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I searched the interwebs and happened to find a wonderful resource that would be great for coloring fun all while getting a geography education. A digital image collection provided by the Florida Center for Instructional Technology (FCIT) — part of the College of Education at the University of South Florida — ClipArt ETC houses over 200 black and white world flags (↗) that could be used as printable coloring pages. If you know about all the world's countries, you might notice some countries' flags are missing — including AFGHANISTAN, HAITI, KAZAKHSTAN, LIECHTENSTEIN, LUXEMBOURG*, MALTA, and ZAMBIA. Nevertheless, lots of coloring fun can be had since the website's images are easy to copy/paste into a document and print. For educational, classroom, and non-profit uses, ClipArt ETC grants you "permission to use a maximum of fifty (50) clipart items in any non-commercial, educational project (report, presentation, display, website, etc.)" although there are some reasonable restrictions. More information about the free (and commercial) licensure options can be found on the ClipArt ETC website (↗). If you are a teacher, you could let your students choose a flag to color and instruct them to create a poster or PowerPoint presentation involving the flag's country. Enjoy, and kudos to FCIT for a wonderful website!
* The NETHERLANDS' flag can be used as a substitute due to three-stripe similarity.
I am a landlocked South American country with over 7 million people living within my borders. My national capital, Asunción, sits not very far from the border of northeastern ARGENTINA. Other cities and communities that I have include Bella Vista, Caacupé, Caazapá, Ciudad del Este, Concepción, Encarnación, Filadelfia, Pilar, Rosario, San Pedro, Tacuatí, and Yhú. As the title of this post indicates, my flag has two different sides with a different circular emblem on each side. The seal on the flag’s “front” side includes a golden star and my official name: REPUBLICA DEL ________. The “back” or reverse side of my flag features a lion holding a liberty cap perched atop a pole; above the lion is a red banner inscribed with “PAZ Y JUSTICIA” (PEACE AND JUSTICE). What country am I?
A — ECUADOR
B — MADAGASCAR
C — PARAGUAY
D — SOLOMON ISLANDS
ANSWER
C . . . . . Paraguay
This flag is the flag of Qrendi, a town of about 3,000 residents near the Mediterranean Sea on the southern shore of Malta island in MALTA. Qrendi is home to some of the world’s oldest standing manmade structures — Ħaġar Qim (Hagar Qim) and Mnajdra — which are components of a nationwide UNESCO World Heritage complex known as the Megalithic Temples of Malta (↗). The town’s Latin motto, Tyrium Dirutas Servo Moles, translates into Maltese as “Inhares il-Bini tal-Fenici” and into English as “Conserve the Buildings of the Phoenicians.” An alternative flag in use consists of a white background, topped by a blue coat-of-arms shield with a central white star and yellow/gold outline. Neighboring cities and communities of Qrendi include (Hal) Kirkop, Mqabba, (Hal) Safi, Siġġiewi, and Żurrieq.
“No Room For Error” / “In The Hands Of The Amazing Race Gods” Episode Description: After traveling to seven countries and 17 cities, one team will be crowned the winner.
Episode Airdate: Wednesday, March 2nd, 2022 on CBS
This concise yet still enjoyable season of The Amazing Race has come to a close. In Episode 10, teams journeyed from GREECE to PORTUGAL and then to the UNITED STATES in hopes of arriving first at the finale Pit Stop to win $1 million. Teams travelled westward about 1700 miles (over 2730 kilometers) from Thessaloníki, Greece to Lisbon, the national capital of Portugal. Rio de Janeiro’s iconic Christ the Redeemer statue has a “little brother” replica in Lisbon named Cristo Rei, the location of this episode’s first clue box.
