The World's Top 100 Wonders

[ncr]

Something in the same vein: create a map of all the countries you have visited and print it, send it to your friends, put it on your website, or just save it for your pleasure.

What fun!

The Enforcer!

Here's more fun: I have created a related poll in the "everything else" section of the forum, where you can let us know how many countries you have been to.......... start counting, Ladies & Gentlemen!

[ncr]

And here's more: How could I forget the New 7 Wonders initiative: www.n7w.com? (Only for buildings, not natural wonders.)

The voting period has just been extended and the final results will be announced on 1 January 2007.

Now they have just added Wat Thammakai (more precisely, its UFO-like main stupa) to the list of eligible candidates.......... as the only proposal from Thailand......

Some background on this more than strange sectarian temple is here (scroll down to 03 January 2004).

[jpatokal]

Now they have just added Wat Thammakai (more precisely, its UFO-like main stupa) to the list of eligible candidates.......... as the only proposal from Thailand.....

This sounds like something I have to add to my collection of weird and wonderful temples visited (previous top contender for Thailand here). Any instructions for getting there/finding it, other than by following the astral emanations? The Slate article's description of a bus from "downtown Bangkok" isn't too helpful.

[jpatokal]

OK, it would have been too hard to check their website (in surprisingly good English at that) before posting. Here's the location page complete with a handy map (down, GWR, down!):

http://www.dhammakaya.or.th/about/location.htm

Direct buses from Sanam Luang, Ramkhamhaeng U. and Victory Monument every Sunday at 7:30 AM-ish. Next Major Event, "Earth Day", is scheduled for April 22.

[ncr]

This sounds like something I have to add to my collection of weird and wonderful temples visited (previous top contender for Thailand here).

Oh yes, the good, old, quirky (to say the least) Sala Kaew Khu in Nongkhai......... also nice! (By the way, liked your photo of the mangled-English sign proclaiming WESLL THEFIH'S FOOD HERE - the literal translation of the Thai text would be you are invited to admire the big fish, though......)

Here's the location page complete with a handy map

That's one of the better location maps I've seen! Really, not bad at all. To reiterate the way: Basically you go up Phahonyothin Highway until you reach the big interchange after Bangkok University and immediately before the entry to Thammasat University's Rangsit Campus and AIT (this intersection is locally known as "Bang Khan" - the name of a gold shop at the NE corner). Here you turn right (to do that, you actually go left and make a 270 degree turn) and head straight east towards the Eastern Outer Ring Road, across the inspiringly named Khlong Nueng, Khlong Song, Khlong Sam (Canal 1,2,3 - it goes on until at least 30 or so). After maybe 3 km, the access to Wat Thammakai is on your left. Rather unlikely to miss, at least when I was last there (2003), they always had that giant billboard with a white-clad nun at the entrance.

All clearly to be seen on said location map.

I entered the grounds once - back then the main chedi (or whatever that structure has to be called; they write it as cetiya, probably derived from Sanskrit?) was not yet finished. I only entered that vast assembly hall intended for mass meditation. Impressive, but the golden UFO is the true marvel - "built to last for 1000 years" and made up of 300,000 Buddha images on the outside, plus decorated with another 700,000 (!) inside. Well, you cannot accuse them of being megalomaniac, can you? Probably the interior is still not completed.......

site layout with links to detailed descriptions of the structures

[ncr]

And an article mentioned by GWR in another thread.......

[Dionysus]

Here we go.....

1 Pyramids of Egypt
6 Grand Canyon
9 Bali – Indonesia
17 Karnak Temple
21 Acropolis & its Parthenon
27 Nile River Cruise
30 Colosseum of Rome
31 Fjords of Norway
32 St Peter's Basilica
33 Egyptian Museum
35 Valley of the Kings
36 Hong Kong Harborscape
37 Sistine Chapel
38 Alhambra
39 Louvre Museum
40 Canals of Venice
41 Versailles
47 Temple of Emerald Buddha
49 Pompeii
51 Prague Old Town
53 Amalfi Coast & Driv
56 Mezquita of Cordoba
59 Uffizi Gallery
64 Abu Simbel
65 St. Mark's Basilica/Campanile
66 Florence Cityscape
72 Leaning Tower of Pisa
74 Mont-St-Michel
79 Yellowstone
81 Petronas Twin Towers
85 Eiffel Tower
87 Niagara Falls
88 British Museum
92 Yosemite
94 Chambord Chateau
98 San Francisco Bay/Cityscape

[ncr]

Now they have just added Wat Thammakai (more precisely, its UFO-like main stupa) to the list of eligible candidates.......... as the only proposal from Thailand......

Some background on this more than strange sectarian temple is here (scroll down to 03 January 2004).

...and a satellite image is here . (Centered on the UFO, excuse me, stupa - to see the giant assembly hall, pan down.)

[dick]

Taj Mahal
Louvre
Canals of Venice
Tempel of Emerald Buddha
Varanasi
Topkapi Palace
Stonehenge
New York Skyline
Eiffel tower
British Museum
Neuschwanstein
Dubrovnik
Delphi
Jerusalem
Portofino
Acropolis Athena

But sometimes I visited countries like Nepal, but I have not seen Katmandu, Everest, and so on.
And believe me, Amsterdam is also a wonder of architecture.
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trichomes pictures