Category: International
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Greatest Time Zone Jump
People seem more interested in time zone anomalies than many other quirks I discuss. I know this because I get lots of random one-time visitors to the Twelve Mile Circle via search engines. Invariably they are searching these kinds of queries. I like them too, but I try not to overwhelm my regular readership with…
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Centre of Australia
Do you notice anything remarkable about this little patch? It seems like this must be the middle of nowhere, just a sea of red soil and desert scrub removed from any hospitable place. However, according to some calculations, this is the centre of Australia. Am I the last one on the planet to know that…
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Union Jack over the USA
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland proudly flies the Union Flag, often called the Union Jack. It retains an official or semi-official designation throughout the Commonwealth Realm. Oddly, it also flies over a tiny corner of the United States with the explicit approval of the American government. I’m not talking about Hawaii…
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From Britain to Iceland by Automobile
Certainly one of the more pressing questions of our time is whether someone can use an automobile to travel between Britain and Iceland. By “pressing” I mean of importance to me naturally, because the questions that press upon my mind are rather simplistic. Maybe you are feeling a little curious too. Can someone drive from…
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To Hel and Back
Poland’s Hel Peninsula is an odd strip of sand jutting 35 kilometres into the Baltic Sea (map). It cradles the Bay of Puck along its inward side. At its widest point near the tip it reaches perhaps 3 kilometres. However, it slims down to a diminutive 300 metres or less across much of its length.…
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Longest Place Names in Canada
Geographers have an unusual sense of humor that they like to slip it into official online publications. Previously I reviewed an instance of that provided by the government of Australia. Now I would like to focus on Canada. So let’s talk about Natural Resources Canada. It’s a government organization that maintains a database of Canadian…
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Likoma and Chizumulu
Examine the international boundaries that run through Lake Malawi (or Lake Nyasa as it’s also known) in Africa. Something odd will appear. No, it’s not the disputed border between Malawi and Tanzania which perhaps I’ll save for another day. Rather, notice the small circles of Malawian territory within the territorial waters of its neighbor Mozambique.…
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Canadian Border Anomalies
I’ve discussed border anomalies between the United States and Canada before. Previously I focused on little areas of the U.S. separated from the rest of the country such as Point Roberts, the Northwest Angle and Alburg, Vermont. Here I give equal time to the Canadians. I’ll outline a couple of instances where citizens of that…
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Where in the World?
UPDATE: Google purchased Picasa in 2004 and discontinued it in 2016. Unfortunately the website and this game are no longer available. This article remains here for historical purposes. I’ve come across another addictive geography game that’s occupied way too much of my time lately. I found it on the Picasa website and they call it…
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Ice Melts, Border Changes
Borders based on natural features cannot last forever. Topography changes over time, sometimes slowly, sometimes quickly, but invariably it happens. You may have seen a recent article that appeared in CNN, Melting glaciers in Alps forcing Italy and Switzerland to redraw their borders, that proves this point. It’s a fascinating account although the headline is…