● Guided by the clue found near the Cristo Rei statue, teams knew to visit a fortress known as the Fortaleza de São Filipe in the city of Setúbal, a small to medium sized city with a residential population of over 120,000. The clue mentioned that there are two Roadblocks in Part 1 of this episode and that teams should “choose wisely” regarding which teammate will complete which roadblock. The clue also said to “take in the view; look for your next destination.” From the top of the Fortaleza, teams peered out to the seaside to find a vertical-striped flag flying near the port. The tricolor flag features yellow outer stripes and a red center stripe — somewhat resembling the appearance of an archetypal clue envelope of this show. Teams hustled down to the flag and found their first…
● Roadblock (“Who Wants to Go Exploring?”): one team member was tasked with finding a rowboat emblazoned on the back with the name of a Portuguese explorer. If the boat finder chose a correct example and rowed the boat to the marina’s other side, he or she received a clue. Incorrect boats had the names of national celebrities, so the Roadblock participant had row back until he or she found an explorer boat. Kim correctly completed this Roadblock first.
● Teams then made their way to Mercearia Confiança de Troino, a grocery store established in 1926. In this “Paint the Town” Route Info task, teams chose a colorful sardine can and brought out their inner artistic abilities (or lack thereof) to enlarge the can-label design into a colorfully painted outdoor mural. Teams then drove to the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Cape Espichel (Santuário de Nossa Senhora do Cabo Espichel) where they encountered the second…
● Roadblock (“Who’s Down for the Count?”): in Season 33’s final Roadblock, one team member counted the columns on both sides of the church’s courtyard and had to recite the correct number of columns (106). Cayla was the first in this Roadblock to figure it out, which benefited her and teammate Raquel since they arrived first at a Pit Stop for the first time in this season of The Amazing Race. While the Part 1 Pit Stop at the Farol do Cabo Espichel lighthouse did not award Cayla and Raquel with $1 million, they won a likely enjoyable and invaluable vacation to SAINT LUCIA. Kim and Penn arrived second, followed by Dusty and Ryan in third. Since Arun and Natalia was the last team to arrive, they were eliminated from the competition and did not score a spot in the top three.
● In Part 2 of the finale episode, teams left Portugal and flew to Los Angeles. The City of Angels is the largest metropolis by population in California, the United States’ second most populated city, and will welcome athletes from around the world to the 2028 Summer Olympics — the 44th anniversary of the city’s 1984 Olympics. You might know that the LA Rams won the Super Bowl last month. Anyways, the two Roadblocks in Part 1 gave way to the Route Infos (no Detours or Roadblocks) in Part 2.
● Once arriving in Los Angeles, teams found their way to the Westin Bonaventure Hotel which has four towers with a locked clue box atop each tower. While going up and down the outdoor elevator, teams had to look out the window to spot the wall with a number, hinting of the lock combination that unlocked the clue box.
● Teams visited the historical monument known as El Pueblo de Los Ángeles, “the birthplace of Los Angeles.” They found three portions of the next clue by smashing an assortment of piñatas. One team member was blindfolded and of course did the piñata hitting, while the other teammate directed him or her on where to hit. In addition to the colorfully wrapped pieces of candy falling from the piñatas, teams were treated with three pieces of the Route Info clue and combined them to reveal the next assignment.
● The “Become a Foley Artist” Route Info brought teams to S.I.R. Hollywood where they learned how to perfect their Foley-style sound effect abilities by recreating classic scenes from The Amazing Race. Teams used a variety of materials to recreate audible sounds from the following scenes:
● The squeakiness of running bull inflatables.
● The shuffling of hay in search of a literal needle in a haystack.
● The catapulting “whoosh” of a watermelon slingshot.
● The throwing of a pie in the face.
● The sloshing in the mud of the infamous “My ox is broken” moment.
● In the final Route Info and challenge of Season 33, teams visited the 8,000-seat tennis stadium of Dignity Health Sports Park, a multi-sports complex prominently known as the home of the LA Galaxy soccer team. As with most of the final tasks in previous seasons, this task involves memorization of happenings throughout the season. The task involved tennis rackets with imagery from previous legs in the competition in addition to tennis balls labeled with corresponding riddles. Teams matched a scene/racket with the applicable quote/ball and were able to proceed to the finish line once every combo was correct. As an example, a tennis ball notes that “He joined you throughout the leg” while the corresponding racket depicted a “selfie” of the Travelocity Roaming Gnome. While Cayla and Raquel arrived first at the Part 1 Pit Stop, that was not the case with the final Pit Stop. Instead, the team (Kim and Penn) who won four previous legs reclaimed their spot and won 1 million dollars!
