The world around us is a fascinating, intriguing, and sometimes oddball place. Take a look at these out-of-the-ordinary geography facts. How many do you know?

1. The Incan Empire of Ecuador and Peru was already five hundred years old when the Spanish explorers came to the Andes in the 16th century.
2. The Arctic is rich in plant and animal life. The Antarctic, however, is not. The only land animal observed there is a tiny, wingless mosquito.
3. At the time the first European settler came to North America from Spain, there were about five million Native Americans living there.
4. It takes a ship approximately 8 hours to pass through the numerous locks of the Panama Canal. At its highest, it is 85ft above sea level.
5. The coconut is important to the Pacific Islands. Its milk and meat are used for food, the fiber is made into cord, and the leaves are used for thatch.
6. Brazil is the largest country in South America. It’s the only country on that continent to derive its language and culture from Portugal.
7. Mont Blanc, on the French-Italian border, is the highest mountain in Western Europe. It is 15,771 feet high and very popular with climbers.
8. Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane are all major cities in Australia, but the country’s seat of government is in Canberra.

By Sandy Mitchell