Adopt a Country

[Forza Raalte]

I don't know if this is ever tried before but here's the idea. In this thread you can adopt yourself a country which could be uknown for you and probably for others. Be your country's ambassador here on SSC. Promote the country, tell some things about it and keep us close for news within the country but it don't have to be that serious, a sense of humour would be fine ;)


Big countries are left out. Everybody knows quite some things about let's say Canada, Pakistan and New Zealand

Choose one of these countries

· Angola
· Armenia
· Azerbaijan
· Belize
· Benin
· Bhutan
· Botswana
· Brunei by Naga Solidus
· Burkina Faso
· Cape Verde
· Central African Republic
· Chad
· Cook Islands
· Djibouti by rotten777
· El Salvador
· Equatorial Guinea by bitxofo
· Eritrea
· Faroe Islands by Schmidt
· Gabon
· Guinea-Bissau
· Guyana
* Greenland by Mr. Denmark
· Heard Island and McDonald Islands
· Jan Mayen
· Kiribati
· Kyrgyzstan by macon4ever
· Laos
· Lesotho
· Liechtenstein by davidkunz/vie
· Madagascar
· Malawi by Vertigo
· Mayotte
· Mongolia
· Nicaragua
· Nauru by Jonesy55
· Oman
· San Marino
· Sao Tome and Principe
· Solomon Islands by newportrichieguy
· South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
· Svalbard by Valeroso
· Tajikistan
· Tokelau by Kuesel
· Trinidad and Tobago
· Turkmenistan
· Uzbekistan
· Vanuatu
· Zambia

[Audiomuse]

Cool! I adopt: Kyrgyzstan.

[Audiomuse]

Facts from http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/

2006 Pop. 5,213,898
Growth Rate (POP)-- 1.32%
Fert. Rate-- 2.6 Children per woman
Religions--Muslim 75% Russian Orthodox 20% Other 5%
Languages-- Kyrgyz and Russian
Ethnic Groups-- 65% Kyrgyz, 13% Uzbek, 12.5% Russian, Rest-- Dungan, Ukrainian, and Uygur
Government-- Republic
Capital--Bishkek
Former Soviet nation.
Pronounced-- Kur- geez-Stan

[Forza Raalte]

Excellent choice. Kyrgyzstan is withouth any doubt one of the coolest countries on earth :cool:

[Forza Raalte]

My adoption country will be Cape Verde

http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/39603000/gif/_39603861_cape_verde_map203.gif

The Cape Verde Islands are located in the mid-Atlantic Ocean some 450 kilometers off the west coast of Africa. The archipelago includes 10 islands and 5 islets. The main islands are Santo Antão, São Vicente, Santa Luzia, São Nicolau, Sal, Boa Vista, Maio, Santiago, Fogo, and Brava. All larger islands but Santa Luzia are inhabited.

Cape Verde was uninhabited when the Portuguese arrived in 1456, and the islands were thus made part of the Portuguese empire. In 1975 Cape Verde became independend but it still is very depended of Portugal. Cape Verde even has the Euro as it's valuta! The language in Cape Verde is (ofcourse) Portuguese ;)

Now the promotion part for Cape Verde :D

Cape Verde seems like a beautiful country to me. Nice beaches, some nice town, beautiful mountanious inlands and it isn't discovered by the mass of tourists by now.

Fontainhas

http://www.hommes-et-montagnes.fr/diapo/Sentiers%20de%20Fontainhas%20©%20Ludovic%20Bousquet.jpg

A Beach in Cape Verde

http://img63.imageshack.us/img63/276/soleillocaliz5eu.jpg

Mountains

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/graphics/slideshow/destinations05otbt/peopleonmount.jpg

[Vertigo]

I'll adopt Malawi!

Malawi is a relatively small, landlocked African country. Most of the country is located quite high, although there's also a large low part of the country along beautiful Lake Malawi.

For years Malawi was a dictatorial state, but since the 90s it is a more or less functioning democracy. It's former dictator, Hastings Kamuzu Banda, led the country with an iron fist for decades. He has also done some good things for the country though; one of the most important being providing a good infrastructure for the country.

Malawi is a mostly rural and very poor country, even for African standards. AIDS and Malaria are very common and in dry years there are even food shortages. Still, Malawi's population is known for being very friendly.

The friendly population, the good infrastructure and the striking scenery makes Malawi an unknown but very nice holiday destination. It may lack the abundance of wild animals like you can find in some neighboring country, but the beautiful and diverse scenery certainly makes up for that. Travelling is easy compared to many other African countries, which is why Malawi is sometimes called "Africa for beginners".

This poor but friendly country deserves somewhat more attention! :cool:

Here are some pics I shot last summer.

http://www.xs4all.nl/~davidee/Afrika/AFZ05.jpg

http://www.xs4all.nl/~davidee/Afrika/AFZ07.jpg

http://www.xs4all.nl/~davidee/Afrika/AFZ08.jpg

http://www.xs4all.nl/~davidee/Afrika/AFZ09.jpg

http://www.xs4all.nl/~davidee/Afrika/AFZ12.jpg

http://www.xs4all.nl/~davidee/Afrika/AFZ21.jpg

http://www.xs4all.nl/~davidee/Afrika/AFZ23.jpg

http://www.xs4all.nl/~davidee/Afrika/UPC03.jpg

http://www.xs4all.nl/~davidee/Afrika/AFN07.jpg

http://www.xs4all.nl/~davidee/Afrika/AFN09.jpg

http://www.xs4all.nl/~davidee/Afrika/AFN02.jpg

[Jonesy55]

Nauru needs adopting.

http://www.earth.northwestern.edu/people/emile/nauru.gif

http://www.lexpress.fr/info/monde/dossier/pacifique/images/nauru.gif

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cf/Nauru_satellite_view.jpg/549px-Nauru_satellite_view.jpg

Any country that shows the "Phosphate Company Site Office" on its national map is obviously in need of help, especially when there is no more phosphate on the island!

http://www.globalgeografia.com/oceania/nauru.jpg

Being in the middle of nowhere away from all shipping lanes and with no native industry or economic potential is also worrying for Nauru.

[cementationfurnace]

Being in the middle of nowhere away from all shipping lanes and with no native industry or economic potential is also worrying for Nauru.

I also understand that they are seriously worried about rising sea levels.

[Bahnsteig4]

I'll take Svalbard then!

[Xusein]

No Somalia? Well then, I will choose Djibouti...

Capital: Djibouti
Population: 486,530 (small)
Median age: 18.2 years
Population growth rate: 2.02% (slower than Somalia)
Life expectancy at birth: 43.17 years (lower than Somalia)
Ethnic groups: Somali 60%, Afar 35%, French, Arab, Ethiopian, and Italian 5%
Religions: Muslim 94%, Christian 6%
Languages: French (official), Arabic (official), Somali, Afar

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/0/0e/Djibouti_flag_large.png

http://www.europe-map.org/africa/maps/djibouti.gif

[Bahnsteig4]

delete.

[schmidt]

I'll get Faroe Islands, ok? I like remote places heh.

