Magic Carpet Ride Trivia Quiz

Answer: Hanging Gardens of Babylon

Of the "Seven Wonders of the World", the Hanging Gardens of Babylon is the only one whose existence is in doubt. The Gardens were supposedly ordered to be built up a terraced hillside by King Nebuchadrezzar in the 6th century BCE. According to legend, they were meant to remind his homesick Persian wife Amytis of the lush wooded mountainous area of her childhood. Even that is uncertain, because there are historians who claim that other kings who lived in later eras may have had them built.

These gardens were built up a terraced hillside, with exotic trees and other plants spilling over the stone balustrades that were constructed to look like a mountain. With the plants spilling forward over the stonework, the illusion of a floating garden was created. Even into the 21st century, archaeologists and other investigators have found absolutely no evidence that the gardens even existed. One problem in finding the remains of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon is that no one knows exactly where they may have been. But it is a sweet magical love story of a king's desire to make his wife happy.

The Lighthouse of Alexandria, in Egypt; the pink, red and white city of Petra, in Jordan; and the Incan citadel of Machu Picchu, high up in the Andes in Peru, all existed. While the last parts of the lighthouse were destroyed around 1460 AD, both Petra and Machu Picchu still exist today.

Answer: Plato

The corrupted Atlantis that Plato described in two of his dialogues is diametrically opposed to modern myth of the city as a lush, peaceful utopia. Around 330 AD, Plato wrote about the city that he said existed 9,000 years before his time, and said that it sank into the ocean past the Pillars of Hercules in a single night.

Before Plato, there is no mention of Atlantis found by any historians or others studying about the ancient world. Those who have made serious studies of Plato's work say he created the myth of a city-state that was corrupted by its material wealth and advanced technology, backed up by a strong military. Plato used the example of Atlantis essentially being drowned under the weight of its greed and corruption to show the exact opposite of his ideal city-states: places governed by philosopher-kings who always operated with justice for the citizens as the most important element of their reigns.

The beautiful myth of Atlantis in today's world sounds much like what the hippies who promoted "flower power", peace and love in the late 1960s were looking for. It also sounds a lot like Plato's ideal city-state. If it was, it's too bad our magic carpet can't help us find it.

Answer: Taj Mahal

In 1632, Mughal ruler Shah Jahan ordered that the most beautiful mausoleum in the world be built in Agra to honor his wife Mumtaz Mahal, who had died giving birth to their fourteenth child. According to legend, Mumtaz Mahal's final wish was for her husband to build the most beautiful building in the world to house her remains. Jahan, who married her for love (despite the fact that he had at least seven other wives), ordered that precious materials from all over India be used in the construction of the mausoleum itself and adjoining buildings, including a mosque and guest house. The mausoleum is made of magnificently carved ivory-white marble.

Although details on how long it took to erect the buildings conflict, it appears that it took ten years just to build the mausoleum, and another eleven years to finish the entire complex. Seven to eight million visitors go every year to this UNESCO World Heritage Site to marvel at this stunning monument to love.

Answer: Yellowstone

Yellowstone's more than four million visitors a year get to see magnificent displays of unusual geological features. The Old Faithful geyser spews water and steam into the air every 35 minutes to two hours. That's just one of the geysers that sits among magically-colored hot springs, waterfalls and even a 20-mile long canyon that resembles the Grand Canyon. But right in the midst of Yellowstone, in northwestern Wyoming, is a volcano that scientists believe has had three eruptions in the last 2.1 million years, with the last happening around 640,000 years ago. Although it seems highly unlikely that any eruption is imminent, there are a few thousand small earthquakes in the area every year, most below 3 on the Richter Scale.

With all of its rare landscape, magnificent lakes, gray wolves and herds of bison, Yellowstone is an incredible display of nature--volcano or no volcano.

Answer: California

Singer Michael Jackson bought his magnificent 3,000-acre estate in 1988 and named it "Neverland" after the magical place where children never have to grow old in the story "Peter Pan". The 13,000-square foot house was surrounded by lush gardens, a lake, a zoo and an amusement park equipped with a variety of rides, including a ferris wheel, carousel, bumper cars and two child-size railroads.

Jackson poured money into the estate to create the magical fantasy world he wished he'd had as a child. Although the estate still exists, it is no longer called "Neverland" and the features Jackson loved most--the amusement park and the zoo--are no longer there.

Answer: Peru

The Nazca Lines in southern Peru are believed to have been created by the peoples of the Nazca culture between 500BCE and 500CE. Some are complex pictures of animals, plants and people. Others are more simple lines. Although these geoglyphs look like they were carved into the desert they were actually created by people systematically removing reddish pebbles from the desert floor, which exposed whitish ground underneath. Remarkably, the Lines have remained mostly undisturbed for millennia because of the Nazca Desert's isolation and lack of wind.

Because it was believed that the pictures formed by the Nazca Lines could only be seen from a very high elevation--and none existed in the area--many people believed they were proof that aliens had come to earth and somehow been instrumental in their construction. But in reality, complete pictures can be seen from the desert foothills.

Answer: Versailles

The magnificent Palace of Versailles was the place that France's Louis XIV, known as the Sun King, made his home. A mere 14 miles (22.5km) from Paris, the more than 700-room palace is renowned for its gardens, park, the grandness of the King's Apartments and perhaps most of all for its 240-foot-long Hall of Mirrors.

The peace treaty that ended WWI was signed in that Hall on January 28, 1919. The Palace is one of the main tourist attractions in all of France.

Answer: Uluru

Uluru (also known as Ayers Rock) is just west of the Simpson Desert in the Australian outback. Jutting more than 1100 feet up from the desert floor, Uluru is more than two miles long and more than one mile wide. The red appearance of the rock formation comes from oxidation of Uluru's high iron content. Today, there are 36 domes atop the formation, but scientists believe that Uluru was once a single huge rock.

Although climbing Uluru is not prohibited, the Australian government asks visitors "to respect our law and culture by not climbing Uluru".

Answer: Windsor Castle

Windsor Castle is the largest continuously inhabited royal castle in the world. The first construction on the castle began in 1070, a mere four years after William the Conqueror won the crown of England at the Battle of Hastings. The outer wall of the building is fairly plain and speaks to the fact that Windsor Castle was built as a fortification to protect the British Royal Family from danger throughout its long history.

But the walls hide some true architectural gems. The castle's 15th century St. George's Chapel, which was where Prince Harry married Meghan Markle in 2018, is considered among the finest construction of the era. In 1992 a fire tore through parts of the castle, burning for 15 hours. Although some valuable artwork was lost, the castle was restored and Queen Elizabeth continues to use it as one of her principal residences.

Answer: Disney World

Disney World has become a city of its own just outside of Orlando, Florida. Containing four separate amusement parks, including The Magic Kingdom and Epcot, there are also two water parks and at least 34 hotels on the property. There are one or two parades, featuring Disney characters every day, along with fireworks most nights. And the iconic Cinderella's Castle overlooks it all.

There may be more to come, since only about one-quarter of the land is developed.