco and California.

Despite its red appearance, the colour of the bridge is officially an orange vermilion called international orange. The colour was selected by consulting architect Irving Morrow because it blends well with the natural surroundings yet enhances the bridge's visibility in fog.

The bridge's two towers rise 746 feet making them 191 feet taller than the Washington Monument. The five lane bridge crosses Golden Gate Strait which is about 400 feet, or 130 meters, deep. The bridge consists of two towers of 746 feet this makes it 191 feet higher than the Washington Monument. The five lanes of the Golden Gate Bridge are about 400 feet or 130 meters deep.

The towers that support the Golden Gate Bridge's suspension cables are smaller at the top than at the base, emphasizing the tower height of 500 feet above the roadway Coit Tower is another San Francisco landmark with an Art Deco design.

Linking San Francisco with Marin County the Golden Gate Bridge is a 1.7 mile-long suspension bridge that can be crossed by car, on bicycles or on foot. On an average day 118,000 vehicles cross the bridge. The bridge has six total lanes of vehicle traffic, and walkways on both sides of the bridge.

The speed limit on the Golden Gate Bridge was reduced from 55 mph (89 km/h) to 45 mph (72 km/h) on 1 October 1983. The eastern walkway is for pedestrians and bicycles during the weekdays and during daylight hours only, and the western walkway is open to bicyclists on weekday afternoons, weekends, and holidays.

It united three Boroughs of New York: Manhattan, the Bronx, and Queens. It remains the largest vertical-lift bridge in the world. It joins three giant bridges into one and consists of 13,500 feet of elevated viaduct and fourteen miles of roadway, all travelling over Randall's and Ward's Islands. Since its completion, the span length has been surpassed by eight other bridges. It still has the second longest suspension bridge main span in the United States, after the Verrazano Narrows Bridge in New York City.

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CN Tower, Canada

The CN Tower is the World's Tallest Building and Free-Standing Structure and has the world's highest public observatory, although it is not considered to be a traditional building. At a height of 553.33m, it is an important telecommunications hub. It is almost twice as tall as the Eiffel Tower and more than three times the height of the Washington Monument.
Located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada at the southern end of town to the north shore of Lake Ontario, the CN Tower is easily accessible from many major streets and highways. It was erected as a communications and tourist tower.

The CN Tower consists of a main hexagonal hollow pillar of concrete containing the elevators, stairwells and power and plumbing connections. To the main pillar are attached the broadcast antenna and the two main visitors area. The main pillar has three supporting legs giving it the appearance of a camera tripod.

Some floors of the Main Level are open to the public. At 342 m is the Glass Floor and Outdoor Observation Deck. The Glass Floor consists of thermal glass units that are 64mm thick. The floor has an area of 24sq metre and can withstand a pressure of 600psi. At 346m is the Horizons Cafe and Look Out level.

There is a rotating restaurant at 351m called the 360 Restaurant. It revolves completely in 360 degrees every 72 minutes. The rotation is slow enough that you can enjoy the fantastic views of Toronto without realizing your view is changing every moment. Below the Main Level is the tower's microwave receiver shaped like a big white donut.

The Sky Pod is presently the highest observation deck in the world. From here, you can see 100-120 km away, to the city of Rochester across Lake Ontario in the US, and see the mist rising from Niagara Falls.

The CN Tower has the tallest metal staircase in the world. At the 1776th step, the staircase reaches the Main Level. The staircase is intended only for emergency use, and is not open to the public outside three times a year during the charity stair-climbing events.

At the base of the Toronto CN tower is an attraction called the Tour of the Universe. For the price of entry you can walk through a simulated space port, see a laser show and experience what it’s like to fly through space. Tour of the Universe is open daily from 10am until 10pm. The CN Tower is open 364 days a year (closed on Christmas Day). Hours of Operation are daily from 9am-10pm January-April; 8am-11pm May-December. Cost is $16 for adults.

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Leaning Tower of Pisa, Italy

The Leaning Tower of Pisa is the third structure by time in the Cathedral Square and is situated behind the Cathedral.

The tower presently leans to the southwest at an angle of 3.97 degrees. At the beginning it intended to stand vertically but was impossible due to a poorly laid foundation and loose substrate that has allowed the foundation to shift direction. The height of the tower is 55.86 m from the ground on the lowest side and 56.70 m on the highest side. Its weight is estimated at 14,500 tones.

