The Great Wall of China, the Colosseum, the Great Pyramids of Giza, and the 400 block of Downtown Wausau. Each of these marvels leaves the viewer in awe. Obviously, the 400 block is not the same as these other wonders of the world, since the rest of them were mostly built by slaves and forced labor; that’s one win for the 400 block. But in every other regard, I would submit that the heart of downtown Wausau is just as good, if not better, than any wonder the world might have to offer, if only you would lend me a bit of your time to explain.
Okay, so some of you may be thinking that I’m joking, and some less fun courtrooms might find me guilty of exaggeration, but I promise, it’s much less than you think. In the year 2026, a marvel, or wonder, has to be different from what they once were called. So much has changed. Technology allows for entire worlds to exist in a video game, AI can make me look like I can dunk a basketball, and I can explore literally any part of the planet on Google Maps. Surely these are modern wonders, but they are so commonplace and normalized that I don’t think they qualify anymore.
So yes, thousands of humans building an immortal structure is an absolutely classic way to create a wonder of the world, but just last week on social media, I saw the bottom of the ocean, a black hole, and the correct way to place toilet paper in the holder. To put it simply: the criteria have changed.
In a world where many of us never even heard of being online and now, almost all of us require the internet for our day to day life, I think it is, in fact, a marvel that hundreds of people travel from across the country for Chalkfest to draw in brilliantly colorful chalk on the sidewalk only for the gift of sharing their amazing talent and love for their art with the community. It is nothing short of a miracle that events like the Concert on the Square, where, through the entirety of Summer, artists play every Wednesday. What city has free live music for anyone and everyone in the heart of its downtown? I’ve seen cities like Madison, Minneapolis, and Madrid host music for special events, but to host music for the community to enjoy every week and for free is truly special
The events are far from over as the 400 block also proudly hosts art vendors and artisans regularly, sets up a skate rink, regularly features food trucks, and celebrates Pride with the community. This is, of course, all before mentioning the surrounding amenities of the downtown on the surrounding street: Cafes like The Chocolate Cafe, the massive Grand Theater, brilliant restaurants like Faraway Place and Ciao, Wisconsin’s Oldest Bookstore, the Janke Book Store, need I say more?
According to an English teacher I had in high school, every writer must “earn their clichés”. To them, every story was going to have some sort of moment the reader might potentially roll their eyes at and say, “Of course, this is what happens, I knew it.” After all, there is nothing new under the sun. But the cliché here is that it is the people who make the 400 block what it is, and while my writing certainly leaves plenty to be desired, the people surrounding the 400 block have certainly earned my cliché.
While it may not make the next list of Wonders of the World this year, the 400 block, along with the people who make it special, certainly belongs to the 7 Wonders of Wausau.
