Monthly Archives: February 2024

Sri Lanka remains a popular destination for residents of Austin seeking cultural experiences and spectacular natural beauty.  The pear-shaped island nation in the Indian Ocean offers amazing beaches, ancient cities, safari wildlife tours, and modern amenities in a unique South Asian environment.   

The Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka was previously known as Ceylon before 1948, when it was under British rule.  The country’s population of some 22 million includes members of several Asian ethnic groups, primarily the Sinhalese (75%), Tamils, Moors, and Malays.  The two official languages are Sinhala and Tamil.  However, English remains the “link language” that is used for education and commercial purposes.  Buddhism is the official religion of Sri Lanka and has the largest number of practitioners, while Hinduism, Islam, and Christianity are also represented.  Buddhism and Hinduism are also the main influences on Sri Lankan culture, although echoes of the British, Portuguese and Dutch colonial eras still linger.  Despite the lengthy flight time from North America to South Asia, citizens of the United States and Canada rank among the top 10 nationalities visiting Sri Lanka.

Millions of tourists visit the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan each year, enjoying the Arab state’s many historic, cultural, religious and natural treasures.  The Jordanian tourism industry is the largest private-sector employer in the country, accounting for 14% of its economy and drawing more than six million visitors annually, including visitors from the Dallas-Fort Woth Metropolitan area. 

The Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan is located between the Red Sea, the Dead Sea, and the River Jordan at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe.  Modern-day Jordan has been inhabited by humans for several millennia.  The area had previously been part of the Assyrian, Babylonian, Persian, Roman, and Ottoman Empires before achieving independence from British rule in 1946.  The country of more than 10 million is predominantly Arab and the official language is Arabic -- the fifth-most spoken language in the world with more than 230 million.

Algeria remains a mysterious and unexplored country for most Miami tourists, as well as for business leaders across the state of Florida seeking commercial opportunities overseas.

Bordered by the Mediterranean Sea and several other North African countries, Algeria’s tropical and subtropical climates encompass fertile land in its northern region and the Sahara Desert to the south.  The second largest country in Africa, Algeria is the continent’s fourth largest tourist destination.  The country also offers numerous business opportunities, particularly in the oil and gas, power, infrastructure, IT, and defense sectors (https://www.trade.gov/country-commercial-guides/algeria-market-opportunities).

Cincinnati, the third-most populous city in Ohio, is located in Hamilton County at the junction of the Ohio and Licking rivers.  While some 311,000 people live in Cincinnati, more than 2.2 million people live in the Cincinnati metropolitan area.  Also known as Greater Cincinnati or the Cincinnati Tri-State area, the metro region covers portions of southwest Ohio, northern Kentucky, and southeastern Indiana.  Cincinnati’s core industries include advanced manufacturing, technology, life sciences, business and professional services.  The city is also the top startup hub in Ohio.  Northern Kentucky’s “Automotive Manufacturing Power Alley” is home to more than 40 vehicle parts suppliers that employ 20,000.  Twenty-four Fortune 500 organizations are headquartered in Ohio, five of which are located in Cincinnati: Kroger, Procter & Gamble, Western & Southern Financial Group, Fifth Third Bancorp, and business products provider Cintas. (The total will grow to six when General Electric completes its restructuring and spins off Cincinnati-based GE Aerospace.) Other major regional employers include Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, TriHealth, and the University of Cincinnati.

China continues to be a significant trading partner for Cincinnati companies, with China providing the top source of imports to the city.  Leading imports include medicine, aircraft engine parts, and electronic components.  China is also Ohio’s second largest source of imports and its third largest export market.  Cincinnati’s top two employers also have operations in China.  Kroger is launching a strategic alliance with retailer Alibaba while Procter & Gamble established P&G China almost 40 years ago.

The north-central African nation of Chad is not a common destination for casual tourists from the Charlotte area -- even with considerable natural attractions and cultural treasures. “Despite being one of the poorest countries in the world, Chad is home to a variety of ecosystems, ranging from deserts to savannas to wetlands, making it a treasure trove for nature lovers ,” according to the travel site Mister Story (https://www.misterstory.com/p/discovering-the-natural-wonders-of-chad-a-journey-through-its-diverse-ecosystems/). “Chad is a country with a rich and diverse natural landscape that is waiting to be discovered.”

The Republic of Chad is the fifth-largest country by size in Africa yet ranks 18^th in population at 18.3 million.  The landlocked nation is bordered by Cameroon, the Central African Republic,  Libya, Nigeria, Niger, and Sudan.  The country is home to some 200 ethnic and linguistic groups.  Its official languages are Arabic and French, while the main religions are Islam (55%) and Christianity (41%).  Conquered by France in 1920 and merged into the colony of French Equatorial Africa colony, Chad gained its independence in 1960.

