OK, I’ve left off Africa. So this all depends on what you mean by history. North Africa could be great, especially Egypt. Generally though there are obvious concerns about travel in the Middle East and North Africa, mostly I think Egypt is pretty safe, even Saudi Arabia is probably pretty safe. Just don’t stay in a big western chain hotel. Stay where the Middle Eastern tourists stay and you are likely to be fine. I have no idea what the food is like in Egypt, but I bet you can get great food of all sorts in Cairo. I expect it’s somewhat like other middle eastern food, maybe a bit like Ethiopian.
So, here’s my new recommendation. Go to Italy, spend two or three days in Tuscany for the food and to see Pisa and Florence. Don’t stay in either of those cities, stay in Lucca, which is smaller, less trafficked by Americans, and has some of the best food in the country. You could take a day trip to the Cinque Terre, especially if you like to hike. Five beautiful old towns along the coast. Make sure you eat dinner there, and get something with anchovies (they’re fresh, not canned so it’s not what you expect). Then head down to Rome for another two days to take in all the essential tourist sites. You really can’t beat Rome for history. Now comes the adventure, take a ferry to Egypt. Go to Cairo and possibly Alexandria if that’s where the ferry lands. OK, now you’ve seen in one week history from 5,000 years ago, to the Roman Empire, and the Renaissance, and you’ve had great Middle Eastern cuisine, Tuscan, and Roman food. I really wanted to do this when I was in Italy, but I couldn’t fit Egypt into my schedule.