Towns and Villages

Please share with us some pictures and information about your favorite small towns and villages from your country!

Please choose communities with less than 50,000 if possible, less than 100,000 if necessary!

The millennium-age town of Masouleh, Gillan, Iran

Although regions to the south of the Caspian Sea are mainly covered with mountainous and traditionally virgin villages and settlements, but one can not help mentioning Masuleh, 56 km. southwest of Rasht and 1050 meters above sea level, which is actually the most breathtakingly beautiful village here.
Approached from Rasht via Fuman by a dramatic pass and completely surrounded by forest, this perfectly preserved village appears to have grown out of its surrounding like a limpet clinging to a rock.
It�s formed of several irregular levels of terraced, pale cream houses with gray state roofs, interspersed with evergreen trees.So steep is the slope that thefamiliar Iranian network of narrow alleys is entirely absent, andinstead the flat roof of each levelof houses forms a pathway for thelevel above.
The village has few facilitiestooffer the visitors, but itsinspiring setting makes it aperfectantidote to travel in thedry and dusty central plateau, and well worth a day trip from Rasht.It�s bitterly cold in winter, with snow sometimes three meters deep, but the climate in summer is extremely pleasant and bracing.

Edited by Land of Aryan

Kandovan, East Azarbaigan, Iran

Kandovan is the extraordinary troglodyte village where people live in cave dwellings and have done so for the last 1600 years. Historians have recently quoted specific geographical references in the book of Genesis as evidence that links the area surrounding Kandovan with the Garden of Eden.

Edited by Land of Aryan

Bihac, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Bihac is one of the fastest-growing towns in Bosnia and Herzegovina and also has one of the highest standards of living in the country. It's located on the Una River and has the oldest, still in use mosque in Bosnia.

Velika Kladusa 

Korca, Albania
Small city where i was born.

Hey YuGo,

Teslic is beautiful, but it's still not as nice as Tesanj.


However:

I read a report by Sultanija Hamzabegovic that Teslic
passed Doboj in 2005 to become the best place for
non-Serbs to live inside the Republika Srpska. They
had no murders, three assaults that were either
sexual or nature or were resulting in serious or
critical injuries, and 17 minor (verbal, minor physical)
assaults against non-Serbs in the whole of March
2004, to March 2005. I've done more assaults than
that myself - hahaha - so no one can complain.

And she even noted specifically:

"Bosniak residents of Teslic were permitted to
display banners wishing Muslims a Happy
Ramadan in prominant places in the town."

And:

"More than two dozen Serbs citizens of the town
visited the central Catholic church on December 24,
when Croats holds their Christmas festivities, to
participate."

So congratulations!

I remember it was only a few years ago Teslic turned
down a multi-million-dollar investment because it
was a Bosniak who wanted to build it, and this giant
pool complex/tourist resort went to Doboj instead! So
it's come a long way!

Hopefully everywhere will progress like this,
especially Mostar.