Situated in the heart of the Gulf Stream in the North Atlantic at 62°00’N, the Faroe Islands lie northwest of Scotland and halfway between Iceland and Norway. The archipelago is composed of 18 islands covering 1399 km2 (545.3 sq.miles) and is 113 km (70 miles) long and 75 km (47 miles) wide, roughly in the shape of an arrowhead. There are 1100 km (687 miles) of coastline and at no time is one more than 5 km (3 miles) away from the ocean. The highest mountain is 882 m (2883 ft) above sea level and the average height above sea level for the country is 300 m (982 ft).

Population: 47,246 (CIA)
Language: Faroese, Danish
Capital: Torshavn
GDP (PPP): US$1,000,000,000.00
GDP per capita: US$22,000.00


http://www.crwflags.com/fotw/images/f/fo.gif

http://faroeislands.dk/imags/Torshavn/erikchristensen/DSCN0002%20%20%20%20Torshavn.JPG

http://faroeislands.dk/imags/Torshavn/img_1674.jpg

http://faroeislands.dk/imags/Torshavn/img_1658.jpg

http://faroeislands.dk/imags/Torshavn/erikchristensen/DSCN0051%20%20Torshavn.JPG

http://faroeislands.dk/imags/Husavik/IMG_3182.JPG

http://faroeislands.dk/imags/Klaksvik/IMG_2981.JPG

http://faroeislands.dk/imags/Klaksvik/noomitoftegard/noomiklaksv_k3.jpg

It's a pretty interesting country hehe.

[MuddyZehbra32]

I'l take uurhhh.... Malawi.

[Valeroso]

I'll adopt Svalbard! Here are some interesting facts about it that I have summarised:

- It is part of Norway (the northernmost part of the Kingdom)
- It is made up of 40% Russians, 60% Norwegians.
- All people are required to carry a rifle with them at all times because of the threat of polar bears! Roughly 500 Polar bears are on the main island, and 5 people have been killed by them since the 1970s.
- It has absolutely NO trees! It has some birches, but with the exception of those, the best description of the physical environment which I could find is as follows: "Its mountains look like giant, precipitous slag heaps: steeply piled stacks of rubble, eroded by rain with peaks jutting out at improbable angles". The more higher mountains are covered mostly by snowfields, with lots of glaciers within the valleys.
- It's highest point is 1,717 m.
- Its main economic activity is coal mining, but tourism has grown during the past century.

It looks and seems like a really great place to visit also! It's really isolated, and if there ever was WWIII, I've got a feeling that Svalbard would escape it unharmed. Partly because it's completely isolated; partly because no one knows where on earth it is! ;) So if we look at a map taken from Wikipedia, we'll notice that Svalbard is located right here:

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/7/73/LocationSvalbard.png

And if you're smart enough to notice, then yes, it's located right in the Arctic circle!

http://wikitravel.org/upload/shared//4/48/Pole-north.gif

Interesting to point out that it's quite a big landmass, yet because it is so north, most people don't identify it! If we look at some of the pictures of Svalbard though, we'll notice that perhaps due to it's northness, it may often get very little sun in Winter! But not just that, but also due to the fact that it has absolutely no trees, the place also looks a little bit barren, desolate, and rugged which sort of makes it a little bit dreary also. The following pictures are taken from http://travels.larp.se/svalbard/svalbard.html. (Some guys trip to Svalbard! There are more pictures inside!).

http://travels.larp.se/svalbard/lyb1.jpg http://travels.larp.se/svalbard/lyb3.jpg
http://travels.larp.se/svalbard/lyb2.jpghttp://travels.larp.se/svalbard/bar1.jpg
(Even the tourists stand out!)

http://travels.larp.se/svalbard/mf1.jpghttp://travels.larp.se/svalbard/doe1.jpg
Sunbathing on the Svalbard beaches! ;)

http://travels.larp.se/svalbard/sva_lok1.jpg
Svalbard's technoglically advanced trains! ;)

Anyway, who is not to say the island isn't beautiful? This picture from Wikipedia makes it look awesome, and even those above pictures impress me! (I'm a weird person! ;) ) The sheer isolation of it, and its vast amount of nature is also a contributing factor that would make me love to visit Svalbard one day, and I'm sure it'll be one of the most unique (and perhaps oddest) travel adventures out there! Behold:

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1c/Longyearbyen4.jpg
http://wikitravel.org/upload/en/c/c4/Glacier_Mountains.JPG
http://travels.larp.se/svalbard/rf05.jpg
http://travels.larp.se/svalbard/rf16.jpg

Thank you! I've learned a lot and hopefully you all have also! Have a Svalbard of a day! ;)

[FREKI]

Ehmm I like the idea - but WTF is the Faroe Islands doing there - that's not and have never ever been a country!

That's just a Danish province like Greenland, Bornholm ( or Canada ;) )

And what about Svalbard :lol: what's next Hawaii? ;)

Okay I'll shut up about it now - because country or now it's a great idea...:)


@Schmidt - I fell hornored you chose it... feel free to PM me if you need any Danish text translated - great pics!

[Jonesy55]

I'll get Faroe Islands, ok? I like remote places heh.

Situated in the heart of the Gulf Stream in the North Atlantic at 62°00’N, the Faroe Islands lie northwest of Scotland and halfway between Iceland and Norway. The archipelago is composed of 18 islands covering 1399 km2 (545.3 sq.miles) and is 113 km (70 miles) long and 75 km (47 miles) wide, roughly in the shape of an arrowhead. There are 1100 km (687 miles) of coastline and at no time is one more than 5 km (3 miles) away from the ocean. The highest mountain is 882 m (2883 ft) above sea level and the average height above sea level for the country is 300 m (982 ft).

Population: 47,246 (CIA)
Language: Faroese, Danish
Capital: Torshavn
GDP (PPP): US$1,000,000,000.00
GDP per capita: US$22,000.00


http://www.crwflags.com/fotw/images/f/fo.gif

http://faroeislands.dk/imags/Torshavn/erikchristensen/DSCN0002%20%20%20%20Torshavn.JPG

http://faroeislands.dk/imags/Torshavn/img_1658.jpg

It's a pretty interesting country hehe.

Those grass roofs are pretty funky. I imagine the weather is foul though, the Shetland Islands are bad enough and the Faroes are a few hundred miles further north.

[Küsel]

OMG - there is really a "country" that I didn't know before...

TOKELAU

I feel LOST :lol:
http://www.spc.org.nc/images/members/Tokelau-cia-world-factbook-map%5B1%5D.png

I just read about it - the population is 1500 and divided on three villages on the three islands. Interesting is that the atolls are bilingual (Tokelau and English). The people live totally from subsistence because of the lack of natural resources and arable land. Therefore every year 1% of the pop is emigrating - so good that I write about it for in a few years the islands will be deserted and probably used by the French for nuclear testings :(

Tokelau is the most remote area in the world for infrastructure is just inexistent (no roads and cars, ports, airports or TV connection - not even a prison!). At least they have a installed a downstream connection 3 years ago over satellite, that they know when NZ gives them the independence or if Bush will be bombing them because an Iraqi spent some hollidays there once.

The only exporting article Tokelau ever provided to the world is the webdomain .tk - but it doesn't even belong to the islanders but to a foreign investor that bought it from the Polynesians for several million Dollars and sells it further on to users who have to pay very high commissions if they have hits on the site...

Why do I tell you that all? - Because of the global warming the country will anyway disappear in the next decades! The highest point is 5m above sea level and thus the atolls will go under like Atlantis :(

SO VISIT TOKELAU AS LONG AS IT STILL EXISTS!

