The first city to build an underground railway was London. Once the route was planned, a great trench was cut along the streets, the railway tracks were laid and the trench was covered over again, to restore the road and create a railway tunnel underneath. This method of tunnel making is called ‘cut and cover’. The original route of the …

Located in Tel Aviv, Israel, the White City was constructed from the early 1930s to 1950s, based on an urban plan by Sir Patrick Geddes. The buildings were designed by architects trained in Europe where they practised before immigrating. They created an outstanding architectural ensemble of the Modern Movement in a new cultural context. Over 4,000 Bauhaus or international-style buildings …

A giant redwood in the Humboldt National Forest in California is the tallest tree on earth. At last measurement in October 1991, it was 365 feet tall i.e. if you look out of the top-floor window of a building 30 stories high- and still you’ll not see the top.

Many people think this is one of the most beautiful buildings in the world and it is regarded as the finest example of Islamic architecture. It was built on the Jumna River near Agra in India by Shah Jahan, emperor of India, between 1631 and 1653 as a tomb for his wife Mumtaz Mahal (‘Jewel of the Place’). The whole …

What comes to mind at the mention of Varanasi? The peals of temple bells in this ancient pilgrim town; people performing puja at the ghats and elsewhere; bodies being cremated at the banks of the river Ganga. Do dolphins come to mind? Dolphins?! That happy looking performing artist which looks more like a shiny inflated balloon toy? Yes, and this …

The Pampa is a region of grassland in Argentina. It runs inland from the towns and cities, such as Buenos Aires on the Atlantic coast, and stretches for hundreds of miles up to the foothills of the Andes. The Pampa is very like the great plains, or prairies, of North America which stretches across the states of Texas, Kansas and …

We known about the lost kingdom of Atlantis through the writings of the Greek philosopher Plato. He had heard the story from the people to whom the story was already a legend, is it is by no means a new Atlantis was a very rich island with a huge city, a palace and a temple on the summit, and Plato …

The longest snake in the world – the python – is found in the tropics, in and around the Malay region. It is the reticulated or regal python, which can sometimes be as much as 30 feet long. It kills its prey by coiling itself round the animal and hugging it, so that it cannot breathe. Then it swallows the …

If you have ever been lost in a city or even a large town without the help of a street plan you will have some idea of the problems which confronted scientist of old when they tried to imagine exactly where Earth was in the Universe. You might be able to work out where you were in the city if …

The Bridge of Sighs is a bridge in Venice, northern Italy. The enclosed bridge is made of white limestone and has windows with stone bars. It passes over the Rio di Palazzo and connects the old prisons to the interrogation rooms in the Doge’s Palace. It was designed by Antoni Contino (whose uncle Antonio da Ponte had designed the Rialto …