<Description>The Pyramids of Giza are surrounded by many myths. Even though the 3 smaller pyramids surround the great pyramid it is only the Great Pyramid of Khufu, with a height of 450 ft, which is considered to be a part of the Seven Wonders of the World. The Great Pyramid was built by the Egyptian Pharaoh Khufu of the Fourth Dynasty around 2560 B.C as a tomb for his death. Many say that over 100,000 slaves worked to build the pyramid in 20 years. The slaves were paid with food rations instead of money since there was a great flooding of the Nile River. Scientists of today believe that the story we are told today based on the travels of the Greek explorer Herodotus of Helicanassus is inaccurate. He visited the Pyramids in 450 B.C., over 20 centuries after the Pyramids had been built and the true story had been lost while being handed down from generation to generation. </Description>
<Description>The Eiffel Tower was built from 1887 to 1889 for the Paris Exposition to celebrate the centenary of the French Revolution. Over 700 proposals were submitted for the competition to build the monument and at random the design of French structural engineer Gustave EiffelÆs was chosen. After the structure was completed in 1889 it stood 1,063 ft and many people in Paris did not like the final outcome. They thought it was not suitable for a city such as Paris and a petition of 300 names was submitted in protest. In 1909 the twenty-year lease for the tower was going to expire and it was almost torn down, but its antenna saved the tower from demolition. The antenna on the tower was used for telegraphy, which was the way in which people communicated with one another in Paris. By 1910 the Eiffel Tower had become one of the most recognizable symbols in the world and a landmark for the people of Paris.</Description>
<Description>The Arc de Triomphe was a Triumphal Arch that was built to honor NapoleonÆs French Grand Army. Construction began in 1806 for the Arc and was completed in 1836, 15 years after the death of Napoleon. The Arc de Triomphe is 164 ft high and 147 feet wide making it very recognizable in the city of Paris. Jean Francois Chalgrin designed the Arc based on the Roman Arch of Titus. The Arc is placed at the center of the Place de LÆEtoile with 12 different avenues emerging from it. Georges Baron Haussman was the civil engineer responsible for the layout of Paris and its appearance today. The Arc consists of 4 relief structures. La Marseillaise, ôThe departure of the volunteersö by Francois Rude; The Triumph of 1810 by Alfred Cortot; Resistance and Peace by Antoine Etex. At the base of the Arc is the tomb of the Unknown Soldier from World War I. The tomb is adorned with an eternal flame that burns to honor the fallen soldier.</Description>
<Description>The Roman Coliseum is known internationally as one of the greatest displays of architecture and design in the history of the world. The Coliseum was completed in 80 A.D. during the reign on Emperor Vespassano. Its main purpose was for public entertainment, which consisted of gladiator combats. The Coliseum could hold 50,000 people in its 160 ft (49 m) frame.</Description>
<Description>In 1928, the planning for the Golden Gate Bridge began, by 1930 a budget was set and by 1933 construction began. Some people called it ôThe bridge that couldnÆt be builtö, but engineer Joseph B. Strauss proved everyone wrong by building one of the longest bridges in the world. The bridge has a sway of 27 ft (8 m), making it able to withstand up 100 mile per hour winds. The 2 towers of the Golden Gate Bridge stand at 746 ft (227 m) and the cables that support the bridge and the bridge floor are 4,200 ft long (1280 m). Today many people visit this historic landmark in San Francisco and spend up to an hour walking across the bridge from San Francisco to Marin County.</Description>
<Description>The Gateway Arch in St. Louis, Missouri was designed by Eero Saarinen in 1941 and completed in 1947. The arch is the tallest National Memorial in the U.S.A. standing at 630 ft on a 60 ft. base. In honor of the westward expansion of the U.S., from 1803 to 1890, with the efforts of Lewis and Clark the Gateway arch was constructed. As you drive through St. Louis today the arch stands within the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial Park which opened December 21, 1935.</Description>
<Description>The Palace of Westminster served the kings of England from the 11th century to about 1512. In 1834, a lot of the Palace of Westminster burned down in a disastrous fire and Westminster Hall was the only part of the Palace that was not destroyed. Soon after the fire a competition was put into effect allowing the people to submit new plans for the Palace. Charles BerryÆs design won the competition and featured a new and improved Palace with the traditional design and clock tower. By 1859 the new Palace was complete along with the clock tower which is known worldwide as Big Ben. The name Big Ben is named after Sir Benjamin Hall, the Parliamentary Commissioner of Works. Big Ben actually refers to the 13 ton bell that chimes every hour and not the clock tower itself.</Description>
