Karla GlobalWays: Have you heard about the Century Club for world travelers?

Tuesday, August 25, 2015

Have you heard about the Century Club for world travelers?

The Travelers Century Club (CC) is an organization of seasoned world travelers who have visited at least 100 nations and or territories based upon a specific list they have compiled of more than 324 destinations (at January 2014). The Century Club’s list is categorized by geographical areas such as Europe, the Indian Ocean, Africa, Antarctica, and Central America.

http://travelerscenturyclub.org/

My goal is to become a member. To date, I have visited 77 nations.

How does the century club define a nation?

Most of the world recognizes a separate nation based upon the following definition: a people politically organized into a sovereign state with a defined territory. Currently, the United States State department recognizes 195 nations and Taiwan.

The Century Club includes these areas and more. Although some of its destinations are not countries, they are regions that are different from their governing country either geographically, politically, or ethnologically. Each destination must have a population of at least 100,000 people. For example, although the island of Madeira is part of Portugal, it is considered a separate nation by the century club because it is geographically separated by more than 200 miles from continental Portugal.

Some destinations are included because they have a "disputed status" such as Kosovo and Trans-Dniester.

What I find most interesting is that based upon this definition some countries include several nations for example: the island of Saint Maarten in the Caribbean has the French side of Saint Martin and the Dutch side of Saint Maarten. The island of Cyprus has the Turkish section and the Greek section. Although they are US states, both Alaska and the Hawaiian islands are considered to be separate nations or territories. Finally, they include five separate nations in the country of Indonesia including Java, Bali /the Lesser Sunda Islands, Moluka, Indonesian Borneo (Kalimantan), and Sulawesi. Each nation has a unique set of traditions and values that separated from other areas in Indonesia. Of note, Bali is the only Hindu nation within the larger Muslim Indonesia.

I also find it interesting that they combine the Balearic Islands of Mallorca and Minorca, they combine all of the Greek Islands, and they combine all of the Hawaiian Islands. (I had originally given myself credit for visiting three Canary Islands and two Hawaiian Islands.).

Here is a letter that I wrote to the century club in August 2015, about my future membership.

Pyramids of Giza, Egypt

St Petersburg, Russia

Venice, Italy

Tunis, Tunisia

Copenhagen, Denmark

Pisa, Italy

Taj Mahal-Agra, India

Rome, Italy

Istanbul, Turkey

Athens, Greece

Oia, Santorini, Greece

Copenhagen, Denmark

Katakalon, Turkey

Dear Century Club,

I have been following your group (online) for several years now. I am a fellow world traveler who is passionate about exploring other nations, and I have visited them mostly solo. I have lived, studied, conducted business, and played tourist a la cart, on land tours, and most recently on cruises. Based upon your official list, I have visited 77 nations. Attached are a few photos. Although I qualify for provisional membership now, I will wait until I reach the century mark to officially apply.

Of note, I have travelled to some destinations such as France, Italy, Spain, and Greece, many many times. In the USA, I have travelled to hundreds of cities and 45 states.

In the meantime, I'd like to make you aware of who I am and to let you know how enthusiastic I am about joining the century club in the future.

Great Wall of China

Rock of Gibraltar

Halong Bay, Viet Nam

Cho Praya River, Thailand

Panama Canal

Suez Canal

By the way, in the fall, I will travel to Asia where I will add Hong Kong, Singapore, North Borneo, the Philippines, Taiwan, Macau, and Brunei. I am excited about moving closer to the century mark.

I blog about my travels at GlobalWaysUSA.blogspot.com