Monemvasia, Greece
Municipal population: 21 816
Coordinates: 36°41′N 23°03′E

Noticed in JetPunk quiz 100 Biggest Cities in Europe before the Black Death. I've never heard of this town before, but it used to be one of the most important city on the eastern side of Mediterrean Sea! It's located on the coast of Laconia, the region where the ancient city of Sparta. Oh, and I got new fun word for my dictionary: tombolo.

Vestmannaeyjar, Iceland
Municipality population: 4 639
Coordinates: 63°25′N 20°17′W

Nordic towns on the map have very distinctive look, the road network is very organic, but organized and gently fits into whatever mountains, glaciers or volcanos are nearby. I am obsessed with small islands that hosts comparably large settlements and Vestmannaeyjar Municipality is the perfect example of a unique little town located on an separate islet, 12 km away from the "mainland" Iceland. The municipality also covers entire epic archipelago of small volcanic islands including Surtsey - the island that literally rised from the ocean in 1963!

Tarifa, Spain
City population: 18 169
Coordinates: 36.014°N 5.350°W

Even though Gibraltar is order of magnitude more famous, it's actually this small Andalusian town is the southernmost tip of continental Spain. Located on Costa de la Luz (the coast of light) is one of the most popular destination for windsports and I guess it's thanks to its outstanding location on the narrow strait between two massive bodies of water. I'm also wondering where that name comes from, is it have something to do with the tariffs?

Jizzax, Uzbekistan
City population: 202 200
Coordinates: 40°06′57″N 67°50′32″E

I just stumbled upon this peculiar name on the list of cities in Central Asia, apparently it's very old and used to be an important Silk Road city. Also I like the map in the article of the Jizzax Fortress from 1866. Oh and it's spelled "Gee-Zack" and is sometimes written 'Jizzakh'.

Kandy, Sri Lanka
City population: 111 701
Coordinates: 7°17′35″N 80°38′6″E

I though that Jaffna is the second largest city in Sri Lanka until I learned that it Jaffna was damaged during Sri Lanka Civil War, it was quite long time ago (up to 2009) and I didn't figure out. Kandy is the largest inland city in Sri Lanka and the last capital of Sinhalese monarchy.