Many people have heard of laughably tiny, but UN-recognized “countries” and city-states such as Andorra (181 sq. miles), Liechtenstein (62 sq. miles), and Tuvalu (10 sq. miles), but what about the republic of Molossia (6.3 acres of Nevada), the Conch Republic (Key West), or the sovereign nation of Lovely (an East End flat in London)? These and other experiments in declaring your own state are covered in a new Lonely Planet guide, Micronations, published this month. Each “nation” gets a write-up of their government, local customs, passport and visa requirements and things to see and do in the vicinity. The Kingdom of North Dumpling on an island off of Connecticut, for example, seceded from the State of New York led by Segway inventor Dean Kamen, who declared himself Lord Dumpling and instituted a new government including a ministry of nepotism and a ministry of brunch. Lovely, the creation of British comedian Danny Wallace, lacks territory, but currently has 58,000 Web-recruited “citizens,” a flag, currency (the I.O.U) and a national motto: “Die dulci freureâ€? (Have a nice day). Getting official recognition of their endeavors is understandably difficult for many of these self-declared presidents and monarchs, but being listed in a major guidebook series has got to be a start. (via World Hum)

Elsewhere:
- “‘Home-made nations’ guide launched (Guardian)
- “Born to rule” (The Australian)