Croatia

We just learned about the country of Bulgaria

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

Croatia is in central eastern Europe, on the Adriatic Sea. It borders Hungary, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Montenegro. It is across the sea from Italy.
There are about 4 million people in Croatia, and it is about 57,000 square miles.


(from: wikipedia - croatia)

The flag of Croatia is red, white, and blue with the coat of arms of Croatia on the middle.
The colors are for the three old kingdoms of Croatia:
- Red and white - Croatia
- Blue and white - Slavonia
- Blue and yellow - Dalmatia

The coat of arms has a red and white checkerboard for the old kingdom of Croatia, and then five small shield shapes for the history of the different people that lived in Croatia: - Croatia - A gold star over a crescent moon on a blue background
- Dubrovnik - Two red stripes on a dark sheild
- Dalmatia - Three yellow crowned leopard heads
- Istria - A golden goat on a blue background
- Slavonia - A gold star over a picture of a black marten with a red and white background


(from: wikipedia - flag of croatia)

To eat in Croatia you might have pašticada, which is like beef stew with bacon, garlic, onions and spices.

(from: wikipedia - pašticada)

Diocletian's palace is an ancient palace built around 500 AD for the Roman emperor Diocletian.

(from: wikipedia - diocletian's palace)

There is an ancient Roman arena that was made around 27 BC, and is the only Roman ampitheater that still has all of its four side towers.

(from: wikipedia - pula arena)


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Bulgaria

We just learned about the country of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Let's learn a little about the country of Bulgaria.

It is a small country in the eastern part of Europe, bordered by Romania, Serbia, North Macedonia, Greece, Turkey, and the Black Sea.
There are about 7 million people living there, and it is about 42,000 square miles.

(from: wikipedia - bulgaria)

The flag of Bulgaria is horizontal stripes of white, green, red.
The white is for peace, the green is for farming, and the red is for courage.

(from: wikipedia - flag of bulgaria)

To eat in Bulgaria you might have Tarator, which is a cold yogurt soup with other vegetables mixed in like cucumber or dill.

(from: wikipedia - bulgarian cuisine)

Visiting Bulgaria you might go to Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, which is one of the biggest churches in the world, made back in 1912.

(from: wikipedia - alexander nevsky cathedral, sofia)

During some holiday parades in Bulgaria, people dress up in furry costumes with masks and bells on and dance around to scare away evil spirits in the town.


(from: wikipedia - kukeri)


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Bosnia and Herzegovina

We just learned about the country of Belarus

Let's learn a little about the country of Bosnia and Herzegovina, also called BiH, B&H, Bosnia–Herzegovina, or sometimes just Bosnia.

This country is bordered by Serbia, Montenegro, Croatia, and the Adriatic Sea.
It is about 20,000 square miles, and about 3 million people live there.

(from: wikipedia - bosnia and herzegovina)

The flag for Bosnia and Herzegovina is blue, with a yellow triangle and white stars.
The colors are for neutrality, peace and for Bosnian culture and history.

The triangle is for the three different types of people living there, Bosniaks, Croats, and Serbs.


(from: wikipedia - flag of bosnia and herzegovina)

To eat in BiH you might have ćevapi, which is grilled meat with fruit and spices in it, and usually some bread.

(from: wikipedia - ćevapi)

Stari Most is a very old bridge in the town of Mostar, that was built in the 1500s.

(from: wikipedia - stari most)

Sarajevo is the biggest city in BiH, and has many famous old buildings and neighborhoods.
One of the most famous moments in history was in this city when someone assassinated the Archduke Ferdinand, which many people say was what started World War I.


(from: wikipedia - sarajevo)


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Belarus

We just learned about the country of Azerbaijan.

Let's learn about the country of Belarus

This country is in eastern Europe next to Russia, Poland, Ukraine, Lithuania, and Latvia.
It's about 80,000 square miles, and about 10 million people live there.
The people there speak both the Belarusian and Russian languages.

(from: wikipedia - belarus)

The Belarusian flag has a large red stripe above a smaller green stripe, and on the left side there is a red and white pattern.
The red stripe is for freedom, the green stripe is for life, and the red-white pattern is one that is used a lot in Belarusian art and clothing.


(from: wikipedia - flag of belarus)

To eat in Belarus you might have Kalduny, which is dumplings made of dough, and filled with something like ham and mushrooms.

(from: wikipedia - kalduny)

Almost half of Belarus is a forest. Long ago most of Europe used to be a forest, but after people have made buildings and cities a lot of it is gone. The Białowieża Forest in Belarus is one of the last big forests left in Europe.
The forest is part of both Poland and Belarus.

(from: wikipedia - białowieża forest)

There is a big old castle in Belarus called the Mir Castle, made in 1568 AD.

(from: wikipedia - mir castle complex)


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Azerbaijan

We just learned about the country of Armenia.

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

This country is in the area of Europe and Asia called Eurasia.
It is south of Russia, north of Iran, and east of Armenia.
On the east side of the country is the Caspian Sea.
It is about 33,000 square miles, and about 10 million people live there.


(from: wikipedia - azerbaijan)

The flag of Azerbaijan is blue, red, and green with a crescent moon and star in the middle.
The blue and the moon and star are for the Turkish people who live all over the world.
The red is for progress, and the green is for the religion of Islam.

(from: wikipedia - azerbaijan)

To eat in Azerbaijan you might have plov, which is rice with some other things added like meat or vegetables.


