Top 10 Beautiful Palaces Around the World

Top 10 Beautiful Palaces Around the World

The word PALACE is derived from the Latin name Palatium, for Palatine Hill, one of the seven hills in Rome. A palace is a grand residence, especially a royal residence or the home of a head of state or some other high-ranking dignitary, such as a bishop or archbishop. In many parts of Europe, the term is also applied to relatively large urban buildings built as the private mansions of the aristocracy. Here is a collection of top 10 palaces around the world. 

10. Winter Palace, St. Petersburg, Russia

 The Winter Palace in Saint Petersburg, Russia was the official residence of the Russian Tsars. It was designed by many architects, most notably Bartolomeo Rastrelli, in what came to be known as the Elizabethan Baroque style; the green-and-white palace has the shape of an elongated rectangle. The palace has been calculated to contain 1,786 doors, 1,945 windows, 1,500 rooms and 117 staircases. Its principal façade is 250 m long and 100 ft high. 09 more after the break...

09. Summer Palace, Beijing, China

  The Summer Palace is the largest and best-preserved imperial garden in China. Its Chinese name, YiHeYuan, translates as ‘Garden of Nurtured Harmony’ or ‘Garden for Maintaining Health and Harmony’. As its name implies, the Summer Palace was used as a summer residence by China’s imperial rulers – as a retreat from the main imperial palace now known as the Palace Museum (or ‘Forbidden City’) – a pleasure ground in the countryside, yet near to the city.

08. Schonbrunn Palace, Vienna, Austria

 Schönbrunn Palace is a former imperial summer residence in Vienna, Austria. Schönbrunn Palace with its surrounding buildings and the huge park is one of the most significant cultural monuments in Austria. The castle was build to rival French Versailles in Baroque beauty and importance.

07. Potala Palace, Lhasa, Tibet

The Potala Palace, winter palace of the Dalai Lama since the 7th century, symbolizes Tibetan Buddhism and its central role in the traditional administration of Tibet. The complex, comprising the White and Red Palaces with their ancillary buildings, is built on Red Mountain in the center of Lhasa Valley, at an altitude of 3,700m.

06. Imperial Palace, Tokyo, Japan

  Tokyo Imperial Palace is the main residence of the Emperor of Japan. It is a large park-like area located in Chiyoda, Tokyo close to Tokyo Station and contains various buildings such as the main palace and the private residences of the imperial family. The total area including the gardens is 7.41 square kilometers.

05. Taj Lake Palace, Udaipur, India

Udaipur, the jewel of Rajasthan, has a regal feeling even in the streets and marketplace, a sense of pride surrounding every shop and square. Lake Palace (formerly known as Jag Niwas) is a luxury hotel, of 83 rooms and suites featuring white marble walls, located on a natural foundation of 4 acres rock, which sits on a private island in the middle of Lake Pichola. The hotel operates a boat which transports guests to the hotel from a jetty at the City Palace.

04. Dolmabahce Palace, Istanbul, Turkey

  The Dolmabahçe Palace in Istanbul, Turkey, located at the European side of the Bosporus, served as the main administrative center of the Ottoman Empire. The palace is composed of three parts; the Mabeyn-i Hümâyûn (the quarters reserved for the men), Muayede Salonu (the ceremonial halls) and the Harem-i Hümâyûn (the apartments of the family of the Sultan). The palace has an area of 45,000 m2, and contains 285 rooms, 46 halls, 6 baths and 68 toilets.

03. Chateau de Versailles, Versailles, France

The Palace of Versailles was the official residence of the Kings of France. It was originally a hunting lodge, built in 1624, by Louis XIII. It was expanded by Louis XIV beginning in 1669. He used it as a little lodge as a secret refuge for his amorous trysts with the lovely Louise de la Valliere and built a fairy tale park around it.  Jules Hardouin Mansart, the king’s principal architect, drew the plans to enlarge what was turning more and more into a palace from A Thousand and One Nights.

02. Buckingham Palace, London

 Buckingham Palace is the official London residence of the British monarch. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is a setting for state occasions and royal hospitality. It has been a rallying point for the British people at times of national rejoicing and crisis.

01. Blenheim Palace, Oxfordshire, United Kingdom

Blenheim Palace is home to the 11th Duke and Duchess of Marlborough and the birthplace of Sir Winston Churchill. Set in 2100 acres of beautiful parkland landscaped by ‘Capability’ Brown, the magnificent Palace is surrounded by sweeping lawns, award-winning formal gardens and the great Lake, offering a unforgettable day out for all.

Three-Story Tower of Abraham Lincoln Books

Three-Story Tower of Abraham Lincoln Books

There is a lot to be said about Abraham Lincoln, one of America's most influential presidents, which is made abundantly clear by the newly erected tower of books in the nation's capital. The cylindrical structure stands three stories high at approximately 34 feet in height and features over 15,000 titles about the 16th president of the free world. The innumerable volumes of works present in this towering pillar symbolize the never-ending discussion about the famed American president.

Placed in the lobby of Ford's Theatre Center for Education and Leadership, it makes for an excellent introductory piece to the new museum dedicated to Lincoln's history.

Top 10 Most Amazing Temples of World

01. Wat Rong Khun

 Wat Rong Khun: – Wat Rong Khun in Chiang Rai, Thailand is all white temple which is highly ornated with mosaic mirrors to shine. Wat Rong Khun temple is still under construction and is expected to take another 90 years making it a wonder of coming years.