You will have a wonderful and relaxing time in this paradise!
http://www.tevaka.com/pix/Tokelau_Island_canoe_palms.jpg

So... WELCOME
http://images.scotsman.com/2006/02/13/1302islanderb.jpg

[schmidt]

Ehmm I like the idea - but WTF is the Faroe Islands doing there - that's not and have never ever been a country!

That's just a Danish province like Greenland, Bornholm ( or Canada ;) )

And what about Svalbard :lol: what's next Hawaii? ;)

Okay I'll shut up about it now - because country or now it's a great idea...:)


@Schmidt - I fell hornored you chose it... feel free to PM me if you need any Danish text translated - great pics!
Maybe the best title for this thread would be "Adopt a region in the world" :)

But sincerely, I didn't know Faroe Islands WASN'T a country as they play as a country for UEFA, have their own language, etc. It seems Denmark dominates the northern seas, eh? :D

I wish my country had some overseas territories too ehhe

[Forza Raalte]

Some (good) news from Cape Verde

Cape Verde tops list of new tourist destinations in UK

A Semana / afrol News, 5 May - A survey carried out in the United Kingdom shows that Cape Verde stands at the top of the list of new tourist destinations chosen by the British to spend their vacations. The trend seems to be on an upswing, according to a number of local and international tourism agencies and companies.


German, British airliners to fly on Cape Verde

afrol News, 2 June - HapagFly, one of Germany's leading charter airliners, today announced that the Cape Verde archipelago would be among its main newcomers in this year's winter season. The airliner, known for favourable prices in Germany, is owned by charter giant TUI, and will offer individual travellers a better access to Cape Verde. Also a British operator is to offer direct flights to Cape Verde.

HapagFly today announced it would operate direct flights between the three German cities of Düsseldorf, Hamburg and Munich to the international airport at Sal, the island of the Cape Verdean archipelago most developed for tourism.


Less good news is a recent earthquake on one of Cape Verde islands. But NATO have promised to send some help

[Audiomuse]

Kyrgyzstan pics:
http://www.eurasianet.org/resource/kyrgyzstan/images/kyrgyzstan_map2.gif

http://www.advantour.com/img/kyrgyzstan/mirza.jpg
http://www.archbishopsappeals.asn.au/images/ORAF-Kyrgyzstan%20kids.jpg
http://www.fedu.uec.ac.jp/FEDU/flag/kyrgyzstan.jpg
Tulips.......Beautiful
http://aibek.nomadlife.org/uploaded_images/360_kyrgyzstan_b_004-716766.jpg
Bishkek. A dark, boring, and grim looking city actually has friendly people. Its just all of the Soviet "Happy shit" architecture that's left over along with the Lenin statues. Alot of people use Soviet cars left over from when it was a part of the Union.
http://www.advantour.com/img/kyrgyzstan/bishkek.jpg
I don't know. It sort of reminds me of North Korea.
http://www.dostuck.com.kg/images/gallery/Bishkek.jpg

[Bahnsteig4]

OK, since Svalbard was taken away from me, I'll go with our neighbour, Liechtenstein.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/47/Flag_of_Liechtenstein.svg/205px-Flag_of_Liechtenstein.svg.png

The Principality of Liechtenstein is a landlocked country with an area of 160 sqkm. that is bordered by Switzerland in the west (on the other side of the Rhine) and Austria in the east. The capital is Vaduz.


The country has 34,000 inhabitants and is officially ruled by Prince Hans-Adam.
De facto, his son, Alois, has more or less taken over his affairs.
The government is led by Otmar Hasler.

Together with Uzbekistan, it is one of only two countries in the world that are only bordered by landlocked countries!!!

The highest peak in the alpine country is the Grauspitz (2599m).

Liechtenstein is the only country in the world where only German is accepted as official language.

The country is predominantly Roman-Catholic (75%)

Liechtenstein has had a long and unstable history of belonging to military and economic communities. The name of the ruling family and the country derives from the Liechtenstein castle close to Vienna. Even today there are close cultural bonds between Vaduz and Vienna.

In 1719 the counties Vaduz and Schellenberg were merged into the Principality of Liechtenstein by the Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire of German Nation, Karl VI.

Until WW1, Liechtenstein was closely linked to the Austro-Hungarian Empire. After Austria fell to pieces in 1918, Liechtenstein leaned more towards Switzerland, introducing the Swiss Franken as official currency and creating a toll union.

Much like Switzerland, women's vote was only introduced in 1984! In 1990, Liechtenstein joined the UN, in 1995 they became a member of the EEA.


The 9.5 kms of train tracks are managed by Austria's Federal railways. The main bus company (Liechtenstein Bus - LBA) is a subsidiary of Swiss "Postautos". Apart from domestic services, the company also serves the Swiss towns of Sevelen, Buchs and Sargans and the Austrian Feldkirch.



From a tourist's point of view, Liechtenstein is a country that reflects a lot its common identity with the bordering St.Gallen and Graubünden cantons in Switzerland and the Vorarlberg region in Austria.
Apart from charming towns, the country is a paradise for sport freaks. Ski centers like Malbun and hiking trails attract lots of active people.

[Bahnsteig4]

Liechtenstein pictures:

Vaduz:
http://www.travel-images.com/liech2.jpg

http://www.travel-images.com/liech30.jpg

http://www.travel-images.com/liech28.jpg

http://www.travel-images.com/liech13.jpg
^^ One of the biggest moments in Liechtenstein's sports history was an amazing 2:2 draw against Portugal and, a few days later, a 4:0 win against Luxemburg. (I am talking about football.)

http://www.travel-images.com/liech12.jpg

http://www.travel-images.com/liech16.jpg
^^ View across the Rhine into Switzerland.

http://www.travel-images.com/liech17.jpg

http://www.travel-images.com/liech20.jpg

[Xusein]

Here is some pictures of my adopted country, Djibouti...they are big.

Djibouti City
http://alexnet-passion.chez-alice.fr/page_1_aviation_fichiers/fichiers_voyages/survol_djibouti_5_port.jpg

Near the Ethiopian border, close to the railroad
http://jeroen.knoworries.nl/foto's/djibouti%2097%20-%20kapotte%20vrachtauto%202.jpg

Djibouti Airport, nice airport, I've been there. It has non-stop flights to London and Paris
http://alexnet-passion.chez-alice.fr/page_1_aviation_fichiers/fichiers_voyages/djibouti_b_aeroport_1.jpg

Seacoast
http://phi33.chez-alice.fr/sahara/Djibouti/djibouti12_paillou.jpg

[Xusein]

Lake Assal, in Djibouti, is the lowest point in Africa at 156m below sea level...

