THE SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE Designed by Dutch architect

THE SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE Designed by Dutch architect Jorn Utzon, the striking silhouette of the Sydney Opera House, completed in 1973, recalls either the broad white sails of a ship or a row of seashells. This structure contains an opera hall, a concert hall, and four other halls, The greenery behind the Opera House includes the Royal Botanic Gardens and a school of music. This structure has come to symbolize the city of Sydney.

The Opera House was formally opened by Queen Elizabeth II on 20 October 1973. The Opera House covers 1. 8 hectares of land. It is 183 metres tall and about 120 metres wide at its widest point. It is supported on 580 concrete piers sunk up to 25 metres below sea level. It has five theatres, five rehearsal studios, four restaurants, six bars and many souvenir shops. The opera house's roof is constructed of over one million (1 056 000) glazed white granite tiles. Its five theatres are the Concert Hall (with a seating capacity of 2679), Opera Theatre (1547 seats) , Drama Theatre (544 seats), Playhouse (398 seats) and Studio Theatre (364 seats). Extra information link: http: //en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Sydney_O pera_House Materials, finishes and products The walls and ceilings are made from precast concrete and granite claddings, the windows and window treatments are glazed glass with bronze frames and the doors are glazed glass with bronze frames. Production Cost: $374 million

Sydney Harbour Bridge The Sydney Harbour Bridge connects the Sydney CBD with the North Shore of the harbour. It is the world’s largest (but not longest) steelarch Bridge. Dr John Job Crew Bradfield is known as the ‘Father of the Bridge’ as he prepared the general design. The bridge cost over £ 10 million. 79% of the steel used was imported from England. TIMELINE OF THE BRIDGE 28 July 1923: Construction began 26 March 1925: Foundation stones of southern abutment stone tower laid 26 October 1928: Construction of the main arch begins 26 November 1929: Erection of a record tonnage of steel on one day – 589 tonnes 19 August 1930: Main arch joined 16 January 1932: Last stone set in Pylons 21 January 1932: Last rivet driven in 19 March 1932: Road declared open for traffic - Sydney history is made.

The steel girders were brought into position by barges floating in Sydney Harbour. The steel was lifted up by two 580 -tonne creeper cranes mounted on top of the Bridge. These cranes built the Bridge out before them as they inched forward. The steel decking was then hung from the arch and was completed in nine months. It was built from the centre outwards to save time moving the cranes. Finally, the Bridge was test loaded using up to 96 steam locomotives placed along the tram and train lines on the Bridge. Interesting facts: Sydney has nicknamed the Bridge ‘the coat hanger’ The Bridge is not completely stationary. It can rise or fall 18 cm due to heating or cooling. Paul Hogan (Crocodile Dundee) was once employed as a painter on the Bridge. The Sydney Harbour Bridge carries eight vehicle lanes, two train lines, a footway and a cycleway. Today an average of around 161, 000 vehicles use the Bridge each day

Golden Gate Bridge This famous suspension bridge isn’t named for its colour, but because it was the entrance to San Francisco Bay, which was called the "Golden Gate" some 150 years ago by prospectors who passed through on their way to California’s goldfields. The bride is painted ‘international orange’. The architect (Irving Morrow) chose this colour instead of the traditional grey or black because he thought it suited the bridge’s natural surroundings better. In 1965 they began work to replace all the original lead-based paint (with a non-toxic zinc silicate primer and acrylic emulsion). It took 30 years to finish repainting. The Golden Gate Bridge was finished in 1937 and was the world’s longest suspension bridge (2. 7 km long) and the highest structure west of New York (227 m high). Today people can walk across the east side of the bridge or cycle across the west side during daylight hours. To learn more about the Golden Gate Bridge, go to www. goldengatebridge. org.

The Statue of Liberty weighs 204 tonnes. The statue is a copper female figure 46. 05 m in height, reinforced with steel, facing the ocean from Liberty Island in New York Harbour. Her right hand holds aloft a torch, and the left hand carries a tablet upon which is inscribed: “July IV MDCCLXXVI. ” (1776) The statue was designed by Fredéric Auguste Bartholdi as a gift to the United States from the people of France to remember the friendship and support of the two countries in the American Revolution. The French people paid the $250, 000 price for the The Statue of Liberty, statue. the most famous The 50 m pedestal contains steel underpinnings designed by Alexander Eiffel of France to support the statue. President Grover Cleveland accepted the statue from France for the United States on 28 October, 1886. statue of a woman, was modelled on Marie Bartholdi, the sculptor's mother. The Statue of Liberty is tremendous! Her nose is over 1 m long, and her mouth is 1 m wide. Her waist measures 12 m.