<Description>In the midst of the Great Depression in the United States construction began on the Empire State Building in New York City. The construction of this building was a result of a competition between Walter Chrysler of the Chrysler Corporation and John Jakob Raskob the creator of General Motors. On March 17, 1930 construction began on the Empire State Building creating over 3,000 jobs for local laborers and during construction about 4 ╜ floors were being completed each week. The Empire State Building was designed by architect William Lamb of Shreve, Lamb and Harmon, has a height of 1,252 ft (381 m) and beat out the Chrysler Building with a 200 ft (61 m) tower to make the Empire State Building the tallest building of its time. Ever since its completion in May of 1931 the Empire State Building has been used to house some of the worlds most distinguished political figures such as Prince Charles, Queen Elizabeth, The Duchess of York, Fidel Castro, Nikita Krushchev and many more.</Description>
<Description>The title for the longest structure in the world belongs to the Great Wall of China. The wall is 4,536 mi long (7,300 km) and stretches across northern China from the east coast to the central part of China traveling over grasslands, deserts, and mountains. Historians believe that as early as 600 B.C construction of the lower parts of the wall had begun. Emperor Qin Shihuang wanted construction of the wall to continue during his dynasty from 221 to 202 B.C to keep out his enemies, the Mongols. Over the next three dynasties, the Qin, Hang and Ming, the wall was under construction. Over 1 million people helped to build the wall over the next thousand years with added 2 story watch towers every 100 yards.</Description>
<Description>The title for the longest structure in the world belongs to the Great Wall of China. The wall is 4,536 mi long (7,300 km) and stretches across northern China from the east coast to the central part of China traveling over grasslands, deserts, and mountains. Historians believe that as early as 600 B.C construction of the lower parts of the wall had begun. Emperor Qin Shihuang wanted construction of the wall to continue during his dynasty from 221 to 202 B.C to keep out his enemies, the Mongols. Over the next three dynasties, the Qin, Hang and Ming, the wall was under construction. Over 1 million people helped to build the wall over the next thousand years with added 2 story watch towers every 100 yards.</Description>
<Description>Also known as the Forbidden Palace, The Forbidden City was only allowed to be used by royalty. Built in the early 15th century (1417-1420), the Palace consists of 800 buildings, 9,000 rooms and covers over 720,000 sq. mi. The Palace served 24 emperors between the Ming and Qing dynasties from 1368 to 1911. In 1911 the last emperor of the Qing Dynasty resigned after the republican revolution, but was allowed to stay at the Palace. Finally, in 1924 the republican army kicked the former emperor out of the Palace and in 1950 the Palace opened its doors to the public as a museum.</Description>
<Description>Easter Island is 2,680 mi (4313 km) off the coast of Chile in the Pacific Ocean. It is considered the most isolated inhabited island on Earth with the closest inhabited island being 1,200 mi (1931 km) away. The island was discovered in 1722 by Admiral Jacob Roggeveen on Easter Sunday, which is where the name came from. The island is most famous for its prehistoric Maoi statues that cover the island. The statues are believed to have been constructed from hardened volcanic ash between 1400 and 1600 A.D. The average height for a Maoi statue is 13 ft (4 m) and they weigh about 14 tons (12.5 metric tons). For 15 years archeologist Jo Anne Van Tilburg studied the Moai and discovered that there are 887 statues situated mostly on the southeast coast of the island. The tallest Moai is 72 ft (22 m) and weighs between 145 to 165 tons (160-182 metric tons) and is found in the Rano Raraku Quarry on Easter Island.</Description>
<Description>The Colossus of Rhodes stood 110 ft (33 m) and was a huge statue of Helios, the Greek Sun god. Rhodes was the capital city of three small islands (Ialysos, Kamiros, and Lindos) after they became united to become one to help fight their enemies. After 12 years of construceiton the Colossus was finished in 282 B.C. and stood at the entrance of one of the harbors of Rhodes, Mandraki Harbor.</Description>
<Description>In the 1700Æs Spanish explorers and traders passed through the Las Vegas Valley which, at the time, was also known as the ôjourney of deathö. Raphael Rivera was the first person of European ancestry to look upon the valley. When Rivera came upon the Valley he chose the name Las Vegas because the land had plentiful water and a lot of wild grass growing. When translated Las Vegas means ôThe Meadowsö. In 1855 Brigham Young decided to settle in Las Vegas to begin teaching Mormonism to local Indians, but by 1858 the settlement was abandoned. In 1905 the railway was put down, making Las Vegas a recognizable city. Then in 1931 gambling became legalized and by the early 1960Æs the phenomena of casinos and hotels swept through Las Vegas. With all the wealthy business men purchasing land and building hotels and casinos, Las Vegas became a tourist attraction in no time. Because of its rapid growth the census suspects that by 2005 over 2 million people will live in the Las Vegas area.</Description>
