An aerial view of a natural lake fed by a spring in the Amazon River basin near Manaus, September 30, 2010. BRAZIL/RTR/Newscom. Find it on Newscom: rtrlfour250377
It hardly seems fair to call these the “new” 7 wonders of nature, since they’ve been around for some time.
But today, on 11/11/11 at 11:11 GMT, the winners were announced of a nearly 4-year global campaign to officially designate the new 7 wonders of nature, something that hasn’t happened for thousands of years.
The winners, in alphabetical order, are the Amazon rainforest of South America; Halong Bay in Vietnam; Iguazu Falls in Brazil and Argentina; Jeju Island just off of South Korea; Komodo in Indonesia; Puerto Princessa Underground River in the Philippines; and Table Mountain in South Africa.
Begun in December of 2007, New7Wonders (N7W) opened up the world – literally – to global voters to nominate their favorite places. This was condensed into a list of 77 places in July 2009. Two weeks later a panel of experts announced the 28 finalists. Since then, they’ve allowed people to vote for the new natural wonders.
Each of these places is beautiful, but I have to be honest, I would have gone in a different direction for the winners. Honestly, how did Komodo win out over the Grand Canyon? And Table Mountain? That one seems just plain boring. I totally would have gone with the mud volcanoes. And the Maldives should have made it in there somewhere … maybe over Halong Bay. I feel a bit petty saying all that, but it’s how I feel – they should have just let me choose the winners. I was going to be upset about Jeju Island winning, but after viewing their video (near the bottom of the page on the link), I’m glad their enthusiasm was rewarded.
That said, each of the 7 winners (and the 28 finalists voters got to choose from) is breathtaking and has some awesome pictures to go with it. So we’ve scoured Newscom to bring you some of our favorites of the winners. No matter how we feel about the outcome, I do think that these 7 should be on your places to visit bucket list … it would be cool to say you’ve visited all 7 of the natural wonders of the world.
Tell us: how many of these places have you been to already?
Halong Bay in Vietnam. Carson Ganci / Design Pics/Newscom. Find it on Newscom: depphotos059645
The moon over Iguazu Falls, located on the border of the Brazil, Argentina & Paraguay. Loren McIntyre Stock Connection Worldwide/Newscom. Find it on Newscom: scphotos097503
Table mountain from Bloubergstrand. Neil Austen/Art Publishers/africanpictures.net/Newscom. Find it on Newscom: afrcreative001844
Seen here is Seongsan Ilchul Bong, one of the magnificent natural sites on South Korea's southernmost resort island of Jeju, which is bidding to become one of the "New7Wonders of Nature" in a worldwide project initiated by the Switzerland-based nonprofit New7Wonders Foundation in 2007. The winners will be decided through public online and telephone voting and announced on Nov. 11. Yonhap News/YNA/Newscom. Find it on Newscom: yonphotos038166
Tourist explore the Puerto Princesa subterranean river national park 24 June 2007in Puerto Princesa city in western island of Palawan. The park was designated as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in recognition of its rich biodiversity and preserve the rich ecosystem. World Bank country director Joachim von Amsberg announced 27 June that World Bank has approved 57 million dollars in assistance to help protect and manage the Philippines' environmental resources. Amsberg noted more effective environmental management is crucial for growth in sectors such as tourism, mining and modern services. ROMEO GACAD/AFP/Getty Images/Newscom. Find it on Newscom: afplivetwo127859
Sunrise Halong Bay. Fotosports Creative/Newscom. Find it on Newscom: fscreative002490
Iguazu Waterfall. imago stock&people/Newscom. Find it on Newscom: imagostock196380
In this recent yet undated handout photo released by the Komodo National Park on December 17, 2010 two male Komodo dragons fight over a female dragon during courtship in Komodo island. They don't breathe fire but Komodo dragons -- the largest lizards in the world -- can kill a buffalo or any one of the intrepid tourists who flock to their deserted island habitats. Three metres (10 feet) long and weighing up to 70 kilograms (150 pounds), Komodo dragons are lethargic, lumbering creatures but they have a fearsome reputation for devouring anything they can, including their own. ANDE KEFI/AFP/Getty Images/Newscom. Find it on Newscom: afplivethree679736
Table Mountain from Bloubergstrand, South Africa. Ilonde van Hoolwerff Africapictures.net/Newscom. Find it on Newscom: afrphotos004909
The Potaro River meanders through yellow bushes and mangrove, and the green lush Amazon Forest. Anthony Asael / DanitaDelimont.com "Danita Delimont Photography"/Newscom. Find it on Newscom: ddpphotos207015
Amazing scenic areas of Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park, one of the five different properties in the Philippines to be listed in the World Heritage List recognized by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee (UNESCO). Philippine Department of Tourism/EyePress/Newscom. Find it on Newscom: eyepress045832
Seen here is Mount Halla, one of the magnificent natural sites on South Korea's southernmost resort island of Jeju, which is bidding to become one of the "New7Wonders of Nature" in a worldwide project initiated by the Switzerland-based nonprofit New7Wonders Foundation in 2007. The winners will be decided through public online and telephone voting and announced on Nov. 11. Yonhap News/YNA/Newscom. Find it on Newscom: yonphotos038167
See more photos of the winners and the finalists back at Newscom.
You may be interested in some of these other scenic posts from Newscom:
Breathtaking Nature Photos for Nature Photography Day
Just for Smiles: Calendar-Worthy Pics for National Park Week
Tags: amazon, iguazu falls, jeju, komodo, landscape, new7wonders, scenic photos