The Great Wall of China

The Great Wall of China is one of the seven ancient wonders of the world. A great structure that was build human hand instead of modern machines, this wall is standing symbol of human courage, hard work and will to achieve impossible.  The Great Wall of China is most famous tourist attraction of China. 

Great Wall of China is an ultimate destination for tourists for sightseeing.  Millions of tourists from all over the world visits Great Wall of China every year. There are some great speculations about Great Wall of China that it can be seen from moon also! Such speculations had increased its attraction amongst the tourists of whole world.

The Great Wall of China & Its History

The wall is constructed over the mountains in such pattern that it looks like as a dragon is surrounding the mountains. Chinese calls it “Wan Li Chang Cheng” which means Wall of10, 000 Li. Li is distance measurement unit in Chinese (2 Li= 1Km).

There were three dynasties who had contributed to the construction of this wall.

1. Qin
2. Han
3. Ming

The Great Wall of China was initially constructed by the Qin from 221-207 B.C, after that it was Han dynasty who constructed it from 206B.C-220A.D.  Lastly it was the Ming who contributed in construction of this Great Wall from 1368-1644 A.D.  The main purpose of this Great Wall of China was to stop the invasion of brutal Huns from the North of the Chinese borders.  Throughout the history millions of labors had labored on this Great Wall of China and many from them died while working.

Length of the Great Wall of the China

It was the Qin emperor who unified China first, after that he connected all the walls across the country into one. This measure was taken to save the north border of China from invaders. This wall travel through deserts, rivers, mountains, grasslands and plateaus expanding nearly 6,700 kilometers, this Great Wall is stretched from east to west side of China. It was built in almost two millenniums.

Currently though there is much advance technology and easy means of construction but many parts of this Great Wall are left in ruins.

The Places from Where Great Wall Of China Passes

The Great Wall of China passes through Shanhaiguan Pass, Liaoning, Hebei, Tianjin, Beijing, Shanxi, Inner Mongolia, Ningxia, and Gansu. This Great Wall ends at Jiayuguan Pass. It covers area of almost 6,700 Km , height of wall varies from place to place, its maximum height is 9 meters and minimum is 4.5 meters.  Depth wise measurement of this wall is 4.5 m to 8m.

The Great Wall of China is built of stones, bricks, soil, sand, straw, wood, clay and whatever that whatever that was available in that specific era depending on the territory and time period.

Modern Great Wall of China

The Great Wall of China which we see today was built by the Ming dynasty 600 years ago. At that time the original wall was in ruins. Ming emperors ordered to re-build this great wall. This great wall was re-built in 200 years of time period. This Great Wall survived all through centuries because there was an invention during that time, it was mixing rice flour to create extreme tough bricks and mortar.

Now some parts of Great Wall of China are in great condition because those were restored by the Chinese government to attract the tourists. Every year thousand of tourists from all around the world visit this Great Wall.

Top 3 Mysterious Places of the World

According to experts mysterious sites around the world were created by ancient civilization with the help of advanced knowledge and technology and that possibly can be more advanced than our current one.  Some do not believe that there was any so much advanced ancient civilization on earth and ancient astronauts who came down from heaven handed all of the superb knowledge down to us

Most of scientists do not believe on up stated ideas they try to explain ancient enigmas on the ground of religion and ritual.

According to Discovery Channel there are 3 places, which are the Most Enigmatic Places in the World. But aside from that there are so many other places around the world that capture our imagination because they seem to be so mysterious.

1. Stonehenge

Stonehenge is one of the most popular mysterious places in the world.

It’s a megalithic monument on the Salisbury Plain in Southern England. It’s composed of 30 upright stones, which are called sarsens, each stone is ten feet tall with more 45 tons weight; they are aligned in a circle with 30 lintels (each lintel weight is 6 tons) perched horizontally atop the sarsens in a continious circle. Inside the outer circle there another circle composed of similar stones and constructed in same fashion.

There are so many great monuments around the world now question is that what is so special about Stonehenge? Who built this? Is it was an astronomical observatory, a religious site or something supernatural?  There are no exact answers for these questions.

According to some experts Druids built Stonehenge, but they can’t tell about the builders. It was constructed between 5,000 and 3,000 years ago, from that it’s easy to know that it was built before that the first metal tools were invented.

Apart from that who built this stone monument, but that anyone can understand that in its construction thousands of people were involved. Dragging huge stones from Marlborough Downs, 30 Km to the south of Stonehenge that is remarkable achievement and amazing feat of engineering.

Stonehenge is even mentioned in Arthurian legend that names Merlin as the engineer.

Another interesting thing is that Stonehenge is built on such angle that the sun rising over the horizon appears to be perfectly placed between gaps in the megaliths.

2. Nazca Lines

Nazca Lines the excellent group of geolyphs in the world located in Nazca Desert, between the towns of Nazca and Palpa on the Pampas de Jumana in Peru. Engraved on the surface of the desert pampa sand about 300 figures made of straight lines, geometric shapes and pictures of animals and birds. All these engraved drawn images on the desert can be seen only from the air.

