Believe it or not, but the oldest continuously inhabited city in the world counts its existence for 11,000 years as of today. The town, Damascus, is the Syrian capital city, and astonishingly enough, not much has changed behind this ancient city's walls. However, not many towns keep the same faces for such a long time, often changing and evolving. Sometimes the city development makes it even more beautiful, but as it is in a more often case, the alluring greenery and historical houses have to make way for skyscrapers in the ever-changing city skyline.
The world has increased over the last 100 years that it's difficult to imagine just how much things have changed during that time. Many of the world's most famous cities and country capitals - like Kuala Lumpur for example, or Hong Kong - bare little resemblance to their earlier selves, and cities such as Dubai didn't even exist at all until relatively recently.
Take a look at these before and after pictures of beautiful cities to see what we mean. Compiled by Bored Panda, they're sure to give you a fresh perspective on how you look at the world's biggest cities and settlements.
#1 Dubai, United Arab Emirates - 2000 And Now
Image credits: panoramio.com
#2 Seoul, South Korea - 1900 And Now
#3 Vilnius, Lithuania - 1900 And Now
Image credits: gidas.mb.vu.lt
#4 Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates - 1970 And Now
Image credits: theculturist.com
#5 Singapore, Republic Of Singapore – 2000 And Now
Image credits: Ong Wee Jin
#6 Tokyo, Japan - 1945 And Now
Image credits: japanairraids.org
#7 Dubai, United Arab Emirates - 2005 And Now
Image credits: lovindubai.com
#8 Rio De Janeiro, Brazil - 1930 And Now
Image credits: Rafael Rabello de Barros
#9 Sydney, Australia - 1932 And Now
Image credits: The National Library of Australia
#10 Shenzen, China - 1964 And Now
Image credits: David McLeod
#11 Fortaleza, Brazil - 1975 And Now
Image credits: unknown
#12 Bangkok, Thailand - 1988 And Now
Image credits: unknown
#13 Athens, Greece - 1862 And Now
Image credits: Francis Bedford
#14 Toronto, Canada - 1930 And Now
Image credits: Special Collections Toronto Public Library
#15 Berlin, Germany - 1945 And 1990s
Image credits: rarehistoricalphotos.com
#16 Jakarta, Indonesia 1960 And Now
Image credits: storkli.com
#17 Melbourne, Australia - 1920 And Now
Image credits: unknown
#18 London, The Great Britain - 1920 And Now
Image credits: Slava Stepanov
#19 Istanbul, Turkey - 1905 And Now
Image credits: Public Domain
#20 New York, Usa - 1962 And Now
Image credits: wirednewyork.com
#21 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia - 1920 And Now
Image credits: unknown
#22 Chicago, Usa 1937 And Now
Image credits: chicagotribune.com
#23 Shanghai, China - 1987 And Now
Image credits: Carlos Barria
#24 Los Angeles, Usa - 1940 And Now
#25 San Francisco, USA - 1906 And Now
Image credits: Geo. R. Lawrence Co.
#26 San Francisco, Usa - 1947 And Now
Image credits: Redwood Empire Assn
#27 Dubai, United Arab Emirates 2005 And Now
#28 Long Beach, Usa - 1953 And Now
Image credits: Jeff Gritchen
#29 Macau, China - 1964 And Now
#30 Hong Kong, China - 1980 And Now
#31 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia - 1920 And Present
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Image credits: unknown