● Pit Stop: LA Galaxy’s 27,000-seat soccer stadium
Season 33, Episode 10 Finale Results
1st — Kim and Penn, winners
1st place prize — $1 million!
2nd — Cayla and Raquel
3rd — Dusty and Ryan
4th — Arun and Natalia
Episode Info: Teams gather in Switzerland to restart the race nearly 20 months after production was suspended for the COVID-19 pandemic.
Episode Airdate on CBS: Wednesday, January 19th, 2022 at 9 PM
After such a long hiatus, teams competing in The Amazing Race Season 33 were clearly enthusiastic to restart the competition despite the omnipresent threat of the coronavirus pandemic. However, not everyone returned due to various reasons; some of them might have been understandingly leery of travelling and decided not to continue the pursuit of $1 million. As an illustrative (and claustrophobic) example, airline travel in the present situation seems to be a spectacle of unruly passengers being duct-taped to their small seats. My Public Service Announcement to airline companies and CEOs would be something like this: providing spacious seats/aisles/legroom (which means fewer seats with more space all around) would likely encourage your customers to be more relaxed and less confrontational — and less likely to appear on Inside Edition! For whatever the reason(s), four teams did not return to the competition in episode 3: Anthony and Spencer, Caro and Ray, Connie and Sam, and Isaiah and Taylor. Thankfully, though, this brought an opportunity for the two previously eliminated teams to return: Arun and Natalia as well as Michael and Moe.
Throughout this fourth episode, teams travelled across picturesque mountain terrain and through tremendous towns in northeastern SWITZERLAND. Teams began at the Saint Gallen Cathedral in the town of Saint Gallen. In a cameo interview scene within this episode, twin sisters Lala and Lulu told us that their grandmother unfortunately passed away in the months-long interim between episodes 3 and 4. They are dedicating the rest of their Amazing Race journey to her in loving memory.
● From the cathedral in Saint Gallen, teams went to Museumstrasse (Museum Street) and hopped on one of three classic green and yellow buses waiting to take them to Säntis, the highest mountain in Appenzell Innerrhoden canton. As a sidenote, this canton prominently features a black bear on the flag and coat of arms. A fun fact is that someone located atop or near the peak of Säntis can see six countries from that viewpoint: Austria, France, Germany, Italy, Liechtenstein, and of course Switzerland.
● Roadblock (“Who Wants to Take in the View?”): Teams rode a cable car about 8,200 feet and 2,500 meters up to the area of Säntis’ peak. In this Roadblock, one member on each team familiarized himself or herself with the ferrata, a method of walking, jogging, etc. along the mountain ridge while harnessed onto a safety rope along the way.
● The clue from the ridge top brought them to Gasthaus Sonne (Sun Inn) in the town of Urnäsch. The clue box at this location contained Detour clues.
● Detour, choice between “Punch It” or “Toss It”: teams choosing the Punch It option learned about the importance of Swiss belts to the local farming community. Swiss belts are sort of a status symbol. More silver ornaments — which look like decorative belt buckles — are traditionally thought of to indicate more financial wealth. These belts also have cultural and storytelling significance in that the ornaments tell a story in a one-side-to-another order, sort of like a comic strip in the newspaper. Teams utilized various hand tools to attach ornaments in the shape of a calf, farmer with cow, goat, sun, etc. in the correct order based on the example belt.
