Riding camel back is a great way to travel. CAMELS ARE AMAZING CREATURES! I can drink up to 30 gallons of water in less than 10 minutes!

Crossroads of three continents: Africa, Asia, Europe A major trade route over land and sea since ancient times Caravans from India and China brought goods to M.E. Bedouins Traders then carried goods across the Mediterranean into Europe Red Sea to East Africa Cultural Diffusion happened over thousands of years (spreading of ideas, inventions, and achievements ex. iron making and alphabet) They control major sea routes and have the most of the world’s oil supply Do you guys want to see what a caravan looks like? I happen to have a picture of one!!!

Today the ME nations command vital sea routes and sit atop of the vast reserves of oil in the world. It also controls a few straits and canals that bring significance to this region for shipping purposes. Because of these resources and ME’s location the world has a great deal of interest in what happens there. Lucky!!!

Five Main Physical Regions of the ME –Northern Tier: stretches across modern day Turkey and Iran. It is a region of mountains and plateaus –Arabian Peninsula: is a vast plateau about 1/3 of the size of the US. It is wedged between major waterways, however most of it’s land is barren desert. –Fertile Crescent: land wedge between the Tigris and Euphrates river valley. Mesopotamia is one of the world’s 1 st civilizations and it forms here. –Nile Valley: the cradle of ancient civilization where ancient Egypt will flourish for thousands of years. –The Maghreb: is mainly the northern part of Africa and is mostly made up of the Sahara Desert and the rugged Atlas Mountains.

Most of the region is desert so people have clustered in well- watered areas along the coast and river valleys. Scarcity: less than 10% of the land produces enough water to make farming possible. They have made irrigation systems that have created a little more farm land for the people. Oil is the number one resource in this area. However it is only in certain areas too, creating great disparities of wealth among nations. They also have salt, phosphate, and copper.