It reaches 52C temps regularly...reminds me of the Dead Sea

http://www.stormchaser.ca/Volcanoes/Assal/Lac_Assal_02.jpg

[MuddyZehbra32]

hmm. i don't really feal like doing this but uhh i did adopt a county so ...here are some Malawi pictures i found:
http://anumi.bnetd.ci/UMP%20photos/Msunduzi/city%20view%202.jpg
http://www.tlfq.ulaval.ca/axl/afrique/images/malawi-map-lng.gif
http://www.grutzmeier.dk/zambia/lilongwe.jpg
http://malawi.tripod.com/zithunzi/mwkuchawe.jpg
http://www.cowley.addr.com/africa/people/lilongwe.jpg
http://www.zinggsafaris.com/assets/malawi.jpg
http://www.fotopaises.com/imagenes_a/MW/9016.jpg
http://www.cafod.org.uk/var/storage/images/media_folder/cafod/images/international_images/africa/malawi/bicycle_in_floods/47815-1-eng-GB/bicycle_in_floods_medium.jpg
http://www.lemlem.de/smolka_live/wochenbuch/aktuell/00032/images/998645465.jpg
http://community.iexplore.com/photos/journal_photos/Mala6.jpg
http://www.velberter-mission.de/images_vm/ag/ag_malawi_20a.jpg

[Forza Raalte]

^^ Malawi is already chosen :bash:

[Verso]

Jonesy55 has chosen Nauru, not Niue!

About Liechtenstein, I don't like saying this, but once I found Vaduz very nice, like a beautiful, charming Alpine village. Now it's turned into sth what could be called a bank metropolis with all those banks in the centre! of it, and you can imagine they fucked up everything, since the center is tiny of course, and I don't like it any more. :ohno: And wtf is that black box of 'Kunstmuseum Liechtenstein' doing in the centre of Vaduz?! It belongs to some suburb of a real metropolis!

And davidkunz/VIE, you forgot to mention that it's one of the world's 'worst' dictatorships. :lol: :lol: :lol:

[Bahnsteig4]

And davidkunz/VIE, you forgot to mention that it's one of the world's 'worst' dictatorships.

You are right, but I didn't want to irritate people too much in the first post. I'll keep that in mind for later. :cheers:

It belongs to some suburb of a real metropolis!

Vaduz IS a metropolis. (Well, by FL standards...;))

I am already looking forward to September, when I'll be visiting FL for the first time.

[MuddyZehbra32]

^^ Malawi is already chosen :bash:


heghh. well no one bothered to say that when i said i'd adopted it before.

[cjav]

Ill take turkmenistan would like to take uzbekistan and tajikistan aswel if allowed :)

turkmenistan is the richest of em all, but still poor but i think we can patch it up

hehe some effort :D

comin right up :)

oke first of all tajikistan.

http://www.silkroadhotels.com/destinations/tajikistan/tajikistan-flag.gif
some info from CIA factbook:

http://cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/maps/ti-map.gif

The Tajik people came under Russian rule in the 1860s and 1870s, but Russia's hold on Central Asia weakened following the Revolution of 1917. Bolshevik control of the area was fiercely contested and not fully reestablished until 1925. Tajikistan became independent in 1991 following the breakup of the Soviet Union, and it is now in the process of strengthening its democracy and transitioning to a free market economy after its 1992-1997 civil war. There have been no major security incidents in recent years, although the country remains the poorest in the former Soviet sphere. Attention by the international community in the wake of the war in Afghanistan has brought increased economic development assistance, which could create jobs and increase stability in the long term. Tajikistan is in the early stages of seeking World Trade Organization membership and has joined NATO's Partnership for Peace.

Tajikistan is very poor and barely has what you can call a industry. the average income is 1200$ soo very very poor. not to many natural resources either. soo more or less a hopeless case.

some pictures

(none of these pictures are mine, but googled )

http://www.ad-pecjak.si/odprave/tajikistan/slikce/02A.jpg
http://www.utoronto.ca/cias/images/tajikistan.jpg

time for some cruising on the highway ;)
http://www.liemberger.cc/pictures/memories/1999/1999%20-%20Tajikistan%20Anzob%20road.jpg
monument for something
http://tajikistan.ive.org/dushanbe/images/DCP_1225.JPG

ill post something about Turkmenistan and uzbekistan later aight :)

[Forza Raalte]

Sure you're allowed but please but some effort in it.

[Bahnsteig4]

Perhaps you should update the list on page 1 so that everyone knows which ones are left.

[FREKI]

Maybe the best title for this thread would be "Adopt a region in the world" :) Would be a bit more fitting :)

But sincerely, I didn't know Faroe Islands WASN'T a country as they play as a country for UEFA, have their own language, etc. It seems Denmark dominates the northern seas, eh? :D Well, like Greenland they do have a certain level of "homerule" ( "Hjemmestyre" ) as it's called that allows them to use local politicians and decide most of their own rules and regulations. But they are still a part of the Danish Kingdom, and the foreign policies, protection, and overall stuff like taxes and laws are controlled from Copenhagen.

More - http://www.um.dk/en/menu/ForeignPolicy/GreenlandAndTheFaroeIslands/

But to be fair they then get to have representatives in the paliament - eventhough they never would be able to get that the normal way ( based on counts vs population )

As for the North Sea then yes we dominate a little :rock: but we gave independance to Norway in 1840 - Iceland in 1918 - homerule to the Faroe Islands in 1948 and homerule to Greenland in 1979

So we are ain't the proud empire we used to be :(

I wish my country had some overseas territories too ehhe Hey, it's not all good - Imagin having to bring the ass end of no where up to the same standards as we enjoy on the "mainland"

We ship billions over there each decade and get nothing back, except some cheap fish and a ton of alcoholic Greenlanders and 100s of students to educate! basiclly they are a pain in the economical butt!

But the areas also hold a lot of oil, so they will hopefully make up for it over time:D


There have been many talks about the Faroe Island's independance, but it always comes down to the fact that if they want to be independant Denmark will stop paying for them... and geeh they don't want that :D

[Verso]

So we are ain't the proud empire we used to be :(
Yep, something is rotten in the state of Denmark! :D :D

[Forza Raalte]

We ship billions over there each decade and get nothing back, except some cheap fish and a ton of alcoholic Greenlanders and 100s of students to educate! basiclly they are a pain in the economically butt!



Interesting. I always wondered why Inuits are so sensitive for alcohol.

[FREKI]

Interesting. I always wondered why Inuits are so sensitive for alcohol. Don't acually know.... like with most isolated people ( Inuits, Indians and so on ) they tend to do bad when comming in contact with Europeans - and the moden equibment will leave a lot of their former jobs obsolite - so booze and beer get's tobe a new way of passing time,especially in places where little else is available!


Since we've already torn a chunk of Denmark I'll be delighted to do Greenland,if that's okay? :)

[Forza Raalte]

Sure go ahead. These countries were more something like a guideline. I don't want people to pick their own country and make it some 'wow-phillipines' thread or make some post about a country we all know.

[Bahnsteig4]

'wow-phillipines' thread

:puke:

Or:

"VISIT (insert country/city) 2006!!!"

or

"COUNTRY X - HEAVEN ON EARTH"

Thanx, Forza. Excellent aim, excellent idea! :cheers:

[Naga_Solidus]

I adopt Brunei!

Pics:

http://lava.nationalgeographic.com/pod/pictures/sm_wallpaper/NGM1998_12p24-5.jpg

http://www.tropicalisland.de/BWN%20Brunei%20Bandar%20Seri%20Begawan%20Omar%20Ali%20Saifuddien%20Mosque%20by%20night.jpg

CIA World Factbook Stats (http://www.cia.gov/cia///publications/factbook/geos/bx.html)

[FREKI]

Sure go ahead. These countries were more something like a guideline. I don't want people to pick their own country and make it some 'wow-phillipines' thread or make some post about a country we all know. Hmmm so much for my Danish propaganda show... :D

Believe me, I hate photo spam as much as anybody :(

Greenland's good to go on the next page!

