As we begin making a list of countries of interest, there are tons
of places that look beautiful and boast plenty of interesting sites, be
they archeological or architectural, cultural or historical, natural or
man made, but some of them, like Taiwan, are still disputed... or, in
other cases, colonial or protectorate territories (which leads to some
interesting questions: do they still count as countries? and for that
matter, what about autonomous zones within countries such as Hong
Kong/Macau, or New Caledonia?).
For a great video on country-status that gives a simple explanation of a complex issue, have a look at CGPGrey's video here:
How Many Countries Are There?
The world has somewhere between 191 and 257 countries, depending on who you ask; 191 countries are undisputed, while the rest are officially contested by other (usually officially recognized) nations. One fantastic example is Taiwan; fully independent government elected by the populous, functionally completely independent, with a very strong sense of national identity- in a recent study over 90% of the population identified as Taiwanese (no small feat- just 20 years earlier over 70% identified as the "true" Chinese people, code for rightful leaders of the Mainland)- but denied UN membership (although it used to have it) along with any global legitimacy.
Many countries relegated to the 'other' category are also totally independent, totally safe to visit, and possibly incredibly awesome (like Taiwan!) so we are trying to keep an open mind as this list grows, and then shrinks again to a more manageable number. There are several territories, protectorates, and disputed nations on the list, but take their status with a grain of salt; official title does not a country make!
That said, here is a look at what we've got so far!
Which countries have you been to? Which do you recommend or not? Why? Let us know what you think!
For a great video on country-status that gives a simple explanation of a complex issue, have a look at CGPGrey's video here:
How Many Countries Are There?
The world has somewhere between 191 and 257 countries, depending on who you ask; 191 countries are undisputed, while the rest are officially contested by other (usually officially recognized) nations. One fantastic example is Taiwan; fully independent government elected by the populous, functionally completely independent, with a very strong sense of national identity- in a recent study over 90% of the population identified as Taiwanese (no small feat- just 20 years earlier over 70% identified as the "true" Chinese people, code for rightful leaders of the Mainland)- but denied UN membership (although it used to have it) along with any global legitimacy.
Many countries relegated to the 'other' category are also totally independent, totally safe to visit, and possibly incredibly awesome (like Taiwan!) so we are trying to keep an open mind as this list grows, and then shrinks again to a more manageable number. There are several territories, protectorates, and disputed nations on the list, but take their status with a grain of salt; official title does not a country make!
That said, here is a look at what we've got so far!
- Japan
- Korea
- Australia
- New Zealand
- New Caledonia
- Fiji
- Vanuatu
- East Timor
- Malaysia
- Indonesia
- Papua New Guinea
- China
- Tibet
- Mongolia
- Vietnam
- Loas
- Thailand
- Cambodia
- Burma (Myanmar)
- Bhutan
- Nepal
- Bangladesh
- India
- Sri Lanka
- Maldives
- Pakistan
- Turkey
- Greece
- Cyprus
- Iran
- UAE (specific locations TBA)
- Saudi Arabia
- Lebanon
- Syria
- Jordan
- Israel
- Egypt
- Tunisia
- Morocco
- Tanzania
- Zimbabwe
- Madagascar
- South Africa
- Spain/Portugal (Fly home)
Which countries have you been to? Which do you recommend or not? Why? Let us know what you think!
No comments:
Post a Comment