Machu Picchu (meaning Old City in Incan) is arguably the most amazing site in Peru, if not in South America. So much so, it’s even got archaeologists arguing about its original purpose. Some say this 15^th century Incan city was built as a secret ceremonial center. Though it’s debated whether this was in honor of the sacred Andean landscape or the Incan Sun god, Inti. Others have more cynically suggested that it served as a prison. But by far the most popular theory is that Machu Picchu was built by an Incan Emperor named Pachacuti (considered a Peruvian hero) to celebrate the defeat of a rival tribe called the Chancas.

So what’s so magical about Machu Picchu? Well, not only is it located high up in the Andes, but it’s completely invisible from below. And its inhabitants got all the food and resources they needed in this remote location. Machu Picchu was such a secret that even the Spanish Conquistadors didn’t find it when they came over to South America in the 1400s.

Even more impressive is that not a drop of mortar was used to cement the walls of the city’s 140 buildings containing temples, bathhouses, homes and sanctuaries. Instead, clever Incans cut blocks of stone so precisely that when fitted together you’d be hard pressed to get even a knife in the join.

Sadly, Machu Picchu was abandoned a mere 100 years after it was built. (And it’s probably because the city’s inhabitants contracted nasty diseases, such as small pox, carried over to Peru by Spanish Conquistadors.) But don’t worry because not all is lost in the Lost City of the Incas. Thanks to a dedicated team of restorers you’ll be able to capture some of the wonder of Machu Picchu today as it was back in its full glory.

A student took this photo of Stonehenge while on an Explorica educational tour

Over in Harry Potter’s homeland is Stonehenge. Though even Harry himself might be baffled by this wonder. That’s because its Neolithic builders who lived in England roughly 5,000 years ago didn’t keep written records telling us when, why or how Stonehenge was built.

Luckily, archeologists have been doing some tough investigative work to satisfy our curiosity. They’re pretty sure that Stonehenge’s concentric circles were built in four stages over a lengthy 1,500 year period. (And you thought your municipal workers were slow!) Archeologists even agree that Stonehenge served as a burial ground and a place of ancestor worship. In fact, digs at the site have uncovered remains of people not just from England but from as far away as Germany, France and the Mediterranean.

But it’s unlikely that this was Stonehenge’s exclusive function. Other scholars have suggested that Stonehenge was a place of religious ritual, a tool for astronomy (the stones are aligned to mark the Summer Solstice, the Winter Solstice, and the most northerly sunrise and sunset) and as a place to observe the Sun and Moon gods.

Yet, one question still perplexes everyone. How did Stonehenge’s builders move these massive stone blocks that measure roughly 15 feet and weigh up to 44 tons (or the equivalent of about five elephants to you and me) in an era when the wheel hadn’t even been invented?

Folk tales trying to explain this phenomenon have been flying around for centuries. (And they may even be as good as any modern theory, such as one that alleges that ancient man rolled the rocks to the Stonehenge site.) Take that of a gent named Geoffrey of Monmouth who lived during the Middle Ages. He claimed that the stones had magical healing properties and were brought to Ireland by a tribe of African giants before being transported—by the wizard, Merlin—to England. Talk about making Muggles of all of us!

Wonders of the World

Ever wondered what’s so wonderful about the Wonders of the World? Join Explorica for a mind-boggling exploration into three of the world’s greatest architectural triumphs that have many scratching their heads over how and why they were constructed. We’ll travel to the Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt, head northwest to England’s mystical Stonehenge, before making a lengthy trip across the Atlantic to the Incan city of Machu Picchu in Peru. So grab your Indiana Jones hat and let’s go!

