Lovely "L" Locations Trivia Quiz

Answer: Switzerland

Lugano, on Lake Lugano, and Locarno, on Lake Maggiore, are both located in Switzerland's Italian-speaking Canton Ticino. Both towns are famous for their beautiful scenery and many cultural and artistic attractions. Lake Lugano (also known as Ceresio) lies south of the Alps, between Lake Maggiore and Lake Como. The town of Lugano (shown in the photo) is dominated by two mountains, Brè and San Salvatore; because of the protection afforded by the lakes and the Alps, it has a milder climate than most of Switzerland. Locarno lies on the northern shore of Lake Maggiore; it is internationally known for its Film Festival, which takes place every year in the month of August.

Italian is one of Switzerland's four official languages, though it is widely spoken only in Canton Ticino and parts of Graubünden (Grigioni).

Answer: Luzon

The world's 15th-largest island (‎109,965 km²/42,458 sq mi), Luzon lies in the northern part of the Philippine Archipelago. It is a very densely populated island, home to over 53 million people, about half of them concentrated in the National Capital Region, or Metropolitan Manila. The island's name probably derives from the Tagalog word "lusong", denoting a wooden mortar used to dehusk rice. Luzon's territory is largely mountainous, though an extensive plain lies in the central region of the island. Luzon is also home to most of the archipelago's active volcanoes, which include the notorious Pinatubo, and the almost perfectly cone-shaped Mayon (shown in the photo).

Lombok is part of Indonesia, Lesbos is one of the Aegean Islands, and Lolland is one of the islands of Denmark.

Answer: Cornwall

Lizard Point (also simply known as The Lizard) lies at the tip of Lizard Peninsula, south of Lizard village, in the county of Cornwall in southwestern England. Its name has nothing to do with reptiles, but rather comes from the Cornish "an Lysardh", meaning "the high court". Considered a danger to navigation, the site has been the scene of a number of shipwrecks; the first sighting of the Spanish Armada occurred there on 19 July 1588. A naval battle also took place off the Lizard during the War of the Spanish Succession, in October 1907. Cornwall also contains England's westernmost point, the headland of Land's End.

Besides the one in England, there is a Lizard Point in Australia (Queensland), and another in Antarctica.

Answer: Llullaillaco

Located on the border between Chile and Argentina, on the Atacama Plateau (Puna de Atacama), Llullaillaco is a dormant stratovolcano; its name means "deceitful water" in Quechua. Standing at an elevation of 6,739 (22,110 ft), it is the second-highest active volcano in the world after Ojos del Salado, which is also part of the Central Volcanic Zone of the Andean Volcanic Belt. Though the climate of the surrounding region is very dry, snowfall occasionally occurs at high altitude, as shown in the photo. Llullaillaco was last active in the late 19th century. The summit of the volcano is also an important archaeological site (the highest in the world), where the mummified remains of three children (probably human sacrifices) were found in 1899.

Lhotse, the world's fourth-highest mountain, is part of the Himalayas; Lalveri is found in the Greater Caucasus, and Langkofel (Sassolungo in Italian) in the Dolomites (eastern Alps).

Answer: Colombia

La Guajira may be one of Colombia's best-kept secrets - a large desert on the Caribbean coast that covers most of the peninsula of the same name, at the northernmost tip of South America. A small part of the area lies in neighbouring Venezuela. The desert's name comes from "Wajiira", in the language of the indigenous Wayuu population that has lived for centuries in this harsh environment. Mostly covered by xeric shrubland, La Guajira is home to many animal species, especially birds such as hummingbirds and flamingos. The stunning beaches, with their huge sand dunes, are ideal for those who want to enjoy an unspoiled seaside environment.

Bolivia and Paraguay are both landlocked, so no coastline there! Coffee is one of Colombia's most famous exports.

Answer: Libya

Founded by the Phoenicians in the 7th century BC, Leptis Magna was part of the Carthaginian Empire, and became a Roman city after Carthage's defeat in the Punic Wars. One of Roman Africa's foremost cities, it reached its apex towards the end of the 2nd century AD, when it became the hometown of Emperor Septimius Severus. Many of the buildings whose remains can be admired today were built during his reign. Leptis Magna was eventually abandoned after the Arab conquest in the 7th century AD, and rediscovered by Italian archaeologists in the 1930s, after the Italian conquest of Libya.

