Some other great areas very similar to our American West, (in terrain and climatologically, -if often not culturally), are,-

Persia / Iran (which also works out to be right about the size and shape of our Great American West), the entire Kazahkstan / former Soviet Central Asia area, Spain / Iberia (not forgetting Portugal), the Sahara and North Africa, the entire Arabian Peninsula (mostly Saudi, of course), the Israel to Iraq and northward to (and including) Turkey area, places like Namibia's Kalahari and Chile's Atacama deserts, Argentina's Patagonia complete with its gauchos and Pampas, even the Brazilian Sertao and Cerrado, in a sense. Also the great Sinkiang / Tarim / Turpan areas of Western China, Mongolia and the Gobi, Manchuria somewhat, the Himalayas and Tibet, the South American Andes, places like Kashmir, along with Afghanistan and Pakistan, Australia with its Outback and Great Red Center, and Mexico and Canada, as already mentioned by me.

Now for some other places *culturally* Western, -filled with that great pioneering "Spirit of the West"! (if *not* terrainwise or climatologically always so!). These would include Siberia, -the Great Russian "West", which of course is actually East. And its Caucass and Urals. Also Australia and its Outback, Canada and its North, Brazil and its Amazonian and other interior, and the wilds of Borneo and other Indonesian and Phillipine islands. (a little overlap does occur between these two general lists, -though mostly they do not.).

Theres no place totally like our Great American West! But there are a goodly number of places worldwide, -that are a lot like it! [color:"black"] [/color] [email]ScottrezaLogan[/email]