Nearly 50 years ago, Donald Rickerd and his wife Julie, Rékai Rickerd, bought two islands.
While living on Zavikon Island in Canada, he also owns the island just 10 metres away, which belongs to the United States.
This unusual scenario means Mr Rickerd effectively lives in two countries simultaneously, and the bridge he uses daily is often called the shortest international bridge in the world.
This is due to a boundary agreement drafted between the two countries, which states that no island can be split into two territories. However, no law stops the islands’ connection via a bridge.
Zavikon Island, his main property, is one of about 1,800 islands that comprise the Thousand Islands archipelago on the Saint Lawrence River. The smaller island serves as the backyard.
An old postcard of Zavikon Island even shows flags marking the supposed international boundary – a Canadian flag (after 1931) of the bridge near the larger island and an American flag on the other side.
However, the narrative may not be entirely accurate. Some sources indicate that both islands are actually within Canadian territory, and the boundaries within the Saint Lawrence River are often ambiguous due to its winding waters.
The other shortest international bridge in the world – just 3.2 metres long – crosses the border between Portugal and Spain. When crossing the bridge, you change countries and time zones – with Spain using CET/CEST and Lisbon on GMT/BST.
The El Marco bridge, built in 2008 and funded by the EU, is situated in the Alentejo region of Portugal and connects the small village of Várzea Grande with the neighbouring Spanish village of El Marco in Extremadura.
Meanwhile, the world’s longest bridge stretches for over 102 miles and connects Shanghai and Nanjing in China. The Danyang–Kunshan Grand Bridge opened in 2011 and crosses the Yangtze River delta.
Building costs as much as $10 billion (£7.9 billion).
