My Route: September 2014 Route 5
Thailand – September
Capital: Bangkok
Government: Constitutional Monarchy
Religion: Buddhist (official) 93.6%, Muslim 4.9%, Christian 1.2%
Population: 67 741 401
– Home to the world’s smallest mammal, the Kitti’s hog-nosed bat
– Bangkok was the most visited city in 2013
– Home to the world’s largest crocodile farm
Cambodia – October
Capital: Phnom Penh
Government: Democracy under a constitutional monarchy
Religion: Buddhist (official) 96.9%, Muslim 1.9%, Christian 0.4%
Population: 15 458 332
– Angkor Wat is on the Cambodian flag – the only flag in the world to feature a building
– Khmer people are the predominant ethnic group in Cambodia (90% of the population)
– Over half the population is under the age of 15
– Tarantula kabobs… …not looking forward to those…
Vietnam – November
Capital: Hanoi
Government: Communist state
Religion: None 80.8%, Buddhist 9.3%, Catholic 6.7%, Hao Hao 1.5%, Cao Dai 1.1%, Prostestant 0.5%
Population: 93 421 835
– Vietnam is the world’s largest producer of cashews
– Pot-bellied pigs originated in Vietnam and are sometimes kept as pets
– Vietnam is 50 km across at its narrowest point
Botswana – December
Capital: Gaborone
Government: Parliamentary republic
Religion: Christian 71.6%, None 20.6%, Badimo 6%, Other 1.4%
Population: 2 155 784
– Botswana is home to the highest African elephant population in the world (estimated at 133 000)
– The highest point in Botswana is the Tsodila Hills (1489 m) – 80 metres higher than the highest point on the Trans-Canada (Scott Lake Hill – 1410 m)
– Botswana’s national animal is the zebra – despite the large elephant population
Swaziland – January
Capital: Mbabane
Government: Monarchy
Religion: Zionist 40%, Catholic 20%, Muslim 10%, Other 30%
Population: 1 419 623
– Swaziland is completely landlocked; almost completely surrounded by South Africa
– The smallest country in Africa (200 km x 130 km)
– Swaziland has the highest prevalence of AIDS in the world
South Africa – February
Capital: Pretoria
Government: Republic
Religion: Protestant 36.6%, Catholic 7.1%, Muslim 1.5%, Other Christian 36%, None 15.1%
Population: 48 375 645
– South Africa is home to the 2nd highest waterfall in the world, Tugela Falls (948 metres), and the highest commercial bungee jump in the world (710 ft)
– Contains 25 052 plant and animal species (6th highest in the world)
– The first heart transplant was performed in Cape Town in 1967
Turkey – March
Capital: Ankara
Government: Republican parliamentary democracy
Religion: Muslim 99.8%, other 0.2% (Christians and Jews)
Population: 81 619 392
– Ankara is the capital of Turkey; not Istanbul
– Turkey had the 7th highest number of Facebook users in the world in 2013
– Istanbul is in Asia and Europe and is separated by The Bosphorus (a strait that connects the Black Sea with the Sea of Marmara); kinda like Lloydminster, only without the strait…. or 2 continents
Albania – April
Capital: Tirana
Government: Parliamentary democracy
Religion: Muslim 56.7%, Catholic 10%, Orthodox 6.8%, Atheist 2.5%, Bektashi (a Sufi order) 2.1%, Other 5.7%, Unspecified 16.2%
Population: 3 020 209
– Mother Teresa is the only Albanian to win the Nobel Prize
– Albania does not have a McDonald’s (WHAT!)
– Albanians call Albania Squiperia
Honduras – May
Capital: Tegucigalpa
Government: Democratic constitutional republic
Religion: Roman Catholic 97%, Protestant 3%
Population: 8 598 561
– My Compassion Sponsor Child Gilberto lives here, in Peurto Cortes actually
– The island of Roatan boasts the 2nd largest barrier reef in the world
– The country of Honduras fits into Alberta just about 6 times
Nicaragua – June
Capital: Manugua
Government: Republic
Religion: Roman Catholic 58.5%, Protestant 23.2%, None 15.7%, Jehovah’s Witness 0.9%, Other
Population: 5 848 641
– Home to the only freshwater sharks in the world in Lake Nicaragua (the largest lake in Central America)
– Largest country in Central America
– Baseball is just as popular as football here
Costa Rica – July
Capital: San Jose
Government: Democratic republic
Religion: Roman Catholic 76.3%, Evangelical 13.7%, Jehovah’s Witness 1.3%, Other/none 8.7%
Population: 4 755 234
– I have been here in my first year of university on a biology field study. Wow, that feels like a long time ago
– I can tell you everything you need to know about Leatherback Turtles!
– National motto: “Pura Vida” = Pure life
– Costa Ricans call themselves Ticos (men) and Ticas (women)
– Costa Rica has no military. It was abolished in 1949
– They have a female president, Laura Chinchilla
HOME! :)/:(
