All About Asia

Many superlatives can be used to describe the continent of Asia, covering 30% of the Earth's land area, it is the largest of the seven continents, about two times the size of North America. Asia is the most populated with over 4 billion people, which is approximately 60% of the world's population. Two countries in Asia, China and India, are the first and second most populated countries in the world, with 1.4 billion and 1.3 billion people respectively as of 2016.

As such a large continent, Asia has lengthy borders, with the Ural Mountains to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Pacific Ocean to the west, and Indian Ocean to the south. The highest point on Earth, Mount Everest at 29,029 feet, is in the Tibetan region of the Himalayan Mountains, and its lowest point, the Dead Sea, 1,410 feet below seas level.

The bodies of water in Asia includes its longest river, the Yangtze River, nearly 4,000 miles long, and the Caspian Sea is Asia's biggest lake with its coastline shared by five countries and is one of the deepest lakes in the world. The driest place on the continent is the Gobi Desert, but it is a cold desert mostly covering north and northwest China, and southern Mongolia.

Asia is a diverse country with its many people rich in its races, cultures, and languages, and in its climates. Several world religions originated in Asia such as Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, and Hinduism. The country also has eight different climate types: deciduous forest, coniferous forest, alpine mountain, rainforest, desert, tundra, grassland, and savanna. The desert, mountain, and tundra are the least populated.

In all there are 48 countries, with several Middle East countries including Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and the United Arab Emirates. Russia and Turkey are two countries that are also a part of the continentof Europe, and Taiwan, recognizes itself as a separate country, but technically is a part of China.

One other country of Asia is Japan and its capital city its capital city, Tokyo. It is a nation of islands with over 6,800 of them along the Pacific coast. It is also home to Mount Fuji and 126 million people. Vietnam has 93 million people and was the location of the Vietnam War between 1955 and 1975, and its capital city is Hanoi. Vietnam borders China to the north and the South China Sea to the east.

There are a wide variety animals and plants due to the diverse climates in addition to the diverse population. Reindeer, foxes, and wolves are found in the tundra region, camels and lizards live in the desert, bears are found in the coniferous forest, and the mountainous region of China is home to the giant panda. Other animals include snow leopards, polar bears, Komodo dragons, and Asian elephants, which are much smaller than African elephants.

Finally, attractions and landmarks of Asia include its largest Mountain, Everest, known as the 'Mother Goddess of the Sky', and in China, the Chinese imperial palace was part of the Forbidden City between 1420 and 1912, located in the center of Beijing, the capital city of China In Japan, the Great Buddha of Kamakura is seated on the grounds of a Buddhist temple and is nearly 44 feet tall. In Middle Eastern Iran is the Freedom Tower called the Azadi Tower, built in 1971, famous for its modern and ancient architectural styles, it is 54 feet tall.