geography Trivia Quiz # 5

Dortmund was given city status in 1236, though there have been settlements that date back to the bronze age. A major trade route ("the Hellweg") of late-Roman and medieval times ran through Dortmund.

Today the industry has changed to insurances, banking and information technology. It will not be long before the last steelwork has been closed.

Surfest was first held 1985 to boost Newcastle's profile. The competition has become a tribute to surfing great and Novocastrian Mark Richards, and attracts thousands of spectators every year. In 2004, for the first time in history, Layne Beachley competed in the men's event, going head to head with World Champion Andy Irons.

The rich and famous people of Pittsburgh including names like Mellon and Carnegie and many others had a hunting and fishing camp at Lake Conemaugh at South Fork. To make a large lake, the South Fork Dam had been constructed. The lake filled up under the strain of many days rain until it couldn't hold any more. The water started over the dam and eventually it broke sending a wall of water down the valley and almost destroying the city of Johnstown. It is eerie to stand in the Johnstown Cemetery and notice that most of the stones say "May 31, 1889. Very, very creepy!

Mount Everest is an irrestable lure to mountain climbers. The Dalai Lama, the ruler of Tibet, first allowed climbers to climb the northern ridge. (8,850 meters)

The London Eye or Millenium Wheel was constructed for London's Millenium celebrations and stands on the south bank of the river Thames, overlooking the old county hall...

Conditions in the early 19th century were especially bad, although improvements were made as time went by. A massive park building programme started in the 1840's to create open, healthy places for the people of Manchester to enjoy. Around the same time, efforts to improve public health were made with the opening of new hospitals and the creation of reservoirs to ensure a supply of clean water. However, it was not until the early 20th century that conditions, especially in regard to housing, had been brought to acceptable levels.

Completed in 1989. Canastota was not the birthplace of boxing, however 2 world champion boxers came from Canastota. They were Carmen Basilio and Billy Backus.

Vegemite is actually a yeast extract - made from the goop at the bottom of a beer brewer's vat. Very tasty to the dinkum downunder-ite (particularly on toast), it is an 'acquired taste' to the overseas visitor. It was immortalised in the 1982 mega-hit by the group Men at Work called 'Down Under' - oldies will recall the lyrics 'I said do you speak-a my language, he just smiled and gave me a Vegemite sandwich'.

The unique giant worms of this area grow to three metres long and just three centimetres thick. The 'Big Worm' is a concrete structure 100 metres long that houses a museum and gift shop. I believe the gift shop wares are as tacky as they sound.

The Tower was then used as a prison. Elizabeth I was imprisoned there for two months in the reign of her half sister Queen Mary. She was in fear for her life the whole time. On a brighter note the Tower is usually a welcome sight for London Marathon runners each year as they run past it with only about three miles of their ordeal left to run.