Pristina is the world’s newest capital, a surprisingly cosmopolitan city with a youthful vibrancy amid landmarks recalling the rich ebb and flow of Balkan history.

Experience a city sweeping away its Yugoslav legacy in a rapid dash towards self-identity and modernity under post-war UN (now EU) administered reconstruction. The abundance of overseas workers allied to a multilingual returning Diaspora has created genuine cosmopolitanism. Visitors can spend Kosovo’s adopted Euro currency on Japanese sushi, modern European fine dining or simply chilling out in mood-lit nightclubs that wouldn’t look out of place in Berlin. Meanwhile, the ‘Stars and Stripes’ and flags of the EU and Albania fly proudly all over town.

Pristina’s compact city centre congeals the architectural imprints of millennia of ‘regime changes’ into a bite-sized day’s sightseeing. Explore the neo-brutalism of communist Yugoslavia’s fascination with concrete monoliths and an altogether more elegantly graceful Ottoman legacy. Recent reminders of resurgent Albanian-Kosovar nationalism are found in numerous flag-bearing statues and memoriam to wartime ‘martyrs’.

Locals boast Pristina’s abundant cafés serve the best macchiato in the region. Sipping coffee with them and enjoying the heartily fresh ingredients of Albanian cuisine is a window into the soul of Kosovar culture and hospitality. Join the summertime macchiato-fest when coffee-aficionados spill outdoors onto summery tables along the partially pedestrianised Nënë Tereza (Mother Theresa) Boulevard.

While neighbouring Dubai has caught the world’s media attention with its over-the-top developments, Abu Dhabi has been quietly planning its transformation into a world-class luxury travel and business destination.

Big plans
The Abu Dhabi 2030 Urban Structure Framework Plan will see the city change into a modern metropolis, complete with trams, rotating towers and developments in the sea. One of these, Saadiyat Island, is spearheading the transformation of Abu Dhabi into a world-class tourism destination with a cultural emphasis. It is here that a new US$27 billion cultural district will be located, which will contain museums, art galleries and performing arts centres.
 
These will include the Louvre Abu Dhabi, designed by French architect Jean Nouvel and expected to open in 2012, and the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi contemporary art museum, designed by Frank Gehry. It is scheduled for completion in 2011 and is set to become the largest Guggenheim museum in the world.

Top attractions
Abu Dhabi has several attractions worth checking out, such as the beautiful Corniche (beach), the Al Hisn Fort, Breakwater Island and Sheikh Zayed’s palace.

Many of the city’s top-class hotels and restaurants, including the prestigious Emirates Palace Hotel, allegedly the most expensive in the world, are located along the downtown section of the Corniche, overlooking the many sandy islets that are rapidly undergoing development.

Amman, the capital of Jordan, is one of the oldest continually inhabited cities in the world; and despite being essentially a product of the 20th century, it still retains its old world charm.

In modern, culturally diverse Amman, it isn’t uncommon to see luxury hotels tower over traditional coffee shops where old men gather to play backgammon.

Travellers looking to discover old Arabia in Amman will find the souks and bazaars intriguing. There you can find traditional stores that sell handcrafted coffee cups and plates, although the souks are worth visiting for the atmosphere alone.

In spite of media reports, Amman is one of the safest and friendliest cities in the Middle East. Its proximity to the Palestinian territories and Iraq has often put the city in the media spotlight, but the conflicts have served to diversify the capital’s population.

Cornered by a dramatic mountain range at one end, and the alluring Mediterranean Sea at the other, Beirut is by all accounts charming. In addition to its stunning locale, the Lebanese capital is also a blossoming cosmopolitan city.

Lively city
Visitors to Beirut will find the Middle East’s youth partying hard in Gemayzeh, and studying hard at the American University of Beirut, one of the region’s most prestigious educational institutions. They’ll also find bars and cafes on Rue Hamra and the Corniche, where old Lebanese men and women gather to play cards and smoke sheesha.

Dark past
Reminders of Beirut’s dark past are everywhere. From 1975 to 1990, the nation experienced a virtual lockdown as the political and religious factions fought for power. The city still bears visible scars from the nation’s bloody civil war, including bullet-riddled buildings and bomb sites. The war ended a long time ago, but Beirut’s reputation remains intricately tied to its volatile past. Some Lebanese like it that way. They think it gives Beirut an edge.

Climate
Beirut’s weather is mild and generally predictable. The summers are hot and humid, and the winters are cold, but not insufferable. The best time to visit is between March and May, or September and November. For visitors interested in skiing in Lebanon, the slopes are usually open between December and February.

