192-Part Guide To The World: Georgia

By Jeremy Atiyah

Published: 27 August 2000

Official Name:The Republic of Georgia
LocationSouth of the Caucasus, squashed with other small countries into the gap between the Black and Caspian Seas.
SizeAbout 70,000sq km, twice the size of Belgium.
Population:About 5 million
LanguageThe official language is Georgian, although almost everybody speaks Russian. Other languages that may come in handy are Armenian, Azeri, Ossetian and Abkhazian.
National Dish Georgia was once known as the Italy of the USSR - Russians came here for fresh produce and wine. Virtually every meal is served with khachapuri (unleavened dough wrapped round cheese); the best wine is from Kvanchkara.
Best Monument The 11th-century cathedral of Sveti-Tskhoveli in the holy town of Mtskheta.
Most Famous Citizen One Josef Jughashvili, better known as Stalin. Few Georgians see anything embarrassing about their association with him. Gori - Stalin's birthplace - still maintains not only a museum but also the last remaining public statue of him in the whole of the former USSR.
Best Moment In HistoryThe reign of the inspirational Queen Tamar, who ruled from 1184 to 1213. Then Georgia included much of what is now Armenia and Turkey; all the great movements in Georgian culture stem from this time.
Worst Moment In History The 20th century. If the 1921-91 Soviet experiment wasn't already bad enough, independence was to prove even worse for Georgia. The declarations of secession by South Ossetia (in 1991) and independence by Abkhazia (in 1992) led to civil war and to the reoccupation of parts of the country by Russian soldiers.
Essential AccessoryOily fish and ale. Take them to the public baths and enjoy them after a violent massage, as all Georgians do.
What Not To DoAt a Georgian banquet, do not attempt to ignore the commands of the tamada, or toastmaker. Stalin was said to have honed the art of dictatorship in his younger days by practising as one.

192-Part Guide To The World: The Gambia

By Jeremy Atiyah

Published: 20 August 2000

Official Name:The Republic of the Gambia.
LocationOn the Atlantic coast of Africa, it is completely surrounded by Senegal - except for a short 80km (50 mile) coastline. The River Gambia runs the entire length of the country from Senegal in the extreme east to the river mouth on the coast.
Size11,300 square kilometres, which makes it even smaller than Belgium, and one of the smallest countries in Africa. From north to south it is at no point wider than 50km.
Population:The official estimate puts it at slightly more than a million.
LanguageOfficially English, but local languages include Mandinka (widely spoken throughout the country), Wolof (spoken in western areas), Jola (spoken by a nomadic people), and Serahule (spoken in the far east of the country).
National Dish The food is common to other parts of West Africa; traditional popular dishes include Benechin (rice cooked in a fish and vegetable sauce) and plasas (meat or fish cooked with vegetable leaves in palm oil and served with mashed cassava, locally known as foufou).
Best Monument Head for MacCarthy Square in the capital Banjul. Not only is it lined by 19th century colonial buildings, but it also contains a fountain "erected by public subscription" to commemorate the coronation of Britain's King George VI. In the interests of contemporary sensitivities, the fountain has since been converted to a drinks bar and is decorated with Coca-Cola signs.
Most Famous Citizen If anyone, possibly the current president, Yahya Jammeh, who in July 1994, as a young lieutenant, led a coup d'etat - making his first public appearance wearing combat fatigues and dark sunglasses. In 1996, he announced a new constitution, held elections, and duly won them.
Best Moment In HistoryIn the decade after The Gambia's independence in 1965, two events occurred that enabled this poverty-stricken backwater to prosper. First the world price for groundnuts increased hugely, almost tripling the country's GNP; and then - with longer term significance - The Gambia became a significant tourist destination.
Worst Moment In History Possibly the establishment of Portuguese settlements in Brazil in 1530. From then onwards a colossal demand for labourers developed, which the Portuguese satisfied through the seizure of thousands of people from West Africa for use as slaves. From the mid-16th century, Britain joined the trade as well and it continued until well into the 19th century. Alex Haley, in his famous book, Roots, claimed to trace his origins back to a village in The Gambia.
Essential AccessoryA pair of binoculars could be useful. Gambia is a bird spotter's paradise, especially the Abuko Nature Reserve where over 270 species of bird have been recorded. Noteworthy are turacos, kingfishers and starlings. Tanji Bird Reserve, on the coast, is an important stopover for migrating birds, particularly waterfowl, which return in large numbers each winter from Europe.
What Not To DoDo not forget to include the The in the country's name. Being preceded by a definite article is a distinction belonging to only a very few countries in the world (Sudan, Ukraine, and Lebanon are other examples).

