I set up this pathfinder to guide students who are researching other countries and cultures for geography classes.    The links below are geographic and cultural research tools.

I.  Get an Overview.

Begin  research by using a general travelguide or an encyclopedia of nations for an overview of information aboutthe country you plan to research.   I have selected 3 differentsources for getting an overview of a country:  an online travel guide,an online specialized encyclopedia for the nations of the world and a traveloguelocator that lets the user find stories of journeys made by tourists to a foreign land.

Lonely Planet Online Travel Guide This is the most comprehensive travel guide on the internet.  Gives fundamental information about a nation, its history and  its culture.  The guide gives advice to travelers on matters of transportation and accommodation,  recreation, natural and cultural attractions, entertainment and cuisine.

e-Conflict World Encyclopedia This encyclopedia of nations is the internet's best source of information for the nations of the world.  This website is so much in demand that access is best between 10 PM and 10 AM EasternStandard Time.

World Sites Atlas This web directory enables you to find travelogues (photographs with personal narratives) of many listed countries

II.  Gather Maps.

Maps are the most essential tool for studyinggeography.  The internet has a variety of map sources.  Political maps help students identify boundaries and find important places.  Topological maps show the physical terrain of a region to locate mountains,valleys, plains and plateaus.  Satellite maps are photographs takenby satellite cameras that can be enlarged to show streets and structuresas seen from space.

National Geographic Expeditions The National Geographic Society offers online outline maps that show political boundaries,  surrounding nationsand bodies of water, major rivers, capital and major cities for the nationsof the world in basic or detailed formats.  These maps can be printedthrough the web browser.

Global Gazetteer Gazetteers are geographical dictionaries.  This web site locates road maps for over 2.8 million major cities of theworld.

Maps Worldwide  Assorted search tools to find political mapsand satellite maps of nations and cities around the world from Yahoo, X-pedia and Terra  Server.

Cities Atlas This site links basic street maps and encyclopedia articles for the world's major cities.

III.   Enhance working with maps with these tools that
         calculate distances and determine time.
 

Time Zone Finder The Hammond Map Company has put online this tool that lets you find the time for any place in the world.

How Far Is It?  This Indonesian site lets you find the distance between any two major world cities.

IV.   Learn about the world's weather,  eco-systems,
        mountains and rivers.
 

Eco World The complete source for information on species, ecosystems, and projects to preserve them, as well as a guide to earthfriendly products and services, eco-tours and green investing.

Mountains of the World See pictures of mountains.  This site is organized by continents.

Rivers and River Systems of the World  Links to information provided by the SaltLake City Library..

Weather Underground This weather search lets you find the weather for any city, state or zip code, or country.

V.  Study thePolitical Geography of the World.
 

Natural Resources of the World  The World Fact Book's list of nations and their resources for industrial and agricultural production.

Currency Exchange By using this currency converter, you can find what your dollar is worth in foreign money.

Flags of the World  Find flags for most of the world's nations.  If this site is not available, click on the link below for national anthems and follow the links to the finder for national flags.

National Anthems of the World Hear midi sound clips of the national anthems for most of the world's nations. This page also has links for finding flags of the world's nations.  Quick Time midi plug-in required.

United Nations Industrial Development Organization  This international database lets you find economic statistics concerning manufacturing and international trade for any nation that is in the U.N.

Background Notes from the U. S. Department of State The U. S. Department of State keeps details on the governments of most of the world's nations.

Infonation Find facts and statistics about the populations of the world's nations.

VI.  These references help you learn about the many
        contributions people have made to the cultural
        world.
 

Foreign Languages for Travelers A web translator for 74 major languages spoken throughout the world.  Learn a few words in the foreign language spoken by the people you are studying.

Global Gourmet Everything about ethnic foods and  ingredients, holiday food traditions, religious dietary practices, regional food customs, recipes, fun facts,  & cultural nutrition resources.

The Worldwide Holiday and Festival Site This site will help you know the holidays and festivals celebrated by various countries.

The One World Global Calendar  This site combines calendars of the world's cultures to show holidays in the current year. This tool is handy for travelerswho want to find the banks open when they arrive at a foreign destination.

World/ Reggae Music Directory  The Lycos directory takes you to MP3 listings that will enable you to hear clips of music for almost any global culture.  Free MP3 sample downloads may not be available for the music you are seeking.

World's Religions and Scriptures This web site presents the basic beliefs of the religions of the world and has the religions organized geographically byglobal regions.

Great Structures of the World This site lets you see the world's most famous buildings or bridges and celebrates international architecture.

Yahoo World Literature Directory The Yahoo directory helps you search for works of literature for many cultures of the world.

International Folk Art The About.Com web directory helps you find articles about crafts from all regions of the world.

Tales of Wonder  The award winning web site anthology of folk and fairy tales from around the world.

International Folk Dance The Folk Dance Association's web site includes a directory to various styles of international folk dances.

"Ethnic" Costume and Textile Links  Links to web pages for traditional ethnic dress.

VII.  These references guide you to the study of  the
        world's history.
 

Gateway to World History Inter-net links to online guides and references for the study of the history of the world and its nations.

Rulers of the World This site lets you search for biographies of the leaders of the nations of the world. The list goes back to 1900.

World  History Timelines Timelines for the major historical events of the world's continents.

VIII.   Biographical references help you learn more
           about the world's famous people.
 

Biographical Dictionary A biographical dictionary helps you find information on the lives of famous people: leaders, artists, celebrities,  writers, musicians, composers, scientist, inventors, philosophers and educators.

Historical World Leaders  An outstanding page of  inter-net linksfor students doing  biographical research.

Web Museum, Paris -- Famous Artists  A list of the world's most famous sculptors,painters and designers with biographical articles and pictures of their major works.

Worldwide Internet Music Resources:  Composers  An alphabetical list of  most of the world's most famous composers with links to biographies and on-line referencesto their lyrical compositions and orchestral opuses.

Great Writers and Poets  Links to biographies and works about the world's greatest writers and poets.

Freeality Biographies -- Important People A metasearch engine for finding biographicalinformation on the internet.

Science, Technology & Medicine -- Biographical References  Links to biographical information for scientists and to resources for scientific biography.

Celebrities & Supermodels Mega Links  Many links to inter-net sites for the fans of contemporary film stars, stage actors and actresses, television personalities, popular music recording artists, and athletes.

IX.   These  resources are  for corresponding with
        people and organizations in foreign countries.
 

Embassies and Consulates Contact embassies and consulates for visas and information about living overseas.

Penpal Garden The Penpal Garden is a free international pen friendship service online.

World Chambers of Commerce This site is a web directory with links to all the chambers of commerce in the world.

X.   Teachers can consult these curriculum resources
        for using the inter-net to design lesson plans.
 

Teaching Geography Through the Inter-Net World Wide Web links to geography courses online.

The National Geographic Society's Geography Education Guides Teaching units for educators, reference links, materials from the National Geographic Society.  Based on U.S. National Educational Standards for Teaching Geography.

Kathy Schrock's Guide to Educational Resources Kathy Schrock has authored the internet's premier educators' guide. The Discovery School offers lesson plans, activities and guides for curriculum development in all content areas.

School District of Philadelphia:  Curriculum Frameworks for the Social Studies The curriculum frameworks presents best practices and standards for planning units of study.

Classroom Connect:  Resources for Teachers Lesson plans, evaluation guides and other teaching resources from the nationally acclaimed Classroom Connect family of online education community resources.