Did you know ... ? Grand St. Bernard Pass gave its name to the well-known dogs. Davos at 5,118 feet is the highest town in Europe. Maienfeld and area provided the geographic setting for the “Heidi” books. The Red Cross symbol is the Swiss flag in reverse (not a religious
Did You Know...? The Sami (or Lapp) people have their own parliament, located in Kiruna. Sweden is host to the world's longest cross-country ski race (56 miles). Of the world’s 75,000 Sami people, 20,000 live in Sweden. The state religion was Lutheranism from about 1540 to 2000. There are 9,000
Did You Know...? This is the smallest island in the world shared by two sovereign governments. The Dutch-French pact establishing a shared island is the oldest treaty (1648) in force. The area’s Papiamento language is a mixture of Dutch, English and Spanish. Residents represent more than 75 nationalities. The two
Did You Know ... ? On a clear day, St. Lucia visitors can see Martinique to the north and St. Vincent to the south. Napoleon’s beloved Josephine spent most of her childhood in Soufriere. Control of St. Lucia passed between the French and British 14 times before ending with the
Did You Know ... ? St. Kitts and Nevis is the smallest sovereign nation in the Americas in both area and population. Alexander Hamilton, the first U.S. secretary of the treasury, was born on Nevis (Charlestown). The Citizenship Act of 1984 allows purchasers of property worth $350,000 or more to
Did You Know ... ? On discovering the island in 1493, Christopher Columbus named it for his brother, Bartolomeo. In 1784, France traded the island to Sweden for a warehouse in Gothenburg. The capital Gustavia is named for Sweden’s King Gustav III. St. Barts is less than an eighth the
Did You Know...? Columbus is buried in Seville; Ferdinand and Isabella are in Granada. Africa is eight miles from Spain, across the Strait of Gibraltar. The Basque language is not related to any other language. Spain’s Melilla and Ceutra are the only European territories left on mainland Africa. An estimated
Did You Know ... ? Kim is the surname for about one in five Koreans. Koreans invented moveable metal type printing in the 13th century, before Johannes Gutenberg was born. Korea’s Joseon dynasty (1392-1910) is believed to have lasted for the longest uninterrupted period of any royal family. Busan’s Shinsegae
Did You Know ... ? De Beers, the world’s largest diamond company, coined the phrase “Diamonds Are Forever.” South Africa has three capitals and 11 official languages. The Bloukrans Bridge has the world’s highest commercial bungee jump (709 feet). The Route 62 Wine Route is the world’s longest with 69
Did You Know? Artist Andy Warhol’s parents came from a village in Slovakia. The mountain bison living in western Slovakia are Europe’s largest land mammal. The Slovak, Stefan Banic, invented the parachute in 1914. The Kremnica mint holds the world record for manufacturing operations without interruption (from 1328). Krasnohorska Cave