Wonders of the World, Part 1: The Great Pyramid of Giza

So amazing is the Great Pyramid of Giza that not only is it the oldest Ancient Wonder of the World but it’s also an honorary member of the New Seven Wonders of the World. Even more amazing is that in its heyday (that’s 2,500 B.C.) this Great Pyramid was the tallest building in the world, standing at a massive 480 feet. (Or about a third as tall as the Empire State Building). And it held that record for a whopping 3,800 years! Archeologists believe that the Pyramid of Giza was built as a tomb for Pharaoh Khufu, leader of Egypt‘s fourth dynasty. (Incidentally, his name means “the god Khnum protects me.” Though legend has it that he was anything but a protector, except of himself, demanding money from anyone who came near him—including his own daughter.) Enter the Great Pyramid and be dazzled by the number of complicated corridors and pathways (constructed that way to confuse grave robbers) that lead to the King’s Chamber, the Queen’s Chamber, mortuary temples and smaller pyramids believed to be tombs for Khufu’s wives. (By the way, scholars believe that ancient Arab explorers misnamed the Queen’s Chamber because it was definitely not meant to house a queen. It was probably meant to be a back-up chamber for Khufu instead.) Yet, the mystery of the Great Pyramid is more than just that of the mummies (who Egyptians believed would be protected by the tombs forever while their spirits traveled to the afterlife.) It’s the fact that the Great Pyramid was created with such geometric accuracy that modern architects have only just been able to recreate it. And that’s with the help of laser measuring technology. Perhaps it’s only the Great Sphinx of Giza whose watchful eye over the pyramids holds the answer to this great mystery.

Like in China, New Year’s in Vietnam springs to life on January 23^rd. From bamboo and peach blossoms to interesting rules around what you should and should not eat, we’ll take a look at what happens before, during and after the big day.

Tet, as they call it, blends many far-east traditions but also has unique ones. As the country’s most important and popular holiday, planning starts early. Preparations begin one or two weeks before the actual holiday. Part of the prep is to display a New Year’s tree—of sorts. It’s actually a bamboo pole. Families decorate these grass giants with good luck charms and origami fish.

In addition to decorating the tree and making sure the house is sparkling, the Vietnamese assemble an altar to honor their ancestors during Tet. They stock the altar with fruit in hopes that good crops will grow their way. While paying respects to their ancestors is very important, the Vietnamese also honor their living relatives throughout this celebration. Like children, for instance. Little ones have all the luck in this culture. Parents and elders pass out little red envelopes to children filled with money. Isn’t that a happy way to wake up!

But all that cheer goes out the window if the first to walk in the door is an uninvited guest. The first guest is said to set the tone for the rest of the year. And if that uninvited guest brings gifts of shrimp or a clock it’s a double whammy. Eating shrimp is taboo because the Vietnamese believe it will make people move backwards like shrimp, or be unsuccessful. Clocks and watches mean the lucky recipient’s time will pass…

From giving sweet candy to loved ones in hopes that the rest of their year will be full of sweetness to paying off all debts to start the year with a clean slate, the Vietnamese definitely have some superstitious customs. They even believe that at the end of the year a mythical “kitchen god” reports the activities of the family to the heavens. That’s one way to ensure people stick to their resolutions!

1. Have a selection of construction paper, scissors and glue (tape or even a stapler will also do the trick). For more variety, bring some fun gift-wrapping paper as another option. The size of the paper can vary—if you use a standard 9×11 piece, lanterns will have a nice hourglass shape. If the dimensions vary, your lanterns will appear a bit more narrow or wide depending on the measurements. That’s what’s great about these lanterns—you can’t really mess ‘em up!

2. Fold your paper of choice in half the long way. You should have one long rectangle.

3. Being careful not to cut quite all the way to the other end, use your scissors to make about a dozen straight cuts starting from the folded side of your paper.

4. Unfold your paper and curl the short ends so they meet up. Glue, tape or staple these edges together.

5. To make your lantern handle, cut a strip of paper about 6 inches long and ½ inch wide and fasten it to either side of one end of your lantern.

Students can even decorate the paper before making their lantern—for example, writing their name beforehand so it shows up after the cuts are made. Or drawing their favorite shapes and designs. Once the lanterns are complete, use some colorful ribbon or yarn to string them all around your classroom. To add real light, try stringing small white Christmas lights from the same ribbon or yarn. Enjoy, as you enter your own classroom canopy of Chinese lanterns.

Looks like it’s time for resolutions…

We, at Explorica, resolve to keep bringing you more and more cultural insights, of course. And while some of us are still settling on goals (eat healthier, exercise and read more), another part of the world is just beginning their countdown to the New Year. January 23^rd is the big day that starts the year of the dragon for the Chinese and the Tet celebration for the Vietnamese. This week, we’ll take a peek into how these Asian cultures may ring in 2012—from traditional decorations to holiday foods. And while we’re at it, we’ll show you how to join in the festivities and brighten up your classroom by making your own New Year’s paper lanterns.