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Delta Works, Netherlands

The flooding in 1953 made it very clear how vulnerable the land and the people living there were. Therefore a huge effort the Delta Works project was made to create a new and better protection to make sure this would not happen again.

The Delta Works protects a large area of land around the Rhine-Meuse-Scheldt delta from the sea. Delta Works is a very complicated collection of locks, sluices, channels, bridges, slides, dams, dikes, storm surge barriers and gates working together.

The aim of the dams, sluices, and storm surge barriers was to shorten the Dutch coastline, thus reducing the number of dikes that had to be raised. This dam consists of several strings of gates and their massive supporting pylons which, in normal weather, allow tidal sea waters to ebb and flow in the Eastern Schelde estuary, thus benefiting the fish, bird life and the local fisheries. The four great estuaries in the south-western Netherlands should be closed with dams. These closures should be done in a special order because of tidal movements of shipping and fishing, this guarantees for the economy of the country.

The piers and their mechanisms had to be lifted into precise positions in the estuary. But the type of equipment needed for such gargantuan and specialized tasks did not exist anywhere in the world; it had to be invented. The piers support 300- to 500-ton steel gates and their hydraulic machinery, as well as a roadway above and load-bearing beams below.

The Oosterscheldedam is on one of the two artificial islands situated in Zeeland, just an hour and a half driving distance from Amsterdam and half an hour from Dordrecht where the structure is located; it is a recommend for those interested in water management. Three kilometres long, this anti-tempest dam is constituted of 65 pillars between which one can slide 62 iron flood-gates.

The height of one pillar is 38 meter and its weight 18.000 tons. When the sea becomes dangerous, one hour is enough to lower the flood gates. This system affords to keep 75% of the tide amplitude as well as the fishing industry, the breed of mussels and oysters and above all, the unique eco-system of The Biesbosch.

One of the latest improvements of the Delta plan was the storm surge barrier in the New Waterway near Hoek van Holland built in 1997. It consists of two enormous doors mounted on swing arms that can be used to close the estuary if storm and high water requires in order protecting the country.           

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Buckingham Palace, England

Buckingham Palace is one of the few working royal palaces remaining in the world today. It serves as both the office and London residence of the Queen and also as the busy administrative headquarters of the monarchy. Probably it has the most famous and recognizable facade of any building in the world. It is the venue for great Royal ceremonies, State Visits and Investitures, all of which are organized by the Royal Household.

During summer, visitors can take a tour around the nineteen State Rooms, which are decorated with some of the greatest treasures from the Royal Collection, which includes paintings by Rembrandt, Rubens, Vermeer, Poussin, Canaletto and Claude; sculpture by Canova and Chantrey, exquisite examples of Sevres porcelain, and some of the finest English and French furniture in the world.

The Changing of the Guard takes place at the front of the Palace. During the summer it is one of the popular events for visitors, occurs at 11:30 every day. Since 1660, Household Troops have guarded the Sovereign and the Royal Palaces. The Queen’s Guard usually consists of Foot Guards in full-dress uniform of red tunics and bearskins.

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Forbidden City, China

The Forbidden City is known also as the Palace Museum, the Gugong (in Chinese) Museum or the Purple Forbidden City. It is the largest and best preserved imperial palace in China. This awesome palace is located in Beijing city to the north of Tiananmen Square (the ceremonial center of current Republic of China) and it was the official residence of the Chinese Emperor from the mid Ming Dynasty (1368 - 1644) until the last emperor of the Qing Dynasty (1644 - 1911). In total the Palace was the home of 24 Chinese emperors.

The Forbidden City is one of the five most famous palaces of the world together with the Palace of Versailles, the Buckingham Palace, the White House and the Kremlin. The Forbidden City was constructed as a replica of the Purple Palace where God lived according to the Chinese mythology therefore the palace was a sacred place, and so it was forbidden to the ordinary people.

The Forbidden City is the largest palace of the World. It occupied an area of 74 hectares. It is surrounded by a great moat of 6 meters deep and 10 meters high. The Palace is a giant rectangle of 961 meters long for 753 meters wide. The walls are 8.62 meters wide at the base and 6.66 meters at the top; they were designed as defensive walls and were made using rammed earth. The complex is composed by 980 buildings and around 8707 rooms.

