The earth has a series of what they call tectonic plates that move and rattle around and have fault lines where they contact each other leading to earthquakes, the outside [mantle] of the earth is solid but further down it is liquid near the core, which sometimes escapes when a volcano erupts. So some mountains are igneous, rock formed by overflowing lava and others are sedimentary rock lifted up above sea level by one tectonic plate diving underneath another. Metamorphic rock is a combination of these two, like slate is sedimentary shale rock that has been subjected to other forces. The Mediterranean and the other inland seas like Caspian, Black etc could be like the Great Lakes in USA, the remnants of an older, much larger sea that was there at the end of the Ice Age when the glaciers melted.
Timbuktu was an ancient city (and was very welathly). Thus, many myths were created and many explorers ventured there. These stories and such ran wild in Europe, tempting many people to attempt to travel there to obtain massive riches, however due to its very secluded location (Western Africa) many never made it/never returned. This coined the phrase, 'to timbuktu' as in a place very very far away, as some people didnt even know if it really existed. Modern Timbuktu is a poor city, as it experienced a quick decline when the slave trade ravaged Africa.
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