China is famous for its "duplitecture," but one recent example, a larger-than-life-sized replica of the Sphinx, outraged Egypt so much that it called on UNESCO to issue a cultural cease and desist. The structure will now be demolished. The fake Sphinx was built in a cultural park in Shijiazhuang, in China's northern Hebei province, and reportedly took only a couple of months to construct. It's about 30 meters high and 80 meters long, and built out of steel-reinforced cement. A park spokesperson says the Sphinx was only built as a movie props and was always intended to be temporary anyway. Temporary or not, the fake Sphinx certainly drew a crowd, with street food vendors popping up around it to take advantage of the tourist trade. However, Egyp's minister of antiquities, Mohammed Ibrahim, said the replica Sphinx contravened UNESCO's 1972 Convention and is "a violation of Egypt's rights to its cultural heritage and a bad imitation that disfigures the original." Ouch! The park's spokesperson counters that "We did not use it for commercial purposes and did not charge fees from visitors, nor do we intend to make it a tourist attraction," but the park has agreed to dismantle the structure anyway and regrets the misunderstanding. Anyone knows that China is famous for its duplitecture. But did you know that there's a faux Eiffel Tower in China, as well as an entire copy of the city of Venice, complete with gondola-lined canals? In the past few years, builders in China have replicated world-famous buildings and landmarks at a remarkable pace - from the world's first cloned Austrian mountain village to reproductions of the White House, entire English villages and even new architect designs that haven't been built yet, like Zaha Hadid's Wangjing Soho complex. Recently Officials in a Beijing suburb have sidestepped President Xi Jinping's crackdown on government waste by building themselves a lavish office complex reminiscent of the Kremlin. Mentougou, a largely rural district in western Beijing with some 270 thousand residents, is now home to a group of government buildings with onion-shaped golden crowns, arched windows and white walls similar to the Cathedral of Annunciation, the five-century-old Russian Orthodox Church located inside the Kremlin in Moscow. In 2007 Chinese architects copied the Eiffel Tower, the Arc de Triomphe and the famous fountain in the gardens of the Palace of Versaille to make their own version of the French capital. Famous buildings and Parisienne style gardens are surrounded by rows of European-style villas in a special gated community called Tianducheng just outside Shanghai. Tianducheng's Eiffel Tower is 108 meters high. China has pulled off a feat that no other country would even dream of achieving: a cloned village. Every detail of the original Hallstatt village, a UNESCO protected heritage gem in Austria, has been copied in a replica situated one hour outside of Huizhou in Guangdong Province. China Minmetals Corporation announced their US$ 940 million plan to re-create the secluded hamlet in June, 2011, and just one year later in 2012, the place opened to visitors. Architect Zaha Hadid's Wangjing Soho complex in China has been praised by designers around the world. The design is so beloved that another developer in Chongqing is ripping it off! Designs of the three-building complex were released in 2011 and construction is already underway, but that hasn't stopped the rival developers from moving forward on a two-building version. Called the Meiquan 22nd Century, the design was clearly lifted from Hadid's plans, and now the two sites are racing to complete construction first. They say that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, but Zaha Hadid may not agree with this pirated project. Her original design is a complex of three pebble-shaped curvilinear volumes, in true Hadid signature style. The Meiquan complex, although only having two buildings, is unmistakably similar to the Hadid project, and comes close to a direct copy.

