Popping up among the beautiful Ottoman mosques, Byzantine churches, palaces and bazaars are ultra-contemporary art sculptures, shopping malls and lush landscaping.

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On the shore below, with its deserted beaches and spray-splashed Byzantine churches, there are no foreigners at all, and no facilities to cater to them.

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Continuing west for 170km, the highway passes near Thessaloniki - Greece's second city, and a mandatory stop with its plethora of museums, Byzantine churches and a lovely old town.

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Some historians argue that the Byzantine chant used in Visigothic churches prior to the Muslim arrival also played their part.

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Cyprus has inscribed on the World Heritage List ten churches which bear outstanding testimony to Byzantine civilization, are well-conserved examples of rural religious architecture and provide evidence for the links between eastern and western Christian art.

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