Machu Picchu, Peru

Machu Picchu, whose name means "Old Peak" in the native Quechua language, is regarded as the fabled "Lost City of the Incas". It is the most famous pre-Columbian city of the Inca Empire, and is inscribed as a World Heritage Site by Unesco, which described it as "an absolute masterpiece of architecture and a unique testimony to the Inca civilization".


Machu Picchu is located 2430 m (7,970ft) above sea level, over the Urubamba Valley, in Peru, about 70 km (44 miles) northwest of Cusco. The first Westerner to confirm the existence of Machu Picchu was the archaeologist Hiram Bingham, in 1911. The site of Machu Picchu is certainly unique and breathtaking. The silhouette of the mountain range behind Machu Picchu is said to symbolise the face of the Inca (that is to say, the ruler of the Inca people) looking upwards to the sky, while the largest peak, Huayna Picchu (Young Peak), symbolises his pierced nose. The cliff where Machu Picchu is located makes a 600m vertical drop to the Urubamba River below. Surrounding it are jagged cloud-covered peaks that create a kaleidoscope of light and shadow over the cliffs.

What is visible today at Machu Picchu, apart from the panoramic scenery, are the ruins themselves which can be divided into three precincts, the Sacred District, the Elite District and the Residential District. Within the Sacred District are the important religious structures, such as the Intihuatana, the Temple of the Sun and the Room of the Three Windows, all dedicated to the sun god, Inti. The Elite District has homes for the priests and nobility, including the residence of wise persons and a zone for princesses. The Residential District has warehouses and homes for the common people.

The Inca perfected their wall-building technique, called ashlar, to such a high degree that their walls are made of blocks of stones that are fit together without the use of mortar. All counted, there are 140 constructions at Machu Picchu, including the houses, parks, and so on. As the site is in the mountains, steps are necessary. A complex irrigation system ensures that the houses receive a continuous supply of running water channeled from a holy spring - the order of flow is dictated by the significance - or holiness - of the recipient.

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Sydney Opera House , Australia

Sydney Opera House must be one of the most recognisable images of the modern world - up there with the Eiffel Tower and the Empire State Building - and one of the most photographed.
Not only is it recognisable, it has come to represent 'Australia'.


Although only having been open since 1973, it is as representative of Australia as the pyramids are of Egypt and the Colosseum of Rome.

The Opera House is situated on Bennelong Point, which reaches out into the harbour. The skyline of the Sydney Harbour Bridge, the blue water of the harbour and the Sydney Opera House, viewed from a ferry or from the air, is dramatic and unforgettable.

Ironic, perhaps, that this Australian icon - the Opera House with a roof evocative of a ship at full sail - was designed by renowned Danish architect - Jorn Utzon.

In the late 1950s the New South Wales (NSW) Government established an appeal fund to finance the construction of the Sydney Opera House, and conducted a competition for its design.

Utzon's design was chosen. The irony was that his design was, arguably, beyond the capabilities of engineering of the time. Utzon spent a couple of years reworking the design and it was 1961 before he had solved the problem of how to build the distinguishing feature - the 'sails' of the roof.

The venture experienced cost blow-outs and there were occasions when the NSW Government was tempted to call a halt. In 1966 the situation - with arguments about cost and the interior design, and the Government withholding progress payments - reached crisis point and Jorn Utzon resigned from the project. The building was eventually completed by others in 1973. After more than 30 years, the Sydney Opera House has its first interior designed by Utzon. The Utzon Room, a transformed reception hall that brings to life Jorn Utzon's original vision for his masterpiece, was officially opened on September 16 2004.
Sydney Opera House facts and figures

The Sydney Opera house:
• Was designed by Danish architect Jorn Utzon
• Was opened by Queen Elizabeth II on 20 October 1973
• Presented, as its first performance, The Australian Opera's production of War
and Peace by Prokofiev
• Cost $AU 102,000,000 to build
• Conducts 3000 events each year
• Provides guided tours to 200,000 people each year
• Has an annual audience of 2 million for its performances
• Includes 1000 rooms
• Is 185 metres long and 120 metres wide
• Has 2194 pre-cast concrete sections as its roof
• Has roof sections weighing up to 15 tons
• Has roof sections held together by 350 km of tensioned steel cable
• Has over 1 million tiles on the roof
• Uses 6225 square metres of glass and 645 kilometres of electric cable

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Golden Temple of Amritsar , India

The Golden Temple of Amritsar is the most sacred shrine of Sikhism. It is also called the Sri Harmandir Sahib (meaning Divine Temple) as well as Shri Darbar Shaib (Court of the Lord). It is located in the city of the same name, Amritsar, whose name means "pool of the nectar of immortality". This refers to the pool that surrounds the Golden Temple. The city of Amritsar is the administrative capital of the Amritsar district of Punjab, India. In the middle of the city is the Golden Temple, whose official name is Harimandir Sahib, or "temple of god". The Golden Temple of Amritsar houses the Adi Sranth, the sacred scriptures of the Sikh religion.


The Golden Temple is a two-storey building. The lower building is marble clad, and decorated with flower and animal motifs. The upper storey is gold plated. At the top is the golden dome. It is shaped like an inverted lotus. It is said to be gilded with 100 kg of pure gold. The Golden Temple was built during the term of the fifth Sikh Guru, Guru Arjan Dev (1581-1606). It stands in the midst of a water tank that had earlier been escavated by the fourth guru, Guru Ram Das (1574-1581). The site was once a forest. It is believed that the great Indian poet Valmiki wrote the Ramayana here. It was here that Sita was banished, and it was also here that her sons Luv and Kush heard these legends of their forefathers. Gautama Buddha is also believed to have visited this site. Today, however, it is the holiest site for the Sikhs.

The great Sufi of Lahore, Hazrat Mian Mir, officiated in the laying of the foundation stone with his friend, the Guru Arjan Dev Ji. It was completed in 1601. It underwent a reconstruction in 1760 after the attack by Afghans under Ahmad Shah Abdali.

A more recent wave of violence at the Golden Temple took place in 1984, when Government troops under Operation Blue Star under General Kesar Singh Brar stormed the temple to eject the separatist militant leader, Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale who was seeking to establish an independent Sikh state through violent means. Bhindranwale had sought refuge in the Golden Temple and had refused to surrender despite police warnings. In the ensuing battle, Bhindranwale was killed, along with casualties on both sides. The Golden Temple also suffered much damage from the fighting. The violence subsequently claimed the life of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, in the hands of her own Sikh bodyguards, Beant Singh and Satwant Singh, directly related to the outrage among the Sikhs over the desecration of their holiest shrine.

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