Damascus, the capital of Syria, lies on the Barada River in the shadow of Mount Qassioun and the Anti-Lebanon Mountains. The original settlement was founded at al-Ghouta oasis, where gardens and orchards were irrigated with the Barada River's melted snow water. Archaeological finds have made it possible to date the oasis' first human settlement to around 4000BC, which means Damascus can claim to be one of the world's oldest continuously inhabited cities.

The city's dramatic sprawl of recent decades now incorporates the oasis. Because of the abundance of water, many travellers have described the city as an earthly paradise, particularly after the hardships of travelling through the desert. It is said that when Prophet Mohammed stood with his caravan on Mount Qassioun and looked at the city, he refused to enter because he believed that men can only enter paradise once: if he entered Damascus he would have to forsake the heavenly paradise.

Damascus has long been an important caravan stop and trading centre, once famous for dried fruit, wine, olive oil soap, wool, linens, and silks. The patterned fabric, known as damask, was named for the silk fabrics woven in Damascus. The old city, classified in 1979 as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is vibrant with people, but the atmosphere is serene and laid-back. Spend at least a few days strolling around the labyrinth of alleys and souks of the old city, admiring the tranquility and grandeur of Islamic architecture.

Doha's history may delve back into the 19th century, but the face of the city that visitors see today only really started to emerge after the discovery of oil and Qatar's independence in the 20th century. Oil has given the city (home to over 80% of the emirate's population) and Qatar great wealth and it is rated as the richest Arab nation with a per capita income of over US$40,000 per annum.

Over the last few decades the most ostentatious display of this wealth has come in the form of gleaming new skyscrapers and office blocks, but now the government is starting to look to the long term when the oil reserves dry up. In short, though the city's tourist officials may deny it, Doha is trying to ‘do a Dubai' by reinventing itself as a major global tourist destination with hotels, restaurants and purpose-built tourist attractions to match. Billions of dollars are being poured into a new airport, the impressive new ‘The Pearl' artificial offshore island development, the rapidly expanding state airline Qatar Airways and other tourist-orientated developments.

There is now plenty for tourists as well as business people to enjoy, with a sprinkling of historical attractions in the city as well as out of town dune bashing tours and dhow cruises. It may not yet be on the same scale as Dubai, but Qatar and Doha are thinking big. The successful staging of the Asian Games in 2006 enhanced Doha's reputation as a can-do city and the hosting of such a large and prestigious event was very much a statement of both ambition and intent.

There is something epic about Dubai: it’s not just the world’s tallest tower or the first seven-star hotel, the reclaimed islands or the indoor ski slope, it’s the sheer vision of those Emiratis who had the courage and ambition a decade ago to build something extraordinary out of the desert.  

Dubai may have taken a knock in the current global recession but nothing will hold this city of the future back for long. Already visitors are streaming through Dubai’s new airport terminal, which houses the world’s largest single floor space, and flocking to Dubai Mall, the world’s largest shopping centre. Dubai has a mission to be the biggest and the best and the Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest tower opened in January 2010, is symbolic of Dubai’s ‘the-sky-is-the-limit’ attitude.

Expatriate workers may pine for home or for the ‘good old days’ before the notorious city traffic, but most visitors find Dubai with its sandy beaches and all-night entertainment an exhilarating experience. Cross the creek on an abra (water taxi), dine underwater at the Atlantis Hotel, or play golf on a desert turned green, and this safe and friendly city of year-round sunny skies will be sure to lure you back.

Few cities inspire as much passion as Jerusalem (Yerushalayim in Hebrew, Al-Quds in Arabic), rooted deep in the past and revered by three major religions.

With its pleasant, temperate climate, fine upland setting, extraordinary historical sites and world-class museums, Jerusalem fascinatingly contrasts ancient and modern, oriental and western.

The larger part of the city, including the city centre with its shopping and leisure district, is vibrant, Jewish West Jerusalem, characterised by broad avenues, busy pedestrianised streets and squares, cafes, restaurants and vivacious nightlife. Smaller East Jerusalem, predominantly Arab, is a 19th-century neighbourhood lying north of the Old City. It has a slow but chaotic pace of life, with crowded, colourful street markets.

The Old City, on the eastern boundary, is where most of Jerusalem’s main sights are found. Enclosed within awesome 16th-century stone walls, are a labyrinth of winding lanes where visitors to the city spend much of their time.

The Old City is divided into quarters, named after its four major communities in the 19th century: Arab, Jewish, Christian and Armenian, and preserving those sharp distinctions to this day. Within minutes, you may wander from calm squares where Jewish children play under the watchful eye of their mothers, to the hustle and bustle of an Arab souk, and into a tranquil Armenian garden, before arriving at the splendour of a medieval citadel.

Jerusalem came into being over 3,000 years ago as the site of the Jewish Temple. The Western (or Wailing) Wall at the foot of Temple Mount is all that survives of the Temple, destroyed by the Romans, yet it remains Judaism’s most revered place of prayer.

