Counting the countries of the world.  That ought to be simple, right?  Well, yes and no.  Politics complicate things slightly.  Depending on whether you think Taiwan is a separate country or not, there are either 196 or 197 countries in the world.  I have visited only 63.

A favorite dinner table conversation with my kids is to name the top 10 countries that each of us would like to visit.  Here are mine.

1. Ethiopia
2. New Zealand
3. Bhutan
4. Tibet
5. Tanzania (including Zanzibar)
6. Peru
7. Vietnam
8. Laos
9. Morocco
10. Russia

I notice two things about my list.  First, it changes quite frequently, so I plan to check it again in a year’s time.  Second, as my kids point out to me, there are only nine countries on the list unless you think Tibet is a sovereign state (which I do).