!!!The Bahamas %%image_right [{GoogleMap location='The Bahamas' type='embedded' zoom='bounds' width='450' height='350'}] %% [{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. %%menu-geo %%cols-r * %%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] ---- * %%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] %% %% [{Metadata Suchbegriff='Caribbean'}]