Extensive restoration and archaeological exploration gives astonishing insight into the structure and layout of the vast Temple in the time of Jesus.

For Orthodox and Catholic Christians, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre encloses the site of the Crucifixion and tomb where Jesus was laid, having carried the cross here along the Via Dolorosa.

The Muslim’s beautiful gilded Dome of the Rock on Temple Mount is Jerusalem’s most iconic landmark, while Al-Aqsa mosque, beside it, is proclaimed Islam’s third holiest shrine.

Israel declared Jerusalem its capital in 1950 but this is not internationally recognised. Most national institutions are in West Jerusalem, part of the state of Israel since the War of Independence following its creation in 1948. East Jerusalem and the Old City were first annexed by Jordan in 1948, then in 1967 by Israel, which integrated them into a reunited Jerusalem.

At the cusp of the Gulf crescent, the tiny city state of Kuwait (Al Kuwayt) is wedged between powerful neighbours in a region defined by Islam and new wealth. Settled for centuries by seafarers and traders, Kuwait City provided ‘bread and salt’ for the Bedouin from the Arabian interior.  More recently, the capital offers all the diversions of a burgeoning metropolis with excellent museums, modern shopping malls and sophisticated marinas. Beyond Kuwait City, the desert unwraps across a barren plain of oil installations but it has two great attractions: a limitless sandy coastline and a surprising dusting of vegetation after spring rains, both of which come as a pleasant surprise to visitors.

Oil and wealth
‘Black gold’ which was discovered in Kuwait early in the 20th century, has of course been the secret of Kuwait City’s dramatic transformation from modest pearling town to thriving, international business hub.  The first well was drilled in 1936 and production has continued seamlessly, except during the invasion of Iraq (1990-91), for over half a century.  

Unity through adversity
While a museum and a memorial is about the only physical reminder of the invasion by Saddam Hussein in the early 1990s, the war has had a more lasting psychological effect. Kuwaiti citizens of all nationalities share an intense pride in a city that showed great bravery under attack.

When to go
With daytime temperatures in excess of 45°C (113°F), Kuwait City experiences some of the hottest temperatures on earth between April and September – although air conditioning makes life among the tower blocks tolerable. The climate is more pleasant in the cool winter months (December to February), although nights are cold.

'One great distinguishing feature of Muscat', noted James Silk Buckingham, an English traveller writing in 1816, 'is the respect and civility shown by all classes of its inhabitants to Europeans.'  The same observation could be made today, not just towards Europeans but to all visitors to this cosmopolitan city.

Indeed, it's not so much the physical structures (the buildings, the museums, the streets) that make Muscat memorable, it's the people. Omanis in their cashmere turbans, the Sudanese in their yards of cotton, women from Kerala in rainbow saris and the occasional pink-skinned Brit who liked Muscat too well to leave, they all share the same easy-going attitude to life owed to a pristine city of low crime, floral avenues, afternoon siestas, barbecues on the beach and long chats in coffee shops over a sheesha (water pipe) and a dish of dates.

Even the tropical cyclone of June 2007, which tore through the city, uprooting trees, scalping roads and sending an avalanche of mud into the suburbs, failed to rob the city of its natural conviviality and bonhomie – a positive attitude to life that is helping in the speedy recovery of the capital's former impeccability.

The name 'Muscat' is derived from a term meaning 'safe anchorage' and as the recent tropical cyclone showed, it is an apt description. While the modern suburbs on the low-lying plains of Greater Muscat suffered the full force of 160kph (100mph) gales, the protected harbours of Old Muscat and Mutrah, ringed by serrated mountains and watched over by 17th-century forts, escaped with only minor damage.

And thank goodness for that, because these two areas comprise the heart of the capital. This is where a visitor can watch the early morning catch arrive on shore and the wooden dhows (traditional Arab sailing boat) slip back out to sea; this is where you can haggle for genuine Bedouin jewellery in one of Arabia's best souks, while sipping mint tea with gossiping traders; and this is where to get a feel for Muscat's historical importance as a trading post in the days when Oman had large East African colonies.

Until relatively recently Muscat comprised only this small area. Then in 1970, under the much esteemed leadership of Sultan Qaboos, the city gates were quite literally thrown open to the modern world. Since this 'Renaissance', the city has expanded along the coast in a series of sparkling white suburbs with gorgeous sandy beaches and growing tourist facilities.

With tantalising off-the-beaten-track adventure lies a step beyond the city limits, Muscat is justifiably earning the reputation as being the best place in the Middle East to sample the real Arabia – the Arabia that has neither buried its head in the sands of time nor thrown out its heritage in the rush to modernise.