There are three mysterious features about Nazca Plateau:

·        The straight lines in the pattern of crossing lines in all directions are many kilometers long.

·        Many of lines form geometric shapes like angles, triangles, bunches, spirals, rectangles, wavy lines, etc.

·        Those lines form animal patterns also.

It is believed that the people called Nasca drew these lines but how they created this wonder of the world no one had explained. As the Nazca lines cannot be viewed except from the air it is assumed that the Nazca people had never seen their work from this vantage point.

3. Easter Island

Easter Island, which is called Rapa Nui in local language, is located in the southeastern Pacific Ocean and it’s under control of Chile government.

It is small, hilly, treeless island of volcanic origin.  It is one of most isolated inhabited territory on earth but this aspect is cause of its fame, the thing which makes it apart from any other place on earth is its hundreds of megalithic human like statues that face inland from the shore. These statues are called moai.

Approximately all moais are carved out of compressed, easily worked volcanic ash. In these moais largest ones weight is 165 tons and its height is almost 22 meters.

It really looks mysterious that on a barren island how these mega statues were carved? Who built these and why? And how such gigantic statues were carved?

Scholars are unable to answer these questions some suggest that Easter Island inhabitants, the Rapanui who were came from Polynesia.

Easter Island is also known as Te-Pito-O-Te-Henua, meaning “The Navel of the World” and as Mata-Ki-Te-Rani, meaning “ Eyes Looking at Heaven”.

Top 10 Largest Churches of the World

Christianity is the world’s largest religion and church is the place where they go to worship God! There are millions of churches all around the world. Here I had compiled a list of world’s 10 largest churches in terms of their floor area. Thousand of people go to these houses of God.

Here are the top 10 largest churches of the world:

1. St. Peter’s Basilica, Vatican City

The Saint Peter’s Basilica building is considered one of greatest building of its time. Construction of this church building was started on 15^th April 1506 and it was completed in 15^th November 1626. This great building which we have today taken almost 120 years, its having largest interior with the width of 150 m and length of 220 m. More than 60,000 people can hold prayers together in this holy building. The basilica is the holiest building in all churches of the world. Its official name in Italian is Basilca di San Pietro in Vaticano.

2. Basilica of the National Shrine of Our Lady of Aparecida, Brazil

The new Basilica of the National Shrine of Our Lady of Aparecida was established as a minor basilica by Pope Saint Pius X in 1908.  Its new building was built in 1955 and it was architected by  Bendito Calixto.  Bendito Calixto designed it in form of Greek cross. This building’s length is 173m, width 168m, height 100 m and dome height is 70 m.  This church is having cpacity for 45,000 people. It was named as most important National Marian Shrine in Brazil by Pope John Paul II.

3. Cathedral of Seville, Spain

Cathedral of Seville in Spanish called as Catedral de Santa Maria de la Sede. This is the third largest church in the world and some claim it largest Gothic cathedral in the world. Its construction was started in 1402 and it was completed in 16^th century. Its building covers total area of 11,520 sq/m.  Christian architects added extra dimension to its height and now its central nave rise to a height of 138 ft.

4. Cathedral of Saint John the Divine, United States

This church’s architect was designed by the George Fredrick Bodley and Philip Hubert Frohman. Cathedral of Saint John the Divine in United States is considered to be the 4^th largest church in the world.  Its interior is having length of 183.2 m and width is 70.7 m. Originally it was designed as Byzantine Romanesque but later on it was changed to Gothic. This church was damaged by huge fire in 2001. Its building is having capacity for almost 20,000 people.

5. Liverpool Cathedral, United Kingdom

Liverpool cathedral of England is considered as 5^th largest church in the world. The total area covered by this church is 9,600 sq meters. Its building is mainly made of sand stone. Its bell tower is largest in the world and houses the world’s highest 219 feet and heaviest 31 tons ringing peal of bells. Those 13 bells are called Bartlett Bells. Its nave height is 116 feet and choir height is 116 feet also. It haves only one tower and that is bell tower.

6. Church of the Most Holy Trinity, Portugal

Church of the Most Holy Trinity in Portugal is the 4^th largest Catholic Church and sixth largest Christian church in the world. It is also known as Shrine of Our Lady of Fatima in Fatima. This church’s construction was started in 2004 and it was completed in 2007 and it was consecrated on October 12, 2007. Its length is 95 m and width is 115 m. Round about 9,000 people can hold up in its building.

7. Milan Cathedral, Italy

Milan Cathedral is dedicated to Santa Maria Nascente and it taken almost six centuries to be completed. It is referred as one of the greatest churches of the world. Its length is 157m and width is 92 meters. Forty thousand people can sit together in its building to worship God. In Gothic Cathedrals it is largest in world and in Christian churches it’s on 7^th number. It is considered as most famous building in Europe.

