The New 7 World Wonders
As I work on planning my next group trip (Egypt and Jordan), it has me reminiscing about my experience with the New 7 Wonders of the World.
In ancient times historians identified 7 Wonders of the World: the Great Pyramid of Giza, the Colossus of Rhodes, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, the Lighthouse of Alexandria, the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus, the Statue of Zeus, and the Temple of Artemis. The list was compiled some time before 240 BC, and was said to be the most amazing man made structures ever created. Unfortunately, they’re all gone now; lost to time, war, nature and who knows what (seriously, there are no records of what happened to the Hanging Gardens), except for the Great Pyramid of Giza.
In 2007, the New 7 Wonders Foundation released the results of their online voting processes that pitted 200 monuments around the world against each other. The New 7 Wonders are:
The Great Wall of China (China)
Petra (Jordan)
Christ the Redeemer (Brazil)
Machu Picchu (Peru)
Chichen Itza (Mexico)
The Colosseum (Italy)
The Taj Mahal (India)
Great Pyramid of Giza (honorary mention from the old days in Egypt)
In my travels, I’ve had the opportunity to explore 5 of those 8. Petra, Christ the Redeemer and the Great Pyramid of Giza are all still remaining on my list.
There’s something fun about checking off sites on this list. I know it’s not the ancient wonders, but, speaking from experience, the new ones are pretty amazing too. What’s your favorite World Wonder?
