Asia
Conventionally there are six main geographical regions or subregions in Asia: Northern, Western, Central, Eastern, Southern, and Southeast Asia. Asia is shared by 50 countries.
By far the largest country in terms of area is Russia, with more than 17 million km², of which 13 million km² (77%) are in Asia.
The second-largest Asian country is China, with an area of 9.6 million km². The smallest independent state in Asia is the island nation of Maldives with 298 km².
Sandra has been to China, Hong Kong, Thailand, Vietnam, Singapore, Saudi Arabia, Japan.
1. Northern Asia refers to the vast northern part of Asia east of the Ural Mountains, also known as Siberia. The region is divided into the Russian federal districts of Ural, Siberia, and the Russian Far East.
2. Western Asia and the Middle East: Sheikh Lotfollah Mosque in Naqsh-e-Jahan Square in Isfahan in central Iran. Western Asia includes the Arabian Peninsula and most countries of the Middle East including Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Cyprus, Georgia, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, State of Palestine, Syria, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, and Yemen.
3. Central Asia refers to a region in Asia between the Caspian Sea and Western China. Central Asia includes Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan, which are all predominantly Muslim countries and, with the exception of Afghanistan, were all former Soviet republics.
4. East Asia or Eastern Asia refers to the eastern part of the Asian continent plus the island nation of Japan.
The United Nations geoscheme lists five sovereign countries plus the Chinese Special Administrative Regions of Hong Kong and Macao, as well as the Republic of China (Taiwan), with an uncertain political status. Countries include China, China Hong Kong SAR, China Macao SAR, North Korea, South Korea, and Mongolia Taiwan.
5. South Asia or Southern Asia refers to the southern part of central Asia. The region is bounded by the Indian Ocean in the south and includes the Himalayas in the north. There are eight sovereign countries in Southern Asia, including Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepa, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. The geoscheme of the United Nations includes Afghanistan in Southern Asia.
6. Southeast Asia refers to the part of Asia that includes the Indochinese Peninsula and the nations of Maritime Southeast Asia. The region is situated in the southeastern part of the continent, south of China, east of India and north of Australia. Countries include Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand, Timor-Leste, and Vietnam.
Sandra at an elephant sanctuary in Chiang Mai
Thailand has become one of my favorite travel destinations after several visits. The value it offers relative to cost is unparalleled compared to any other place I’ve traveled.
Sandra at Cu Chi Tunnels
Sandra stayed at the luxurious Ritz Carlton Koh Samui
Sandra on a boat ride in Vietnam
Sandra visiting with a friend from Saudi Arabia
