Up with Geography: Djibouti

Country Name:
Djibouti

Capital:
Djibouti

Continent:
Africa

Maps:

African continent. Djibouti marked with a
black box because it was too small to outline.

A close-up of Djibouti & its neighbors.

Neighbors:
Ethiopia, Eritrea, Somalia

Water Borders:
Bay of Ghoubbet, Gulf of Tadjoura, Gulf of Aden

Total Area:
8,958 square miles

Five Largest Cities:
Djibouti, Ali Sabieh, Tadjoura, Obock, Dikhil

Famous Geographical Point:
Lake Assal

Famous Person:
Hussein Ahmed Salah, Olympic bronze medalist in the 1988 marathon

Book Set In/About:
The Nomads, My Brothers, Go Out to Drink from the Big Dipper by Abdourahman A. Waberi

A collection of poetry about the landscape of Djibouti.

Movie Set In/About:
"Laan" (2011), directed by Lula Ali Ismaïl

This short follows the lives of three young girls, friends, as they navigate a society highly dependent on an addictive plant called khat (apparently this is a serious problem in Djibouti). The internet tells me that Ismaïl is the first Djiboutian director ever. I could find only 3 other films set in Djibouti, all of them by non-Djiboutians, and none of them really about Djibouti. Ismaïl was filming Djibouti's first feature-length film in 2014 but I can find no evidence that she finished it.

Headline of the Day:
"China Opens First Overseas Base in Djibouti" on aljazeera.com