I will admit, one of the “travelling challenges” did not go so well this week. For week three the “travel” itinerary was as follows:
Week 3: “Travel” to Egyptand Morocco
Challenges:
Virtually visit a one tourist attraction/interesting spot each day!
Pick out the top three most interesting things you saw on your “travels”.
I did pick out the top three most interesting things I saw while I virtually travelled in Egypt and Morocco, but I did not visit a tourist attraction/interesting spot each day. (My travelling was sporadic at best this week, unfortunately!)
I did enjoy the virtual travelling I did do, however. Both Egypt and Morocco were stunning places to “visit”. The top three most interesting things I saw were:
1) Oudaias Kasbah in Morocco
This neighbourhood is absolutely stunning, and I thoroughly enjoyed looked at the beautiful pictures of this place. My favourite parts of this area of Morocco are the vibrant, blue walls and unique-looking doors!
2) The White Desert in Egypt
This unique Egyptian desert amazed me. It is comprised of large, white chalk mountains that give the effect of winter snow! (I absolutely love the snow, so I loved this desert from the moment I saw it!)
3) Abydos Temple in Egypt
This temple is truly breathtaking, with its large pillars and fascinating hieroglyphics. This three-level temple is made from limestone, and was built for the Egyptian god, Osiris. The temple is also unique in that it contains at least seven sanctuaries built for Osiris, Isis, Horus, Ptah, Re-Harakhte, Amun, and Pharaoh Seti I.
Another place that I found particularly interesting while I was “travelling” was Fes el Bali. This city is definitely an interesting place to see, and the tanneries are especially unique locations to visit while there.
Yet another very interesting spot that I found in my “travels” was the Thistlegorm Dive Site in Egypt. Found in the Red Sea, this dive sight contains a shipwreck from World War II. The ship in question was an English ship called the Thistlegorm which sunk in 1941.
Of course, one’s visit to Egypt cannot be complete without a trip to the pyramids of Giza – one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. This magnificent site does not disappoint. From the great Sphinx to the massive pyramids themselves, this historical site is well worth “visiting”!
As always, I loved the opportunity to virtually visit these spectacular places, and hope you had a wonderful time virtually travelling this week as well!
Many people, including myself, are fascinated by the Seven Wonders of the World. I am going to explore what the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World were and dig up some exciting facts about each one!
Here is a list of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World:
The Great Pyramid of Giza, Egypt
The Hanging Gardens of Babylon
The Statue of Zeus in Olympia, Greece
The Temple of Artemis in Ephesus
The Mausoleum at Halicarnassus
The Colossus of Rhodes
The Lighthouse of Alexandria, Egypt.
The Great Pyramid of Giza
“From the heights of these pyramids, forty centuries looks down on us.” – Napoleonon the pyramids in Egypt
The Great Pyramid of Giza is the last standing ancient wonder of the world, and resides in Giza, Egypt. Built during the time of Cheops (King Khufu), the pyramid took twenty years to build, and stands 479 feet high, and is 754 feet wide. One of the most interesting things that I discovered about the Great Pyramid of Giza, is that it held the record – for more than three thousand years! – for the highest structure in the world to be created by human hands. I also found out that Napoleon supposedly went inside the King’s Chamber where King Khufu was buried. Apparently, Napoleon was in the tomb alone for hours. It was said that this adventure changed his life.
See the following sources for more information:
Great Pyramid of Giza – Ancient History Encyclopedia https://www.ancient.eu/Great_Pyramid_of_Giza/
What’s Inside the Great Pyramid? – Britannica https://www.britannica.com/story/whats-inside-the-great-pyramid
The Hanging Gardens of Babylon
The Hanging Gardens of Babylon, said to have been built by Nebuchadnezzar II, is the only wonder of the ancient world whose existence is argued among historical professionals. Despite this, many have speculated what the hanging gardens were like. Some thought that they were gardens made on top of roofs, or on ziggurats with terraces. More recently, however, people have speculated that perhaps the gardens were made to imitate mountain structures, and maybe used the Archimedes screw to irrigate the gardens.
See the following sources for more information:
Hanging Gardens of Babylon – Ancient History Encyclopedia https://www.ancient.eu/Hanging_Gardens_of_Babylon/
Hanging Gardens of Babylon – Britannica https://www.britannica.com/place/Hanging-Gardens-of-Babylon
Archimedes screw – Britannica https://www.britannica.com/technology/Archimedes-screw
The Statue of Zeus
The Statue of Zeus, was situated in Olympia, Greece. Built around 430 BC, and made of ivory and gold, it was an enormous statue – even larger than the statue of Athena in Athens. My favourite “fun fact” about this wonder is that it was featured in Disney’s movie, Hercules.
See the following source for more information:
Statue of Zeus at Olympia – Ancient History Encyclopedia https://www.ancient.eu/Statue_of_Zeus_at_Olympia/
The Temple of Artemis
The Temple of Artemis was build in what is now called Turkey (formerly Ephesus). The temple was first build in the 6th century BC, and was destroyed and rebuilt twice, before being finally destroyed in AD 401. Interestingly enough, the first time the temple was destroyed, it was set on fire by Herostratus, whose main goal in setting the fire was to become an infamous arsonist. He succeeded.
See the following source for more information:
Temple of Artemis at Ephesus – Ancient History Encyclopedia https://www.ancient.eu/Temple_of_Artemis_at_Ephesus/
The Mausoleum
The Mausoleum at Halicarnassus, similar to the Great Pyramid of Giza, was a giant tomb. It was made for Mausolus, who ruled Caria around 350 BC. It was made of marble, had many spectacular statues, and was enormous. The Mausoleum was destroyed by a large earth quake, as well as the extensive use of pieces of the Mausoleum to build Bodrum Castle. One fact about the Mausoleum that I found particularly interesting was that its architecture was a combination of Egyptian, Greek, and almost-Eastern styles.
See the following source for more information:
Mausoleum at Halicarnassus – Ancient History Encyclopedia https://www.ancient.eu/Mausoleum_at_Halicarnassus/
The Colossus
The Colossus of Rhodes, was an immense bronze statue of the god, Helios, that reached an impressive thirty-three meters in hight. It was situated near a very important harbour in the Mediterranean. The statue was destroyed around 226 BC, and was later melted into scrap after having laid on the docks for a thousand years!
See the following source for more information:
Colossus of Rhodes – Ancient History Encyclopedia https://www.ancient.eu/Colossus_of_Rhodes/
The Lighthouse of Alexandria
The Lighthouse of Alexandria was built around 300 -280 BC on the island of Pharos. This structure stood for more than 1600 years, at a height of over 330 feet! The lighthouse was so tall, in fact, that it was second only to the Great Pyramid at Giza for being the tallest structure to be built by human hands. The lighthouse was dedicated to Zeus Soter (known as the deliverer) and perhaps Proteus (known as the Greek sea god or “the old man of the sea”). The dedication to Zeus Soter is particularly interesting, as it was inscribed on the lighthouse in letters that were half a meter high!
See the following source for more information:
Lighthouse of Alexandria – Ancient History Encyclopedia https://www.ancient.eu/Lighthouse_of_Alexandria/
The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World certainly hold many interesting pieces information, and each wonder is exciting and unique in its own way. I loved discovering all these fascinating facts about the Seven Wonders of the Ancient world, and hope that you enjoyed discovering them with me!
