Sigiriya Sri Lanka

Sigiriya (Lions rock) is an ancient rock fortress and palace ruin situated in the central Matale District of Sri Lanka, surrounded by the remains of an extensive network of gardens, reservoirs, and other structures. A popular tourist destination, Sigiriya is also renowned for its ancient paintings (frescos), which are reminiscent of the Ajanta Caves of India. The Sigiriya was built during the reign of King Kassapa I (AD 477 495), and it is one of the seven World Heritage Sites of Sri Lanka. Sigiriya may have been inhabited through prehistoric times. It was used as a rock-shelter mountain monastery from about the 5th century BC, with caves prepared and donated by devotees to the Buddhist Sangha.

Sahara Desert
The Sahara Desert is the largest hot desert in the world and the largest desert following Antarctica and the Artic. Most people think of hot dunes of sand when they envision a desert. However, according to the dictionary a desert is a barren area with little to no precipitation. Antarctica and the Artic are technically deserts and larger than the Sahara. The Sahara Desert covers over 3,600,000 square miles (9,400,00- sq km). In comparison, this is approximately the size of the United States or China. This makes the Sahara the largest sandy or hot desert in the world.

Ajanta Caves India

The Ajanta Caves in Maharashtra, India are rock-cut cave monuments dating from the second century BC, con taining painti ngs and sculpture considered to be masterpieces of both Buddhist religious art and universal pictorial art. By AD 480 the caves at Ajanta were abandoned. During the next 1300 years the jungle grew back and the caves were hidden, unvisited and undisturbed until the Spring of 1819 when a British officer in the Madras army entered the steep gorge on the trail of a tiger. Somehow, deep within the tangled undergrowth, he came across the almost hidden entrance to one of the caves.

Metora Greece
The Metora (suspended rocks) is one of the largest and most important complexes of Eastern Orthodox monasteries in Greece, second only to Mount Athos. The six monasteries are built on natural sandstone rock pillars, at the northwestern edge of the Plain of Thessaly near the Pineios river and Pindus Mountains, in central Greece. Access to the monasteries was originally (and deliberately) difficult, requiring either long ladders lashed together or large nets used to haul up both goods and people. This required quite a leap of faith the ropes were replaced, so the story goes, only when the Lord let them break.

Bagan Myanmar
Bagan is an ancient city in the Mandalay Division of Burma. Formally titled Arimaddanapura or Arimaddana (the City of the Enemy Crusher) and also known as Tambadipa (the Land of Copper) or Tassadessa (the Parched Land), it was the ancient capital of several ancient kingdoms in Burma. Bagan was submitted to become a UNESCO heritage site[1] but many speculate of politics as partly the reason for the exclusion. UNESCO does not designate Bagan as a World Heritage Site. The main reason given is that the military junta (SPDC) has haphazardly restored ancient stupas, temples and buildings, ignoring original architectural styles and using modern materials which bear little or no resemblance to the original designs. Nevertheless, this is still a must-see wonder of the world.

Machu Picchu Cuzco Region, Peru

Often referred to as the City of the Incas, it is perhaps the most familiar icon of the Inca World. It was built in 1450 and shows the history of Inca Empire. Today this heritage has come under Peruvian university.

Colosseum Rome, Italy

The Colosseum, or the Coliseum, originally the Flavian Amphitheatre is an elliptical amphith eatre in the center of the city of Rome, Italy, the largest ever built in the Roman Empire. It is considered one of the greatest works of Roman architecture and Roman engineering. It was used for the gladiatorial contest in the great empire of Rome and was used to be a symbol of their superiority and strength.

Great Wall of China China

The Great Wall of China is a series of fortifications made of stone, brick, tamped earth, wood, and other materials, generally built along an eastto-west line across the historical northern borders of China in part to protect the Chinese Empire or its prototypical states against intrusions by various nomadic groups or military incursions by various warlike peoples or forces. Several walls were being built as early as the 7th century BC these, later joined together and made bigger, stronger, and unified are now collectively referred to as the Great Wall. Especially famous is the wall built between 220206 BC by the first Emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang. Today it stands firm and straight as a symbol of Chinese tradition and the strong and rich history and the way they protect it in spite of moving forward in the modern world.