<Description>The Leaning Tower of Pisa is the bell tower of the Cathedral of Pisa. Construction for the tower began in 1173 by an architect who is unknown to this day. Over the next 200 years the tower would be under construction, and finally in 1360 the tower was complete. One belief about the bell tower is that it was always supposed to lean from the time construction began, while others believe that it is the soil under the Cathedral that is making the tower lean. As of 2001 studies showed the tower was leaning at an angle of 5.5 degrees with the top edge of the tower hanging about 17 ft over its base. The Leaning Tower of Pisa has 6 stories and stands at a height of 58 m, which includes the base.</Description>
<Description>The Temple of Artemis was built around 550 B.C in Ephesus and was used as a marketplace and a place of religious instruction. Recent findings showed that offerings of jewelry and statues of Artemis made of gold and ivory were left behind for the goddess. On July 21 356 B.C, a man named Herostratus burned the temple down with hopes of having his name immortalized. Also on that night Alexander the Great was born and it has been said by the historian Plutarch, a Priest of the Oracle of Delphi, that Artemis was occupied with the birth of Alexander to save her temple. Later, during AlexanderÆs conquest of Asia Minor, Alexander offered to rebuild the temple and by 323 B.C the temple was rebuilt. In 262 A.D the temple was destroyed by the Goths and the Ephesians wanted the rebuild, but Christianity began spreading in Ephesus, making the temple no longer important for religious offerings. By 401 A.D the temple was completely destroyed and today the temple is being excavated with hopes of being rebuilt.</Description>
<Description>In January 1960 a record company called Motown established its headquarters in Detroit, Michigan. The face of music was changing and Motown creator Berry Gordy knew he found something special. For many generations music had separated the country and the musical vision Gordy projected was going to help bring the American people closer. Detroit became the central hub for many African Americans and a musical haven for many young artists. Motown has produced such artists as The Supremes, The Temptations, Marvin Gaye and the Jackson 5 to name a few.</Description>
<Description>Niagara Falls consists of 3 parts, the American Falls, Bridal Veil Falls and the Canadian ôHorseshoeö Falls. The American and Bridal Veil Falls combined produce over 50,000 gallons of water per second, while the Horseshoe Falls produce 600,000 gallons of water per second. More than 12 million tourists visit the falls each year whether they visit Buffalo, NY or Ontario, Canada. Niagara Falls is the second largest waterfall in the world next to the Victoria Falls in Southern Africa. Some of the overflow water from the Great Lakes dumps into Niagara Falls and from Niagara Falls water goes through pipes and is used by hydroelectric power stations.</Description>
<Description>Niagara Falls consists of 3 parts, the American Falls, Bridal Veil Falls and the Canadian ôHorseshoeö Falls. The American and Bridal Veil Falls combined produce over 50,000 gallons of water per second, while the Horseshoe Falls produce 600,000 gallons of water per second. More than 12 million tourists visit the falls each year whether they visit Buffalo, NY or Ontario, Canada. Niagara Falls is the second largest waterfall in the world next to the Victoria Falls in Southern Africa. Some of the overflow water from the Great Lakes dumps into Niagara Falls and from Niagara Falls water goes through pipes and is used by hydroelectric power stations.</Description>
<Description>The Pantheon, now called the S. Maria della Rotonda, was first built in 27 B.C by Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa, the advisor to Emperor Augustus. The word Pantheon means ôto honor all Godsö because when it was first built it was a place to leave offerings to all the Roman gods. From 118 to 128 Hadrian, the adopted son of Emperor Trajan, rebuilt the Pantheon and is the same one we see today. The S. Maria della Rotunda is capped with a perfect dome the is 142 ft (43.3 m) in diameter and on either side of the Rotunda stands statues of Augustus and Agrippa. The porch has 3 rows of 8 columns, each 46 ft (14 m) high. The dome is composed of 140 coffers, or waffle like depressions, which help to reduce the weight of the dome.</Description>
<Description>By October 2004, the Petronas Towers, in Malaysia, will no longer be the tallest buildings in the world at 1,483 ft (452 m). In 1998, the skyline of Kuala Lumpur was introduced to the 2 towers which have a crosswalk on the 42nd floor. The towers are comprised of 8 million square feet of shopping and entertainment, parking for 4,500 cars, a symphony hall, mosque and much more. The building was also featured in the movie Entrapment with Catherine Zeta-Jones and Sean Conery. Petronas Towers became the largest buildings in the world when they beat out the Sears Tower by 29 ft (8.8 m) due to the 33 ft (10 m) spires at the top of each tower.</Description>
<Description>One of the most recognizable opera houses in the world is the Sydney Opera House in Australia. The distinguished egg shell like configuration of the exterior of the Opera House makes the backdrop of Sydney Harbor very unique. In 1957 the conductor of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra wanted a new opera theater and concert hall so a competition was held and the winner was architect J°rn Utzon. The original plans for the opera house were for 2 theatres, but in 1959 2 more theatres were requested. It took roughly 5 years to come up with the roof design of the opera house and finally in 1962 Utzon figured that he had to use spheres to create the proper angles and shapes and roof construction began in 1963 and ended in 1967. From 1967 to 1973 the interior of the Opera House was completed and on October 20, 1973 the Opera House opened to the public.</Description>