Teams choosing the Toss It option learned about Fahnenschwingen, a Swiss discipline involving choreographic maneuvers to fling, flip, toss, turn, and twist the national flag. This reminds me of talented color guard groups that do all sorts of tricks with flags of thematic designs and therefore complement high school and university marching band performances all across the United States. Amazing Race teams performed a Fahnenschwingen routine to the satisfaction of a judge to receive their next clue. Completing either the Toss It or Punch It Detour task brought teams with clues in hand to the…
● Pit Stop: Alstätten, a market town
Season 33, Episode 4 Results
1st — Dusty and Ryan
1st place prize — $2,500 each
2nd — Kim and Penn
3rd — Cayla and Raquel
4th — Lala and Lulu
5th — Akbar and Sheri
6th — Arun and Natalia
7th — Michael and Moe
Eliminated from the competition
● Episode info: Eleven teams begin their journey and travel to London.
This post recaps the second hour of The Amazing Race season 33’s two-hour premiere episode on January 5th. Teams continued their journey in London, England, UNITED KINGDOM. After the episode 1 Pit Stop at the National Museum of History, teams then visited the Royal Mail Center (Mail Rail) in Clerkenwell. That facility has sorted and delivered mail by train for over 75 years. The current mail transporting vehicle resembles a modern, domelike version of a small train that an amusement park might have. At Mail Rail, teams encountered a…
● Roadblock (“Who Still Gets Mail?”), in which a team member searched among hundreds of letters and other mail to find the The Amazing Race clue. While the clue cards’ coloration was not as vibrant as usual, the clues were relatively straightforward to discover compared to most tasks in the shows’ extensive history of clue-finding tasks. An example of a task on the other extreme of the clue-finding scale would be the season 31, episode 9 (CROATIA) Detour in which Bret and Chris took hours to find a goblet and three rusty medallions underwater; they gave up the task after struggling to spot the two remaining medallions! Therefore, finding the season 33 clue among several large bins of mail was a relative cake walk compared to the season 31 clue. With relatively few motions of rustling through the mail, Penn and Ray found their clues right away but did not redeem their clues right away; they second-guessed themselves due to how easy the task was! Penn and Ray searched some more to see if there is something else to find, but this allowed other teams to catch up. Let’s just say that the other teams did not second-guess themselves upon finding the clue, so a couple teams found an opportunity to surpass Penn and Ray.
● Teams redeemed their “snail mail” clues and subsequently travelled to Leicester Square (Theater City) to find the episode’s Detour.
● Detour, choice between “Bull’s-Eye Mate” or “Decorate”: teams choosing the Bull’s-Eye Mate option visited the Flight Club Victoria pub and had to throw three darts per team member in each round. Within a round of three throws, each member has to throw one dart that hits the bull’s-eye to advance to the Pit Stop. Teams choosing the Decorate option visited a bakery that displayed fruit-topped cakes resembling the flags of about a dozen or so countries. Before advancing to the Pit Stop, teams were tasked to figure out the flags of two European Union member nations then decorate their cakes — to the best of their artistic ability — to resemble those flags. Flag possibilities included Chile, France (correct), Germany (correct), Hungary (correct), Italy (correct), Jamaica, Lithuania (correct), Norway, South Africa, Thailand, and the United Kingdom. Some teams initially decorated their cakes based on the flags of Norway and/or the United Kingdom, but all Decorate Detour teams eventually chose France and Germany. France’s flag cake was topped with blueberries and raspberries, while the top of Germany’s flag cake featured blackberries, peach slices, and raspberries.
● Pit Stop: Russell Square Metro Station area
● At the sort-of “Pit Stop,” contestants arrived on a double-decker bus parked near the Russell Square Metro Station and enjoyed a cup of tea. Since Phil Keoghan told them to continue their Amazing Race journey right away with a trip to Glasgow, Scotland, no prize was awarded to Dusty and Ryan who arrived in first place. Continue watching The Amazing Race on CBS and/or stay up to date with these recap posts! The next episode is coming very soon: Wednesday, January 12th.
