Latin America

This Week’s New York Times: Homestay in Guatemala and a Low Opinion for Slum Tourism

Wednesday, August 11, 2010
This Week’s New York Times: Homestay in Guatemala and a Low Opinion for Slum Tourism

Whenever we travel, we don’t feel like writing about travel – ironic, no?  So, since we just got back from a nice road trip in Chile, we’ll leave you with the following two articles from this week’s New York Times: 1.    An opinion column on the nastiness of slum tourism.  We’ve written about this before but... »

Travelers to Mexico Can Breathe Easy

Thursday, April 1, 2010
Travelers to Mexico Can Breathe Easy

Good news, Captain.  If you’re traveling to the “D.F.” or as many Mexicans call it, ”Mexico,” (meaning Mexico City; and yes, it’s confusing when you’re in Monterrey, Mexico and someone asks if you’ve been to “Mexico” - like, duh, yeah?), you will not be as overwhelmed by the poor air quality as you would have been... »

What is a Trip of a Lifetime? If Yours Includes a 10-day Adventure in the Galapagos Islands, Check This Out

Thursday, March 25, 2010
What is a Trip of a Lifetime?   If Yours Includes a 10-day Adventure in the Galapagos Islands, Check This Out

“Trip of a Lifetime” – what does this phrase mean to you?  We’ve never given it much thought but only because we hope and plan to travel so much to many unique and fun places that we hope all our travels would be considered a trip of a lifetime.  Does it mean: Your one chance to... »

The Best Eco-Friendly Beach Destinations

Thursday, February 11, 2010
The Best Eco-Friendly Beach Destinations

With a record snowfall already in our little corner of the world and more than a month of winter to go, we can think only of the sun’s rays beating down on our bathing suited bodies. (Yes, a few more weeks on the elliptical will help that fantasy be a little more appealing.)  Here... »

Building from Scratch the Best Eco-Tourism Project in the History of the Universe

Monday, January 4, 2010
Building from Scratch the Best Eco-Tourism Project in the History of the Universe

After a particularly inspiring trip to Chile this holiday season, we are embarking on a plan to fulfill a long-awaiting dream of opening and operating our own ecotourism facility and program.  Yes, unless we get financial backing (dream on, sistah), this plan and its implementation may be many years in the making.  But, we... »

Galapagos: People or Eco-System and Do We Have to Choose?

Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Galapagos: People or Eco-System and Do We Have to Choose?

Simon Romero of the New York Times writes about the Galapagos Islands’ problem of overpopulation and increased immigration, a trend that is affecting the islands’ eco-system and contributing to the decision to place the islands on the United Nations’ list of endangered heritage sites in 2007. Increased tourism over the past two decades has also... »

Lodging in Zihuatanejo, Mexico

Monday, July 6, 2009
Lodging in Zihuatanejo, Mexico

Ironic, isn’t it, that this site is about travel and then when we actually do travel, we have a hard time figuring out what to write about?  Thus the silence lately. We just need to dive in, right?  We recently got back from Zihuatanejo, Mexico and had a wonderful time.  One of the reasons we... »

Cultural Tourism in Argentina Heating Up

Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Cultural Tourism in Argentina Heating Up

Is it finally time to head down to Buenos Aires like you know you’ve been wanting to do for years now?  Sure, buy a leather jacket, eat some steak, but don’t think you’re going to find your own Maria Belen right away, alright?  Let’s not go overboard on the whole cultural tourism thing, people. »

Being a Local in Brazil

Monday, June 15, 2009
Being a Local in Brazil

Our friend Irene Edwards over at GreenSpot just got back from Brazil and had one particular experience that really stood out.  Here’s her story: We stayed at the beautiful and isolated Costao Do Santinho Resort, where you can easily get lost in the relaxing ambiance of the Island where it’s located. As I was sitting on... »

Alert: Ecotourists in Peru Leading Birds to Stress Out, Poop

Sunday, May 31, 2009

A new study has found that noisy birders in the Peruvian Amazon have been found to have a detrimental effect on the hoatzin birds. “The sound of even a quiet conversation caused the birds to begin clucking and defecating – a common defense response – at longer approach distances than for quiet approaches. The noisiest... »

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