[FREKI]

http://img238.imageshack.us/img238/1189/greenlandjpegip0.jpghttp://img236.imageshack.us/img236/5164/southerngreenlandjp7.jpg
GREENLAND
Greenlandic: "Kalaallit Nunaat" meaning "the humans' land"
Danish: "Grønland" meaning "green land"
http://img102.imageshack.us/img102/7738/banner1bf7.jpg http://img102.imageshack.us/img102/1725/coatofarmsbk2.png http://img213.imageshack.us/img213/756/hotelgreenland2gd4.jpg

FACTS:

Population: 56.361
GDP: $1.1 billion - Per capita $22,000
Political Status: Stable

It's the world's largest island, the largest dependent territory by area in the world ( self-governed Danish territory ) and it contains the world's largest national park. This is Greenland:

About 81% of its surface is covered by ice, known as the Greenlandic ice cap.

Nearly all Greenlanders live along the fjords in the south-west of the main island, which has a milder climate.
Most Greenlanders have both Kalaallit (Inuit) and Scandinavian ancestry, and speak Greenlandic (Kalaallisut) as their first language. Greenlandic is spoken by about 50,000 people, which is more than all the other Eskimo-Aleut languages combined.
A minority of Danish migrants speak Danish as their first language. Both languages are official, with the West Greenlandic dialect forming the basis of the official form of Greenlandic.

http://img19.imageshack.us/img19/2854/gk4ts.gif

HISTORY:

Greenland was home to a number of Paleo-Eskimo cultures in prehistory, the latest of which — the Early Dorset culture — disappeared around the year 200. Hereafter, the island seems to have been uninhabited for some eight centuries.

Viking settlers found the land uninhabited when they arrived ca. 982. They established three settlements near the very southwestern tip of the island, where they thrived for the next few centuries.

At around 1000 Leifr Eiríksson discovered Vinland ( later to be known as North America ) on one of his Viking voyages, and many from Greenland gave up farming and moved to the new colonies in Vinland

At around 1200 Inuit tribes started to arrive from the Arctic islands of North America but in contrast to the Viking incounters with Native Americans in Vinland this meeting went peaceful and the two people coexisted until 1450, where the temperature became so cold that farming became imposible and most of the trees died. The Scandinavians then went back to Scandinavia and left the southern land to the Inuits for almost 300 years.


Pictures:

http://img240.imageshack.us/img240/3003/signpostjo6.gif
http://img19.imageshack.us/img19/371/ilulissat20fiord2c20greenland2.jpg
http://img205.imageshack.us/img205/7330/melting20ice20capsmh7.jpg
http://img74.imageshack.us/img74/813/gronland1re3.png
http://img87.imageshack.us/img87/8338/mx2508av6.jpg


Next time:

Nuuk - The Capital

http://img19.imageshack.us/img19/1405/nuukstadtbild9ai.jpg

[eklips]

I'm hesitating between adopting Armenia, Madagascar or Lesotho, not the less known ones of the list, but all fascinating.

[Bitxofo]

I adopt Equatorial Guinea, former Spanish Guinea until 12/10/1968, when it became an independent country.
;)
http://i2.tinypic.com/205a2ip.gif
:)

[TampaMike]

Solomon Islands

HISTORY

The Solomon Islands have been inhabited for 30,000 years. European explorer Pedro Sarmiento de Gamboa discovered the isalnds in 1568. The Germans first controlled the islands until 1900 when all of Solomon was transfered to the British. Germans again controlled the islands until WW1 when it was occupied by Australia in 1914. Trading brought in more missionaries and Christianity become the major religion for the islands

During WW2, most residents of the islands were evacuated to Australia fearing for the worse. One of many major Battles were fought at the Solomon Islands. The Battle of Guadalcanal took place when Japanese Empire Forces was being fought by Ally forces(US and allies) at the Florida Islands of Tulagi and Red Beach.

British colonial government took control of the islands again and moved the capital from Tulagi to Honiara to take advantage of the infrastructure left behind from US forces. From the 1950's to 1980's the shape of the Solomon took place. Many groups tried to take control of the islands and lead marches for support. Many people were arrested during the marches and rallies. The Solomon Islands were officially given the right to change the name from British Solomon Islands Protectorate in the mid-1950. Independece followed on July 7, 1978 and the first government was elected in August 1980.

Since then, the government handle of the islands has deteriorated. Militants were a major problem during the late 1990's and early 2000's until new elections were held on December 2001 with Sir Allan Kemakeza being elected as the new Prime Minister. During the time Kemakeza was Prime Minister, Solomon Islands went into bankruptcy and violence and chaos filled the capital and something had to be done. So the Parliament unanimously allowed Australia and New Zealand troops to occupy the Solomon Islands and help to ease the chaos. In April 2006, Prime Minister Snyder Rini has been accused of using bribes from Chinese Businessmen to by the votes of members of the Parliament. This was followed with riots and the burning of a Chinatown in the capital. Chinese residents were force to leave the islands during the outrage in violence. Australia and New Zeakand troops were once again put on the ialnads to calm the area. Rini later resigned and Manasseh Sogavare was elected as new Prime Minister

I'll have more on the Solomon Islands later

http://homepages.ucalgary.ca/~dsikes/QLD_SI/image/area_solomon_islands.jpg

http://www.essex.ac.uk/armedcon/images/country/headings/flags/solomon_islands.jpg

[Audiomuse]

I'm hesitating between adopting Armenia, Madagascar or Lesotho, not the less known ones of the list, but all fascinating.

I'd adopt Armenia. :) I'd like to hear more about the country.

[♣628.finst]

I would adopt Mongolia--- the home of Mongols. The North is the Asian Montana, and the South is the Asian South Australia!

Mongolia is actually a large country.

Hovd, Northern Mongolia:

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n50e100/%70%69%63%31.jpg

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n50e100/%70%69%63%35.jpg

Jargalant, Selenge, Northern Mongolia.

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n50e106/%70%69%63%31.jpg

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n50e106/%70%69%63%34.jpg

Who said Mongolia is all barren? Here you have nice boreal forest!

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n49e103/%70%69%63%37.jpg

Happy Mongolians in Bulgan region, Northern Mongolia!

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n49e103/%70%69%63%38.jpg

Montana is great, but Mongolia is better!

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n49e103/%70%69%63%39.jpg

Camping in Bulgan, Northern Mongolia.

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n49e103/%70%69%63%36.jpg

Mongolia is largely dependent on agriculture, as well as pastories--- much like Montana.

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n49e104/%70%69%63%36.jpg

To slightly east you have Selenge Grassland.

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n49e104/%70%69%63%36.jpg

Fall colour, Selenge, Northern Mongolia, right North of Ulan Bataar

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n49e107/%70%69%63%37.jpg

Towards Central Mongolia... Grassland.

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n48e105/%70%69%63%31.jpg

So it resembles Montana, but even better.

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n48e105/%70%69%63%38.jpg

Lake in Far Northwestern Mongolia.

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n50e094/%70%69%63%36.jpg

Chandmani, Northwest Mongolia.

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n50e092/%70%69%63%39.jpg

Towards the calm edge of Mongolian-Chinese border

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n49e090/%70%69%63%31.jpg

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n49e090/%70%69%63%37.jpg

Never forget Olgii is THE mountain.