Saudi Arabia and Egypt have renewed an agreement on constructing a causeway between Tabuk and Egypt through Aqaba Bay at an initial cost of US$ 3 billion, Arab News reported, quoting an official source at the Saudi Ministry of Transport. Both sides agreed to name the new project, which will extend 50 kilometer over the Red Sea waters, "King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Causeway". Meanwhile, officials of the transport ministries of both countries plan to conduct talks during the next few weeks to work out guidelines and technical details of the project, scheduled to begin in the middle of 2013. The project will facilitate flow of trade, tourists, and Egyptian manpower to and from the Gulf region, particularly during Haj and Umrah seasons. The causeway will also save time and effort, as it will take about 20 minutes to cross the causeway, linking North African countries with the Gulf countries, Syria, Iraq, and Jordan, the source pointed out. The project will flourish trade movement between Saudi Arabia and Egypt, as it will act as an international passage between the Gulf and North African countries. It will also contribute to an overall economic and business development in the northern parts of the Kingdom, especially in Tabuk, and boost the tourist resort of Sharm El-Sheikh, a major tourist destination for the Gulf citizens. As reported our website earlier, the project was under discussion since 1988 and has finally been approved on July, 2011. It would provide the first direct road link between Arab North Africa and the Middle East - but the project could upset Israel and Jordan. This area of the Red Sea is highly important to Israel and Jordan as it provides them with access to the Indian Ocean.

The Grand Egyptian Museum, which is situated on the Giza plateau, is to open on August 2015, announced Minister of State for Antiquities Affairs Mohamed Ibrahim during press conference in Cairo on January 10, reported mail.ru news. On January 10 in Cairo was signed a contract for third and final phase of museum construction. It will undertake one of the largest Egyptian construction companies Orascom and Belgian Besix. According to Mohamed Ibrahim, the third phase will take 40 months, during which the main building with 108 thousand square meters total area will be erected. The Grand Egyptian Museum will occupy 480 square meters area and will house more than 100 thousand artifacts and monuments of Egyptian history. The third phase of construction will cost US$ 830 million, financed primarily by a Japanese loan of US$ 300 million. The US$ 150 million will be funded by Egyptian Government and the rest by local and international grants. Apart museum's main building the complex will include a cinema, library, classrooms, conference-halls, a multimedia center, children's museum and a museum for people with disabilities, an entertainment center and exhibition halls. The museum also will be connected to Pyramids with a special way. After 5 years from its opening the museum is estimated to receive 8 million tourists annually. To overcome inrush of tourists, the government also planning to build new stores and 40 new hotels. The current museum in Cairo's central, "revolution famous", Tahrir Square can't further accommodate all artifacts of Egyptian culture. Eventually, many museum pieces from this museum will be moved to the Grand Egyptian Museum at the Pyramids. According to the minister, the Tutankhamun's tomb treasures hall in new museum will take 7 times more area than it takes now.

As reported by Spiegel.de, Egypt has given the nod to plans for a gigantic bridge across the Red Sea. It would provide the first direct road link between Arab North Africa and the Middle East -- but the project could upset Israel and Jordan. Egypt and Saudi Arabia hope to construct a giant bridge spanning the Gulf of Aqaba for road and rail traffic. Officials at Egypt's Ministry of Transportation have confirmed to SPIEGEL that the project, under discussion since 1988, has finally been approved. Egyptian Prime Minister Essam Sharaf has reportedly put General Abdul Aziz, the chairman of the Arab Road Association, in charge of overseeing the project's implementation. The Gulf of Aqaba runs along the eastern edge of the Sinai Peninsula. Plans call for the 32 kilometer bridge to cross the narrow Strait of Tiran from Ras Nasrani, near the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, to Ras Hamid in northwestern Saudi Arabia. Parts of the bridge would be suspended. For the Arabs, the massive construction project would be a triumph. For the first time since 1948, when the modern state of Israel was founded, Arab states in North Africa would have a direct road link with fellow Arab states in the Middle East without having to cross Israeli territory. It would also reduce dependence on sometimes perilous ferry crossings over the Red Sea and Arab ports on the Mediterranean. Planners believe that tolls paid by millions of Muslim pilgrims on their way to holy sites in Saudi Arabia could make up for the roughly US$ 5 billion the bridge is expected to cost. They also believe the bridge will significantly increase the number of pilgrims. Five years ago, then-Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak abruptly put the monster project on ice shortly before construction began in response to security concerns voiced by neighboring Israel. This area of the Red Sea is highly important to Israel and Jordan as it provides them with access to the Indian Ocean.