8/ Cyprus: the Island of Love
Legend has it that the beautiful Aphrodite emerged nude from the waves that crash on the shore in Cyprus.
9/ Korea: the Land of the Morning Calm
This refers to a translation for the old name for Korea, Choson, literally meaning ‘morning freshness’, allegedly in reference to their relations with China during the Ming dynasty, while it was the Yi dynasty that reigned in Korea.
10/ France: the Hexagon
A name for Metropolitan France because of its characteristic shape. Nothing more complicated than that!
11/ Spain and Portugal: the Iberian Peninsula
It sounds fancy but the name is fairly banal: it refers to a mountainous region that’s most associated with the countries of Spain and Portugal.
12/ Finland: the Land of a Thousand Lakes
Speaks for itself really! There are apparently 187,888 lakes in Finland. At last count anyway….
13/ Guatemala: the Land of Eternal Spring
This Central American country has a temperate climate all year round, which is why it is known as the Land of Eternal Spring.
14/ Haiti: The Pearl of the Antilles
The Pearl of the Antilles, a poetic nickname given to Haiti by the colonists of the French Ancien Régime, and a few centuries later, adopted by the tourist industry.