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n49e090/%70%69%63%38.jpg

Northeast of Altai.

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n46e098v2/%70%69%63%31.jpg

Oasis in the Gobi, near Chinese border.

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n43e101/%70%69%63%34.jpg

Calm Gobi in Southern Mongolia.

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n44e105/%70%69%63%31.jpg

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n44e103/%70%69%63%31.jpg

Hot, dry Southern desert.

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n44e102/%70%69%63%31.jpg

Peak borders Southern Mongolia from Central Mongolia.

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n46e102/%70%69%63%38.jpg

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n46e102/%70%69%63%32.jpg

3 Mongolians with 1 Russian.

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n47e108/%70%69%63%37.jpg

Cold winter, Central Mongolia, right South of Ulan Bataar

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n47e108/%70%69%63%32.jpg

West of Ulan Bataar.

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n47e104/%70%69%63%36.jpg

Southern edge of "Montana", South Bulgan, Central Mongolia.

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n48e104/%70%69%63%38.jpg

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n48e104/%70%69%63%32.jpg

Northeast Mongolia, near Russian border.

Russians in Mongolia.

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n49e113/%70%69%63%31%30.jpg

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n49e113/%70%69%63%39.jpg

Mongolians as well.

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n49e113/%70%69%63%38.jpg

Mongolians and Russians are the best population in entire Asia.

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n49e113/%70%69%63%37.jpg

Again, further Northeast.

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n49e115/%70%69%63%39.jpg

Russian-Mongolian cooperations in farming--- and Mongolian products could be now bought in Edmonton!

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n49e115/%70%69%63%37.jpg

Ulan Bataar, workers.

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n47e117/%70%69%63%31%30.jpg

Camel, Eastern Mongolia.

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n47e117/%70%69%63%39.jpg

Hentiy, East-Cental Mongolia.

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n47e109/%70%69%63%38.jpg

Yaks, Hentiy

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n47e109/%70%69%63%33.jpg

Buddhist place amid grassland.

http://www.confluence.org/mn/all/n47e111/%70%69%63%37.jpg

I actually love Northern and Northwestern Mongolia more so than other parts of it--- they simply reminds me of Montana, as well of Manitoba.

[PanaManiac]

I don't know if this is ever tried before but here's the idea. In this thread you can adopt yourself a country which could be uknown for you and probably for others. Be your country's ambassador here on SSC. Promote the country, tell some things about it and keep us close for news within the country but it don't have to be that serious, a sense of humour would be fine ;)


Big countries are left out. Everybody knows quite some things about let's say Canada, Pakistan and New Zealand

Choose one of these countries...You say to be my country's ambassador, but it's not included in your selected list of countries. What gives?

[Forza Raalte]

^^ Don't take it that literally. Your means your adoption country. Anyway, I rather not want you to make a Panama thread :)

[Bahnsteig4]

^^ Agreed. ;)

[PanaManiac]

^^ Don't take it that literally. Your means your adoption country. Anyway, I rather not want you to make a Panama thread :)Thanks, Forza; I get it now. Besides, my signature alone is "Panama Thread" enough.

Boy, you patrol this thread like a security guard... :)

[Verso]

Xäntårx, nice photos of Mongolia. Btw, isn't the capital spelled 'Ulaanbaatar'?

[Bahnsteig4]

^^ There are several ways of writing it, I believe.

BTW, I really love the pictures, too. Make me wanna go there. :)

[ch1le]

superb idea! Excellent really!
but im too lazy to adopt one at the moment(yeh i know;)), but i did read through the info some posted here, but i guess some dont understand the point of it...

[Audiomuse]

Xäntårx, nice photos of Mongolia. Btw, isn't the capital spelled 'Ulaanbaatar'?

There's many ways of spelling it: Ulaan Baatar, Ulan Batar, Ulaan Bator, Ulon Bator, etc. I spell it Ulan Bator. Nice and easy.

[Valeroso]

OK, since Svalbard was taken away from me, I'll go with our neighbour, Liechtenstein.

Sorry! I just thought that the "Delete" meant you wrote something on Svalbard and didn't write anymore. To compensate, I'll be willing to show you around Svalbard, all expenses paid? ;) (I'm quite far away - I suppose it won't be happening soon). I'm sure Liechtenstein is thankful though!

[Bahnsteig4]

^^ No problem. ;)

[Verso]

Taken from http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=374515http://www.bytephoto.com/photopost/data/500/7508khaanlager.jpg?169I'm taking one too :cheers:

[Anymodal]

Ill adopt Bhutan. I will edit this post with respective information when I prepare some kind of presentaition.

[Liwwadden]

Oh damn, this is one hell of an idea! But I would like to adopt San Marino. Cause it has fabulous Italian culture and because I'm a F1 fan ;)

The Most Serene Republic of San Marino (Italian: Serenissima Repubblica di San Marino) is one of the smallest nations in the world. Located in southern Europe, it is an enclave surrounded by Italy, and is one of the European microstates. San Marino is the oldest constitutional republic in the world still in existence today.

San Marino, the world's fifth-smallest state, also claims to be the world's oldest republic. According to tradition, San Marino was founded in AD 301 (alternative version about A.D. 350 ) when a Christian stonemason named Marinus the Dalmatian, the later St. Marinus, after whom is is supposedly named, who fled from the Dalmatian island of Arbe to escape the Roman Emperor Diocletian, a fierce persecutor of Christians to the mountain to ply his stonecutting and spread Christianity. Marinus hid on the peak of Mount Titano (the highest of San Marino's seven hills) and founded a small community following Christian beliefs. The owner of the land, Felicissima, a sympathetic lady of Rimini bequeathed it to the little Christian community of mountaineers, recommending them to remain always united.

It is certain that the area had been inhabited since prehistoric times, although evidence of existence on Mount Titano dates back only to the Middle Ages. In memory of the stonecutter, the land was renamed "Land of San Marino," and was finally changed to its present-day name, "Republic of San Marino."

In the Lombard age, San Marino was a fief of the dukes of Spoleto, but the free commune dates to the tenth century. In the tenth century the abbots of the monastery were under the civil government, but they soon freed themselves and formed a free commune.

The original government structure was composed of a self-governed assembly known as the Arengo, which consisted of the heads of each family (as the original Roman Senate, the Patres). In 1243, the positions of Captains Regent (Capitani Reggenti) were established to be the joint heads of state. The state's earliest statutes date back to 1263. The Holy See confirmed the ancient independence of San Marino in 1291.

Here some San Marino pics:

http://www.hangout.no/foto/20021107_sanmarino.jpg

http://vexilolognet.hyperlink.cz/san_marino.gif

Grand Prix Circuit Imola!

http://www.dskart.co.kr/image/google/circuit-stl-imola.jpg

http://www.f1-fansite.com/wallpaper/2004/04%20Imola/imo-9-25-04-04-1024.jpg

:nocrook:

[Jonesy55]

^^ Imperialist, you don't get Imola just by adopting San Marino unless you want a war!!

Imola is in Italy.

[Liwwadden]

Imola is in San Marino. Italy Grand Prix is Monza. ;)

[Forza Raalte]

http://www.imolaceramica.it/mountpoint/map_italy3.gif

[ZOHAR]

could i adopt Azerbaijan?i just returned from there last week!!! :scouserd:

[Forza Raalte]

Sure. It is a great country IMO

[Sinjin P.]