Chinese New Year
Where the Western world celebrates the New Year overnight, the Chinese take a full 15 days to ring it in with family fun, fireworks and a whole lot of holiday…cleaning. You heard me. Talk about “out with the old”! Once the house is in tiptop shape, families decorate their doors and windows with red paper-cuts (simply, paper with cut-outs to make intricate designs) to welcome all that good luck floating around. Why red? The color symbolizes good fortune and joy. Symbols of good fortune, happiness, wealth and longevity fill the air during the Chinese New Year. They literally hang in the air, as families suspend pairs of poetic lines called couplets around their homes crafted around those ideas.

These themes run so deep that they’re even present in the food. The holiday feast, called reunion dinner, is filled with varieties of chicken, pork and fish. (You might say it’s a gathering for omnivores.) But, no matter how scrumptious the feast or how hungry the diners, the Chinese never finish the prized “lucky fish.” Some of the fish is stored overnight because the phrase, “every year there’s fish leftover” is a homophone for the Chinese phrase that means “have profit every year.”

Closing their 15-day celebration, the Chinese claim to fame is their magical lantern festival. A Buddhist rite established by a Chinese emperor during the Han Dynasty, the grand festival has since expanded into a country-wide celebration. Streets, homes and storefronts fill with silk, paper and even glass lanterns. The night is capped off with beautiful firework displays all over China. If you happen to visit China during the festival, don’t forget to wear your red. It’s believed that the New Years monster, “Nian,” who comes to destroy crops and homes, fears the fiery color.

Make mine a Moroccan minty! Mint tea is so popular in Morocco that you’ll find it everywhere—in homes, restaurants, bazaars, religious gatherings, parties, weddings and funerals. An ancient Moroccan proverb says, “The first glass is as bitter as life, the second glass is as strong as love, the third glass is as gentle as death.” Although Moroccan mint tea is traditionally served three times a day it’s not uncommon for Moroccans to drink it more often. Tea was first introduced to Morocco in the 18th century. (Though rumor has it that European envoys would bribe Morocco’s notoriously fearsome ruler, Sultan Moulay Ismail, with tea in the late 17^th century so that he would release European captives.) However, it was only when trade began booming between Europe and the Maghreb (an area of Northwest Africa that includes Morocco, Algeria, Libya, Mauritiana and Tunisia) that the taste for tea really took off. Today, Moroccans make quite a ceremony of mint tea drinking. You can even check one out at a traditional tea ceremony at the Valley of the Roses in Morocco. Tea is prepared in a Moroccan-style teapot with a long, thin spout for easy pouring from a great height to make it bubble perfectly on top. Just the way that Moroccans prefer. And tea is typically served by the head of the household (which in Morocco is usually a man) on a three-legged tray that holds boxes of green tea, mint and sugar. Though the sugar isn’t always for sweetening the tea but rather for nibbling on. Oh, a quick word of advice… If you’re offered a cup of tea in Morocco don’t turn it down or you’ll risk offending your gracious host!

Tea was first introduced to Japan in the 12^th century by a Zen monk called Eisai. (Well, tea is central to Zen tradition after all). And Eisai had pretty high hopes for his cup of tea. He suggested that it would cure loss of appetite, boils on the skin and even paralysis. Some say that it was Eisai’s lofty aspirations that helped Japan’s infamous tea ceremony gain popularity during the Muromachi period. Visit Japan today and encounter The Way of Tea in all its authenticity. This traditional art form involves preparing, serving and drinking a Japanese powdered green tea called matcha. (Did you know that matcha is also used to give common Japanese foods its bright green color, like soba noodles and mochi?) Typically, guests will walk through a contemplative garden and cleanse their hands and mouth before entering the teahouse. And because the teahouse has a low doorway, guests are required to bow their heads to get through. Of course, this wasn’t an architectural error. Rather, the act of bowing is to symbolize that everybody is equal in tea. (There’s an ancient story about a Zen Master called Joshu who instructed three traveling monks of different status to “Go and have a cup of tea” with this same metaphor in mind.) Once the guests are seated, the host cleans the utensils and prepares the tea in full view of the guests. He or she then serves it to the first guest who will admire the bowl, drink some tea, wipe the rim and then pass it to the next guest. Once all the guests have taken tea, the host cleans the utensils again before presenting them for inspection. What a beautiful ritual for encouraging mindfulness, simplicity and respect.

