Enclaves, exclaves, and straight lines: explore the world's most bizarre geopolitical boundaries.
When highly volatile human politics directly collides with the unforgiving realities of natural geography, the resulting lines drawn on a map are frequently strange, highly controversial, and incredibly complex. Geopolitical borders are rarely simple, logical straight lines agreed upon peacefully; they are the messy, jagged scars of centuries of violent wars, hastily signed colonial treaties, and bizarre historical accidents. The study of international borders reveals fascinating geopolitical anomalies that defy common sense. Consider the bizarre reality of enclaves and exclaves: a sovereign nation like Lesotho is entirely, geographically trapped within the borders of South Africa, completely dependent on its neighbor for access to the outside world. Even more baffling is the heavily fractured border between Belgium and the Netherlands in the town of Baarle-Hertog, where the international borderline weaves so chaotically that it literally cuts directly through living rooms, cafes, and front doors, meaning a person can sleep in a bed that is located in two different countries. Furthermore, borders are forced to adapt to extreme geography, such as the tense, highly militarized border between China and Nepal that literally runs directly across the deadly, freezing summit of Mount Everest, the highest point on Earth. This fascinating quiz deeply explores these bizarre geographical anomalies, the messy history of colonial map-making, and the strangest, most complex geopolitical boundaries on the planet.
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