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Here's to a New Year's Resolution of learning about our amazing planet!
1) Which of the following is not a city in ROMANIA?
A — Bucharest (București)
B — Timișoara
C — Belgrade (Beograd)
2) Which state in the UNITED STATES has exactly 100 counties? Some of these counties include Durham, Mecklenburg, Orange, Pitt, Wake, and Watauga.
A — Vermont
B — North Carolina
C — New Mexico
3) BANGLADESH is mostly bordered by INDIA but also shares a border in the southeast with _____________.
A — MYANMAR
B — NEPAL
C — PHILIPPINES
ANSWERS
Question 1:
C . . . . . Belgrade (Beograd) which is the capital of Serbia (↗)
Question 2:
B . . . . . North Carolina (↗)
Question 3:
A . . . . . Myanmar (↗)
According to Encyclopædia Britannica, the PHILIPPINES’ population in the year 2020 is about 108,772,000 and is ranked __________ among populations of the whole world’s countries, dependencies, and territories. The correct answer is listed further below!
A — 133rd
B — 12th
C — 62nd
ANSWER
B — 12th
The world's first “piggy banks” — made of terracotta — date back to the 12th century and were discovered at the Trowulan archaeological site on the world’s most populated island. Which island in Southeast Asia is home to this discovery? The answer is listed below!
A — Tioman, MALAYSIA
B — Java, INDONESIA
C — Marinduque, THE PHILIPPINES
Answer:
B — Java, Indonesia
As of December 2022, Trowulan is featured on UNESCO's Tentative Lists (↗), meaning the historic place is eligible for designation as a World Heritage Site if UNESCO approves.
The Amazing Race’s finale episode of Season 32 aired on Wednesday, December 16th at 8 PM Eastern Time. Teams embarked to New Orleans, the most-populated city in the Pelican State: Louisiana (southern UNITED STATES). If you have not yet watched this thrilling episode and want to do so: spoiler alert! This post reveals the team that won $1 million!
● After leaving Manila in the PHILIPPINES by air to New Orleans, teams arrived in the Crescent City and proceeded to Louis Armstrong Park to find their next clue.
● “Let’s Party”: after arriving at the famous Bourbon Street in the French Quarter of New Orleans, teams joined a parade and were tasked with collecting a total of 50 red beaded necklaces and 50 gold ones. These necklaces were thrown out by partygoers in the spirit of Mardi Gras. The necklaces — some of which had quite giant “beads” — were similar to the ones worn by the parade’s Grand Marshal.
● “Who will be left holding the baby?” Roadblock: teams searched for a small baby figurine inside one of many king cakes. They were then treated with the delicious duty of eating six powdered beignets.
● The next item on the teams’ itinerary was not for the faint of heart. One member of each team was harnessed to the Crescent City Connection Bridge, and the three competitors bungee jumped 180 feet off the bridge to grab a clue suspended over the Mississippi River! All six finalists then slowly rappelled down to a lower level near the bridge.
● “Let Good Times Roll”: with the help of arrow signs, teams rolled a large ball to an enormous warehouse containing plenty of Mardi Gras decorations and accessories. Teams rummaged through the warehouse for a crate containing 32 large “puzzle” pieces. Teams positioned the pieces atop the large ball to create a globe of the world.
● After visiting 10 different countries (or 11, if you include the USA) and 17 cities all while traveling a total of 33,000 miles, teams arrived to the last Pit Stop of the season: Mercedes-Benz Superdome, “where the [New Orleans] Saints go marching in!”
● After winning $1 million as a team, James and Will experienced another amazing moment. Will offered a marriage proposal to James! Winning $1 million in an exciting city on a fantastic TV show is sure to make one of the best engagements ever!
In the extended YouTube clip below, Will noted that about six months ago before the win, James picked a fortune cookie enclosed with a spot-on prediction: “You’re going to embark on a great adventure.” Additionally, the number of this season of The Amazing Race (32) was one of the lucky numbers listed on the fortune cookie paper!
