San Marino

San Marino claims to be the world's oldest surviving republic, founded in 301 AD by a Christian stonemason named Marinus who fled Roman persecution and established a community on Mount Titano. Whether or not the founding date is exactly right, the republic has been continuously self-governing for well over a millennium, which is genuinely impressive for a micro-state of 61 square kilometers entirely surrounded by Italy.

The country sits atop Mount Titano in the Apennines, and the views from the three medieval towers that crown the ridgeline are spectacular - on a clear day you can see the Adriatic coast. San Marino has its own stamps (collectors love them), its own football team (which has won exactly one competitive international match in its entire history), and a peculiar governing system where two Captains Regent serve as joint heads of state for exactly six months at a time. It's tiny, it's touristy, and it's entirely possible to walk across the entire country in a day, but there's something charming about a place that has stubbornly maintained its independence while empires rose and fell around it.