‘The river that runs in the sky’: readers choose their wonders of the world

Britain’s highest aqueduct

Thomas Telford’s Pontcysyllte Aqueduct is the centrepiece of a world heritage site that crosses three counties and two countries. They call it “the river that runs in the sky”, and there is a rough magic to standing halfway across, looking down on the tumbling River Dee, source of the slow-moving flow at your heels, water Telford drew from Horseshoe Falls for his impossible project. Rather than a chain of locks cut across the valley, his iron trough spans it, joints sealed with red Welsh flannel dipped in boiling sugar. Opened in 1805, it is the highest, longest aqueduct in Britain.…
Fiona Collins

Margate mystery

The Shell Grotto in Margate, Kent, has more than 4.6m shells (who counted them?) arranged into the most intriguing mosaics of trees, gods, phalluses, turtles and more. As you descend the steep, stone, subterranean staircase, an unusual energy envelops you, and you can’t help but wander awestruck at the scale of the endeavour. It is only made more special by the mystery that surrounds the architecture’s age, origin and purpose. Is it ancient? Religious? Meaningless? Nefarious? One thing I can guarantee you is that it is the best £4.50 you’ll ever spend (£2 children).
Kath Davids

Awe-inspiring temple, Java

Borobudur in central Java, Indonesia, built in the 8th and 9th centuries, is the world’s largest Buddhist temple. Swap your shoes for special flip-flops when you arrive so you do not damage the stone. Visit in the late afternoon, when the light is magical. Climb slowly to the top, past amazing murals and through intriguing passageways, to see the bell-shaped structures, peaceful Buddha statues and gorgeous views of tropical vegetation. Serene and breathtaking.
Lucy

Cave city of southern Italy

Matera, in Basilicata, is a natural film set for movies as varied as No Time to Die, The Passion of the Christ and Wonder Woman, and is among the oldest cities in the world. Tracks, roads and flights of stairs cross the most ancient part of the town, the Sassi, like an Escher drawing carved into rock punctured by painted churches. We stayed in a cave and ate traditional cucina povera at various places around town with slabs of yellow Matera semolina bread.
Jo

Rock-hewn churches of Ethiopia

Lalibela in Ethiopia has 11 amazing rock-hewn churches built by King Lalibela in the 12th century as a New Jerusalem. The most amazing are excavated below ground level and are monolithic, or free from surrounding rock, and it’s hard to imagine how they were built: according to legend, Biete Abba Libanos was constructed overnight by Lalibela’s wife assisted by angels. The paintings and carvings are still impressive, but my favourite and the most iconic is the cross-shaped Biete Giyorgis. The churches are still used for worship and seeing the white-robed priests and followers at Timkat, one of the country’s most important Christian festivals, was unforgettable.
Helen Jackson

Magical minaret, Uzbekistan

Standing proud in the heart of the silk roads city of Bukhara, Uzbekistan, the Kalyan Minaret exudes power and mystery in equal measure. Its beauty lies in the ornate brickwork arches and intricate geometric patterns that adorn its gently tapering body. So striking was this minaret that it was the only structure left unmolested by the Mongol warlord Genghis Khan, who reportedly could not bare to see it destroyed with the rest of the city. At night, when lit up, it acts as a beacon, drawing locals and travellers alike to bask in its presence.
Carl Sucharyna Thomas

Images from prehistory, Morocco

Along a bumpy road, behind the little village of Aït Ouazik, near Tazzarine, more than 300 prehistoric petroglyphs are carved into scattered rocks atop a cliff-ringed hilltop, featuring elephants, rhino, giraffe, ostrich and more. The exquisite and varied depictions are impressive enough, and although the intent of the artists must be left to your imagination, you will leave with a sense of connection to the past and a people who once gathered together here 5,000 years ago, exchanging stories and recording the wonders they had encountered.
George Joy

Ghosts of ancient Greece, south-west Turkey

We’ve only ever reached the ancient Greek city of Knidos by sea, dropping anchor by the silted harbour that once sheltered a fleet of triremes. At night, when the few tourists who come here have gone, the toga-wrapped ghosts return. From our boat, we could feel them, roaming the mile upon mile of steep, ruined streets and collapsed temples; rising up out of the sea 30 miles west of modern Datça, to haunt the vast, crumbling metropolis which grew rich on sea trade before earthquakes and war returned it to dust and the crickets. Magnificent.
Kay Jones

Gaelic island gem, County Kerry

The sixth-century monastery and its tiny garden on top of Skellig Michael in County Kerry is an extraordinary place. The wind can howl up the sides of this mountain island, but climb the rocky stairs to the collection of ancient stone domed huts in the small depression on top and it is out of this world.
Chris

Winning tip: Well worth its salt, Kraków

The Wieliczka Salt Mine just outside Kraków is an architectural masterpiece and a Unesco world heritage site steeped in the history of feudal salt trade. The shafts reach to more than 320 metres underground (the tourist route takes you to about 135 metres). Here you will find a cathedral etched into the salt and stone. With underground lakes, narrow corridors and guides who aren’t afraid to let you know how deep beneath the Earth’s surface you are, this amazing place isn’t for the fainthearted.
Joe