Showing posts with label Asia. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Asia. Show all posts

Monday, October 3, 2022

Shanghai, China


We just learned about the Chinese city of Chongqing.

Let's learn a little about the city of Shanghai!

This city is in China.
It is about 6,341 square kilometers, and about 24 million people live there.
The people in this city speak Shanghainese, or Mandarin.


(from: wikipedia - shanghai)

Shanghai has a lot of sports teams, like the soccer teams Shanghai Shenhua and Shanghai Port, basketball team Shanghai Sharks, and baseball team Shanghai Golden Eagles.

(from: wikipedia - shanghai sports)

To eat in this city you might have xiaolongbao which are steamed buns or dumplings.

(from: wikipedia - xialongbao)

Visiting this city you might go see the city of Lujiazui, which has a beautiful group of huge skyscrapers.

(from: wikipedia - Lujiazui)

Another interesting place is the Yu Garden, built first in 1559 AD.
This garden has six large areas with ponds, statues, bridges and plants, and each area is separated by a "dragon wall"


(from: wikipedia - yu garden)

Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Yemen

Monday, October 4, 2021

Yemen


We just learned about the country of Vietnam

Let's learn a little about the country of Yemen!

Yemen is a country in the middle east, bordering Saudi Arabia, Oman, and the Arabian Sea.
It is about 214,000 square miles, and has about 30 million people living there.
People in Yemen speak the Arabic language.


(from: wikipedia - yemen)

The flag of Yemen is sideways stripes of red, white, and black.
Red is for the blood of the people who fought for Yemen, white is for a bright future, and black is for a dark past.


(from: wikipedia - flag of yemen)

To eat in Yemen you might have saltah, which is a meat stew made with fenugreek, chilies, tomatoes, garlic and herbs. These are mixed in with rice, potatoes, eggs, vegetables and served with bread.

(from: wikipedia - saltah)

Visiting Yemen, you might go to the island of Socotra, where there is a large tree called a dragon blood tree, or dracaena cinnabari.
It is called a dragon blood tree because of the red sap that comes off of the tree.

(from: wikipedia - dracaena cinnabari)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Alexander Island

Monday, September 27, 2021

Vietnam


We just learned about the country of Turkmenistan

Let's learn a little about the country of Vietnam, also called the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

Vietnam is a small country in Asia, about 128,000 square miles, with about 96 million people liveing there.
It borders China, Laos, Cambodia, Thailand, Phillippines, Indonesia, Malaysia and the South China Sea.


(from: wikipedia - vietnam)

The flag of Vietnam is a red background with a yellow star.
The red is for battle, and the yellow is for the different types of workers in Vietnam.


(from: wikipedia - flag of vietnam)

To eat in Vietnam you might have bún chả, which is pork with noodles served over rice noodles and dipping sauce.
The word bún means noodles and chả means pork.


(from: wikipedia - bun cha)

Visiting Vietnam you might go see Ban Gioc-Detian Falls, some big waterfalls in the country.

(from: wikipedia - ban gioc–detian falls)

Rice farming is a very important business in Vietnam, and rice is grown there in what are called terraces, that look like stairs.

(from: wikipedia - sa pa)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Cirque Glacier

Monday, September 20, 2021

Turkmenistan


We just learned about the country of United Arab Emirates

Let's learn a little about the country of Turkmenistan!

This is a country in the middle east, bordring Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, Iran, and the Caspian Sea.
It is about 190,000 square miles, and about 6 million people live there.
People in this country speak the Turkmen language.


(from: wikipedia - turkmenistan)

The flag of Turkemnistan is green with a red stripe on the left with carpet designs on the red above olive branches.
On the right is a white crescent moon and five stars.
The moon is for hope, the stars are for the provinces in the country, the carpet is for the tribes of people who founded the country.


(from: wikipedia - flag of turkmenistan)

To eat in Turkmenistan, you might have melons!
This country was once famous for growing all kinds of melons, and they grow over 400 different kinds of melon.

(from: wikipedia - )

Visiting Turkmenistan you might go see the Darvasa gas crater.
This is a hole in the ground that is abotu 200 feet across and about 60 feet deep.
A long time ago people were drilling for oil in the area, and found a place where gas was leaking out from the ground.
They lit the ground on fire to help get rid of the gas leak, but it never stopped burning and the crater has now been burning for over 50 years.


(from: wikipedia - darvaza gas crater)

There is a national holiday in Turkmenistan called Melon Day, because there are so many melon farms in the country.
Every year the second Sunday in August the people get together in the city of Ashgabat and have music, dancing and lots of melons.


(from: wikipedia - melon day)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Piedmont Glacier

Monday, September 13, 2021

United Arab Emirates


We just learned about the country of East Timor

Let's learn a little about the country of United Arab Emirates, also called Emirates or UAE!

This is a small country in the middle east, bordering Oman, Saudi Arabia, and the Persian Gulf.
It is about 32,000 square miles, and has about 10 million people living there.
People in UAE speak Arabic.


