Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia, is a city with a story that spans more than a thousand years. Its coastal setting has long shaped its character, blending African, Arab, and Persian influences that can still be seen in its culture and architecture today.

Kolmanskop is an abandoned diamond-mining settlement in the Namib Desert, a short distance inland from the coastal town of Lüderitz in southern Namibia. The former settlement is surrounded by an exceptionally dry landscape of sand, gravel, and sparse desert vegetation. Today, windblown sand fills many of its empty buildings, creating a distinctive scene where rooms, corridors, and staircases are gradually being reclaimed by the desert.

Rijeka sits at the head of Kvarner Bay on Croatia’s northern Adriatic, shaped by its long role as a port city at the crossroads of empires.

NEOM is a large region under development in northwestern Saudi Arabia, extending across mountains, deserts, coastal plains, and Red Sea waters. It covers about 26,500 square kilometers and includes 468 kilometers of coastline, placing it near the meeting point of Asia, Africa, and Europe. Rather than being a single city, NEOM consists of several planned areas and projects, including The Line, Oxagon, Trojena, Magna, and the Islands of NEOM.

Lake Issyk is a mountain lake in southeastern Kazakhstan, located in a gorge of the Trans-Ili Alatau about 60 kilometers east of Almaty. The lake lies at roughly 1,800 meters above sea level within the Ile-Alatau National Park and is surrounded by steep rocky slopes, coniferous forests, and alpine meadows.