Guess the City

city in the old world is an ecclesiastical term so some places with mediaeval or earlier significance are cities even if they are smallish today, in contrast to that place which seems to derive its importance from being written about 50 yrs ago

no cathedral no credibility as pope urban iv used to say

except cambridge ofc

not obscure but a pleasing picture:

http://farm2.staticflickr.com/1390/1132698255_43cc76b538_o.jpg

no need to be a city rockist! xp

she said it's your birthday, are you feeling alright?

Not really valid for a guess-the-city game, but I figured this would be as good a place to talk about this as any:

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/e/e8/Hluttaw-Naypyidaw.jpg

a friend of mine just got back from there and says all online information is incorrect and it is an empty, ghost city where nobody lives

What does all online information say about it? That it is bustling and vibrant?

That the roofs are color-coded?

No, that it has a population of almost 1m. That it's the third largest city in the country in which it exists. That it was built-from-scratch as the new political capital a la Brasilia but (despite online reports) (according to my friend) there is an occupancy rate of 10% or something equally incredulous.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/81/Uppatasanti_Pagoda-02.jpg

Where is everyone!

Maybe they're inside?

Xxxxxx is a unique city in the region. It is a fully constructed large city but with very few inhabitants compared to its size, so you can experience the amazing and unprecedented experience of never ever being stuck in traffic. It is between two mountain ranges so has little to offer in the way of day trips or activities. The city was constructed to be the capital by the military and lacks the dissarray and wonder found throughout the rest of Xxxxx.

Xxxxxx was constructed in secret by the Xxxxx Junta in the early 2000s. In November 2005 it was officially announced as the country's new capital. Government workers were given two months notice that they would have to move from Yangon, as all government offices and ministries were relocated. Embassies and international organisations like the UN have not yet relocated but are expected to at some point. The international retail chains found throughout all other capital cities are not present in Xxxxxx.

The city has wide boulevards/highways (still almost empty) and extravagant roundabouts. It has housing for government workers, but many still maintain residences for their families in Xxxxx as education and health infrastructure is not yet in place.

Is it in Bhutan?

oh come now. I thought "junta" and this country were basically synonymous

or even "yangon"

Haha yeah, and Yangon. I'm actually planning on going to this country after xmas.

Xxxxxx was constructed in secret by the Xxxxx Junta in the early 2000s.

No government could do something like this in secret without having an iron grip on the media. I'll say it's in Myanmar. The gov there is self-aggrandizing enough and despotic enough, plus it fits the geographic profile for erecting a stupa-like monstrosity, but hell if I know the name of the city.

Apparently it is actually quite beautiful! But crazily empty.

http://www.blogcdn.com/www.gadling.com/media/2008/10/naypyidaw.jpg

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_alPN3KAIcZs/TGNoLlL4EQI/AAAAAAAABio/2eQq59ijLRg/s400/senate_in_naypyidaw1ss.jpg

The name of the city shows up in the jpg names of those pics. Even while seeing the name I cannot pronounce it.

http://i.imgur.com/yaG6CUM.jpg

yerevan?

yesevan

the church in the middle looks like one of those old armenian monasteries

http://i.imgur.com/yapJ8PS.jpg

You ppl are cray what w all yr knowledge of obscure cities

i was going to post one but no one's got this yet !

http://farm2.staticflickr.com/1390/1132698255_43cc76b538_o.jpg

amman?

not far off. this is a bigger capital

Damascus?

not as old as damascus

shanghai

Riyadh?

totally riyadh

Yeah, it's Riyadh, I'm pretty sure.

100% riyadh

We all agreed it's Riyadh then?

The building with the eyelet is the Four Seasons

a harder one

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5341/10103040795_022e17d6e7_c.jpg

Colombo?

suva

my first guess would have been india or sri lanka cos of the rickshaw but it doesn't feel right. somewhere in africa would be my guess, so i've only got like a million cities to go through.

closer to colombo than suva but a long way from both

http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3800/10802607453_4daf6b7186_z.jpg

port louis

addis adeba

fuck that is amharic script isn't it

glanced and thought it was dravidian based on first supposition (tropical with overseas indian population)

this is in africa & that is a tuk-tuk. the above photo was taken just over a month ago which is the start of the ethiopian new year but it's not addis.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7419/9374354793_434134b076_z.jpg

bahir dar

bahir dar it is

http://i.imgur.com/C1OIRNb.jpg