Most Beautiful Places...

Karnak Temple Karnak Temple is a lasting tribute to the ancient Egyptian pharaohs quest for immortality. And as a powerful religious institution it is arguably more representative of life in ancient Egypt than the Giza pyramids which. despite their impressive size, are ultimately tombs for the dead rulers of the Old Kingdom. The temple's influence, which lasted for more than 1300 years, was central to the power of numerous New Kingdom pharaohs, including Seti I and Rameses II. Read more about Karnak Temple   Temple Mount The last bit of uneven rock that protrudes from the top of Mount Moriah is the holiest spot in Judaism. Jews identify it as the foundation stone of the world laid by God. On it, at God's behest, Abraham almost sacrificed his son Isaac, and Jacob, son of Isaac, dreamt of the ladder to Heaven used by the angels. In the tenth century BCE, King Solomon erected the first Jewish Temple on top of the rise - hence the name Temple Mount - at the centre of which was the Rock. On this stone was installed the Ark of the Covenant, in which were kept the tablets inscribed with the Ten Commandments revealed to Moses by God. A chamber, called the Holy of Holies, was built over this. Only the High Priest was allowed to enter it. Read more about Temple Mount   Emerald Buddha It is easy to lose yourself in the fairy-tale mystique of Wat Phra Kaeo(or Temple of Emerald Buddha). Shimmering gilt towers, or stupas, vie for your attention with golden buildings topped with soaring arched roofs of multicoloured tiles. Small shrines give out clouds of sweet-smelling incense, and their fearsome stone guardians tower high above your head. But this is no fantasy palace: this is the most sacred place in Thai Buddhism - home to an Emerald Buddha statue so precious that nations have gone to war over it. Read more about the Temple of Emerald Buddha