A visitor from the west soon realizes that the cultural antecedents so familiar from Europe's origins are absent here, and the resulting confluence of sights and sounds wash over the mind like a dream.

The continent's boarders shift as we contemplate both geography and geo-politics. From the Black Sea in the west to China and Japan in the far east, Asia holds one wonder after the next to experience and see. Its highest point is Mount Everest, rising 8,848 meters (29,028 feet) above sea level. The continent's lowest point is the Dead Sea, the surface of which is approximately 400 m (1,312 feet) below sea level. Asia's longest river is China's four thousand mile Yangtze. Within Asia's boarders is the vast Caspian Sea, surrounded by several central Asian nations. The sub-continent of India, the vast nation of China, the smaller industrial powers of Japan, South Korea and Thailand all figure into the amazingly complex matrix that is Asia.