Asia

The largest and most populous of world's continents, considered as being divided from Europe by the Ural mountains and the Caspian Sea, the world's greatest lake in volume of water. The Isthmus of Suez connects Asia to Africa. The Asian continent shelters the highest elevation point in the Planet: the Mount Everest with 8,848 meters high, located in the border of China and Nepal. The world's largest metropolitan area is also located in Asia: Tokyo-Yokohama, in Japan, with more than 30 million people.

Asia, however, is more of a geographic term, of secular tradition, than a continent itself. Sometimes Asia is put in a bigger continent: the Eurasia, that includes Europe.

Taj Mahal, in Agra - India

Wailing Wall, in Jerusalem

Wailing Wall, in Jerusalem.

Jerusalem - Israel

The holy city of Jerusalem has more than 3,000 years of history. It was captured from the Canaanites by King David and Jesus was crucified there.

Jerusalem is the spiritual center to the world's three major monotheistic religions: Judaism, Islam and Christianity. It was the main reason for the Crusades, during the Middle Ages, and has a great number of historical sites and sanctuaries.

Today, Jerusalem is the capital of the State of Israel. Out of the walls of old Jerusalem, there is a modern city, where half million people live.

Jerusalem, and the whole State of Israel is a region in great conflict between Israelis and Arabs. Since 1967, it is dominated by the State of Israel.

Map of Israel.

Hong Kong - China

In early 19th century, Hong Kong was an island with hardly a house upon it and was part of China. During the Opium War (1839-1842), the island was occupied by the United Kingdom. After its defeat, China has formally ceded Hong Kong to UK. An agreement, in 1898, indicated the devolution of the territory back to China in 1997. As agreed, Hong Kong came back to be part of China in July of 1997, becoming the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) of China. In an addend of this agreement, it was guaranteed the preservation of the democracy in Hong Kong, up to 2047. Today, Hong Kong, or Xianggang, as called by locals, is an important metropolitan area and port of Asia, with 7,3 million inhabitants.

Map of China.

The Great Wall of China

When the Greeks have chosen the Seven Wonders of the ancient world, they did not know the Walls of China. Construction of the Great Wall started in the 7th century B.C., in an effort to hold off the invaders from the Xiongnu tribes. It was built over a period of 1000 years. Stretching more than 6,000 kilometers, from Korea to the Gobi Desert.

Part of the Great Wall in Badling, China.

Taj Mahal - India

The Taj Mahal was built between 1631 and 1648, by the Mogul emperor Shah Jahan (1627 - 1658) as a memorial and mausoleum to his wife, Mumtaz Mahal, also known as Arjumand, that died in 1631, because of childbirth complications.

It is a magnificent architectural complex, comprising of a main gateway, a mosque, a garden, a guest house and the mausoleum.

Shah Jahan was deposed by his son Aurangzeb and imprisoned in Agra Fort until his death. He was later buried in the Taj, sharing the mausoleum with his wife.

The Taj Mahal is located in Agra, the old capital of the Mughal empire, north of India, about two and a half hours by train from New Delhi. It was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site, in 1983. Sea a map of India.

Bangkok - Thailand

Bangkok, the capital of Thailand, is located on the banks of the Chao Phraya River. It is the political, commercial and cultural center of the country.

Bangkok became the Thai capital in 1782 by the King Rama I. The place was known as Bang Makok or 'Place of Olives'. In the 19th century, under the rule of Rama III, many temples were constructed. Today, Bangkok has more than 300 temples and is one of the most important Buddhist centers of all Asia.

During the 20th century, Bangkok grew really fast and became a cosmopolitan metropolis with more than seven million inhabitants.

Map of Thailand.

Monks in a temple in Bangkok, Thailand

Monks in a temple in Bangkok, Thailand.

Potala Palace, the old residence of the Dalai Lama, located in Lhasa, Tibet - China. It is still a religious and administrative complex, with more than 1,000 rooms and 10,000 altars.

Klyuchevskaya Volcano, Kamchatka Peninsula, Russia October 1994 On October 1, 1994, Space Shuttle astronauts successfully took a series of photographs of Klyuchevskaya Volcano erupting near the east-central coast of Kamchatka Peninsula in Russia. This southeast-looking photograph was made as the spacecraft was approaching the volcano from the west. The dark, ash-laden plume rose to an estimated altitude of 6 to 9 miles (10 to 14 kilometers) and drifted southeast of the volcano. Both lava and ash explosions occurred during this eruption. Klyuchevskaya Volcano is reported to be Kamchatka’s highest [15 584 feet (4750 meters) above sea level] and most active volcano. Small steam or ash plumes are also visible from subsidiary vents or craters immediately south of the major eruption zone. Other snow-covered stratovolcanoes appear in this complex cluster of volcanoes. The Kamchatka River Valley is seen in the foreground—first as it flows northward, then as it flows eastward, finally emptying into Kamchatka Bay. The blue waters of the Bering Sea are off the east coast of Kamchatka Peninsula. (Photo and text by NASA).