The Wonders of Asia

Eastern Asia

The Great Buddha of Kamakura is located in Kamakura Japan just south of Tokyo. It is an outdoor bronze statue of Amida Buddha sitting on the grounds of Kotokuin, a Buddhist temple.

The Forbidden City in Beijing, China was built between 1406 and 1420 during the Ming Dynasty, It is a vast complex of palaces and administrative buildings and has been the imperial home of 24 emperors. Today it is the Palace Museum.

The National Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall in Taipei, Taiwan is a monument that was erected in memory of Generalissimo Chiang Kai-Shek, the former President of this country. It is surrounded by a park.

The Great Wall Of China was built between the 14th and 17th centuries, A walk along the wall offers amazing views of the structure stretching off into the distance, Organized tours are available, The wall is surrounded by a jungle.

Terra Cotta Warriors, Xian, China were first discovered by farmers in 1974. They are a life-size terracotta army of Emperor Qin Shihuang and have become a major attraction of Xian, a northwestern city with pagodas, towers, and fortification walls. Today over 2,000 perfectly restored chariots, horses, and individual warriors stand guarding the passage of China's first emperor from life to death.

Southern Asia

The fifty-foot high Azadi Tower or Freedom Tower in Tehran, Iran was built in 1971. It is a combination of Islamic and Sassanid architectural styles.

The Qutab Minar can be found in Delhi, India and is the tallest minaret in its country. It is made of red sandstone and marble and covered with intricate carvings and verses from the Qur’an.

The Taj Mahal is one of the most recognized sights in Agra, India and was built in the 17th century. The mausoleum was commissioned by Shah Jahan for his wife, Mumtaz Mahal. It was built with precious and semi-precious stones. It is surrounded by lovely gardens and reflecting pools.

South-Eastern Asia

Malaysia

Outside of the Batu Caves in Gombak, Malaysia 13 kilometers north of the capital, Kuala Lumpur you’ll see the Lord Murugan Statue. Lord Murugan is a Hindu deity. The gold plated statue is 42.7 meters high.

Cambodia

The Angkor Wat in Cambodia was built in the early 12th century and it is the heart and soul of its country. It was first a Hindu temple and then a Buddhist temple and continues to be the largest religious monument in the world, It continues to be a house of worship and is featured on the country’s flag.

Indonesia

Borobudur Temple in Java, Indonesia is a top tourist attraction in the world This large Buddhist temple compound sits on a Central Java hilltop and was built in the 8th and 9th centuries. Like a three-dimensional mandala, it has a pyramidal base with five concentric square terraces, on top of which are three circular platforms and a domed stupa. You can delight in carved reliefs and Buddha statues. It is said that you should circle each terrace clockwise, like the sun, to walk the path toward enlightenment.

Western Asia

The Burj Khalifa Building in Dubai, United Arab Emirates is the centerpiece of downtown. This skyscraper is the tallest building in the world. It has the world’s highest observation deck and is the tallest free-standing structure in the world.

The Kuwait Towers in Kuwait City, Kuwait are a group of three slender towers that stand on a promontory (land that juts out into a body of water) the Persian Gulf. You can get great views of the city and of the waters of the Arabian Gulf.

The Dome of the Rock is a Muslim shrine located on the Temple Mount in the Old City of Jerusalem, Israel. It enshrines the rock from which Muhammad is said to have ascended to heaven after his journey from Mecca to Jerusalem on the winged steed al-Buraq.

Petra is a historical and archaeological city in Ma’an, Jordan. It is famous for its rock-cut architecture dating back to 312 BC. It was carved directly into vibrant red, white, pink, and sandstone cliff faces. It is one of the world’s most famous archaeological sites.