Some say that tea is one of the world’s most popular drinks (second only to water). In Britain it’s considered the national drink. Americans and Canadians drink 80% of their tea iced. And people in the United Arab Emirates out-drink the rest of us by far. In 2009, they drank a whopping 220 ounces of tea per person—almost twice as much as the second largest tea drinking nation in the world, Mauritiana. Although historians have found records of tea drinking in China as early as 900 B.C., it wasn’t until the 16^th century that Europeans began exporting it from its origins in Southern Asia. And it was well worth the wait! Come and join us for a very international tea party in this three-part series on traditional tea culture. (It’s sure to be teatime somewhere in the world). We’ll pour a cup in China, one in Japan and a last in Morocco.

Tea in China

According to ancient Chinese legend, tea was an accidental invention. The story goes that Emperor Shen Nong (from as far back as 2737 B.C.) instructed his subjects to boil water before drinking it so that they wouldn’t get sick. One day, the Emperor was traveling with his entourage to a distant land when he stopped for a refreshing cup of boiled water. And as luck would have it, the leaves from a nearby camellia bush fell into his cup. From then on this pleasant new brew quickly became one of the Emperor’s favorite drinks. (Incidentally, the word “tea” comes from the Chinese word “cha” meaning camellia. Because European tea exporters misheard the word “cha” when they brought it home, they gave it the name “thee.”) Yet it wasn’t until the time of the Tang Dynasty that tea drinking in China became a real art form. In 780 A.D., a tea connoisseur named Lu Chu (who once ran off to join the circus) wrote a book called Tea Classic that was filled with tea drinking tidbits. These included best brewing techniques, top utensils to use (such as fire chopsticks, cauldrons and tea tongs), and information on the tastiest tea growing regions of China. If you’re visiting China today you’ll find that drinking tea is an integral part of Chinese life. It’s even used to express thanks, to apologize and as a sign of respect. So be sure to brush up on your tea drinking table manners before you travel. For instance, if you find yourself being the first to pour the tea, ensure you serve those around you first. And if someone pours tea for you, you can thank him or her by lightly tapping your index and middle fingers on the table.

In the heart of Lucerne, Switzerland’s most populous city, winter brings out one of the quirkier festivals in Europe. And it’s teeming with some of the kookiest of costumes and customs. Every year towards the close of winter, revelers take to the streets to hunt down and cast out the cold, grim spirits of winter in a festival called Fastnacht (or Carnival). Traditionally, Fastnacht festivalgoers perform this ritual dressed as witches, demons, devils, unworldly spirits and animals. Today, however, you’ll find that other wacky outfits are just as common. It’s a bit like Halloween with costumes resembling cartoon characters such as Obelix medieval swordsmen to hospital-bound fakers on a gurney! Head to Lucerne on the first day of Fastnacht and you’ll see folkloric characters, Brother Fritschi and his wife, opening the annual ceremony. Rumor has it that Brother Fritschi gained fame because of his last wish upon his death. During his final hours, he pledged money to the town of Lucerne on the condition that wine would be served to the poor every year at Fastnacht. Not only does the town still fulfill Brother Fritschi’s death wish, but a straw puppet with a keen resemblance to Fritshi is paraded throughout the town in his honor. You’ll also find a fountain dedicated to Brother Fritshi in the heart of Lucerne where legend says he is buried right underneath! Visit Lucerne at Fastnacht and you’ll be dazzled by elaborate carnival parades, the sound of drums and piccolo song (though sometimes not in tune) and performers breaking into crowd-pleasing acts (and less pleasing practical jokes). You’ll need a lot of energy to make it through the festivities so be sure to feast on the traditional Fastnacht fatty treat, fried potato dough. Which, by the way, is also called the Fastnacht. Get ‘em while you can because if you’re participating in Lent, these treats were historically made as a way to empty the pantry of lard, sugar, fat, and butter—all items forbidden to eat through the forty days of the Lenten season. Indulge!