New 7 Wonders

Of the original Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, only one is left standing. In order to designate a new set of wonders for the modern era, Swiss adventurer Bernhard Weber established the New 7 Wonders Campaign. The campaign has nominated 21 sites from across the globe, inviting people worldwide to vote for their favorites. (After pressure from the Egyptian government, the Pyramids of Giza have been declared an honorary wonder, since they survive from the ancient list, so they may not be voted for.)

The New 7 Wonders campaign is not to be confused with the Seven World Wonders selected by USA Today and NBC's Today Show last year, which included natural formations such as the polar ice caps and Northwestern Hawaiian Islands National Monument along with the amorphous wonders of the internet and the migration in the Serengeti. Weber's list of finalists is subject to the conditions that the wonders must be man-made creations completed by the year 2000 and still standing. Each country may have no more than one representative.

To the complete surprise of no one, yours truly has plenty of opinions on this list. In an ongoing It's A Magical World series, I will provide my top five additions to the list, my top five substitutions (subject to the one-per-country rule), my top five otherwise disqualified nominees (for whatever reason), my analysis of the nine nominated sites I've visited, and finally, my votes for the New 7 Wonders. The official list will be unveiled in Lisbon, Portugal on July 7, 2007.

The list of nominees:
Acropolis, Athens, Greece*
Alhambra, Granada, Spain
Angkor Wat, Angkor, Cambodia
Chichen Itza, Mexico
Colosseum, Rome, Italy*
Cristo Redentor, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil*
Easter Island, Chile
Eiffel Tower, Paris, France*
Great Wall, China
Hagia Sophia, Istanbul, Turkey*
Kiyomizu Temple, Kyoto, Japan*
Kremlin and Red Square, Moscow, Russia
Machu Picchu, Cuzco, Peru
Neuschwanstein Castle, Fussen, Germany
Petra, Jordan*
x-Pyramids, Giza, Egypt*
Statue of Liberty, New York, United States*
Stonehenge, Amesbury, United Kingdon
Sydney Opera House, Sydney, Australia
Taj Mahal, Agra, India
Tombouctou, Mali

* denotes nominee I've visited
x-honorary selection as wonder