Russians do not like to be dissed, so when the so-called Official New 7 Wonders of the World list came out recently without one Russian wonder, the great bear sprang into action. More than 26 million people cast their online ballots for the most amazing wonders of Russia, and we can now debate whether any of the Seven Wonders of Russia belong on the global list. ]]>
The bizarrely long-winded 7 Wonders of Nature project has reached the next stage: After voting closed on December 31, they've now got a list of beautiful natural spots around the world that we can vote on until July 7, when the top 77 will continue the journey.
This just-completed round culled the long list to one per country, or so we thought. Turns out it is one per country plus a bunch of places that span two or more countries. Who knew, for example, that the Great Barrier Reef spans Australia and Papua New Guinea? A neat way for Oz to get two bites of the cherry, since they have a nomination in for Uluru, too.
Other famed natural wonders to make the cut include Niagara Falls, the Galapagos Islands and the Danube River, plus a whole host of national parks, lakes and rivers that we're afraid we haven't heard of yet.
If you're tempted to get involved you can pick up to seven sites that you think are wonders of nature from their list of 261. But if you're as lazy as we are, wait until they reduce the list later in the year.
Related Stories:
· New 7 Wonders of Nature [Official Site]
· Two Aussie Natural Wonders Shortlisted [SMH]
· Seven Wonders coverage [Jaunted]
[Photo: nosha]]]>
We haven't checked in on the 7 Wonders of Nature project lately--which you may recall is a spin-off from the New 7 Wonders of the World announced in mid-2007--and that's probably because we thought the contest was just dragging on for so long.
But suddenly, there's action. Nominating votes close on December 31 for the national nominee--one site per country that will carry through to the next voting round. There's been a sudden flurry of instructions to patriotically vote for your favorite local natural site, whether that's the Jeita Grotto in Lebanon or the Chocolate Hills in the Philippines or any of 77 spots found on the current contest list.
We've been skeptical in the past about the voting system for these 7 Wonders contests and this time round things look a bit skewed: It's hard to find a non-Asian destination in the top 20 right now. Not that Asia doesn't have a bunch of beautiful places, but we figure the rest of the world does too.
We won't judge too harshly until the contest actually finishes. The next round of voting (once one-per-country nominees are decided) finishes on July 7, 2009; from July 21 there'll be another vote open to pick one of the final 21 nominees, while the organizers travel around to visit them. A final decision will be released in 2011. Which is not exactly soon.
Related Stories:
· New 7 Wonders [Official Site]
· Lebanon Caves Vie To Be Official Wonder Of Nature [AFP, via Google]
· Kids Decide Seven New Wonders [Jaunted]
· New Seven Wonders of the World Winners Announced [Jaunted]
[Photo of Halong Bay, currently #2: ranggamaharga]]]>
Serious hidden treasures from Cleopatra's palace lie beneath the waters of the Mediterranean, off the coast of Alexandria, Egypt. And a proposed underwater museum will showcase these sunken wonders if UNESCO determines that the project is feasible.
Cleopatra's palace was built on an island in one of the largest human-made bays on the planet. Earthquakes unfortunately submerged her opulent lair until the 1990s when archaeologist-divers found the thousands of precious objects.
The museum could be truly astounding, showing off 26 sphinxes, statues bearing gifts to the gods, Roman and Greek shipwrecks and pieces of the Pharos of Alexandria lighthouse--one of the seven ancient wonders of the world.
Related Stories:
· Underwater Museum Planned for Egypt's Alexandria [National Geographic]
· Egypt Travel coverage [Jaunted]
· Seven Wonders of the World coverage [Jaunted]]]>
We admit we don't know everything about every destination in the whole world, but we sure are surprised that we hadn't heard of the Chocolate Hills until now. They're found in Bohol in the Philippines and have hit the headlines because they're in the running to be one of the new Natural Wonders of the World.
But before you book your ticket, don't get too excited: They're not actually hills made of chocolate, as we'd hoped. Instead they are a weird set of over 1,200 cone-shaped hills, all of a similar size, and because the green grass that covers them turns brown during the dry season, they were named the Chocolate Hills.
Two of the chocolate hills have resorts on them, and at one there's a special viewing station which is part of the Chocolate Hills Complex. They've also got a hostel, swimming pool and a restaurant: Here's hoping their menu features lots of chocolate.
Related Stories:
· Chocolate Hills Back in Race [Cebu Daily News]
· Can You Afford A Natural Wonder? [Jaunted]
[Photo: crazyegg95]]]>
Yes, we've already expressed our skepticism about the Seven Wonders of Nature contest, but this follow-up to the Seven New Wonders of the World project is getting so much attention we simply can't ignore it.
With more than ten months of voting left until the shortlist for the Seven Wonders of Nature is made, the leading contenders at the moment are Cox's Bazar Beach (pictured) and the Sundarbans Forest, both in Bangladesh. More recognizably, Vietnam's Halong Bay is sitting in the number three spot, while better known landmarks like Mount Fuji, Niagara Falls and the Great Barrier Reef languish outside the top ten.
Not that there's anything wrong with Bangladeshi beaches, but perhaps the voting system might still be a bit out of whack?
Related Stories:
· Bangladesh Beach, Forest Top Natural Wonders List [Reuters]
· Ha Long Bay Makes Top Three [VietnamNet]
· Seven Wonders Coverage [Jaunted]
[Photo: unicorns547]]]>
Whether you consider the New 7 Wonders project a stroke of marketing genius, a selfish farce or a magical way of recognizing the modern world's most important tourism sites, you'll probably be surprised to learn that the majority of votes were cast by children in the developing world.
Leading up to the big announcement on 07-07-07, participants the world over could vote for the likes of Machu Picchu, the Taj Mahal and the Great Wall of China to make the list of the world's New 7 Wonders. Votes could be cast by internet, SMS or phone. Europe, the US and Oceania practically ignore the whole rigmarole while Mali (home to nominated-but-unsuccessful-wonder Timbuktu) voted more in one week than Germany did the whole stretch of the contest.
Just why the organizers have released these voting statistics now isn't quite clear. Perhaps they think that we'll all go soft and gushy to hear it was the under-18s who really voted up a storm; but shouldn't the people who've had a chance to see and appreciate a few of the wonders be the ones to vote?
Related Stories:
· New 7 Wonders Coverage [Jaunted]
· World's Children Chose New Wonders [Herald Sun]
· New 7 Wonders [Official Site]
[Photo: achakladar]]]>