Double click on picture for webpage BIG BEN Famous for: Big Ben was the biggest clocktower in the world when it was built in 1859. It is famous for keeping the correct time since it began. The five bells ring out on the hour every hour. Location: It stands in London as part of Westminster (Houses of Parliament). Big Ben has four clock faces, each measuring 7 metres across. Interesting facts: • The clocktower is known as Big Ben but it is really the biggest bell inside which is called Big Ben and weighs 4 tonnes. • The tip of the minute hand on Big Ben travels 190 kms a year. • The clock tower of the Palace of Westminster took 13 years to build, and was completed in 1859. Materials: • The tower is 96 metres high. It is built from stone and bricks. It is built in the Gothic style. • The spire that rises above the belfry is built with an iron frame, and it is this frame which supports the weight of the bells. • the clockfaces themselves are not solid, but are composed of 312 small pieces of opal glass, put together like a stained glass window. • There is a staircase inside the tower, and if you climb it there are excellent views of London. • Several small rooms are built into the lower part of the tower, including a small prison cell. http: //www. destination 360. com/europe/uk/big-ben. php

Eiffel Tower Another great engineering feat is the Eiffel Tower, a huge wrought-iron skeleton in Paris. Alexandre Gustave Eiffel designed the 300 m tower for the exhibition of 1889. The Eiffel Tower contains about 6 300 tonnes of iron and steel and cost more than one million dollars. For many years, it was the highest structure in the world and served as an important military lookout station during World War I. Since 1953 it has been used to transmit television programs.

Location: Part of the cathedral in Pisa, in Italy Use: It is a belltower with 7 tuned bells Built in 1173, it was only finished in 1347. Size: 55. 9 m high Its weight is estimated at 14 500 tonnes. The tower has 294 steps. The tower leans at an angle of 5. 5 degrees Thickness of walls at the base: 2. 4 m Materials: It is built from white marble. This first floor is surrounded by classical pillars, leaning against solid arches. Why does it lean? The tower began leaning to the southeast soon after construction began in 1173 due to a poorly laid foundation and loose subsoil that has allowed the foundation to shift direction. View looking up at the tower from the base.

Measurements: Early on Sunday 13 August 1961, the East German Government blocked off East Berlin from West Berlin with barbed wire. Streets were torn up and tanks stood ready. Families and friends were split forever. The wall was 166 km long with zigzag barriers of concrete 4 m high. Behind it (on the "eastern" side) was an brightly lit area (called death area). Refugees who reached that area were shot without warning. Then there was a trench to stop vehicles from Aerial view of Berlin showing path of wall. breaking through. Next there was a patrol track, a corridor with watchdogs, watchtowers and bunkers, and a second wall. The border cut through 192 streets in Berlin. At least 100 people were killed at the Berlin Wall. END OF THE WALL On November 9, 1989 the East German Government said the border would be opened for "private trips abroad". East Berliner's raced towards West Berlin and there were celebrations and the wall was pulled down by the people. THE BERLIN WALL

PYRAMIDS OF GIZA Double click on icon LOCATION: Giza, Egypt (near Cairo) FINISHED: 2589 B. C. Time to build: 20 years Reason for building it: It was used as a burial place for the pharoahs. Who is buried there? Pharaoh Cheops (also known as Khufu) Why is it so famous? It is the tallest and greatest pyramid ever built. It is the only one of the famous Ancient Wonders of the World still standing. It is a great example of building which has stood for 3 000 years. Construction materials and size: • It weighs 6. 5 million tonnes • 2. 5 million limestone blocks were used to build it • Each block weighed 2. 5 tonnes • The pyramid was 481 feet tall with the apex block and is now 450 feet • The pyramid base covers 13 acres

In India the Taj Mahal stands on the bank of the Yamuna River, which is a wide moat defending the Great Red Fort of Agra. The fort was the center of the Mughal emperors until they moved their capital to Delhi in 1637. It was built by the fifth Mughal emperor, Shah Jahan in 1631 in memory of his second wife, Mumtaz Mahal, a Muslim Persian princess. She died after giving birth to their 14 th child. The death so crushed the emperor that all his hair and beard were said to have grown snow white in a few months Construction began in 1631 and was completed 22 years later in 1653. Twenty thousand people worked on it. Materials were brought in from all over India and central Asia and it took a fleet of 1000 elephants to transport them to the site. It is a "symbol of eternal love". THE TAJ MAHAL

The Taj Mahal is a tomb. It sits on a high red sandstone base topped by a huge white marble terrace. The famous dome is flanked by four tapering minarets. Inside the dome is the jewel-inlaid grave of the queen. Next to it is the casket (coffin) of the emperor. The dome is made of white marble, but the tomb is set against the plain across the river and it is this background that works its magic of colours. The reflections continually change the view of the Taj. The colours change at different hours of the day and during different seasons. Like a jewel, the Taj sparkles in moonlight when the semi-precious stones inlaid into the white marble on the main mausoleum catch the glow of the moon. The Taj is pinkish in the morning, milky white in the evening and golden when the moon shines. These changes, they say, are like the different moods of a woman. a "symbol of eternal love".

Great Wall of China The Great Wall of China is the world's longest human-made structure, stretching over approximately 6, 400 km. It is located northwest of Beijing, China. The Great Wall is the longest fortified line ever built. It zigzags to the east and west along the mountains. It was built to protect the northern borders of the Chinese Empire during the rule of successive dynasties (emperor in power). It can be seen from the moon. The Great Wall was built and added to often between 500 BC and 1500 AD. It was begun by the first Emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang. It stands about 7 m high and has 12 m towers built into it every 200 metres. The wall tapers from a 7 m base to about 4 m at the top. . Its sides are made of earth, brick and stone. The top of the wall is paved with bricks set in lime, forming a roadway for horsemen. The Great Wall was built entirely by hand took hundreds of years to complete.