Tunisia

The history of Tunisia reveals this rich past where different successive Mediterranean cultures had a strong presence. After the Carthaginian Republic, the Roman Empire came and left a lasting effect on the land with various monuments and cities such the El-Jem Amphitheater and the archaeological site of the ancient city of Carthage, which is classified as a world heritage site. El Jem is just one of seven world heritage sites found in Tunisia.

After a few centuries of the presence of Christianity, represented by the Church of Africa, the Arab Islamic conquest transformed the whole country and founded a new city called Al-Qayrawan, Al-Qayrawan is a renowned center for religious and intellectual pursuits.

Burgas, Bulgaria

Arrive at the Black Sea port of Bourgas. On the way, drove through some of the hotel construction along the shore. Gorgeous hotels and souvenir shops are crowded next to each other. It was easy to see why the biggest industry in Bulgaria right now is construction. This area is booming! Walk also along the coastal town of Nessebar with its unique architecture and numerous churches. Have some lunch overlooking the sea.

Burgas is a city on the Bulgarian Southern Black Sea coast. It developed more actively in the beginning of 20th century and today it is a large industrial center with many tourist attractions in the region. Built by the sea and surrounded by lakes, Burgas offers relatively mild weather characterized by cooler summers and warmer winters.

Belize

Many of us dream about moving to live abroad in a destination where the sun shines more often, where the people are friendly, where the cost of living is lower and where the pace of life is laid back – but finding such a ‘paradise’ can prove tricky.

Located in Central America, north of Honduras and south of Mexico's Yucatan peninsula, Belize is a small nation with total area of 22,960 sq km and housing a population of less than 300,000. The terrain of the country is mountainous and hilly with the highest point Victoria Peak soaring 1,160 m above sea level in the Cockscomb Mountains. The coastline is flat and swampy featuring many lagoons, especially in the northern and central parts of the country. More than 50% of Belize is covered by tropical rainforest dissected by a network of rivers mostly small in length. The country is divided into six districts, including Belize, Cayo, Corozal, Orange Walk, Stann Creek and Toledo.

Istanbul, Turkey

Istanbul is the largest Turkish city. It’s situated on the Bosphorus Strait on two continents- Asia and Europe. The town has long history and is well known in the past as Byzantium and Constantinople. It was capital for many years of Roman Empire (330-395), Byzantine Empire (395-1204 and 1261-1453), Latin Empire (1204-1261) and the Ottoman Empire (1453-1922). Then when in 1923 the Turkey Republic was proclaimedAnkara as the administration center became the capital. The city was so important for all those empires because of its strategic point and moreover the very difficult to be conquer fortress. The nature enabled the town to have a natural port inside because of the Golden Horn bay. That makes possible the fleet to stay in a secure place, guarded by the town walls.

Nowadays Istanbul is the third biggest city in Europe after London and Moscow. It’s a modern metropolitan city with very developed economy. Moreover it has very well developed infrastructure. The strategic geography position of the city gave the advantage to be the commerce centers since many years. Istanbul is the gateway from Europe to Asia both through land and sea.

Istanbul has been part of many empires and so has rich cultural heritage. Most of its monuments are part of the UNESKO world heritage. Despite the fact that it was conquered by different rulers none of them has destroy buildings from the past. All of the rulers clearly understand that they should respect the culture and history and so most of the buildings are well preserved. That enables tourists to see mosques, Turkish bath, Roman baths and Christian churches in one town. The only problem through the years of this town was the earthquakes. The whole area around the town is the border of the African and Eurasian plate. That is incentive for more and stronger earthquakes. The last devastating one was in the late 1509 and it destroys more than 100 mosques.