I'll adopt Madagascar

[mauricio_unam]

I am mexican, I love Malawi
after Mexico my favorite countr is Malawi but I never been there :o(
Chitipa
Karonga
Rumphi
Likoma Islands
Mulanje
Thyolo
Nsanje
Mzuzu City
Chiradzulu
Ntcheu
Ntchisi
Mangochi
Machinga
and more

[Boeing!]

Imola is in italy.In San Marino there's no space for a circuit.

[lilili_always]

I would adopt San Marino. :banana:



http://www.dawnwestlake.com/english/scene/2003/102003/images/Italy2003/ReppublicadiSanMarino2.JPG

[DarkLite]

I'll adopt El Salvador!!!
http://img145.imageshack.us/img145/1996/lachauxdefondsip2.png (http://pimpyourpro.com)
Map of El Salvador
http://img182.imageshack.us/img182/130/bgxg8.png (http://pimpyourpro.com)
A beach in La Union, El Salvador
http://img387.imageshack.us/img387/6904/bristol3ia9.png (http://pimpyourpro.com)
Mountains
http://img470.imageshack.us/img470/5844/contids0.png (http://pimpyourpro.com)
More mountains, along with Lago de Ilopango, the largest natural lake completely within El Salvador
http://img380.imageshack.us/img380/8605/sfxs3.png (http://pimpyourpro.com)
San Salvador, largest city of El Salvador, as well as the capital.
2,260,000 people call San Salvador home. The photo shown shows only the historic area.
http://img186.imageshack.us/img186/47/iwanttoalwaysrememberthbj3.png (http://pimpyourpro.com)
Another view of San Salvador
http://img354.imageshack.us/img354/4395/iwanttoalwaysrememberthnr1.png (http://pimpyourpro.com)
Hills in Ahuachapan


FACTS:
Population: 6.9 million people
Area: 8,124 sq mi; 21,040 sq kilometers
HDI Level: 0.729 (2006)
Major Cities: San Salvador (2,260,000 inhabitants); San Miguel (286,000 inhabitants) Santa Ana (274,000 inhabitants)

[Skyprince]

I would adopt Italy.... but it is very famous country...I luv the Italian countrysides... Wow El Salvador is such a wonderful place !! Seems like malaysia`s tropical forests..

[wiki]

i'll take el salvador

[Gandhi]

I want to Adopt Bhutan.

[Harkeb]

I've always had a special feeling towards Madagascar. It's a fascinating island that's rich in history. It's Africa's largest and the world's 4th largest. Sometimes called the red Island, because of it's red soil and unfortunate red rivers- an indication of the massive soil erosion taking place there, due to forest clearing.
The country has very unique flora and Fauna, only to be found there. It has pristine tropical beaches, stunning coral reefs, and towering mountain peaks.
It's also an exciting melting pot of african, arab, creole, indian and french cultures.

I'd like to see Madagascar being developed into a tourist mecca. It has all the potentail of becoming the Hawaii of the southern oceans.
The island is strategically situated in the Indian ocean. It could become a major shipping hub for carriers around South Africa and through the Suez Canal, for it also has many deep, natural ports. The island could also become a great naval base.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2b/LocationMadagascar.png
http://p.vtourist.com/898204-Go_to_see_more_than_this_by_Norali-Madagascar.jpg

http://p.vtourist.com/2022910-East_side_of_Analamanga_hill-Antananarivo.jpg

http://p.vtourist.com/2022911-By_the_time_we_outnumbered_those_1000_men-Antananarivo.jpg

http://p.vtourist.com/924505-Tahiti_kely_a_Toamasina_suburb-Toamasina.jpg

http://www.sch.im/wlp/large%20images/ring-tailed%20lemur.jpg

[Küsel]

^^I LOVE Madagascar but I am certainly NOT supporting the idea of turning it into a mass tourist paradize! Have you ever been there? They have huge ecological problems. Most of the rainforest's been gone and the people are already enslaved enough, it sureley doesn't need some prostitute and drunkard beaches or something like that (and this is what it will turn into 100%!).

Here my Madagascar pics (98 - was there with researchers after a primatology congress in Tana):
http://www.socio.ch/maro/images/madagascar1.jpg
http://www.socio.ch/maro/images/madagascar2.jpg
http://www.socio.ch/maro/images/madagascar3.jpg
http://www.socio.ch/maro/images/madagascar4.jpg

[kevinb]

Sure go ahead. These countries were more something like a guideline. I don't want people to pick their own country and make it some 'wow-phillipines' thread or make some post about a country we all know.

What's this supposed to mean, huh?

[samba_man]

I adopt Guinea-Bissau

http://www.appliedlanguage.com/flags_of_the_world/large_flag_of_guinea-bissau.gif

http://www.osmapas.hpg.ig.com.br/africa/guinebissau.JPG

Guinea-Bissau, officially the Republic of Guinea-Bissau (pronounced [ˈgɪni bɪˈsaʊ]; Portuguese: República da Guiné-Bissau, IPA: [ʁɛ'publikɐ dɐ gi'nɛ bi'sau]), is a country in western Africa, and one of the smallest nations in continental Africa. It is bordered by Senegal to the north, and Guinea to the south and east, with the Atlantic Ocean to its west. Formerly the Portuguese colony of Portuguese Guinea, upon independence, the name of its capital, Bissau, was added to the country's official name in order to prevent confusion between itself and the Republic of Guinea.

http://www.didinho.org/a_arte_de_pilar.jpg

http://www.didinho.org/insect6.jpg

http://www.didinho.org/71foto%20carlos%20galveias.jpg

http://www.didinho.org/Cantchungo%20022.jpg

http://didinho.no.sapo.pt/Uma%20palmeira%20carecteristica%20da%20regiao%20norte%20da%20Guine-Bissau.jpg

http://agualisa.blogs.sapo.pt/arquivo/carnaval_022%5B1%5D.jpg

http://www.afrikanieuws.nl/images/private/1113.%20Bissau%20Br%20busstation.jpg

http://www.greatestcities.com/9392pic/684/CP8684.jpg/Money_of_Guinea-Bissau.jpg

http://www.travelpost.com/MainImages/AF/Guinea-Bissau/Other/Bissau/Bissau_11137_0_01042005_210125_500.jpg

http://l.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/i/travel/tg/lp/2f/500x500_2f6c327c23a556e688ae76c15c929b1b.jpg

http://www.fibarguin.org/var/plain/storage/images/photos/formosa_archipel_des_bijagos/1845-1-fre-FR/formosa_archipel_des_bijagos.jpg

http://www.fibarguin.org/var/plain/storage/images/photos/archipel_des_bijagos/1003-4-fre-FR/archipel_des_bijagos.jpg

http://decouverte.bijagos.free.fr/pech_tarpon.JPG

http://www.pacvoyages.fr/images/guinee_bissau/guinee_poisson_9.jpg

http://didinho.no.sapo.pt/bijagos2.jpg

http://www.senegalaisement.com/images/hd/1gb29.jpg

[Forza Raalte]

^^ I think Guinea-Bissau is the most unknown continental country.

[ØlandDK]

I'll adopt Madagascar
Damn I wanted that one...:)

Then I'll take "Mongolia"...