● This post concludes GeoFact of the Day’s coverage of The Amazing Race Season 32. I hoped you enjoyed my recap posts — and one of my favorite shows on TV!
Season 32, Episode 12 Pit Stop Results
1st — James and Will
1st place prize — $1 million as a team!
2nd — Chee and Hung
3rd — Maddison and Riley
The Amazing Race’s penultimate eleventh episode of Season 32 aired on Wednesday, December 9th and was set in the capital city of Manila, located on Luzon island in the PHILIPPINES. Filmed about a year or so before the coronavirus’ worldwide wrath, this episode featured a sprint and an exploration of the city through multiple clues but also lacked a Detour and Roadblock.
● Episode 11 info on CBS — In the first city sprint, the final four teams race through Manila, the capital of the Philippines.
● Once arriving in Manila, teams rode a colorful jeepney to Rizal Park and met Phil Keoghan there.
● Phil informed the four remaining teams that, instead of typical Amazing Race events such as Detours and Roadblocks, they will compete in a City Sprint. Outside a large mall near the Manila Bay in Bay City, Philippines, team members had to trot in high heels for 500 meters (0.31 miles)! At first, the guys understandably struggled to walk while wearing the unfamiliar footwear, but they eventually figured out how to do it with poise!
● After searching for and finding the Binondo Arch of Goodwill in Manila’s Chinatown, teams looked for a clue in the mouth of a colorfully costumed lion dancing in the pedestrian walkways. This clue told teams to arrive by foot to the Central Post Office for another clue.
● “Hay Day”: in a plaza outside the Central Post Office, teams found a kalesa (horse-drawn carriage) and searched the area for necessary ingredients to mix up a bucketful of horse food. Dried grass and the bucket’s mixture were fed to a team’s respective horse, and a clue to Mehan Garden was subsequently given to the team.
● For this episode’s last task, teams arrived at Mehan Garden where a band produced some melodies and rockin’ good tunes for the residents of Manila. The band continuously played four musical compositions featured in previous Amazing Race episodes. A bunch of cases for guitars and other instruments were strewn about, and each case displayed a country’s flag. Teams were tasked to find cases with four flags corresponding to the songs’ national origin; teams organized these cases in chronological order based on when the songs were played in Season 32.
While most of the flags represented countries the teams visited — including Colombia, France, Germany, India, Kazakhstan, Paraguay, and Trinidad and Tobago — I also spotted an “extra” flag of a country that teams did not step foot in: Mozambique. If you noticed any other flags in this episode, please feel free to comment below! In any case (pun intended), these are the correct flags on the instrument cases in earlier to later order: Trinidad and Tobago, Colombia, Paraguay, and France. Maddison and Riley completed this task first, so they quickly proceeded to the nearby Pit Stop.
● Pit Stop: Lapu Lapu Monument (Statue of the Sentinel of Freedom) — Rizal Park, Ermita District in Manila
● Season 32’s finale (episode 12) will take place in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA. A glimpse of the millionaire-making Pit Stop reveals that teams will end their Amazing Race journeys at the New Orleans Saints’ home turf: Mercedes-Benz Superdome.
Season 32, Episode 11 Pit Stop Results
The 1st through 4th place results are the same as episode 10.
1st — Maddison and Riley
1st place prize — no prize given in this episode
2nd — James and Will
3rd — Chee and Hung
4th — DeAngelo and Gary
Eliminated from the competition? Yes
Citizens living on a variety of islands in the PHILIPPINES celebrated Independence Day recently on Friday, June 12th. Happy belated Independence Day!
Spot the Spelling Error #3! One word within this post was misspelled on purpose; it could be a country or product. Can't find it? Click the "1 - Post Comment Here" link below (on a computer) or scroll to the bottom of this post (on a mobile device) for the answer.
