The world is a big place, and sometimes we forget that we aren't at the center of it. Even the most well-travelled person only gets to see a fraction of what the world has to offer, but thanks to the internet, we get to see a bit more.
Here are 22 photos showing off 10 countries that you probably haven't heard of before.
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Nine Islands
Tuvalu is a remote collection of nine Islands well off the coast of Papua New Guinea.
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Remote
It is considered the world’s least visited country by The United Nations World Tourism Organization. After World War II it became an independent country, after being under British and Australian control.
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Kiribati
Also in Oceana.
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Remote
It is composed of 32 atolls and one coral island. Most of its 119,000 population live on one island.
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Beautiful
Used in the ‘50s and ‘60s by the US and UK for nuclear tests, the country gained independence in the ‘70s. Now its gorgeous waters are used for a small tourism industry.
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Comoros
An African group of Islands in between northern Madagascar and the main continent.
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History
Comoros gained independence from the French in 1975. They are a Sunni Islamic country, with an economy based around fishing and hunting.
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Lesotho
Most people know where South Africa is, but not everyone knows there is a different country inside of South Africa.
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Relations
The country understandably has close economic ties to South Africa, but remains independent after the British relinquished control of the territory in the ‘60s.
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Brunei
A small country on the northern coast of the island of Borneo, which is part of Indonesia.
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Rich History
Sporting impressive mosques, Brunei has ceded significant territory over the centuries with interventions from Spain, Japan, and predictably the British.
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São Tomé and Príncipe
A volcanic island nation in the Gulf of Guinea
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Stable
Initially uninhabited, the islands became an important location for slave trade during the colonial era. However, since its 1970s independence from Portugal, it has been a stable country.
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Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
A Caribbean nation north of Grenada.
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Troubled History
Still part of the Commonwealth of Nations, the country has been a part of numerous wars between the colonial powers. It was also devastated by a volcanic eruption in the early 1900s. Now, they have strong tourism industry.
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Saint Kitts and Nevis
A Caribbean island nation just East of Puerto Rico.
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Small
The smallest sovereign state in the Western Hemisphere in both size and population, the nation was predictably a British colony, and remains part of the Commonwealth of Nations. It has taken many steps to secure its own independence in the region.
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Tonga
An oceanic island nation just East of Fiji, and north of New Zealand.
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Tourism
The country is making an effort to promote its tourism industry. It is part of the British Commonwealth.
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Liechtenstein
If you don’t live in Europe, you might not know about this principality in between Austria and Switzerland.
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Alps
Known for its castles and alpine landscape, this gorgeous German-speaking semi-constitutional monarchy was created by the Holy Roman Empire, and legitimized by Napoleon.