Season 33, Episode 2 Results
1st — Dusty and Ryan
1st place prize — nothing
2nd — Connie and Sam
3rd — Arun and Natalia
4th — Cayla and Raquel
5th — Kim and Penn
6th — Caro and Ray
7th — Anthony and Spencer
8th — Akbar and Sheri
9th — Isaiah and Taylor
10th — Lala and Lulu
Eliminated from the competition? No; non-elimination leg
This is the historic flag of Catió, a city of about 10,000 residents near the Atlantic Ocean in southern GUINEA-BISSAU. Guinea-Bissau was once a colony of Portugal until it declared its independence on September 24th, 1973. Therefore, this colorful Portuguese-era flag may or may not be in use today.
The alternating blue and yellow rectangles remind me of the design of Panama’s flag, which has two white rectangles (top left and bottom right), one blue rectangle (bottom left), and one red rectangle (top right) in the background. Catió’s flag features a crest or crown of fortress towers connected by a crenellated battlement/parapet wall. The central shield pays homage to local agriculture, boating, and fishing industries by displaying two sheaves of rice (or another local crop) as well as a diagonal oar. The Portuguese inscription “Vila de Catió” translates to “City of Catió.”
This city is the regional capital of the Tombali Region. Catió’s neighboring cities and communities include Afuossa Nabiole, Bedanda, Bolama, Buba, Cacine, Caleu, Campeane, Empada, Madina de Baixo, Nhacoba, Quebo, and Sangonha.
This is the flag of Montserrado County, a county in western LIBERIA with about 1.5 million residents and home to Liberia’s national capital, Monrovia. Each of the 15 counties in Liberia has a miniature version of the Liberian flag in the top-left corner of its flag. The light blue circle in the center of Montserrado County’s flag contains a whimsical depiction of a small house surrounded by towering trees.
This county is one of the smallest in Liberia. Its geographic area is 1809.4 square kilometers and 1057.9 square miles, or about 2.5% of Liberia’s area. In addition to Monrovia, cities and communities in Montserrado County include Arthington, Bensonville (county capital), Careysburg, Jimoliba, Mount Coffee, Nyehn, Paynesville, and Zannah.
This is the flag of Amman, a city home to about 4 million residents and serving as the national capital of JORDAN. A large part of this flag is the Arabic spelling, عمان, of Amman. Abstract shapes in the background represent buildings and hills in the city. Communities surrounding Amman in northern Jordan include Al Mafraq, As Salț, Az Zarqā’, Irbid, and Ma’dabā.
Location of Mississippi County, Arkansas, UNITED STATES: northeast Arkansas, bordering the states of Missouri and Tennessee
Population: 46,480 (2010 U.S. Census)
Surrounding counties: Craighead, Crittenden, Dunklin (Missouri), Dyer (Tennessee), Lauderdale (Tennessee), Pemiscot (Missouri), Poinsett, and Tipton (Tennessee)
Towns and cities throughout Mississippi County include Armorel, Bassett, Birdsong, Blytheville, Burdette, Dean’s Island, Dell, Dyess, Etowah, Gosnell, Joiner, Keiser, Leachville, Luxora, Manila, Marie, Osceola, Tomato, Victoria, Whisp, and Wilson. This county has two county seats marked by stars on the flag: Blytheville and Osceola
Location of Abbotsford: About 60 kilometers southeast of Vancouver in British Columbia, CANADA, only about 5 kilometers (3.1 miles) north of the Canada-United States national border (49th Parallel). Surrounding towns and cities include Chilliwack, Kilgard, Matsqui (east), Matsqui (west; First Nations community), Mission, Sahhacum (First Nations community), and Straiton. Population in 2019: 136,000
A neon glow ("Lite-Brite") graphic effect applied to Abbotsford's flag
Location of Chilliwack: South bank of the Fraser River in British Columbia, only about 16 kilometers (10 miles) north of the border. Surrounding towns and cities include Abbotsford, Deroche, Harrison Mills, Kwawkwawapilt (First Nations community), Lake Errock, Rosedale, Squiaala (First Nations community), and Zaitschullachan (First Nations community). Population in 2019: 80,000
Location of Windhoek, the capital of NAMIBIA: Practically right in the center of Namibia in the Region of Khomas. Surrounding towns and cities include Avis, Brakwater, Cimbebasia, Okahanja, Olympia, Otjomuise, and Seeis.