The archaeological site of Leptis Magna (designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1982) is located near the Libyan city of Khoms (Al-Khums), a port on the Mediterranean Sea. The photo shows the ruins of the theatre, Roman Africa's second-largest, with the sea in the background. Other remarkable buildings found in Leptis Magna are two forums, the Basilica, the Market and the arch of Septimius Severus.

Though also rich in Roman remains, Lebanon is part of Asia, not Africa.

Answer: Karelia

With an average surface of 17,700 km² 6,800 sq mi), Lake Ladoga (Laatokka in Finnish) is the largest lake completely within Europe, and also Russia's second-largest lake after Lake Baikal. The southern part of the lake lies in Leningrad Oblast, not far from the city of Saint Petersburg, while its northern shore is located in the autonomous Republic of Karelia, which was part of Finland until the end of World War II. The Neva, Saint Petersburg's river, flows from Ladoga to the Baltic Sea. There are a number of islands in the lake, the largest of which, Valaam (Valamo), is known for its imposing Orthodox monastery, founded in the Middle Ages and restored in the 18th century. Other sites of historic interest, such as the medieval Oreshek fortress shown in the photo (part of the Saint Petersburg UNESCO World Heritage Site), are found on the shores of the lake.

Crimea and Yakutia are also autonomous republics of the Russian Federation, while Kamchatka is designated as a "krai". None of them, however, was ever part of Finland: as Risk! players will know, Kamchatka and Yakutia lie in the Far East of Russia, while Crimea, on the Black Sea, is currently contested between Russia and Ukraine.

Answer: Lakshadweep

Lakshadweep, or Laccadive, is a group of islands located in the sea of the same name, a body of water that borders the state of Kerala in southwestern India, Sri Lanka and the Maldives. The name means "a hundred thousand islands" in Sanskrit and Malayalam - somewhat of an exaggeration, as the archipelago comprises 36 islands, ten of which are inhabited. With a total surface area of 32 km² (12 sq mi), the Lakshadweep archipelago is the smallest Union Territory of India; its capital, Kavaratti, is located on the island of the same name. As the photo shows, the islands offer a lot to lovers of pristine tropical beaches and all the activities that can be enjoyed in such places.

Unlike the Lofoten Islands (which lie off the coast of Norway), the Lucayan Archipelago (which includes the Bahamas and Turks and Caicos Islands) and the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean Sea would also qualify as tropical paradises.

Answer: Massif Central

With its 1,012 km (629 mi), the Loire is France's longest river, winding its way from its source in the Massif Central in south-central France to the Atlantic Ocean, where it forms an estuary. The Loire flows through a number of important cities, such as Orléans, Tours and Nantes. The stretch of the river running for 300 km (190 mi) between Tours and Nantes, known as the Loire Valley, is famous for its vineyards and its more than 300 châteaux, most of them built in the Renaissance. The picture shows the Château of Amboise, located not far from Tours - a magnificent building that was a royal residence in the 16th century. Leonardo da Vinci died there in 1519, and is said to be buried there.

The three incorrect choices are European mountain ranges that contain the headwaters of some of the continent's longest rivers: the Volga (Valdai Hills), the Danube (Black Forest), the Rhine (Saint Gotthard Massif).

Answer: Lancaster

Lancaster lies in south-central Pennsylvania, at the heart of Pennsylvania Dutch country; it is also the seat of the county of the same name. Founded in 1729 with the name of Hickory Town, it was renamed after the cathedral city of Lancaster, in northwestern England, and adopted its symbol, the red rose. Lancaster boasts a number of historical landmarks, such as the red-brick Central Market (the oldest public market in the US) and the Fulton Opera House; the first Woolworth's "five-and-dime" store was opened there in 1879. The surrounding countryside is home to various Amish and Mennonite communities, who are the descendants of the Swiss and German Anabaptists who immigrated to Pennsylvania in the 18th century ("Dutch" is a rendition of "Deutsch", meaning "German"). Wheatland (shown in the photo), the home of James Buchanan, the 15th president of the US, is located just outside the city centre.

The three remaining choices are respectively the capitals of the US states of Michigan (Lansing), Arkansas (Little Rock) and Nebraska (Lincoln).