Overshadowed Trivia Quiz

Answer: Paris, France

While several replicas of the world-famous Statue of Liberty can be found all over the world, perhaps the largest number can be found in France - four alone are in Paris. Amongst them is the original mock-up of the statue, created by Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi in the 1880s.

The subsequent, larger work was sent, piece by piece, to be constructed in New York City. The miniature, a fraction of the size of the final product, is still quite notable. A replica can be found in Paris' second largest park space, the Jardin du Luxembourg, it's within a short distance of Luxembourg Palace and the Pantheon. Funnily enough, this park is often overshadowed by the Tuileries Garden, the largest in Paris near the Louvre.

Answer: Tunisia

This Amphitheater is actually in the town of El Djem, Tunisia; Morocco and Algeria also have Roman Amphitheaters throughout, usually close to the sea. The El Djem theater was built nearly two thousand years ago and it's one of the largest in the world (it's the third-largest).

The problem is, Rome is a major tourist hub; Tunis is not. El Djem is overshadowed by most other locations simply because it's on the wrong side of the sea. It is, however, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It actually became one of said sites a year before the Flavian Amphitheatre. So there!

Answer: Humayun's Tomb

Built in the sixteenth century, less than one hundred years before the Taj Mahal, Humayun's Tomb is found in Delhi, the capital city of India. The monument of love, the white marble Taj Mahal, is in Agra, two hours to the southeast...and yet it's still more popular. Humayun's Tomb is an elaborate building complex constructed out of marble and sandstone, nestled amongst mosques and tombs. Humayun was the second Mughal Emperor. The Taj Mahal is also a tomb, but this is often overshadowed by the story that it was built to commemorate the everlasting love between Shah Jahan and his then-deceased wife, Mumtaz Mahal.

Answer: Red Pyramid

Let's face it - the Giza Plateau, overlooking Cairo, Egypt's capital city, is a tourist trap. Although it's the site of the only remaining Wonder of the World and the Sphinx, it's also one of the most popular landmarks in all of Africa. Red Pyramid is in Dahshur, south of Cairo, and it's perhaps more interesting than the Giza Plateau.

While it's not as tall as Khufu by about thirty meters, it's visited by less people and less restricted. You can actually go inside at a much cheaper cost. It's a shame it's not as popular.

Answer: Fish River Canyon

The Grand Canyon certainly isn't the largest canyon in the world but it is one of the most popular geological spots around the globe, overshadowing most other canyons and gorges out there simply through tourist numbers alone. It isn't surprising that most high school students couldn't tell you where Fish River Canyon is on a map - it's in Namibia. Over one hundred miles long, the canyon was created over many many years by water erosion created by Fish River which, at certain points, doesn't actually flow due to the country's lack of rainfall. And it's a beautiful place! The hiking trail snakes through the region and even hosts marathons, attracting sports tourists from around the world.

Answer: Manaus, Brazil

Manaus is one of the largest cities in the Amazon Rainforest; found in the center of Brazil it sits on the Negro River. The Teatro Amazonas was built in the late nineteenth century when the city was flourishing economically, but with further industrialization in South America, an economic downturn left the building virtually empty for close to a century. Most people clearly don't think about abandoned opera houses in the jungle. Oddly, the building saw a revival in the twenty-first century.

Answer: Novosibirsk

Novosibirsk, is three thousand kilometers from Moscow, Russia's capital, but its opera and ballet theater is the largest in the country. Sitting in Siberia, it's difficult to get to (even though it's on the Trans-Siberean Railway...but, I mean...three thousand kilometers) and often doesn't feature the high-profile shows of the Bolshoi, perhaps the most famous ballet location in the world.

It was built in the 1940s, one hundred and twenty years after the Bolshoi. Because of a major focus on the arts and dance, both theaters have been renovated extensively over their lifetimes.

Answer: Burghausen Castle

It's funny - Burghausen Castle should be better known outside of Europe, partly because it's actually the most extensive castle complex in all of Europe. It stretches an entire kilometer! The castle started construction around a thousand years ago, but took hundreds of years to extend and fortify (slowly, but surely!). Found in the town of Burghausen, it's closer to Salzburg, Austria than Munich, Germany's Bavarian capital (it's half the distance).

Bran Castle, the inspiration for Dracula's castle in Bram Stoker's novel, is in Romania. Dunnottar Castle is found in Stonehaven, Scotland, and Himeji Castle is in Japan.

Answer: Bermuda

St. Peter's Church originally started getting built in the seventeenth century and it was finished in St. George, Bermuda. That's not the church that's getting overshadowed. In the nineteenth century, in an attempt to fit more people into the congregation, the locals made an attempt to build a larger church - this was back in 1874. It hasn't been built since.

Sagrada Familia, in Barcelona, Spain, stands at 170m tall and, after the groundbreaking in 1882, remained unfinished into the new millennium.

Answer: Torre del Reformador

While Gustave Eiffel's world-famous tower has been standing in Paris, France (perhaps as its official symbol) since 1889, it has also been an inspiration to several decorative and practical towers all around the world (eg. the famous Tokyo Tower and the replica in Las Vegas). Torre del Reformador, found in Guatemala City, was built in 1935 to commemorate the twelfth President of the Republic of Guatemala. Unlike the Eiffel Tower, this replica is placed directly over a main thoroughfare; you can drive underneath it.

The Torre del Reformador is only 75 meters tall; the Eiffel Tower in Paris is 324 meters. The Vegas tower falls right in between at 161 meters.