Postcard Wars

So I was embarrassed at a party recently when, while speaking with someone who had spent time in Guinea, I had to admit that I didn’t know where Guinea was.

I knew it was in Africa, but I was under the impression it was near Equatorial Guinea, a country I have some interest in because of its dictator, who regularly figures in the yearly Worst 20 People on Earth lists. But it turns out Guinea is not so near to Equatorial Guinea.

As this was a party on Dec. 31, the need for a New Year’s resolution quickly became clear: I committed myself to a quick but intensive crash course on African geography.

By March 1st, I need to be able to pass a quiz administered by my girlfriend in which I must fill in a blank political map of Africa with all of its 50-something countries. At the time of the resolution, I was feeling supremely confident and also said I could include the capitals of those 50-something countries at no extra charge. But this now strikes me as a bit insane when you get to countries such as Mozambique and Burkina Faso.

Nevertheless, I’m trying. Off to study now — stay tuned for the results of the test.

Hello,

It has dawned on me that I have ignored this site since the announcement of last year’s Postcard of the Year, ‘Greetings from Afghanistan.’ For this I apologize. It has been a busy beginning to the year, and yet you — my faithful postcard providers — have kept up your torrential pace. Postcards abound here in Washington, and these new additions will be added as soon as I can make it over to the college I used to attend and use the scanner I used to have permission to use.

In the meantime, a big shout-out to Will Hornby, who gets on the board with a contribution from Denmark, and another big shout-out to Elis of Estonia, making her first contribution, and yet another big shout-out to Sarka of Prague/Manchester, who has gained entry into the wonderful world of Postcard Wars as well. Thank you! Your efforts will be recorded soon.

And now to the point of this post: Check out this awesome Map Generator. Simply check the countries you visited, and the Map Generator will show you an image of how much of the world you’ve been to. It’s pretty cool — and humbling, for those who think they’ve traveled a bit like me. (My reaction: ‘Wait. What’s that down there? Oh, it’s the southern hemisphere.’)

Keep on keepin’ on.