(from: wikipedia - pilaf)

There is a carpet museum in Azerbaijan, with over 10,000 things on display showing the history of weaving and carpets and how they were used through history.


(from: wikipedia - azerbaijan carpet museum)

There is an ancient building called the Maiden Tower that goes back to around 1100 AD.
It has many stories from history about legends and mysteries that happened here.


(from: wikipedia - maiden tower (baku))


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Armenia

We just learned about the country of Andorra

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

This is a small country in an area called Eurasia, meaning some people think of this area as Europe and others think of it as Asia.
It is east of Turkey, south of Georgia, north of Iran, and west of Azerbaijan.
The country is about 11,000 square miles and has about 3 million people living there.


(from: wikipedia - armenia)

The Armenian flag is 3 horizontal stripes.
Red - for the mountains, for freedom, for the Christian people, and for the Armenian Genocide
Blue - for the skies
Orange - for courage and hard work


(from: wikipedia - flag of armenia)

To eat in Armenia you might have kibbeh which is a type of spicy meat, served with yogurt

(from: wikipedia - armenian cuisine)

The Etchmiadzin Cathedral was built around 300 AD, and is the oldest cathedral in the world.

(from: wikipedia - etchmiadzin cathedral)

Armenia is home to the world's oldest leather shoe, and the world's oldest winery.
In 2007 scientists found a cave with these things they believe were made aound in 4000 BC.

(from: wikipedia - areni-1 winery)


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Andorra

We just learned about the country of Albania.
Let's learn a little about the country of Andorra!

This is a very small country right in between France and Spain.
It is only 180 square miles, and only about 77,000 people live there.

(from: wikipedia - andorra)

The flag of Andorra has vertical blue, yellow, red stripes, with the coat of arms of Andorra in the middle.
The coat of arms has four parts, made up from the banners of old royal families who first founded the country.

(from: wikipedia - flag of andorra)

There is a spa in Andorra called "Caldea" that is the largest spa in Europe, that is 18 floors and 6,000 square meters

(from: wikipedia - andorra)

A lot of the country of Andorra is mountains, so there is a big ski resort called Soldeu that has over a hundred miles of ski slopes.

(from: wikipedia - andorra)


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Albania

We just learned about Thurston Island and a whole lot of other things about the continent of of Antarctica!

We've learned before about some countries in the continent of Europe.

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

Albania is just north of the country of Greece, and east of Italy across the Mediterranean Sea.
It is 11,000 square miles and has about 2.8 million people living there.
Tirana is the capital city and biggest city in the country.

Because of where it is on the map, it has some very cold weather up in the mountains, and very warm weather in the southern parts on the sea.

(from: wikipedia - albania)

The flag of Albania is red with a black double headed eagle on it.
The red is for bravery and strength, and the eagle was the symbol of some of the early royal rulers of the land.


(from: wikipedia - flag of albania)

To eat in Albania you might have Speca të ferguara, which is a layered pie with roasted peppers, usually served with pita bread.

(from: wikipedia - albanian cuisine)

The ancient Greek city of Apollonia is now part of Albania, and there are some ancient Greek ruins there.

(from: wikipedia - apollonia (illyria))

The famous nun Mother Teresa was from Albania.

(from: wikipedia - mother teresa)


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Europe - Many nations

We just learned about the country of Switzerland.

Even though we've covered 23 different countries in Europe,
we're not even half way through all of them!

There are some very small countries that are just the size of a city!

Here is a list of 50 countries in Europe! Albania, Andorra, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Malta, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, San Marino, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom (Scotland, England), Vatican City.

Wow! So many countries for an area of land that is smaller than most other continents!

(from: wikipedia - europe)



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Switzerland

We just learned about the country of Vatican City.

Switzerland is another country in Europe!


(from: wikipedia - switzerland)

For breakfast in Switzerland you might have a bowl of meusli,
a cereal invented there with oats grains nuts and fruits.

(from: wikipedia - swiss cuisine)

There is a big invention called the large hadron collider that scientists built
in Switzerland to maybe help us understand how the universe works!

(from: wikipedia - large hadron collider)

In the old days people in the Swiss mountains used to use a big long horn
called the alphorn to talk to each other across the mountains.

(from: wikipedia - alphorn)

The mountain range running through Switzerland is called the Alps,
and in the alps is a famous mountain called the Matterhorn.

(from: wikipedia - matterhorn)



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Vatican City

Some countries in Europe like The Ukraine are pretty big, but others are as small as a single city!

Vatican City is the country where the Pope lives.

It is right inside the middle of the country of Italy.

They have many wonderful pieces of artwork there, like the Cistine Chapel which has a beautiful painting on the ceiling done by Michelangelo.

(from: wikipedia - vatican city)

Michelangelo also did a sculpture of Jesus with his mother Mary.

(from: wikipedia - vatican city)

They have guards for the pope called Swiss Guards because they are from Switzerland.

(from: wikipedia - vatican city)

It is the home of the Pope, who is the head of the Catholic church.

(from: wikipedia - pope francis)



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European Union

We just learned about the country of Turkey.

Europe is a land of many small nations that are very close together, but with many people living there.

Through history, many of the nations have had wars with each other,
but now 28 of the countries have made an agreement to work together
in what they call the European Union, or just the EU.


(from: wikipedia - european union)

Before the EU, countries like Italy had money called the lira, France had the Franc, and Germany had the deutsche mark.
Now many of those countries have accepted a new type of money called the Euro,
and all the countries in the EU will accept it as money.


(from: wikipedia - euro)




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