Banaue Rice Terraces, Philippines

The Banaue Rice Terraces are 2000-year old terraces that were carved into the mountains of Ifugao in the Philippines by ancestors of the indigenous people. The Rice Terraces are commonly referred to by Filipinos as the Eighth Wonder of the World. It is commonly thought that the terraces were built with minimal equipment, largely by hand. The terraces are located approximately 1500 meters (5000 ft) above sea level and cover 10,360 square kilometers (about 4000 square miles) of mountainside. They are fed by an ancient irrigation system from the rainforests above the terraces. It is said that if the steps are put end to end it would encircle half the globe. Locals to this day still plant rice and vegetables on the terraces. The result is the gradual erosion of the characteristic steps, which need constant reconstruction and care.

Angel Falls Venenzuela

Angel Falls is found in Venezuela in the Canaima National Park. It is the highest waterfall in the world at 3,212 feet (979 m). The falls has a clear drop of 2,647 feet (807 m) which is so far that the water vaporizes with the wind and becomes mist well before reaching the ground. Angel Falls is also called Kerepakupai meru which means "waterfall of the deepest place."

Leptis Magna Libya

Leptis Magna was a prominent city of the Roman Empire. Its ruins are located in Al Khums, Libya, 130 km east of Tripoli, on the coast where the Wadi Lebda meets the sea. The site is one of the most spectacular and unspoiled Roman ruins in the Mediterranean. The city appears to have been founded by Phoenician colonists sometime around 1100 BC, although it did not achieve prominence until Carthage became a major power in the Mediterranean Sea in the 4th century BC. It nominally remained part of Carthages dominions until the end of the Third Punic War in 146 BC and then became part of the Roman Republic, although from about 200 BC onward, it was for all intents and purposes an independent city.

Library of Celsus Turkey

This is number one for strictly personal reasons. I love books, I love libraries, and this site is dedicated to knowledge (as are libraries). The library of Celsus (in Turkey) was built to store 12,000 scrolls and to serve as a monumental tomb for Celsus (who had been consul in 92 AD, governor of Asia in 115 AD, and a wealthy and popular local citizen). The building is important as one of few remaining examples of an ancient Roman-influenced library. It also shows that public libraries were built not only in Rome itself but throughout the Roman Empire.

Taj Mahal India

Taj Mahal is the finest example of Mughal architecture, a style that combines elements from Persian, Turkish and Indian architectural styles which is not only unique but depicts the a story of true love. In 1983, the Taj Mahal became a UNESCO World Heritage Site. While the white domed marble mausoleum is the most familiar component of the Taj Mahal, it is actually an integrated complex of structures. Taj Mahal was Shah Jahan, a Mughal king of United India for his third wife Mumtaz Mahal. Construction was started in 1632 and was completed around 1653, employing thousands of artisans and craftsmen. The construction of the Taj Mahal was entrusted to a board of architects under imperial designers and stands out as one of the finest man made buildings even in todays modern world.

Niagara Falls
Niagara Falls is an incredible waterfall system located on the border between Ontario, Canada and New York of the United States. Niagara Falls is comprised of three distinctive falls that include: Horseshoe Falls on the Canadian side and American Falls and Bridal Veil Falls on the American side. The Horseshoe Falls are 2,600 feet ( 792 m) wide with the American Falls measuring 1,060 feet (323 m) wide. The highest drop occurs on Horseshoe Falls at 173 feet (53 m). Niagara Falls has an average of approximately 4 million cubic feet (110,000 cubic meters) of water every minute with heavy flow reaching as much as 6 million cubic feet (168,000 cubic meters) every minute. Horseshoe Falls accounts for approximately 90% of the water volume.

The Great Pyramid of Giza Egypt

The Egyptian pharaoh Khufu built the Great Pyramid in about 2560 B.C. to serve as his tomb. The pyramid is the oldest structure on the original list of the seven wonders of the ancient world, which was compiled by Greek scholars about 2,200 years ago. It is also the only remaining survivor from the original list. The Great Pyramid is the largest of three Pyramids at Giza, bordering modernday Cairo. Although weathering has caused the structure to stand a few feet shorter today, the pyramid was about 480 feet (145 meters) high when it was first built. It is thought to have been the planet's tallest human-made structure for more than four millennia.