(from: wikipedia - united arab emirates)

The flag for the United Arab Emirates is has a red stripe on the left, and then sideways stripes of green, white and red.
The red is for courage, bravery, hardiness, strength, and unity.
The white is for cleanliness, honesty, peace, and purity.
The green is for prosperity, hope, joy, love, and optimism.
The black is for winning battles and strength of mind.


(from: wikipedia - flag of the united arab emirates)

To eat in UAE you might have maqluba, which is cooked meat, rice and vegetables, cooked in a pot and then flipped upside down when served.
The name maquluba means "upside down".


(from: wikipedia - maqluba)

Visiting UAE you might go to Dubai to see the Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world at about half a mile high.

(from: wikipedia - burj khalifa)

In Abu Dhabi there is some man made land in the shape of a palm tree, called the Palm Jumeirah.
Also in Abu Dhabi is the fastest roller coaster in the world at 149 miles per hour, at the Formula Rossa at the Ferrari World park.

(from: wikipedia - palm jumeirah)

(from: wikipedia - formula rossa)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Fjord

Monday, September 6, 2021

East Timor


We just learned about the country of Tajikistan

Let's learn a little about the country of East Timor, also called the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste!

This is a small country in Asia, that is just on the eastern half of the island of Timor.
The other half of the island is part of the country of Indonesia.

It is about 6,000 square miles, and has a little over 1 million people living there.
People in this country speak either Portuguese, Tetuma or English.


(from: wikipedia - east timor)

The flag of East Timor has a red background, with a yellow triangle covered by a black triangle, and a white star.
The yellow is for the country's history, the black is for truth, the red is for freedom, and the star is for peace.


(from: wikipedia - flag of east timor)

To eat in East Timor you might have bibinka, which is a kind of coconut cake.


(from: wikipedia - bibingka)

Visiting East Timor you might go see the statue Cristo Rei of Dili, which means Christ the King of Dili.
It is an 88 foot tall sculpture of Jesus standing on a globe, on top of a hill.
Below the statue is a small church, and behind the statue is a beach called Jesus' Backside Beach.




(from: wikipedia - cristo rei of dili)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Valley Glacier

Monday, August 30, 2021

Tajikistan


We just learned about the country of Singapore

Let's learn a little about the country of Tajikistan!

This is a small country in Asia bordering Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and China.
It is about 55,000 square miles, and about 9.5 million people live there.
People in this country usually speak either the Tajik language or Russian.

(from: wikipedia - tajikistan)

The flag of Tajikistan is sideways stripes of red, white and green, with a yellow crown and stars in the white.
Red is for victory, white is for purity, and green is for nature.
The crown is for the Tajik people and the stars are for perfection and happiness.


(from: wikipedia - flag of tajikistan)

To eat in Tajikistan you might have Qurutob, which is cheese balls with bread and vegetables.


(from: wikipedia - qurutob)

Visiting Tajikistan you might go to Karakul which is a lake 16 mile wide lake inside of a 32 mile wide crater.


(from: wikipedia - karakul (tajikistan))

There is a Historical Museum of Sughd that is built inside of the ancient Khujand Fortress.

(from: wikipedia - historical museum of sughd)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Outlet Glacier

Monday, August 23, 2021

Singapore


We just learned about the country of Qatar

Let's learn a little about the country of Singapore!

This country is a small island that is just south of the country of Malaysia.
There is a river between Malaysia and Singapore, and bridges between the two countries.
It is a very small country, only 281 square miles, but it has over 5 million people living there.


(from: wikipedia - singapore)

The flag of Singapore is a red stripe over a white stripe, with a white moon and stars in the red part.
Red is for equality, white is for purity, the moon is for the growing nation, and the five stars are for democracy, peace, progress, justice and equality.


(from: wikipedia - flag of singapore)

To eat in Singapore you might have bak kut teh, which is pork ribs cooked with spices, mushrooms and garlic.


(from: wikipedia - bak kut teh)

Visiting Singapore, you might go see the Botanical Gardens, which has over 200 acres of plants.

(from: wikipedia - singapore botanical gardens)

The name of Singapore means "lion city", so the city came up with a mascot called a "merlion" kind of like a mermaid but with the head of a lion.
There are many merlion statues all over Singapore.


(from: wikipedia - merlion)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Antarctic Glaciers

Monday, August 16, 2021

Qatar


We just learned about the country of Pakistan

Let's learn a little about the country of Qatar!

Qatar is a small country in the middle east, made up of only about 4,000 square miles but with about 2.7 million people living there.
People in Qatar mostly speak Arabic.


(from: wikipedia - qatar)

The flag of Qatar is white on the left and red on the right, and the middle is a jagged edge splitting up the two colors.

The red color is called "Qatar Maroon" and goes back over 100 years to when the country made a reddish colored dye from shellfish, and the white is for peace.


(from: wikipedia - flag of qatar)

To eat in Qatar you might have quzi, which is made of rice with lamb and nuts.


(from: wikipedia - quzi)

Visiting Qatar you might go see Al Zubara Fort, which is an old castle built in 1938.

(from: wikipedia - al zubara fort)

The Pearl is a 12 square mile man made island that was built for people to live there.


(from: wikipedia - the pearl-qatar)


Kid Facts - Blast from the past: Ross Gyre