According to National Geographic MapMaker (mapmaker.nationalgeographic.org), the following items are major exports of the PHILIPPINES: cassava, chemicals, clothing and textiles, cobalt, coconuts and coconut oil, copper and copper products, corn (maize), eggs, electronics, footwear, gold, meat, packaged food, petroleum, pharmaceuticals, rice, salt, seafood, semiconductors, silver, sugarcane, transportation equipment, tropical fruit (bananas, mangoes, pineapples, etc.), and wood. According to the International Monetary Fund (data.imf.org), countries and territories buying and importing most of those exports (February 2017 statistics) include Japan (top importer), the United Provinces, Hong Kong, China, Singapore, Germany, South Korea, Thailand, Taiwan, the Netherlands, Malaysia, France, Vietnam, Mexico, Indonesia, Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, Belgium, and Switzerland.
The Philippines country has well over 70 species named after it. Species include the following: the Banded Philippine Burrowing Snake, North Philippine Dwarf Kingfisher, North Philippine Hawk Eagle, North Philippine Cobra, Philippine Bare-Backed Fruit Bat, Philippine Bent-Toed Gecko, Philippine Brown Deer, Philippine Bulbul, Philippine Bush Warbler, Philippine Butterflyfish, Philippine Cat Snake, Philippine Drongo Cuckoo, Philippine Dryophiops snake, Philippine Duck, Philippine Eagle Owl, Philippine Fairy Bluebird, Philippine Falconet, Philippine Flat-Headed Frog, Philippine Flying Gecko, Philippine Forest Rat, Philippine Frogmouth bird, Philippine Gray Flying Fox, Philippine Green Pigeon, Philippine Hawk Cuckoo, Philippine Hawk Owl, Philippine Honey Buzzard, Philippine Leaf Warbler, Philippine Leafbird, Philippine Long-Fingered Bat, Philippine Narrowmouth Toad, Philippine Nectar Bat, Philippine Nightjar, Philippine Oriole, Philippine Pangolin, Philippine Paphiopedilum, Philippine Pit Viper, Philippine Pond Turtle, Philippine Pygmy Fruit Bat, Philippine Pygmy Squirrel, Philippine Pygmy Woodpecker, Philippine Scops Owl, Philippine Serpent Eagle, Philippine Sheath-Tailed Bat, Philippine Shrub Snake, Philippine Spine-Tailed Swift, Philippine Spurdog dogfish shark, Philippine Swiftlet, Philippine Tailorbird, Philippine Teak tree, Philippine Toad, Philippine Tree Squirrel, Philippine Trogon bird, Philippine Tube-Nosed Fruit Bat, Philippine Wart Frog, Philippine Warty Pig, Philippine Water Redstart bird, Philippines Crocodile, South Philippine Dwarf Kingfisher, Southeastern Philippine Cobra, and Southern Philippine Shrew Mouse.
The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™ for The PHILIPPINES in Southeast Asia lists 107 critically endangered species and 146 endangered species. Some critically endangered species are as follows: Alocasia Quilted Dreams plant, Andrews' Frigatebird, Blue-Winged Racket Tail bird, Cebu Brown Dove, Curran's Pitogo cycad plant, David's Tiger butterfly, Dinagat Island Cloud Rat, Dwarf Pygmy Goby fish, Isabella Oriole bird, Rafflesia magnifica flower*, Ross' Wolf Snake, Sulu Hornbill bird, Visayan Warty Pig, and Writhed-Billed Hornbill. Endangered species include the Apo Swallowtail butterfly, Arayat Pitogo plant, Balabac Chevrotain mammal, Black Shama bird, Calamian Hog Deer, Dark-Eared Brown Dove, Father Schoenig's Chocolate butterfly, Flame-Templed Babbler bird, Frog-Faced Softshell Turtle, Hammerhead Shark, Hennis' Paphiopedilum orchid, Japanese Eel, Luzon Peacock Swallowtail butterfly, Mindoro Zone-Tailed Pigeon, Red-Headed Flameback woodpecker bird, Tarictic Hornbill bird, Visayan Spotted Deer, and Whitefin Topeshark.
