Hey explorers, Brian here. And what if I told you that today
you are going to be visiting a peninsula, that's not exactly a peninsula? Confused yet?
We'll explain soon. Our lesson objective today is to identify the countries of Southeastern Europe
and their land characteristics, bodies of water, and climate. So let's get to
answering our opening question. Hop on over to Southeastern Europe with me.
Location. Southeastern Europe consists of Albania, Bulgaria, Romania,
Greece, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Croatia, Bosnia Herzegovina, Serbia, Kosovo, Moldova,
and Turkey. Most of these countries are on the landmass which is considered to be the Balkan
Peninsula which stretches into the Mediterranean Sea. But are you ready for a geography
controversy? Oh yeah, it's time for a bunch of map clutching geo scholars to yell at each other.
Okay, here it is. While the peninsula does exist here, yes, this is it, the Balkan Mountains after
which the peninsula is named is way up here in Bulgaria, and get this, the peninsula part,
Greece, is often not even included in the description of the Balkans. What? So calling
this area the Balkans is actually taking liberties with the definition of a peninsula. Most modern
geographers argue that the Balkans are more of a geopolitical zone created by scholars in the past
to delineate an area characterized by ethnic conflict and fragmentation.
For the purpose of our lesson, we will refer to this region as a whole as Southeastern Europe.
The borders of Southeastern Europe are the Black Sea to the east, the Aegean Sea to the southeast,
the Ionian Sea to the southwest, and the Adriatic Sea to the west. In the north, we'll stop roughly
around the Central European Plane; although we will get a bit of overlap. We named them
but in case you didn't notice this area features a whopping 12 countries. by far the largest is
Turkey but we can see that only about 9,000 of its 302,000 square miles actually lie within Europe:
the rest are in Asia. Turkey has long been considered the crossroads between the continents.
Most of the Southeastern European Countries are quite small. 9 of the 12 come in at under
50,000 square miles, about the size of Alabama. Some argue whether or not Kosovo should even be
considered a country. It declared independence from Serbia in 2008 and just over 50 percent of
the UN member states recognized its independence today. The land. Overall, Southeastern Europe
is quite mountainous consisting of the Dinaric Alps, the Balkan Mountains, and the Carpathian
Mountains. You would need to have a sturdy pair of hiking boots to traverse this rugged region.
The Danube, you've heard about it in central Europe, is the main waterway through the region.
It flows through Croatia, Serbia, Romania, Bulgaria, and Moldova and serves as a channel
for shipping and transportation. Aside from the Danube, most rivers of the region are unnavigable.
As it touches several seas the area has copious amounts of coastline. The shores are largely
rugged and craggy. On that note, let's talk about our first sea, the Adriatic. Croatia, Montenegro,
and Albania have plenty of coastline here. Over 3,600 miles in Croatia alone. The Adriatic region
is defined by its karst topography. Caves and sinkholes in the limestone rock contribute to
some beautiful landscapes including Croatia's famous Plitvice Lakes seen here,
and the nearly 250 lakes in Albania; some of which are also formed by glacial activity. All of these
countries have mountainous regions. In Croatia, the Dinaric Alps form its largest peak, Dinara,
at 6,007 feet. Otherwise, the country is quite low-lying at under half of the average altitude
of Albania and one-third that of Montenegro. It features 1,200 beautiful sunny islands.
Montenegro's name comes from the 5,738-foot Mount Lovćen which is nicknamed the Black Mountain.
It's a rugged hilly country with thick forest and the ever-present threat of seismic activity.
The Albanian Alps form Mount Korab, the largest peak in any of the Adriatic countries at 9,068
feet. Three-quarters of Albania is mountainous, but that other quarter is a vast fertile plain
in the west, in which most Albanians live. Greece and Turkey are the Aegean countries. Greece
in the west and Turkey in the East. They occupy an area that is renowned for its volcanic activity.
It's rumored that the island of Santorini, now a picturesque holiday destination, was once the site
of Atlantis- a legendary city which may have been destroyed by a massive earthquake. If you simply
want to enjoy the islands of Turkey and Greece, you can visit one each day for nearly 18 years
before ever reaching the mainland. Of course, you may be alone as many are not occupied. But
with 500 islands in Turkey and a whopping 6,000 in Greece, you'll have plenty to keep you busy.
The largest island in the region is Crete, which is part of Greece. It is home to the
famous Minoan civilization, forerunners to the ancient Greeks. The smaller Greek Islands are
divided regionally into the Ionian and Aegean Islands, and further into smaller subgroups. 80%
of Alabama-sized Greece is mountainous, including the legendary Mount Olympus. In Greek mythology,
the home of the gods. Meanwhile, Turkey is much bigger, about the size of Texas, and most of it,
as we mentioned, is in Asia. In the northwest, the city of Istanbul is split by the Bosporus,
a strait which connects the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara,
which ultimately flows into the Mediterranean. This is the dividing line between Europe and Asia.
Next, we'll move on to the mostly landlocked countries of North Macedonia, Kosovo, Serbia,
and Bosnia and Herzegovina. All of these countries feature regions of higher altitudes with peaks
of 6,500 feet or higher in each. All of these countries are rather small as well. The largest,
Serbia, is about the size of South Carolina; while Kosovo is the size of Rhode Island.
Yep, that's it there, Kosovo's pretty small. Serbia has a large amount, 37%, of arable
land. Most of this is in the northern part of the country which is covered by the Pannonian Plain.
Bosnia and Herzegovina is a country of hills and valleys. Oh, and remember how we mentioned these
countries weren't completely landlocked? Yeah, there's a tiny piece of Bosnia-Herzegovina,
12 miles to be exact, which touches the Adriatic. Bulgaria, Romania, and Moldova are the Black Sea
Countries. They are earthquake-prone but also good for farming. 55% of tiny Moldova contains arable
land, the fourth highest in the world. Romania is the second-largest country in the region.
The Carpathian Mountains form Romania's highest peaks while down in the plains you'll find
the 39% of the country that is really good for farming. And regardless of whether they are the
division of a peninsula or not, it goes without dispute, that the Balkan Mountains do traverse
Bulgaria. Climate. Overall the Balkan Region has a continental climate. While near the Black Sea
it transitions to an oceanic climate in some places. In countries on the Black Sea, winters
can be cool and damp as opposed to drier and colder away from the sea. As expected, however,
the Aegean and Adriatic regions in the south, are more Mediterranean. Some anomalies exist
in the mountains of Montenegro and Albania, which receive some of the highest levels of
rainfall in Europe. Albania also experiences the other extreme, droughts, during the summer in
the southwestern part of the country. Greece and Turkey are the most closely associated
with a Mediterranean climate in the area. These countries have parts that are flooded with sun
throughout the warmer months, perfect for dipping your toes in the water and relaxing on the beach.
Turkey can be a bit harsher inland, however. Severe winters can bring temperatures of negative
40 degrees and snow can remain on the ground for a third of the year and that's not even in the
mountains. So yeah, you won't need your bathing suit and beach chair there. But we're not gonna
leave you out in the cold, in fact, yeah, we'll place you right here in gorgeous Santorini. Just
hope the volcanic crater at its center doesn't blow. Don't worry about it, just enjoy the
fresh-caught fish and what some consider the most beautiful sunset in the world. Well, that does it
for the physical characteristics of Southeastern Europe. Until next time, keep exploring!