The Little Land of Long Life
There
is an old saying: the only things that are certain in
life are death and taxes. Yet in Andorra, a small
country in the Pyrenees
mountain range between France and Spain, death
comes slow and taxes are
nonexistent.
This tiny nation is culturally rich, financially
sound, and
tourist-friendly.
You may have a hard time ___1___ Andorra on a map. The
country is just 464 square kilometers. Its
population is
only 73,100, and 67.7 percent of the people there are
immigrants
from other European countries. Because of this ___2___, the
majority of Andorrans speak four languages. The
country is a tax haven,
and many of the world's extremely wealthy
list Andorra
as their home
country because of the great tax laws. In fact, because
taxes are ___3___ nonexistent,
postage stamps
issued by the government are one of the
nation's leading
sources of
income. The tax laws also ___4___ a lot of
tourism, as tax-free
shopping is available
throughout the country.
Impressively,
Andorra currently has the world's highest
life expectancy at a(n) ___5___ of 83.52 years of
age. One theory for this
longevity is
that its tourism-based
economy doesn't include many
strenuous occupations,
so Andorrans aren't ___6___ to
suffer ill
health due to work. Also, the country's low population
limits hazards
like car accidents. No one can say for sure ___7___ the
recipe for
longevity is in this small, mountaintop country.
Whatever the
reasons, the citizens of Andorra are living for many
years of wealth, health, and happiness. |