Harbor Resentment Trivia Quiz

Answer: Ürümqi

At one time known by the name Dihua, the city of Ürümqi is massive compared to a majority of major world cities but it has, historically, avoided cracking the top twenty in China. Nonetheless, despite its remoteness it's an important destination for trade in Northwestern China, acting as a commerce hub near the Kazakh and Kyrgyz borders to the west.

It's also one of the remotest destinations in the world, being further from the ocean than nearly any other city. Though China is far from landlocked, Ürümqi has no clear waterway to the sea; it gets its water supply from glaciers in the nearby mountain ranges. It doesn't prevent the city from being a critical hub for transport and trade though; Ürümqi's population doubled from 2000 to 2020.

Answer: Atlanta

The capital city of Georgia, Atlanta is not only one of the largest cities in the nation, but one of the most important for travel and shipping, being home to one of the most-used airports in the entire world (Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport). Found in the southern foothills near the Appalachians, Atlanta is actually a short trip away from the Chattahoochee River which, coming down from the Blue Ridge Mountains, eventually flows into the Apalachicola River in Florida and to the Gulf of Mexico. It's not a convenient trip, however.

But this isn't to say Atlanta doesn't hack it as an important location. Aside from being a telecom and news media hub, Atlanta is a major site for business, commerce, and shipping, being the home of Delta Air Lines, UPS, and countless major U.S. corporations. The city's original name, 'Terminus', was meant to indicate that it was the endpoint for a series of critical railways.

Answer: Johannesburg

Johannesburg was never built with the intent to make the area massive in the way of trade; it was constructed because gold was discovered in the area in the late 19th century. Now an African mega-city, Jo'burg sustained its growth well into the 20th century and beyond, becoming not only one of the largest cities on the continent, but one of the most unique for political and societal influence. Notably, Johannesburg combated Apartheid well into its existence, becoming a battleground for equal rights in the nation.

Part of the Highveld, Johannesburg isn't on the sea and doesn't contain any significant waterways, but its smaller streams connect to both the Orange River and the Limpopo. You'd be hard-pressed to take a boat in or out of here though.

Answer: Mecca

Though only a short drive to Jeddah on the Red Sea, the Holy City of Islam, Mecca is not the place to be if you're looking for the seaside. It doesn't much matter, however, as the destination was built up almost entirely due to its religious significance, being one of the most frequented pilgrimage sites in the world.

Mecca is found smack-dab in the deserts of the Middle East and the location has suffered, historically, from its aridity. Years of development and modernization have aided in ensuring the region gets enough water for its millions of citizens and multitudes of guests.

Answer: Cusco

The gateway to the Incan ruins of Machu Picchu, the city of Cusco is one of the highest larger destinations in Peru and one of its most frequented tourist locales. Founded at the start of the twelfth century AD, it was constructed to nestle in amongst the Vilcabambas of the Andes and its citizens lived with access to glacial waters. This said, it's a long trip to the sea; Cusco is at an elevation of 3,400 meters. For all intents, the Peruvian capital of Lima is at sea level.

Access to a harbor didn't much matter for Cusco's original inhabitants; the city was a sacred site for the Incan civilization which, amongst other things, revolved around the importance of the sun. Living at such altitude was critical for the priests that were housed there, even as the Incan Empire expanded outward.

Answer: Madrid

There's not too easy a route to get from Madrid to the sea since its primary waterway, the Manzanares River, isn't altogether wide. The Manzanares flows into the Jarama which joins with the Tagus and then enters the Atlantic near Lisbon, Portugal. Otherwise, you're in for a three hundred kilometre drive to the sea.

Madrid is very much central as far as Spain's cities go. One of the largest cities in all of Europe, it's a destination of modern influence and old world charm. Interestingly, it's one of the highest capital cities on the European continent (it's second only to Andorra La Vella), and that in and of itself makes it a poor place for a harbor. It wasn't chosen for that reason though; it was better-established for its location and early rulers' capabilities to expand outward from it and around the rest of the Iberian Peninsula.

Answer: Alice Springs

Pretty much the middle of Australia, the town of Alice Springs is important for a handful of reasons both as a modern destination for Outback travellers (especially those en route to Uluru) and as a historical home for Indigenous Australians. Today, it's one of the stops on the famous Ghan railway, nearly a thousand miles in either direction-- north or south-- from the coast of the continent.

Alice Springs is a little less desert and a little more scrubland, being slightly less arid than the surrounding area (though that's not saying too much). Though the Todd River cuts through the region and flows into the Hale River, both of those are generally dry year-round with rare instances of severe flooding occurring when rain actually does wash through. Though used briefly as a destination for gold prospectors, it developed more substantially after World War II.

Answer: Mexico City

At an altitude more than two kilometres above sea level and situated on a high plateau surrounded by mountains and volcanic peaks, Mexico City is a unique capital in terms of location. Originally built on the shores of Lake Texcoco, the city overtook the basin there and the water dried up for the most part (leaving minimal wetlands). The country would undertake a massive preservation plan to protect the Lake Texcoco Ecological Park region in the twenty-first century.

When the Aztecs originally built in the area it was ideal for settlement due to the fertile, volcanic soils and the freshness of the lakewater. In the modern day, Mexico City faces a sinking problem due to the lakebed's soft clay and its difficulty in maintaining the city's foundations. With Mexico City being one of the most populated cities in the world, it comes as no surprise that it faces water problems. Even without a harbor it remains a global economic superpower.

Answer: Indianapolis

One of the highest-populated state capitals in the U.S., Indianapolis, Indiana sits on the White River but if you expect to be using it to get around or embark on a boat, you'd be in for a long ride-- the White River feeds into the Wabash...and then the Ohio River...and then the Mississippi before it flows into the Gulf of Mexico near New Orleans nearly eight hundred fifty miles southwest.

Indianapolis has been settled in by native tribes for thousands upon thousands of years but it was chosen to be an established U.S. city (in the then young state of Indiana) in the 1820s, eventually becoming a major spot on the railroad, a critical juncture point for those heading west and industries shipping east.

Answer: Almaty

Kazakhstan's largest city, built on the edge of the Trans-Ili Alatau mountain range, was further developed to provide a strategic city on the Silk Road. That was part of the issue, and it might lead to a bit of resentment for harbor destinations; with a notable increase in sea trade from Europe, the need for Almaty winnowed over time, transforming a once prosperous city deep in Asia's mountains into a yet-to-be-industrially-developed Soviet locale. Though the city's capabilities improved over time, Kazakhstan struggled post WWII.

It doesn't help, further, that Kazakhstan is landlocked, its only major coastline being on the inland Caspian Sea. Almaty is more than a thousand kilometres southeast of Astana, the nation's capital, and another thousand kilometres west of an even more remote destination: Ürümqi, China.