192-Part Guide To The World: Gabon

Jeremy Atiyah

Published: 13 August 2000

Official name: Gabonese Republic
Language: Don't expect a simple answer to this one, given that we are dealing with a country whose population comprises about 40 Bantu groups, including four major tribes (Fang, Eshira, Bapounou, Bateke). The country's official language is French, but a command of Fang, Myene, Bateke, Bapounou or Bandjabi would come in handy.
Size: 267,670 sq km, or nine times bigger than Belgium, which is amazing considering how small it looks on the map.
Population: 1,320,000
National dish: Manioc paste (or rice) served in a spicy sauce alongside a selection of "bush meats". And watch out: these include antelope, monkey, porcupine and snake.
Best monument: The Palais Presidentiel right in the middle of the capital Libreville bears witness to President Bongo's lively sense of grandeur. Construction in the 1970s, mainly by Italian companies and using the finest Italian marble, cost over $1000 (in today's money) for every man, woman and child in the country. Tourists, in case you were wondering, are not allowed inside.
Most famous citizen: Without a doubt, President El Hadj Omar (formerly Albert-Bernard) Bongo, who has now been running the country for over 30 years - longer than most Gabonese can even remember.
Best moment in history: The 1970s, believe it or not, are referred to in these parts as the time of the "Gabonese miracle". It was a decade which saw not only the processing of very large manganese and uranium deposits, but also the rocketing of oil prices. Colossal oil revenues saw the country leap from the jungle (in some cases, literally) to caviar and champagne in a few years.
Worst moment in history: The early years of the 20th century, when French companies more or less enslaved large sections of Gabonese society to work for them. The result was a series of revolts, which were quashed with violence. In the process, the French managed to destroy forests and other natural resources, and the result was a disastrous economic slump.
Essential accessory: A pirogue: very useful if you want to get off the beaten track and see the wildlife. Boating up the Nouna river, for example, will enable you to see large numbers of forest elephants and possibly gorillas.
What not to do: Drive during the rainy season, (which lasts for eight months), when Gabonese roads are extremely slippery and dangerous.

192-Part Guide To The World: France

By Jeremy Atiyah

Published: 06 August 2000

Official name: La Republique Francaise
Language: Not English, annoyingly enough. Instead one must make do with the language of Moliere, Voltaire, Baudelaire, Zola, Balzac, Flaubert, Proust et al. Otherwise, you could try Breton, Occitan, Corsican, Basque, Catalan or Arabic.
Size: About 544,000 square kilometres. Sixteen times larger than Belgium.
Population: 58,333,000.
National dish: By default, frogs, snails and onions: because the regions of Normandy, Alsace, Burgundy, the Dordogne, the Languedoc and Provence will never agree to a single dish. Whatever the answer, wash it down with a glass of Champagne and finish it off with a slice of Camembert or Roquefort.
Best monument: The cathedral of Notre-Dame is too medieval, the Eiffel Tower too industrial. The Louvre, on the other hand - once home to the French court, now home to the world's greatest art collection - is spot on for its haughty Frenchness.
Most famous citizen: Eric Cantona or Auguste Renoir? Brigitte Bardot or Marie-Antoinette? Jacques Chirac or Louis XIV? Gerard Depardieu or Jean-Paul Sartre? Unfortunately, one suspects that the little Corsican upstart Napoleon Bonaparte will beat all of this lot into the ground.
Best moment in history: The French are still terribly fond of their 1789 revolution, despite continued attempts by the British establishment to blacken its name.
Worst moment in history: Either Napoleon's final defeat at Waterloo, in 1815, or the German occupation of France in 1940.
Essential accessory: A packet of Tetley teabags.
What not to do: Add Coca-Cola to your Champagne.

192-Part Guide to the World: Finland

By Jeremy Atiyah

Published: 02 August 2000

Official name
Republic of Finland; or in Finnish, Suomen Tasavalta.
Language
Two official ones: Finnish, spoken by the vast majority, and Swedish, spoken by some people in the south and south-west. There are a few lapp-speakers in the far north.
Size
338,000 sq km - 10 times the size of Belgium.
Population
About five million.
National dish
Reindeer meat is a delicacy in some parts of the north: Poronkaristys, or sauteed reindeer, is the best known dish, but reindeer steaks and warm or cold-smoked reindeer meat are also popular.
Best monument
More chauvinistic Finns might not like it but the statue in the centre of the main square of old Helsinki is actually of Tsar Alexander II of Russia. Defenders of the statue point to the fact that it was Alexander who acknowledged Finnish constitutionalism for the first time, in 1863.
Most famous citizen
Mika Hakkinen is Formula One World Champion, though one hopes that Finland will be remembered more for the music of Jean Sibelius.
Best moment in history
In 1906 Finland sprang out of the political dark ages with the introduction of a unicameral parliament elected by universal and equal suffrage - at the time, the most modern in Europe. After the Bolshevik revolution 11 years later in 1917, Finland was able to declare its independence.
Worst moment in history
In earlier Finnish history, there was the Great Wrath, the Long Wrath and the Lesser Wrath, all of which involved being attacked by Russians or Swedes. In more recent times there was the Second World War. At the beginning, thanks to a secret protocol in the Nazi-Soviet pact, Finland was attacked by the USSR and had to surrender a large part of the southeast of the country. In 1941 Finland joined the war on Germany's side - on the losing side again.
Essential accessory
In the summer, if you do not wish to turn into one big mosquito bite, do not forget your insect repellant.
What not to do
In the Aland Islands, to the southwest of the country, do not attempt to practise your Finnish. The Alanders are disgusted at the notion of being considered Finnish and insist on speaking only Swedish.