<Description>The Taj Mahal was built from 1630 to 1653 as an Islamic tomb at the request of Emperor Shah Jahan as a tribute to his wife, Mumatz Mahal (also known as Arjumand Banu). Jahan had the temple built in Agra because that was where he and his wife lived for 18 years and where they had 14 children. During the birth of their last child Mumatz died and Jahan wanted to build a mausoleum to honor her memory. The Taj Mahal consists of 5 main elements the Darwaza (main gateway), the Bageecha (garden), the Masjid (mosque), the Naqqar Khana (rest house), and the Rauza (Taj Mahal mausoleum).</Description>
<Description>In October 2004 the tallest building in the world will be completely finished. The Taipei Financial Center or Taipei 101 will stand at 1,671 ft (509 m) and consist of 101 floors. Taipei Financial is one of the fastest growing financial institutions in Asia and is situated in a booming area of Taipei called the Hsinyi District. C.Y. Lee & Partners designed the building based on the number ô8ö which is a lucky number in Chinese culture because in Chinese ô8ö sounds like the word ôprosperö. In October 2003 Taipei 101 opened its shopping center and by its opening in fall 2004 the building will house various restaurants, an observatory and an executive club.</Description>
<Description>Angkor includes several temples that extend over 40 miles near the village of Siem Reap in Cambodia. The temple of Angkor Wat was built by Suryavarman II from 1113 to 1150. All the temples of Angkor were built by different architects between the eighth and thirteenth centuries. In all, there are nine temples with Angkor Wat being recognized as the largest religious monument in the world.</Description>
<Description>In 1501 Michelangelo began sculpting the Statue of David. Michelangelo used a block of marble from a Cathedral court yard that had been there for 35 years. By 1504 the Statue of David was complete and unlike any other David people had ever seen. This sculpture depicted David just before he was going to fight Goliath. Today, the Statue of David can be seen in the Galeria dellÆAcademia in Firenze (Florence).</Description>
<Description>TorontoÆs most recognizable feature is the CN Tower. The tower stands at 1,815 ft (533.33 m) and adorns the skyline of Toronto. Canadian National (CN) built the tower in 1976 during a construction boom. Because of the height of the building CN was able to put a receptor and an antenna on top of the building which solved a huge communication problem in Toronto. Today, becaseue of the CN Tower Toronto experiences some of the best reception in North America. The tower also features a rotating restaurant, outdoor observation deck, glass floor at 1,122 ft (342 m), movie theater and an arcade.</Description>
<Description>Borobudur was built in a volcanic area of Java in Indonesia. This Buddhist monument was built in the late eighth century possibly by the king of Java. The building is well known because of its very unique architectural design that had never been seen before. The design of the building consists of figured reliefs, decorative panels and detailed sculptures. There are 1,460 narrative panels covering 1,900 sq. m and 1,212 decorative panels covering 600 sq. m. The stupa, or dome shaped structure used as a Buddhist shrine, stands at 130 ft (31.5 m).</Description>
<Description>The Sphinx is also associated with the Great Pyramids and is a symbol of strength among the Ancient Egyptians and was the idea of the son of Khufu, Kaphre around 2540 B.C. An Egyptian headpiece adorns the head of the Sphinx, and other noticeable features include a beard and a nose. The primary make up of the Sphinx is that of the head of a man and the body of a lion measuring a total of 150 ft. The Sphinx has also been buried by sand and dug out of the sand numerous times and this is represented in the story of Dream Stella. The Dream Stella tells the story of Thutmosis IV who fell asleep under the Sphinx and dreamed that it told him to dig the monument out of the sand. The Sphinx later promised Thutmosis IV he would become King of Egypt. </Description>
<Description>The hydroelectric power plant of the Itaipu is located between the border of Brazil and Paraguay. The Itaipu Dam was built from 1975 to 1991 and is 25,407 ft (7744 m) high. The dam produces over 7.5 million megawatts of power per hour from 18 generators. In 1995 alone the dam produced 25% of BrazilÆs power and 78% of ParaguayÆs energy. The volume of iron and steel used to build the dam would make 380 Eiffel Towers.</Description>
<Description>The hydroelectric power plant of the Itaipu is located between the border of Brazil and Paraguay. The Itaipu Dam was built from 1975 to 1991 and is 25,407 ft (7744 m) high. The dam produces over 7.5 million megawatts of power per hour from 18 generators. In 1995 alone the dam produced 25% of BrazilÆs power and 78% of ParaguayÆs energy. The volume of iron and steel used to build the dam would make 380 Eiffel Towers.</Description>
