TOP 5 OLDEST CITIES IN THE
WORLD 🌎
NUMBER 1:
VARANASI
#1Varanasi, India India is a world-famous birthplace of ancientcivilizations, religions, and spirituality. The holy city of India, Varanasi, is locatedon the banks of the river Ganges, and the Hindus believe it was established by Shiva. The history of the city goes back to the 12thcentury BC. Varanasi, also known as Benares, has beena destination for pilgrims and wanderers. Mark Twain once said of the city, “Benaresis older than history, older than tradition, older even than legend, and looks twice asold as all of them put together.” Varanasi is an outstanding cultural and religiouscenter with many celebrated poets, writers, and musicians concentrated in the city. Varanasi had a great industrial potentialdue to its high-end fabrics, perfumes, sculpture, and ivory, and now is the center of arts andcrafts. It can offer just about everything you couldimagine, including brocade silk, carpet weaving, toys, glass and ivory works, perfumes, andvarious accessories and jewelry. Varanasi seems to be a true Eden for some.
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NUMBER 2:
ALEPPO , SYRIA
#2 Aleppo, Syria The city of Aleppo is the largest in Syria,inhabited by more than two million residents. Aleppo has an incredibly advantageous geographicallocation, being situated in the center of the Silk Road that connected Asia and theMediterranean world. The city has been inhabited for more than8,000 years but archeological digs have found the evidence of habitation that dates backto nearly 13,000 years ago. At various epochs, Aleppo was controlled bythe Romans, Byzantines, Ottomans, and as a result has mixed architectural styles. The old city is filled with caravanserais,schools, hammams, and churches of 13th and 14th centuries. Aleppo is also defined by narrow alleys andbig estates, though the modern part is characterized by broad roads and large squares. Interestingly, Aleppo consists of cell-likesegments, which are socially and economically independent. Over the years, it’d been subjected to invasionsand instability, and the residents were compelled to fortify the city. Aleppo is often called “the soul of Syria”.
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NUMBER 3:
PLOVDIV , BULGARI
#3Plovdiv, Bulgaria Plovdiv’s history goes back to the 4,000BC, a fact we know thanks to Neolithic excavations. Over the centuries Plovdiv has been ruledby many empires, though originally it was a Thracian city. Later, it was conquered by the Romans. In the Middle Ages, Plovdiv was an alluringterritory for the Bulgarian, Byzantine, and Ottoman Empires. In 1885, the city became the part of Bulgariaand now it’s the second largest city in the country, and is a significant economic,educational, and cultural center. The Old Town is definitely worth seeing. It’s become overwhelmed with restaurants,workshops, and museums that were previously famous houses. Archeological sites, museums, churches andtemples are also must-see places in Plovdiv.
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NUMBER 4:
LUOYANG CHINA
#4Luoyang, China While most old cities are located in the Mediterranean,Luoyang stands out as the oldest continually inhabited city in Asia. It’s included in the Seven Great AncientCapitals of China, and is also considered to be the geographical center of China andthe cradle of Chinese culture and history. No other city in China has survived throughas many dynasties and emperors as Luoyang, which has been inhabited for more than 4,000years and now boasts a population of nearly 7,000,000. With such a long and exciting history, Luoyanghas become a spectacular tourist destination. The Longmen Grottoes and numerous historicBuddhist temples are real attractions, and it also features the famed White Horse Temple,the first temple established in China.
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NUMBER 5:
CHOLULA , MEXICO
#5Cholula, Mexico Over 2,500 years ago, the city of Choluladeveloped from numerous scattered villages. It had been a residence of various Latin-Americancultures, like the Olmecs, Toltecs, Aztecs. The name of the town means “place of flight”in Nahuatl, and it was former called Acholollan. When the town was conquered by the Spanish,it began flourishing. Cortez once called Cholula “the most beautifulcity outside Spain.” These days, it’s a small colonial town withthe population of 60,000. The most prominent attraction of the cityis the Great Pyramid of Cholula, with a sanctuary on the top. It’s known to be the largest man-made monumentever built. It consists of multiple tunnels and caves,though only a fraction of these tunnels have been transformed into passages and are opento the public.
#travel #adventure #India
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BY: ARYAN GURJAR