Here are 10 most amazing temples of the world. These temples are from Buddhism, Hinduism, Sikhism, and Taoism. These religious people worship in temples, which are architecturally as diverse as the religions are different from each other.  09 more amazing temples after the break, 

02. Shwedagon Pagoda

Shwedagon Pagoda: – Believed to be built between 6th – 10th century, Shwedagon Paya (or Pagoda) in Myanmar, is termed as “golden temple” which mean that the structure is golden in color. Buddhist people save for years to buy small packets of gold leafs to stick to the temple walls. The spire of the stupa or dome is covered with over 5,000 diamonds and 2,000 rubies. Shwedagon Pagoda housed one of the holiest relics in Buddhism: eight strands of Buddha’s hair.

 03. Tiger’s Nest Monastery

Tiger’s Nest Monastery: – Tiger’s Nest Monastery (Taktshang Goemba), is situated on the edge of a 3,000-feet-high cliff in Paro Valley, is one of the holiest places in Bhutan. Legend has it that Guru Rinpoche, the second Buddha, flew onto the cliff on the back of a tigress, and then meditated in a cave which now exists within the monastery walls. Now the entrance is restricted to practicing Buddhists only.

04. Prambanan

Prambanan: – Built in 850 CE, Prambanan is a Hindu temple in Central Java, Indonesia. The temple is composed of 8 main shrines and 250 surrounding smaller ones. It has walls which narrate stories of Vishnu’s incarnations, adventures of Hanuman (the Monkey King), the Ramayana epic and other legends.

05. Temple of Heaven

Temple of Heaven: – Built in 14th century, The Temple of Heaven is a Taoist temple in Beijing, the capital of China. Everything in the temple, which represents Heaven, is circular whereas the ground levels, which represent the Earth, are square.

06. Borobudur

Borobudur: – In the 19th century, Dutch occupiers of Indonesia found a massive ancient ruin deep in the jungles of Java. What they discovered was the complex of Borobudur, a gigantic structure built with nearly 2 million cubic feet (55,000 m³) of stones. The temple has nearly 2,700 relief panels and 504 Buddha statues. Until today, no one knows for sure when and why it was built, nor the reason for its complete abandonment hundreds of years ago. Some scholars believe that Borobudur is actually a giant textbook of Buddhism, as its bas reliefs tell the story of the life of Buddha and the principles of his teachings. To “read,” a pilgrim must make his way through nine platforms and walk a distance of over 2 miles.

07. Chion-in Temple

Chion-in Temple: – Built in 1234 CE Chion-in Temple is most famous temples in Japan. Visitors to the Chion-in Temple must first pass through the largest gate in Japan: the two-story San-mon Gate. The temple bell is also a record setter: it weighs 74 tons and needs 17 monks to ring it during the New Year celebrations. Chion-in Temple has the “singing” floor of the Assembly Hall which is called a uguisu-bari or nightingale floor. These wooden planks were designed to creak at every footstep to alert the monks of intruders! 

08. Golden Temple

Golden Temple: – The Harmandir Sahib (meaning The Abode of God) or simply the Golden Temple in Punjab, India is the most sacred shrine of Sikhism. For the Sikhs, the Golden Temple symbolizes infinite freedom and spiritual independence. The site of the Temple began with a small lake that was so peaceful that even Buddha came there to meditate. Thousands of years later, Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikhism also lived and meditate by the lake. Construction of the Golden Temple began in the 1500s, when the fourth Guru of Sikhism enlarged the lake that became Amritsar or Pool of the Nectar of Immortality, around which the temple and the city grew. The Temple itself is decorated with marble sculptures, gilded in gold, and covered in precious stones.

09. Angkor Wat, Angkor Thom, and Bayon

Angkor Wat, Angkor Thom, and Bayon: – Angkor Wat was built in the early 12th century in what is now Cambodia. The world famous temple was first a Hindu one, dedicated to Vishnu. In the 14th or 15th century, as Buddhism swept across Asia, it became a Buddhist temple. The Western world’s got a glimpse of Angkor Wat when a 16th century Portuguese monk visited the temple and eloquently described it as “of such extraordinary construction that it is not possible to describe it with a pen, particularly since it is like no other building in the world. It has towers and decoration and all the refinements which the human genius can conceive of.” His words still rang true today. Tourists visiting Angkor Wat usually also visit the nearby ruins of Angkor Thom and Bayon, two fantastic temples that serve as the ancient capital of Khmer empire.

10. Vishnu Temple of Srirangam

Vishnu Temple of Srirangam: – The Temple of Srirangam (Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple), in the Indian city of Tiruchirapalli (or Trichy), is the largest functioning Hindu temple in the world. Legend has it that a long time ago, a sage rested and put down a statue of Vishnu reclining on a great serpent. When he was ready to resume his journey, he discovered that the statue couldn’t be moved, so a small temple was built over it. Over centuries, the temple “grew” as larger ones were built over the existing buildings. The temple complex is massive: it encompasses an area of over 150 acres (63 hectares) with seven concentric walls, the outermost being about 2.5 miles (4 kilometers) long! The walls demarcate enclosures within enclosures, each more sacred than the next, with the inner-most enclosure is forbidden to non-Hindus.