How can I place content in page_top in D7 since it is hidden in regions?
In the .info file of your theme you can add regions.

The template files that control your page layout are going to display that region.
Usually page.tpl.php will have the regions called upon for display.  So if you add a region to the .info file you will need to add the region in the page.tpl.php file as well.

Great article here... a little dated.. but still works.
http://yuriybabenko.com/blog/creating-new-drupal-regions