EDIT: Didn't see that Mongolia was also taken...I'll take "Burkina Faso" then

[ØlandDK]

Burkina Faso
National Flag
https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/flags/uv-lgflag.gif

Map
https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/maps/uv-map.gif


Geography
Capital
Ouagadougou (960,116)

Location:
Western Africa, north of Ghana

Geographic coordinates:
13 00 N, 2 00 W

Area:
total: 274,200 sq km
land: 273,800 sq km
water: 400 sq km

Climate:
tropical; warm, dry winters; hot, wet summers

Terrain:
mostly flat to dissected, undulating plains; hills in west and southeast
lowest point: Mouhoun (Black Volta) River 200 m
highest point: Tena Kourou 749 m

Land use:
arable land: 17.66%
permanent crops: 0.22%
other: 82.12% (2005)

People
Population:
13,902,972

Age structure:
0-14 years: 46.8% (male 3,267,202/female 3,235,190)
15-64 years: 50.7% (male 3,513,559/female 3,538,623)
65 years and over: 2.5% (male 140,083/female 208,315) (2006 est.)

Population growth rate:
3% (2006 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 48.85 years
male: 47.33 years
female: 50.42 years (2006 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
4.2% (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
300,000 (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths:
29,000 (2003 est.)

Religions:
Muslim 50%, indigenous beliefs 40%, Christian (mainly Roman Catholic) 10%

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 26.6%
male: 36.9%
female: 16.6% (2003 est.)

Pictures
Tallest Builing - BCEAO Building (12 floors) in the capital
http://www.emporis.com/files/transfer/6/2001/06/127364.jpg

Small village
http://www.cssmi.qc.ca/etablissements/du_bois-joli/profs/102/Web-new/objets/burkina%20faso.jpg

Dirty riverhttp://engineers.tamu.edu/Pictures/Africa/Burkina%20Faso%202.jpg

Mosquehttp://engineers.tamu.edu/Pictures/Africa/Burkina%20Faso%201.jpg

Children at school
http://engineers.tamu.edu/Pictures/Africa/Burkina%20Faso%204.jpg

It is always nice to see people smilehttp://www.poffet.net/albums/data/media/4/Burkina%20Faso%2000.jpg

And again - smile
http://www.poffet.net/albums/data/media/4/Burkina%20Faso%2001.jpg

Can't remember the name of those trees, but you'll find them all over Africahttp://www.poffet.net/albums/data/media/4/Burkina%20Faso%2002.jpg

Last picture - thought that is was kind of coolhttp://p.vtourist.com/1342228-Travel_Picture-Burkina_Faso.jpg

Thanks to "CIA - World Factbook", "Emporis", "Wikipidea" and "Google picture search"

[Già]

Imola is in San Marino. Italy Grand Prix is Monza. ;)

Imola està en Italia.... pero El Grand Prix de Imola creo que pertenezca a San Marino (como Italia ya tiene uno.....)!!

[Bitxofo]

^^Say it in English, please!
;)

[Arpels]

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d127/tamosaga/st10.gif?t=1171647544http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d127/tamosaga/st11.gif?t=1171647577
http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d127/tamosaga/st12.gif?t=1171647613http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d127/tamosaga/st13.gif?t=1171647633

Capital: (and largest city) São Tomé 0°20′N 6°44′E
Official languages: Portuguese
Government: Republic
Area - Total 964 km²
Population - 2005 estimate 157,000
Density: 171/km²

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d127/tamosaga/st01.jpg?t=1171647734

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d127/tamosaga/st02.jpg?t=1171647912

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d127/tamosaga/st03.jpg?t=1171647947

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d127/tamosaga/st04.jpg?t=1171648112

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d127/tamosaga/st05.jpg?t=1171648145

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d127/tamosaga/st06.jpg?t=1171648496

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d127/tamosaga/st07.jpg?t=1171648530

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d127/tamosaga/st08.jpg?t=1171648567

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d127/tamosaga/st09.jpg?t=1171648605

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d127/tamosaga/st14.jpg?t=1171893508

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d127/tamosaga/st15.jpg?t=1171893575

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d127/tamosaga/st16.jpg?t=1171893607

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d127/tamosaga/st17.jpg?t=1171893634

[Già]

^^Say it in English, please!
;)

I prefere in spanish.... :cheers:

[Pakia]

I'd like to 'adopt' Maldives Islands.

Its a peaceful, mostly muslim country in Indian Ocean.
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/119/313751685_3765b6d9a2_b.jpg
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/130/383137078_ce1c727d7d_o.jpg
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/140/340221486_be5f91bb8f_o.jpg
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/106/268088840_9f4e7eb09f_o.jpg

[Boeing!]

^^ Maldives don't need to be promoted....it's one of the most popular tourist destination in Europe, especially in Italy.

[lffıs]

I would like to adopt Mayotte! The country seems to be the perfect place to built my holiday cottage, and the euro is the official currency! :happy:

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/87/220954009_ddb8679cd3.jpg?v=0

Mayotte is an overseas community of France at the northern end of the Mozambique Channel in the Indian Ocean, between northern Madagascar and northern Mozambique. The territory is geographically part of the Comoro islands, but has been politically separate since the 1970s. The island is also known as Mahoré, especially by advocates of its inclusion in the Union of Comoros.

The main island, Grande-Terre (or Mahoré), geologically the oldest of the Comoros, is 39 kilometres (24 mi) long and 22 kilometres (13½ mi) wide, and its highest points are between 500 and 600 meters (1,650–1,975 ft) above sea level. Because of the volcanic rock, the soil is relatively rich in some areas. A coral reef encircling much of the island ensures protection for ships and a habitat for fish.

Dzaoudzi was the capital of Comoros until 1977. It is situated on Petite-Terre (or Pamanzi), which at 10 square kilometers (3.9 sq mi) is the largest of several islets adjacent to Mahoré, to which it is linked by a causeway.

Capital: Mamoudzou
Language: French
Government: overseas collectivity of France
President: Jacques Chirac :D

Area: 374 km² (144 sq mi )
Population: 201,234 (July 2006 estimate)
Currency: Euro
Internet TLD: .yt

(Source: Wikipedia)

Lagoon:
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/92/215253043_981afcd1ff.jpg?v=0
Flickr.com, Pedro78

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/71/215250298_c566279c0a.jpg?v=0
Flickr.com, Pedro78

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/78/214793643_cf593c71bd.jpg?v=0
Flickr.com, dagring

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/35/69713644_434e032aa1.jpg?v=0
Flickr.com, Michel@

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/62/230655729_888b4b9865.jpg?v=0
Flickr.com, yirakiman

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/86/209815161_e627adfc9e.jpg?v=0
Flickr.com, greg'n ju

[Arpels]

Mayotte its not a country :dunno: sorry, you can choose Seychels ;)

[lffıs]

^
Choose one of these countries
· Mayotte
I can't change anymore! My holiday cottage is already built. :D

[samba_man]

I updated Guinea Bissau with 6 more pics ;)

[Forza Raalte]

Mayotte its not a country :dunno: sorry, you can choose Seychels ;)

http://www.h-ref.de/personen/hitler-adolf/vorfahren/hitler-portrait.jpg

[Arpels]

http://www.h-ref.de/personen/hitler-adolf/vorfahren/hitler-portrait.jpg

:? :sly: translate please...