The four corners of the great rectangle have each one an intricate tower with complex roofs that represents the Pavilion of Prince Teng and the Yellow Crane Pavilion. These towers are the elements most prominent from outside palace. The main entrance to the Forbidden City is through the Tiananmen gate. Behind the Tiananmen gate is the great courtyard of the palace. Here the complex is divided into two parts: the inner court and the outer court (also called working area or front court). The courtyard contains some of the most representative elements of the palace: the “stream of golden water” and 5 beautiful bridges ornamented with carved torches.

The outer court was used mainly with ceremonial purposes and to host the imperial affaires. It is composed by all the buildings of the southern zone.

One of the most important rooms of the complex is the “Hall of Supreme Harmony” which is the largest in the palace and is 30 meters above the level of the surrounding square. This hall was the heart of the power in the country and is the largest wooden structure in China. The roof of this magnificent hall was decorated with a caisson with a coiled dragon. There had two other important halls: the Hall of the Central Harmony and the Hall of Preserving Harmony. The three salons had imperial thrones and were used to host the Imperial activities and ceremonies. Behind the Hall of Preserving Harmony is the greatest stone carving of China, an impressive stone piece that weights around 200 tons.

The residence of the Emperor, his concubines and the Eunuchs of the palace was located in the inner court at the northern section of the complex in the central north-south axis of the complex, which was the most important axis of the three that compose the Forbidden City. In the inner are the main buildings that served as home for the imperial family such as the Palace of Heavenly Purity, the Palace of Earthly or the Hall of Union. All these palaces have an extraordinaire architectural style and were luxury decorated.

All the elements from the architectural shapes to the colors used in the Forbidden City were designed to symbolize religious and philosophical principles of the Chinese cosmology. This Palace is the abstract of several millenniums of culture.

It can visit the Forbidden City from 08:30 to 17:00 between April 1 and October 31 for 60 yuan and from 08:30 to 16:30 between October 16 and April 15 for 40 yuan. There are also many services to guide visitors available. There is an audio guide (40 yuan) device available in several languages like Chinese, Cantonese, English, French, Japanese, German, Spanish, Russian, Thai , Arabic and Italian. There are also multilingual guides, a tourist service center, bag check services, tourist souvenirs, books, post office and several restaurants where it can enjoy a good food or drink.

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Angkor Wat, Cambodia

 This complex of ancient temples (geographically as large as Paris) is probably the most important archeological site in South East Asia. It is located at Angkor in Cambodia to 5.5 kilometers of the modern town of Siem Reap. It dates from XII century (although the construction lasted almost 4 centuries) and the main temple is very well conserved and it is still today a religious center. The temple was constructed in the jungle by order from the king Suryavarman as the main temple of the country and its capital city.

This temple is one of the most beautiful and suggestive places on the planet. It is a true feat of the architecture. The temple is a representation of Mount Meru (the house of gods of the Hinduism). The temple has several towers; there are many courtyards and an endless number of bas-reliefs ornament the walls of its rooms. The architectural style of the temple is known as Khmer Architecture, this style used sandstone and bricks to create the intricate designs that adorn this wonderful temple.

The temple is composed by concentric galleries; Angkor Wat (wat means temple) has three main features: the outer enclosure that surrounded the complex, which is composed by a great outer wall of 1024 x 802 meters and 4.5 meters height and a moat of 190 meters wide, which symbolizes the ranges of mountains and the ocean respectively.

The central structure is composed by several rectangular galleries rising to a central tower, which is over a terrace higher than the city. The temple itself has quincunx (arrangement of five units) towers which represents the peaks of the mountains. This part of the temple has many statues of Buddha and inscriptions of old pilgrims.

The decoration is the other and perhaps the most representative characteristic of the temple. It is composed mainly by bas-reliefs friezes, which represent episodes from the Hindu epics the Ramyana and the Mahabharata; bas-reliefs show also battle scenes like the Battle of Kurukshetra amongst the Kaurava and Pandava clans as well as the “Churning of the Sea of Milk”, the “37 heavens” and many other pictures of the Hindu mythology.

Angkor Wat is dedicated to Vishnu (the supreme god of the Hinduism). According to archeologists like Charles Higham, the sanctuary was built also to serve as a funerary temple for the remains of Suryavarman. The evidence that support this theory is in the bas-reliefs and a funerary jar which was found in the central tower.

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