Subject: Historical cities

Tikal, Guatemala
Hidden in the jungles of Guatemala, Tikal was a Mayan citadel that reflects more than 1,000 years of cultural achievements beginning from 600 BC.
Jaguars and pumas prowl the surrounding wilderness, but the palaces, temples and plazas within the site represent some of the earliest pinnacles of human achievement.
The stepped pyramids are icons of Mayan culture that rise above the canopy.
Equally impressive are the sporting courts, temples and palaces that ring the main plaza.
Most of the ancient causeways that link Tikal's 3,000 structures have been cleared of vegetation, so visitors can now wander among the buildings much as the ancients did.
Cairo, Egypt
For first-time visitors, it's a shock just how close the pyramids of Giza and the Great Sphinx are to Cairo's chaotic streets.
With 22 million people, Cairo is one of the world's biggest cities, built around one of humanity's earliest urban centers.
Tombs at Giza date back 4,500 years, and the Egyptian Museum of Antiquities boasts an incredible collection from the Nile's earliest inhabitants.
But the slightly less ancient parts of Cairo are also rich with cultural treasures.
The current city was founded more than 1,000 years ago and has one of the world's oldest universities, a rich legacy of Islamic art, and Coptic treasures that are often overlooked.
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Persopolis, Iran

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Mohammad Reza Domiri Ganji's amazing photos of Iran are a great introduction to some of the country's rich cultural attractions. Among them is this literary institute in Shiraz, which has a reputation as a city of great poets and poems.

Mohammad Reza Domiri Ganji
Iran's openness to Western tourism in recent years has helped Persepolis regain its allure for visitors, even if international relations have once more become strained.
The city was founded in 518 BC by Darius I, ruler of ancient Persia's Achaemenian Empire, and grew in grandeur until Alexander the Great sacked it two centuries later.
Its most remarkable feature is an immense terrace of 125,000 square feet, partially carved out of Mount Kuh-e Rahmat (the Mountain of Mercy).
Rulers built ever more regal palaces, temples and halls around the terrace, complete with an underground sewage system and cisterns for fresh water.
Despite a series of protective walls, rising to 30 feet high, Alexander laid waste to Persepolis, whose ruins were only rediscovered in 1618.
Today, however, the city is one of the best examples of ancient architecture, especially for the slender columns that remain.