Azerbaijan – the South Caucasus country at the crossroads of ancient empires that once ruled Eurasia – is coming into its own as a travel destination for visitors from the Minneapolis-Saint Paul area. “Having long been overlooked by visitors, Azerbaijan's new easy visas, bargain-value hotels and close-packed range of beautiful landscapes are starting to attract significant flows of tourists, though as yet few of them from Western countries,” Lonely Planet reported. (https://www.lonelyplanet.com/azerbaijan )

Stretching from the Caspian Sea to the Great Caucasus Mountains, the culture of Azerbaijan reflects strong Turkish, Iranian, and Russian influences that span centuries.  The ancient Silk Road trading route that connected Europe and Asia runs through Azerbaijan.  During its long history, parts of the country had been ruled by Iran, Turkey and Russia.  After the fall of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s, the country gained independence as the Republic of Azerbaijan.  However, since then, an extended border war with neighboring Armenia and conflicts with separatist forces in the Nagorno-Karabakh region have plagued the republic.

Nashville, the fastest-growing city in Tennessee and fourth-fastest nationwide, is a growing metropolis on the banks of the Cumberland River.  Nashville has a population of almost 700,000 people, while the 14-county Nashville metropolitan area is home to more than two million residents. “Music City USA” is known globally as an entertainment and tourism destination, with recording studios, publishers, the Grand Ole Opry, and the honky tonks of Broadway.  While the music industry has a $10 billion annual economic impact on the area, Middle Tennessee’s economy is also driven by such diverse industries as health care, advanced manufacturing, real estate, finance, and logistics.  Ten Fortune 500 organizations are headquartered in Tennessee, including five based in Nashville: retailers Dollar General and Tractor Supply; medical providers HCA Healthcare and Community Health Systems; and petroleum refiner Delek US Holdings. 

The state’s rapidly-growing automotive industry has also drawn significant foreign investment and multinational corporate offices.  Nissan North America and General Motors rank among metro Nashville’s largest employers, while GM and Ford are building new operations to produce electric vehicles.  Dozens of other automotive suppliers are located in Tennessee, including Bridgestone Americas and Hankook Tires.  In recent years, Chinese companies ranked among the top 10 foreign investors in Tennessee, totaling $600 million.  According to state officials, some 40 China-based companies have operations in Tennessee and employ 5,300.

Americans have begun returning to the African nation of Gabon as the country once again welcomes visitors following the COVID pandemic.  Located on the equator bordering Central Africa’s Atlantic coast, Gabon allows travelers to explore the broad savannahs, dense rainforests, mountain ranges, thundering waterfalls, and coastal plains of the Congo basin.  The nation is home to some of the most diverse flora and fauna in the world, including gorillas, chimpanzees, hippos, elephants, humpback whales, and more than 400 species of trees.   

While Gabon is not a common destination for the average American tourists, the country has been of interest recently among those in Denver who work for nonprofit organizations involved in environmental protection.  Gabon is the first country in Africa to get paid by international organizations for protecting its forests.  90% of Gabon is covered in dense forests, creating an excellent opportunity for the exportation of timber to industrialized countries that require this commodity to manufacture building materials, furniture, paper products and other consumer goods.  However, Gabon also has an opportunity to protect these forests and use the unharvested land as a product that can be sold as “carbon credits” to wealthier nations (these forests help absorb carbon and therefore have value in the marketplace for those countries needing to offset their “carbon footprint” by purchasing carbon credits).  This mechanism for trading carbon has been developed under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

The Republic of Guinea is not a common destination for residents of Boston and the New England region, but it does provide unique experiences for adventurous travelers and those seeking new commercial opportunities in international trade. “Tarnished by the Ebola crisis and long-term political instability, it is a country most people stay away from,” the World Travel Guide noted  (https://www.worldtravelguide.net/guides/africa/guinea/). “But for travelers who like being far, far from the beaten path, Guinea has many enticements.”

Located on West Africa’s Atlantic coast, Guinea beckons travelers with thundering waterfalls, virgin rainforests, remote hills, and tropical beaches.  It contains five ecoregions: the Guinean montane forests, Western Guinean lowland forests, Guinean forest-savanna mosaic, West Sudanian savanna, and Guinean mangroves.  However, travel outside major cities and tourist resorts can be difficult due to undeveloped transportation infrastructure -- and dangerous due to high levels of crime and corruption.  The impoverished country also faces frequent medical crises, as detailed by the CDC at https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/destinations/traveler/none/guinea.

The Republic of Angola – a former Portuguese colony that endured decades of civil strife during the Twentieth Century – has experienced a renaissance over the past 20 years. “Safe and welcoming, this friendly nation transports that laid-back, community-oriented lifestyle of southern Portugal to continental Africa – and travelers are once again discovering its charm,” the World Travel Guide noted (https://www.worldtravelguide.net/guides/africa/angola).

With 1,000 miles of Atlantic coastline, the southwest African nation beckons Chicago area travelers with tropical beaches, virgin rainforests, vast plains, savannahs, wetlands, and hardwood forests.  The gleaming skyscrapers of the capital city, Luanda, provide a dramatic counterpoint to the traditional villages that dominate a sprawling country that is over eight times the size of Illinois.