8. Basilica of the Sacred Heart, Belgium

Its first stone was laid by the King Leopold II in 1905 and its construction was completed in 1970. It taken time because its construction was stopped twice during both world wars, this church covers 164.5 meters area in length and 107.80 meters area in width. This is sixth largest Roman Catholic Church in the world. Almost 2,000 people can sit in this building.

9. Basilica of Our Lady of Peace, Ivory Coast

Basilica of Our Lady of Peace in Ivory Coast is listed as world’s largest church in the Guinness World Records. Its covers area of 30,000 sq meters and almost 18,000 people can worship God in it. Its construction was started in 1985 and it was completed in 1989. This church was consecrated in 1990 by Pope John Paul II.

10. Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lichen, Poland

Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lichen is the largest church in Poland. Its 7^th largest church in Europe and 10^th largest in the world, its construction was started in 1994 and it was completed in 2004.  It covers area of 120 meters in length and 77 meters in width. This church was built in hone of the Blessed Virgin Mary and it also holds a 200 year old painting known as the “Our Lady of Sorrows, Queen of Poland.”

10 Amazing Wonders of the Natural World

Earth is full of natural beauties and I don’t think that any one can see all of those in life.  From huge forests to marine life, from mountains to deserts the Earth shares its beauty with us.

We had made a list of such amazing wonders, which are less about places and more about formations and events.

1 – Ice Circles

It’s a rare fact that ice circle occur in slow moving water in cold climates. Ice circles are the large ice discs that rotate slowly in the water. It is believed that they form in eddy currents.

Ice circles are mostly observed in Scandinavia and North America, but in January 2009 one was also recorded in Britain.

2 – Red Tides

Red tide is a common name for a observable fact but correctly its known as an algal bloom, the event in which estuarine, marine, or fresh water algae rapid increase in the water column and results in discoloration of the surface water.

That can be seen only in coastal areas where algae are present in high concentrations.

3 – Columnar Basalt

Columnar Basalts are the rock formations that came in to existent from quick cooling of lava flow.

The most famous basalt flow in the world is the Giant’s Causeway in Northern Ireland; on this basalt the vertical joints form polygonal columns from its appearance it seems as it’s built artificially.

4 – Sun Dogs

Sun Dogs are the particular type of ice halo. This is a colored patch of light at left or right of the sun, 22 degrees distant and at the same distance above the horizon as the sun. That is most usually or 2^nd most commonly seen of the ice halos.

Anywhere in the world in any seasons sundogs can be seen. In Europe or USA the can be seen once or twice in a week they are seen best when the sun is low.

5 – Moeraki Boulders

The Moeraki Boulders are large and spherical boulders lying Koekohe Beach on the wave cut Otago coast of New Zealand between Moeraki and Hampden. Those boulders are scattered on the stretch of the beach where they have been protected in scientific reserve.

The main aspect of these boulders is that they are unusually in the size and highly spherical in shape.

6 – Penitentes

Penitentes are the snow formation usually found on high altitudes. They look like tall thin blades of hardened snow, positioned closely and blades oriented towards the general direction of the sun.

Height of penitentes can be same as a person’s height. Darwin described them in 1839. When on March 22, 1835 he have to squeeze his way through snowfields covered in penitentes near the Piuquenes Pass, on the way from Santiago de Chile to the Argentinean city of Mendoza.

7 – Light Pillars

Light Pillars a visual occurrence created by the reflection of light from ice crystals with near horizontal parallel planar surfaces. Light pillars usually occur because of sunlight but moonlight and strong artificial light can also form light pillars.

The pillars look like the feather of the light that vertically lay out above or below the light source. When the sun is low on the horizon then most sun pillars can be seen.

8 – Catatumbo lightning

World’s largest single generator of Ozone is Catatumbo lightning in Venezuela. This is a cloud storm which forms a voltaic arc above the height of 5km, during 140 to 160 nights a year, 10 hours per day and up to 280 times per hour, over the area where Catatumbo River flows into the Lake Maracaibo.

Catatumbo Lightning can be seen from hundreds of miles away from the lake that is also known as Lighthouse of Maracaibo.

9 – Cave of the Crystals

Cave of Naica Mine is known as the Cave of the crystals. It’s located in Chihuahua, Mexico. This cave contains giant selenite crystals, some these are the largest natural crystals ever found.

The largest crystal in the cave is 26 ft in length, 36 ft in diameter and 55 tons in weight. The cave is about 98 feet in length and 33 ft in width. It’s extremely hot with air temperatures reaching up to 109F with 90 to 100 percent humidity. Without proper protection human can survive only ten minutes in this cave because of extreme temperatures.

10 – Pink and White Terraces

Pink and White Terraces were located in New Zealand but unfortunately they were destroyed by the violent volcanic eruption of Mount Tarawera in 1886.

Geothermally heated water with large amounts of siliceous sinter that regularly spouted for two geysers located beside Lake Rotomahana and small waterfall on a hill slope, leaving thick pink and white silica, which formed terraces in the shape of water pools.

The white terraces were more beautiful and were covering a large area about 3 hectares and descending 30 meters, while people went to Pink terraces to bathe.