A site has been open for a while now inviting our votes for naming the 7 wonders of the world. The campaign was begun in 1999 by Swiss adventurer Bernard Weber, with almost 200 nominations coming in from around the world.You can vote until July 6 2007. To vote you can go here.
The contenders are the Taj Mahal, Stonehenge, the Acropolis, the Great Wall and the Pyramids, the Statue of Liberty; Eiffel Tower; Peru's Machu Picchu; Turkey's Haghia Sophia; the Kremlin and St. Basil's Cathedral; the Colosseum; Germany's Neuschwanstein Castle; Spain's Alhambra; Japan's Kiyomizu Temple; the Sydney Opera House; Cambodia's Angkor; Timbuktu; Petra, Jordan; Brazil's Statue of Christ Redeemer; Easter Island; and Chichen Itza, Mexico.
I am not voting because I have only seen 4 of the above and hence cannot decide on which of them is better than the other. So while the world busies itslef with its choice of seven here is my list of wonders:
1.Night sky.
2.Bird nests.
3.Communication among frieflies through bioluminiscence.
4.The tunes of music that light and wind play on the leaves of trees - visual music in total silence.
5.Happy, smiling faces among the poor. Living a life of uncertainty from day to day, how do they manage to smile and be so warm to people more fortunate than them without a tinge of jealousy and complete acceptance of the differences?
6. The voice of S.P.Balasubramaniam.How he manages to keep it so good in spite of the fact that he never takes any special care.
7.Dance of Bhirju Maharaj which makes you forget the old man before you and you just see Radha or Krishna or a demure woman he is depicting.
8. Shivmani on his drums.
9. The internet.
The contenders are the Taj Mahal, Stonehenge, the Acropolis, the Great Wall and the Pyramids, the Statue of Liberty; Eiffel Tower; Peru's Machu Picchu; Turkey's Haghia Sophia; the Kremlin and St. Basil's Cathedral; the Colosseum; Germany's Neuschwanstein Castle; Spain's Alhambra; Japan's Kiyomizu Temple; the Sydney Opera House; Cambodia's Angkor; Timbuktu; Petra, Jordan; Brazil's Statue of Christ Redeemer; Easter Island; and Chichen Itza, Mexico.
I am not voting because I have only seen 4 of the above and hence cannot decide on which of them is better than the other. So while the world busies itslef with its choice of seven here is my list of wonders:
1.Night sky.
2.Bird nests.
3.Communication among frieflies through bioluminiscence.
4.The tunes of music that light and wind play on the leaves of trees - visual music in total silence.
5.Happy, smiling faces among the poor. Living a life of uncertainty from day to day, how do they manage to smile and be so warm to people more fortunate than them without a tinge of jealousy and complete acceptance of the differences?
6. The voice of S.P.Balasubramaniam.How he manages to keep it so good in spite of the fact that he never takes any special care.
7.Dance of Bhirju Maharaj which makes you forget the old man before you and you just see Radha or Krishna or a demure woman he is depicting.
8. Shivmani on his drums.
9. The internet.
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Your wonders are a lot like the places I wish to visit post of mine- pl do your version
loved your list of wonders. it bring out how we travel to far away places seeking beauty and peace when they are right in front of us if we choose to see more carefully.
also with you on wonder #5. how true!
I have seen only two of the wonders - Taj Mahal and Eiffel Tower. Your idea of alternative wonders is certainly innovative. If you permit me, I too would fall for S.P.Balasubramaniam and the Internet. Your wonder nos.2 to 5 show how sensitive you are and how penetrative your observation is.
I prefer to add - Shakespeare's Plays, Don Bradman's batting, Mother Theresa's disarming smile and the silent humour of Charlie Chaplin.
Dear Usha, hope you dont mind, but I've tagged you. Please visit:
http://ardramaamsandhyakal.blogspot.com/2006/11/different-tag.html
Artnavy: Trouble is I dont want to go anywhere. I just want to be at home when everybody is packed off on a vacation so I dont have to think of their needs all the time.
Aqua:Thank you. as for #5, never ceases to amaze me especially when i see my maid being so happy for me.
Mahadevan:Yes Shakespeare's plays of course. Not expert enough to appreciate Don Bradman's batting.
Ardra:Will look around for childhood photos. Trouble is I don't have a scanner. Will see what I can do about it.
perhaps u have a digicam? I too dont have a scanner. so my husband tooka photo of the old photo that we manged to dig out and uploaded into the pc.
thank u
luv
ardra
4 ?? Wow. I havent seen any !
Living in India and not seeing the Taj Mahal...sadly its true for a huge percentage of Indians because they just cant afford a trip across the country and stay there for a few days and look at these 'wonders'.
I would say I see many wonders on the streets when I walk back in India. Wonders of survival, wonders of struggle, wonders of peace amongst minimal things...wonders which amaze me and some which shock me.
-PeAcE
--WiTh
---GuNs
ardra: will try that.
Guns:I am in awe like you of the "real" wonders of human spirit.
I wrote about the "new 7 wonders" sometime back and wondered how a global vote made sense especially since you would have to vote for places that you had not seen..I voted anyway! ALternative wonders eh......that might very well turn out to be one long list
I'll vote for Shivamani any day.Had the privilege of listening to him when he was not so well known some 30 years back while travelling from Trichy to Chennai.Heard him again at the National youth Festival in 2004.
i have to agree on ur list - definetly the wonders of life