* This is a pungent parasitic plant — and it as well as fellow Rafflesia species are some of the world's largest flowers.
After achieving gold medals for the first time ever, Fijian athletes are, of course, thankful the International Olympics Committee decided to include Rugby Sevens as an Olympic sport for the first time ever. Coached by Ben Ryan of the United Kingdom (Great Britain) and managed by Ropate Kauvesi, the team included the following members: Ro Dakuwaqa, Apisai Domolailai, Osea Kolinisau (captain), Semi Kunatani, Viliame Mata, Leone Nakarawa, Vatemo Ravouvou, Savenaca Rawaca, Kitione Taliga, Josua Tuisova, Jerry Tuwai, Jasa Veremalua, and Samisoni Viriviri. Rugby is known as Fiji's national sport, which makes total sense given Fiji's trailblazing victory on Thursday against the United Kingdom. Meanwhile, The PHILIPPINES earned their first medal since the Atlanta 1996 games. In Rio de Janeiro, Hidilyn Diaz earned silver for the Women's 53-kilogram Weightlifting competition.
Various countries have suns on their flags. They are ANTIGUA and BARBUDA, ARGENTINA, KAZAKHSTAN, KIRIBATI, KYRGYZSTAN, MALAWI, NAMIBIA, NEPAL, NORTH MACEDONIA (known as Macedonia or FYROM in 2015), The PHILIPPINES, RWANDA, and URUGUAY. Comprised of a main island and smaller islands, TAIWAN (Republic of China) is not exactly a country but it also has a sun on its flag. The sun on Taiwan's flag is featured in the top-left corner on top of a blue rectangle. The flags of BANGLADESH and JAPAN both feature a central red circle representing the sun. PALAU's yellow circle actually represents the moon!
June 12th is The PHILIPPINES' national independence day, named Araw ng Kalayaan in the Filipino language. The Philippines' first president, general Emilio Aguinaldo, raised the newly designed and adopted flag in 1898 and declared independence from Spain.
The PHILIPPINES, located north of Indonesia, east of Vietnam, and west of Palau, feature a unique arrangement of large and small islands. The largest island, Luzon, is the northernmost major island (the Batan Islands and Babuyan Islands are farther north) and the home of The Philippines' capital, Manila, and other large cities like Quezon City, Dagupan, Lucena, and San Carlos. The second largest island is Mindanao, the southernmost major island; the largest city on Mindanao is Davao. The Sulu Sea separates Palawan from the Cuyo Islands, Cagayan Islands, Panay, and Negros. Palawan is the diagonally long and thin island located west of all of The Philippines' islands (except Balabac (located southwest of Palawan) and the Spratly Islands, which are also claimed by Brunei, China, Malaysia, Taiwan, and Vietnam. The Sulu Archipelago, consisting of Basilan, Jolo, Pagutaran, and Tawi Tawi, among a scattering of smaller islands, sits southwest of Mindanao and just east of Malaysia. Other islands that I have not mentioned include, but certainly not limited to, Bohol, Catanduanes, Cebu, Leyte, Masbate, Mindoro, Samar, and Tablas.
The PHILIPPINES is an archipelago in Southeastern Asia, west of the Philippine Sea and east of the South China Sea. The country is northeast of Malaysia and west of Palau. The Spratly Islands are located nearby, not too far west of Palawan island. The countries Brunei, China, Malaysia, The Philippines, Taiwan, and Vietnam assert their claims of possession over this archipelago of islands. According to Encyclopædia Britannica, the Philippines’ population in the year 2020 was about 108,772,000 and was ranked 12th among populations of the whole world’s countries, dependencies, and territories. The capital, situated on the Philippines' largest island (Luzon), is Manila. Mindanao is the second largest island, and its largest city is Davao. The currency is the Philippine Peso (₱); the ISO 4217 currency code is PHP. Post updated with new map on 9/18/2013.
Another post to check out: Islands of the Philippines
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