There comes in on Wiki between Cyprus and Comoros, the un-numbered Reunion (France). Reunion intrigues me, so I’ll do it.
Kind of “through-the-looking-glass” island twin of nearby Mauritius – Reunion has always been French territory: now, I believe, an overseas departement of metropolitan France.
Capital: St. Denis.
Opinions of visitors to Reunion, vary: some find it fully a tropical paradise, others consider it spoilt a bit by the inhabitants – many of whom tend to a sort of hillbilly-ish “we hate everyone who isn’t us” attitude. #161: Comoros
Archipelago north of Madagascar – was a French colony before independence.
Capital: Moroni.
When I was a kid, we had a board game about collecting animals for zoos: the Comoros were where you had to go, to bag a coelacanth. #162: Bhutan
Until independence, was British Guiana – the only British territory on the continent of South America.
According to a Guyanan one-time housemate of mine: the people of Guyana identify strongly, culturally, with the West Indies. It’s an insult to a Guyanan to call him “South American”.
Follows, a numberless “odd one” – Macau (China); then #164: Montenegro
Held by the British during WWII and defended against Axis attack at great cost.
Has a red and white flag.
The future Queen Elizabeth II lived there briefly as a princess while her husband served in the Royal Navy.
I wot not of Transnistria; but in the Wiki list, un-numbered Guadeloupe (France) comes before Brunei. I just-about know three things about Guadeloupe: so –
French West Indian island, now an overseas departement of France.
An island basically in two parts, connected by a narrow isthmus.
Mentioned in Herman Wouk’s Caribbean-comic-capers novel Don’t Stop the Carnival, as a near neighbour of the fictional US island on which the book’s action is set. #171: Brunei
Small nation on the island of Borneo, “nested” within the Malaysian part of that island.
Oil-producing, I believe.
The Sultan of Brunei is one of the richest men in the world.
Un-numbered: Martinique (France)
A bewildering numbr of islands, most of then uninhabited.
Nassau and Freeport are just about the only places that are easy to get to.
Caribbeann drug smuggles are more afraid of Bahamian pirates, than of the US Coast Guard.
Eh, not exactly: in a reverse of what happens with several of the other oddballs (de facto seceded but none or few recognize it e.g. Somaliland), this is one where a nontrivial number of countries have recognized it as independent, but occupied (by Morocco). I suspect the Wikipedia list has been edited by a sympathizer of the SADR’s claim.
174 Maldives
Chain of islands off the coast of India
Haven for millionaires to hide their fortune there
Expensive for backpackers, illegal to sleep on the beach or anywhere else outside a very expensive hotel.
I seem to be the only participant who’s including the “no-number-only-a-dash” places. As we get into ever smaller and lesser territories, there are progressively more “no-number-only-dash” ones. Shortly on the Wiki list, there’ll be five no-number-only-dashes, in succession. What to do?
Thanks. Basically the only thing I knew about this place, was Morocco’s coveting it ! #175: Iceland
Capital Reykjavik.
Has, I believe, the oldest and longest-continually-functioning Parliament in the world.
Reputedly. many Icelanders hold a strong belief in the existence of elves, and the necessity of keeping on the right side of them.
Next: North Cyprus (un-numbered)
Then #176: Barbados
Caribbean nation, former British colony. Easternmost Caribbean island.
Colonists from Barbados founded the city of Charles Town, now Charleston ,S.C.
A penal colony for Irish rebels against Oliver Cromwell, some of whose descendants live there still.
(I worked with a guy from Barbados, who had the strongest Caribbean accent I’ve ever heard. It was amusing to see people react to a 6’4 white guy who sounded like Bob Marley.)
#177: Vanuatu
South Pacific archipelago essentlaily lying eastward of the more northerly parts of Australia.
Before independence, was a “condominium” – jointly-ruled territory – of UK and France; which I gather did not work all that well.
National anthem is titled “Yumi, Yumi, Yumi”.
Now we get into the aforementioned five sequential no-number-only-a-dash-es. What will happen, will happen…