Based on population figures from previous years, GeoFact of the Day estimates the population to be 350,000 in January 2019.
Image above derived from CRW Flags (Flags of the World) (↗)
Location of the Malampa Province:
North-central VANUATU — east of the Coral Sea (Mar Caribe) and in the South Pacific Ocean. Islands in Malampa Province include Akhamb, Ambrym, Atchin, Lovépi, Malekula (Malakula), Maskelyne Islands, Paama, Rano, Sakao, Uri, Uripiv (Urpiv), Vao, Vulai, and Wala. Towns on the islands of Malampa Province — most are on Malekula island unless specified otherwise in parentheses — include Aim, Amelvet, Baiap (Ambrym island), Brennwe, Craig Cove (Ambrym), Endu Pahakoi (Ambrym), Fona, Halos (Lopévi island), Horrok, Lakatoro, Lalinda (Ambrym), Laravet, Letokas, Leviamp, Linbul, Lulep Nessa (Paama island), Matanvat, Nou (Paama), Pinalum, Taram, Tautu, Tavie (Paama), Tevaliout (Paama), Vauleli Nessa (Paama), Vutekai (Paama), and Wihel.
Population: 37,200 (GeoFact of the Day estimate, 2018)
Location of the State of Zulia in VENEZUELA: Located south of the Caribbean Sea (Mar Caribe) in northwest Venezuela. Zulia State almost completely surrounds Lake Maracaibo (Lago de Maracaibo). Zulia maintains a prominent petroleum extracting and refining industry, so the lightning bolt design on its flag is likely to represent the electricity generated from burning petroleum. Towns and cities in Zulia include Maracaibo (state capital), Altagracia, Bobures, Cabimas, Casigua, Ciudad Ojeda, Encontrados, La Concepción, La Solita, Lagunillas, Machiques, Mene Grande, Palmira, Paraguaipoa, Quisiro, Rosario, San Carlos del Zulia, San Rafael, and Sinamaica.
Population: 5,150,000 (GeoFact of the Day estimate, 2018)
Location of Columbia, Missouri, UNITED STATES: Located between Kansas City (120 miles and 193 kilometers away) in the west and Saint Louis (110 mi and 117 km away) in the east; Columbia is in the north-central part of Missouri state. Surrounding towns and cities include Boonville, Centralia, Fulton, Hallsville, Jamestown, Jefferson City (capital of Missouri), and Rocheport.
Population: 125,000 (GeoFact of the Day estimate, 2018)
Location of Durrës, ALBANIA: Located immediately east of the Mediterranean Sea coastline in west-central Albania. Surrounding towns and cities include Maliq Muço, Rrashbull, Shënavlash, Shijak, and Spitallë.
Population: 210,500 (GeoFact of the Day estimate, 2018)
Location of Madeira: an archipelago and autonomous region situated in the North Atlantic Ocean. The islands of Madeira administratively belong to PORTUGAL.
Population: approximately 300,000 (GeoFact of the Day estimate, 2018)
Location of Bandung city: western Java island in southwestern INDONESIA.
Population: 2,800,000 in city limits, 8,600,000 in metro area
(GeoFact of the Day estimate, 2018)
Location of Yogyakarta Special Region: southern shore on Java island in southwestern INDONESIA.
Population: approximately 3,650,000 (GeoFact of the Day estimate, 2018)
Location of the City of Yogyakarta: near the southern shore on Java island in southwestern INDONESIA.
Population: approximately 400,000 (GeoFact of the Day estimate, 2018)
Flag Inscription: KOTA PRADJA JOGJAKARTA (City of Yogyakarta)
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