Just started this GOTM, and I think I've made some good progress.
Well, I hate the starting location. It's 400 AD right now, and Delhi is the biggest city in the world (at least that's on the top 5 cities), but it has terrible squares and not much option for shields. I mined the hills, though. I killed the Vikings early, thanks to a hut archer and a hut legion, both of which died later in combat, but no matter. I took three of their cities and obliterated the other one. I wildly sent out triremes in three directions from Delhi. Two of them crashed, but the third one found land.
It turned out to be very fertile land and connected to the Celts (after many twists and turns of the road-like peninsula), whom I am now at war with. I have 17 cities: 13 on the starting continent, which is almost full, and 4 on the celt's continent. I've also found the babylonian and english home with a trireme, but I didn't make contact with them as I wanted to avoid war for then. But now, since the Babylonians built the Great Library and Babylon looks rather badly defended, I'm sending over a party of three archers. Speaking of wonders, the AI got to them way before me, building pyramids (Celts), Colossus (Aztec), Great Library (Babylonians), Lighthouse (Who cares), and Hanging Gardens (Who cares). I would like to take the Pyramids, but Cardiff is walled!
... that'll have to wait. Maybe I'll try to destroy it with diplomats. Anyway, my plan is to send lots of diplomats down that turny road-like peninsula and steal techs from the Celts, who are much more advanced than me.
I think my biggest foes will be the Celts and the Aztecs. The English and the Babylonians share a small continent, so their growth is well hampered.