Why Chester is the most beautiful city in the world.

It's not Rome or Paris, nor Sydney or San Francisco, Chester – the city considered the most beautiful in the world – is probably a city you've never even heard of.

In a recent study titled "Architecture That Makes You Look Out of Place," commissioned by an online mortgage advisor, the walled church town of Chester in northwest England, near the Welsh border and with a population of around 120,000, has risen to the top spot. Venice (Italy) came in second and London (England) in third.

The ranking is determined based on an assessment of the proportions of buildings in the city using calculations that conform to the "golden ratio" of 1:1.618. This ratio was established by ancient mathematicians when discussing building architecture. This ratio is even found in the natural world, including leaves and bark.

According to this study, Chester's architecture is closest to the golden ratio, at 83.7%. Venice comes in second with 83.3%, and London at 83%. To determine these figures, researchers used Google View to scan images of thousands of buildings in historic cities around the world. They then plotted the angles of each building to determine their proportions. These proportions were then compared to the golden ratio (1:1.618) to see how well they matched.

Previously, Time Out magazine announced Edinburgh, Scotland, as the best city in the world for 2022, with its "inspiring skyline" cited as one of the reasons for its top ranking. However, with the latest research based on the ancient golden ratio, Chester – a city with approximately 120,000 inhabitants – has risen to the top spot.

Walking around Chester, you'll come across shops sharing a similar architectural style and color scheme known as The Rows. These are rows of shops with partitioned shop fronts, mostly built during the European Middle Ages – a unique feature found only in Chester, England, as you won't find this distinctive architecture anywhere else in the world, except in Germany.

On the streets of Chester, you can find many actors dressed in period costumes reenacting historical stories. Upper Street features many houses rebuilt in the mid-18th century. The architects decided to apply the architectural styles of the 15th and 16th centuries to these buildings.

That's why many tourists who come here think these buildings are over 400 years old, and feel like they've stepped back in time. There's nothing better than relaxing with a coffee in the square and admiring the romantic and nostalgic scenery.

Anh Thi