Turkey is the perfect spot for a total eclipse

It began to make its run in Brazil, hit the African mainland in Ghana, quickly spread across Libya, Egypt and Turkey and ended in Mongolia. The shadow thrown by yesterday's total eclipse of the Sun enthralled and amazed spectators across the world as it raced from one end of the earth to the other.

Tourists flocked to West and North Africa as well as Turkey where clear skies provided a perfect view of the Moon's dark disc as it slid over the Sun to provide a few minutes of eerie darkness to counteract the normal glare of midday. Turkey heavily promoted itself as an eclipse destination after the bad publicity from bird flu.

Earlier, in Ghana, people shouted and clapped as the shadow of the total eclipse hit the African mainland from the Atlantic. In Egypt, thousands more tourists and dignitaries - including President Hosni Mubarak - arrived in the remote town of Salloum to observe the event.