# Ask the Geography Maven **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [July 8, 2000, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-geography-maven/24970 "2000-07-08T19:09:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2000, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-geography-maven/24970/81 "2000-07-12T02:15:12Z")
Honiara. Tuvalu? ---
**Author:** ![Cabbage](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f07891/32.png) [@Cabbage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cabbage)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2000, 4:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-geography-maven/24970/82 "2000-07-12T04:57:20Z")
> [@](#): > > How many sides does Colorado REALLY have? I think it’s more than four, but you have to get a good map of the state to verify this. It looks to me like Colorado has six sides. The western border of Montrose County angles in for a little bit, causing the western border of Colorado to actually have sides. Several years ago, I remember reading in Omni magazine (the Games section) about the boundary of a state being surveyed by two parties, one coming from the north, one from the south, expecting to meet halfway. They missed each other by about a mile and had to “cut across” to finish off the boundary. I don’t remember what the state was, it could be the Colorado/Utah boundary mentioned above. Looking at a map, it may also be the NM/OK/TX corner, or the MT/SD/WY border; I’m leaning toward CO/UT because if it was an accident, that wouldn’t do much for explaining why it occurred at a point where _three_ states meet, that seems to much of a coincidence. Anyone else heard this story before? ---
**Author:** ![eponymous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e0b2c6/32.png) [@eponymous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eponymous)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2000, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-geography-maven/24970/83 "2000-07-12T14:31:46Z")
matt\_mcl, Once again, stumped… :: Checking atlas once again :: Funafuti Keeping with the South Pacific theme - Palau. ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2000, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-geography-maven/24970/84 "2000-07-12T18:17:46Z")
Koror. Vanuatu? ---
**Author:** ![eponymous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e0b2c6/32.png) [@eponymous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eponymous)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2000, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-geography-maven/24970/85 "2000-07-12T18:21:49Z")
matt\_mcl, Correct… Capital of Vanuatu is Port Vila. Marshall Islands… ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2000, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-geography-maven/24970/86 "2000-07-12T19:54:25Z")
Majuro. Kiribati? (For bonus points, how do you pronounce Kiribati?) ---
**Author:** ![eponymous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e0b2c6/32.png) [@eponymous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eponymous)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2000, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-geography-maven/24970/87 "2000-07-12T20:56:31Z")
matt\_mcl, Capital of Kiribati is Bairiki. And it’s pronounced Ki - ri - bass. Tonga. ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2000, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-geography-maven/24970/88 "2000-07-13T04:35:43Z")
Wrong! The capital of Kiribati is Tarawa. The capital of Tonga is Nuku’alofa. ---
**Author:** ![eponymous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e0b2c6/32.png) [@eponymous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eponymous)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2000, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-geography-maven/24970/89 "2000-07-13T14:43:55Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by matt\_mcl \* > \*\*Wrong! > > The capital of Kiribati is Tarawa. > > The capital of Tonga is Nuku’alofa. \*\* matt\_mcl, Hmm…I recall the capital being Bairiki, but in checking the CIA World Factbook, you’re right…it’s Tarawa. Nuku’alofa - correct. OK - now let’s switch to the Caribbean. St. Kitts and Nevis…(And no cheating!! :: grin :🙂 ---
**Author:** ![AWB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bb73d2/32.png) [@AWB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AWB)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2000, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-geography-maven/24970/90 "2000-07-13T15:13:55Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by CalMeacham \* > \*\*Congratulations! You are correct. Apparently the course of the Mississipi changed after the boundaries were originally drawn, cutting off a small portion at the extreme western end of Kentucky, so that it’s surrounded by Tennessee and Missouri, kinda like Lesotho and San Marino are surrounded. The question is usually stated "which state is it impossible to go from the eastern to the western end of without crossing another state, but my way seems more confusing. \*\* Actually, it looks like the opposite happened. That is, the states were defined before an actual survey was done. Tennessee was defined to only go north to a certain latitude _and_ be on the eastern drainage of the Mississippi River. Missouri was similar only being on the wester drainage side. But that little bulb of land defies either state’s definition: it’s too far north to be Tennessee, and it’s on the eastern drainage, so it’s not Missouri. That only left Kentucky. That latitude between KY and TN is also the same one between VA and NC, so it was just happenstance that it met the Mississippi River at that bendy S-curve. There are other oddities on the Mississippi that do involve its changing course. For example, southeast of Charleston, MO, there is Kentucky territory that borders Missouri on dry land. Looking at the border, it’s obvious it once followed the course of the Mississippi, but ended up high and dry when it cut through a straighter course to the east. ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2000, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-geography-maven/24970/91 "2000-07-13T15:14:24Z")
Basseterre. St Lucia? ---
**Author:** ![AWB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bb73d2/32.png) [@AWB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AWB)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2000, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-geography-maven/24970/92 "2000-07-13T15:18:58Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Cabbage \* > \*\* > > > [@](#): > > > > How many sides does Colorado REALLY have? I think it’s more than four, but you have to get a good map of the state to verify this. > > It looks to me like Colorado has six sides. The western border of Montrose County angles in for a little bit, causing the western border of Colorado to actually have sides. > > Several years ago, I remember reading in Omni magazine (the Games section) about the boundary of a state being surveyed by two parties, one coming from the north, one from the south, expecting to meet halfway. They missed each other by about a mile and had to “cut across” to finish off the boundary. I don’t remember what the state was, it could be the Colorado/Utah boundary mentioned above. Looking at a map, it may also be the NM/OK/TX corner, or the MT/SD/WY border; I’m leaning toward CO/UT because if it was an accident, that wouldn’t do much for explaining why it occurred at a point where _three_ states meet, that seems to much of a coincidence. > > Anyone else heard this story before? \*\* I grew up in western Colorado, and never heard the survey story before. Then again, that area of the border is pretty desolate, so there where probably no tourists to explain it to. It’s near Paradox, CO; maybe Zippy the Pinhead knows about it. 😃 I’ve noticed similar jogs in the MT/WY border near Yellowstone. Probably survey errors. I think this also explains the little notch of Massachusetts taken out of Connecticut. ---
**Author:** ![eponymous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e0b2c6/32.png) [@eponymous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eponymous)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2000, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-geography-maven/24970/93 "2000-07-13T18:31:37Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by matt\_mcl \* > \*\*Basseterre. > > St Lucia? \*\* Castries. Grenada? ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2000, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-geography-maven/24970/94 "2000-07-13T20:42:57Z")
Saint George’s. Uzbekistan? ---
**Author:** ![eponymous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e0b2c6/32.png) [@eponymous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eponymous)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2000, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-geography-maven/24970/95 "2000-07-13T20:49:31Z")
matt\_mcl, Capital is Tashkent. Kyrgyzstan. ---
**Author:** ![eponymous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e0b2c6/32.png) [@eponymous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eponymous)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2000, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-geography-maven/24970/96 "2000-07-13T20:50:50Z")
Capital is Tashkent. Kyrgyzstan? ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2000, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-geography-maven/24970/97 "2000-07-14T00:27:59Z")
Bishqek. Slovakia? ---
**Author:** ![eponymous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e0b2c6/32.png) [@eponymous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eponymous)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2000, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-geography-maven/24970/98 "2000-07-14T00:36:19Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by matt\_mcl \* > \*\*Bishqek. > > Slovakia? \*\* Bratislava - (hometown of “Two Wild and Crazy Guys” - Steve Martin and Dan Ackroyd - of SNL). Moldova? ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2000, 7:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-geography-maven/24970/99 "2000-07-14T07:53:21Z")
Chisinau. Eritrea? ---
**Author:** ![eponymous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e0b2c6/32.png) [@eponymous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eponymous)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2000, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-geography-maven/24970/100 "2000-07-16T00:51:33Z")
Asmera. Bahrain? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-geography-maven/24970.md?page=4)