Greece!

Located near Persia and Italy, north of Egypt. Mountainous peninsula that covers 3/4s of the land. Approximately 1,400 islands in the Aegean and Ionia Seas, Location shaped the culture with skilled sailors.
Poor natural resources and difficult to unite the ancient Greeks because of the terrain; developed small, independent communities. Approximately 20% suitable for farming, fertile valleys cover 1/4 of peninsula. Because of geography the Greeks diet consist of grains, grapes and olives. Lack of resources leads to Greek colonization, temperatures range from 48 in the winter and 80 in the summer. The Mycenaeans began around 2000 B.C., Mycenae is located on a rocky ridge and protected by the 20 ft. thick wall. Mycenaean kings dominated Greece from 1600 - 1200 B.C. and controlled trade and region. Around 1200 B.C. sea people began to invade Mycenae and burnt palace after palace, the Dorians moved into the war-torn region, far less advanced, economy collapsed, and writing disappeared for 400 years. Only stories were kept and passed on by  word of mouth, Homer lived at the end of the "Greek Dark Ages". Recorded stories of the Trojan War in The lliad and the Odyssey. Trojan war was probably one of the last conquest of the Mycenaeans.