#177B: French Polynesia
Assorted French islands in the South Pacific: I believe, like so many far-flung French outposts, now overseas departement(s?) of metropolitan France.
F.P. includes, I think – as its largest island – Tahiti.
The area has been used over the years by France for the testing of nuclear weapons – a highly controversial issue.
#177C: Abkhazia
#177C: I like Abkhazia, so I’ll do it.
An area of the country of Georgia, in the Caucasus: wishing for independence from Georgia, and with considerable international support for that wish.
Local author Fazil Iskander – writing in Russian – is compared at times, to Gabriel Garcia Marquez.
Abkhazia is reputedly a prime spot for incidences of the Almas – local equivalent of the Yeti.
#177D: French Guiana (France)
With Christmas, when people will have been busy, over and gone – it looks as though the end of the road has been reached, for this game !
Not necessarily - I joined this game somewhat late, so I was just waiting for some consensus vis a vis the non-numbered entries to arise, from Elendil’s Heir and you and others who’ve been participating in this game.
And, frankly, we’re getting down to the countries/territories/geopolitical entities that are pretty damned obscure. I could not have produced three facts about New Caledonia off the top of my head, for example.
Agreed, we’re getting to increasingly obscure places – and the greater that tendency, the more there are liable to be on the Wiki list, that are non-numbered.
I being admittedly a bit of a show-off, I’d enjoy the non-numbered territories being included. However, I’d readily abide by any consensus that might arise. Maybe, from now on, Wiki-numbered entries only; or perhaps, let non-numbered ones be optional – if one were to hit, in sequence (including hopping over non-numbered places) a non-numbered place which one fancied, one might “do” it; but no going backward to cover non-numbered joints, which other players had skipped?
Can some consensus indeed be reached between participants?
177D French Guyana
177E – Mayotte.
#177E: Mayotte
In medium-desperation –
Another overseas departement of Metropolitan France.
Small island(s?) situated in the strait between Mozambique and Madagascar.
Capital is, I think, something beginning with M.
#178: Samoa
178 Samoa
179 - Sao Tome and Principe
Shall we henceforth do as suggested? – make non-numbered places optional: one may do them, if they’re ahead of one in the Wiki sequence; but one may not go back to do a non-numbered territory which someone else has skipped (that would just get too complicated !). In all cases, show at the end of one’s turn, the next numbered territory.
#179: Sao Tome and Principe
Former Portuguese colony.
Islands set in the Gulf of Guinea, immediately off the mainland part of formerly-Spanish Equatorial Guinea. E.G.'s own islands lie some way further north in the Gulf.
Capital was, in Portuguese times, Sao Tome city – name might have changed since?
#180: Saint Lucia
180 Saint Lucia
180-A Guam
#180A: Guam
Island: a US possession – if I have things rightly, like the not-far-away Philippines, went out of Spanish and into US hands as a result of Spanish-American War of 1898.
Japanese-occupied during World War II.
Like many islands, afflicted by fauna / wildlife problems: recent drastic airborne conservation action taken there, involving either introducing snakes to reduce something else; or something else, to reduce snakes.
#180B: Curacao (Netherlands)
#180C: Nagorno-Karabakh Republic
#181: Kiribati
Re the above: folks, do whatever seems appropriate !
I’ll accept the non-numbered ones as kosher.
180B Curacao:
Island in the Caribbean.
Home of several Major League baseball players, the only one I can think of offhand being Andruw Jones, formerly of the Braves.
Overseas territory of the Netherlands.
180C Nagorno-Karabakh Republic.
180C Nagorno-Karabakh Republic.
Almost went there last summer, got pretty close, but public transport in Armenia is not very comprehensive, and I’d have had to go all the way to Yerevan, then the backtrack to Nagorno-Karabach.
Officially it is Azerbaijani territory, but the people there refuse to be in Azerbaijan , and have seceded, considering themselves to be in Armenia until their own country is recognized. Azerbaijan doesn’t seem to care all that much.
Despite very low GNP, the whole region is pretty well off, the Soviets left behind a dividend of a sound well-developed infrastructure and a high literacy rate, healthy population.
Next, Kiribati
jtur88 – glad you did Nagorno-Karabakh: I knew nothing whatever about it except its being a bone of contention between Azerbaijan and Armenia; concerning which, bad stuff happened in the early 1990s.
#181: Kiribati
Large Pacific archipelago of small islands.
Pre-independence, was the British territory of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands (Kiribati = “Gilbert”; the “Ellice” bit of the name seems to have got lost).
Sir Arthur Grimble, a colonial administrator in this territory in British days, wrote a lyrical and much-acclaimed book on the subject, A Pattern of Islands.
#182: Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
I believe you may have confused Samoa (independent nation) with American Samoa (US colony next door).
178 Samoa (a) was formerly known as Western Samoa; (b) its capital is Apia; (c) was a former mandate/trust territory of New Zealand
While we’re at it did anyone do Puerto Rico among the nonsovereigns? I mean I’m obviously disqualified as a ringer 
Now back to where we were…
There was peripheral mention of Puerto Rico by Elendil’s Heir and yourself in posts #151 and #161, concerning United-Nations-related “it’s a colony, which is bad” foolery; but it seems nobody has done the “three things about the place” bit. I’d be ready to have a shot at PR; but would anyone else like a go?
For New Year, I’ll do Puerto Rico.
Largeish West Indian island – like some other places, went from Spanish into US hands as a consequence of the Spanish-American War.
Capital: San Juan.
Came to some prominence thanks to the musical / film West Side Story, involving Puerto Ricans who had moved to New York.
So, back on track: #182 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
182 St. Vincent and the Grenadines
Smallish Caribbean commonwealth realm, last to get independence.
Does not actually include all of the Grenadine islands
Is NOT the birthplace of Grenadine liqueur.
Bonus *Aruba
Legally a “Constituent Country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands”, first and for a couple of decades only of their islands to have that rank
Near the coast of Venezuela
Gained prominence in US media with the Natalee Holloway disappearance/presumed murder case back in the last decade
Coming up:
*US Virgin Islands
183 - Grenada
Island country consisting of itself and six smaller islands, in southeastern Caribbean Sea.
Grenada was notably invaded by the U.S in October 1983 in response to the overthrow and later execution of prime minister Maurice Bishop by deputy Bernard Coard and Marxists.
Capital city is St. George’s.
#184: Tonga
#184: Tonga
South Pacific island group, also sometimes known as the Friendly Islands.
Formerly British territory; also has its own monarchy, active “then and now” (Tonga’s late Queen Salote endeared herself to the Brits at Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation, by braving the inclement British weather).
Tongans are a strongly religious folk – most prominent religious groups there: Methodists and LDS.
#185: Federated States of Micronesia