!!!The Bahamas
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[{GoogleMap location='The Bahamas' type='embedded' zoom='bounds'  width='450' height='350'}]
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[{Image src='bf-lgflag.gif' class='image_left' height='150' width='226'}]

Lucayan Indians inhabited the islands when Christopher COLUMBUS first set foot in the New World on San Salvador in 1492. British settlement of the islands began in 1647; the islands became a colony in 1783. Since attaining independence from the UK in 1973, The Bahamas has prospered through tourism, international banking, and investment management. Because of its geography, the country is a major transshipment point for illegal drugs, particularly shipments to the US and Europe, and its territory is used for smuggling illegal migrants into the US.
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* %%icon-geo,geo %% [Geography|Geography/America/Bahamas,_The/Geography]
* %%icon-geo,maps %% [Maps|Geography/America/Bahamas,_The/Maps]
* %%icon-geo,culture %% [Culture|Geography/America/Bahamas,_The/Culture]
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* %%icon-geo,special %% [Special Information|Geography/America/Bahamas,_The/Special_Information]
* %%icon-geo,picture %% [Pictures|Geography/America/Bahamas,_The/Pictures]
* %%icon-geo,community %% [Community Contributions|Geography/America/Bahamas,_The/Community_Contributions]
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[{Metadata Suchbegriff='Caribbean'}]