City Guide

Where to Work City Guides

Thessaloniki

A merging point between the mythical legendary past and an exciting and full present. Thessaloniki possesses

the rare and precious privilege to be a modern city that has not forgot-

ten its history. The standard of living, numerous universities and important business sectors have attracted a lot of young people to come live, work and have fun. These are the same reasons that the number of foreigners settling down in Thessaloniki has grown in the last few years. Ancient Thessaloniki had a sizeable Jewish community and was an early center for Christianity. On his second missionary journey, the Apostle Paul preached in the city’s synagogue, which was the main synagogue in that part of Macedonia, and laid the foundation of a church. After being conquered by many people – Roman, Saracens, Norman – the city remained in Ottoman hands until 1912. At that time it was extremely multicultural: of its 130,000 inhabitants at the beginning of the century, around 60,000 were Sephardic Jews, whose ancestors had fled Spain and Portugal after 1492 and Turks, Greeks, Bulgarians and Albanians made up the remainder of the population. The great number of museums help unlock the beauty hidden in any stone or building of the city. The long beaches and forests are the natural completion to this unbelievable setting. Despite the recent crisis that has hit Greece, Thessaloniki can boast about its flourish commerce and its excellence in certain business sectors. Being one of the most important cultural centers for the island and paying a great deal of attention to the young people and their education is the key for recovering from these hard times and working to build a solid future. And that is exactly what Thessaloniki is doing.

Ask for the previous guides: Turin, São Paolo, Kuala Lumpur, Denver, Ekaterinburg, Marseille.

Lagos

Lagos history is as rich as its inhabitants. The first settlers on the island were a small Yoruba group who used to live just beyond the Lagoon along the River Ogun and were ruled by a King. The original name was Eko and only after the Portuguese explorers visited the Island did the village take the name Lagos that means Lakes. The years of colonization were tough, as in other part of the African continent. By 1861 Lagos was officially a British protectorate and in 1906, Lagos was joined with the British protectorate of Southern Nigeria, and, in 1914, when Southern and Northern Nigeria were amalgamated, it became part of the small coastal Colony of Nigeria. In 1954 most of the colony was merged with the rest of Nigeria, but Lagos was made a separate federal territory. From the late 19th century to independence in 1960, Lagos was the center of the Nigerian nationalist movement. From independence until 1991, Lagos was the capital of Nigeria. But Lagos does not look back, instead is firmly pointing to a promising and great future. The new leadership is

driving the city to modern urbanization, developing new systems of security and social services, fostering attention and care for citizens

and visitors as well. Many laws have been introduced in the last decades in order to get control of the city and cope with the main problems, such as poverty, pollution and crime. The city quickly turned into a megalopolis of eight million people with important industries and businesses permanently settled there. The quality of life is improving more and more; the busy nightlife and the breathtaking beauty of Lagos surroundings foster the curiosity of both citizens and foreigners. Culture and education have become a crucial challenge too; the universities shape brilliant future professionists, while museums, concert halls and theaters feed the soul of middle and upper class. There is still a lot to do, but what Lagos and its citizens seem to have already achieved is the most important thing: they can look at their own town with different eyes, full of promises and hope.

100 Work Cities The one hundred cities where to work in the next decade is a project by Work Style Company Illustration by Eelco Van den Berg Text by Giulia De Florio.

Greece Thessaloniki

Nigeria Lagos

Zambia