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The Sierra de San Francisco archeological site, located in the central part of Mexico's Baja California peninsula, has a set of rock paintings belonging to what is known as the Great Mural, a pictorial tradition that experts consider to be one of the greatest in the world. It is estimated that these paintings were made at least 7,500 years ago, amid canyons in the area's majestic mountains.

This photograph shows a group of images in the "La Pintada" cave, located on a cliff nearly 200 feet above the bottom of a ravine. La Pintada is more than 550 feet long and its large mural is almost entirely decorated with hundreds of images of human figures wearing strange headdresses and bearing long spears and arrows painted black and ochre tones; different animals are also portrayed.

In 1993, UNESCO designated the rock paintings of Sierra de San Francisco a World Heritage Site.

This photograph is courtesy of Ecoturismo Kuyimá.

This entry was posted on February 7, 2014 at 12:24 PM and has received 150 views. There are currently 0 comments. Print this entry.

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Imagine staying at a hotel surrounded by the most delicious fruit trees and plants--where every trail you explore offers a sweet, natural snack. This is what you'll find at Fond Doux Holiday Plantation, on the Caribbean island of St. Lucia, which features a delicious "edible landscape."

Oranges, bananas, starfruit, coconut, coffee, nutmeg, cinnamon, and giant pods of cocoa grow all over this 19th century colonial plantation. In this picture, you can see their home grown cocoa beans drying in the sun after the fermentation process. These are used as the main ingredient for many delicious recipes, like their famous cocoa tea!

This entry was posted on January 24, 2014 at 1:39 PM and has received 323 views. There are currently 0 comments. Print this entry.

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The magnificent Iguazu Falls, located about where Paraguay, Brazil, and Argentina join borders, are ranked as the second largest waterfalls in the world. This UNESCO World Natural Heritage Site is a collection of 275 falls that extend over 1.7 miles in total, reaching anywhere from 197 to 269 feet in height. The Iguazu Falls were discovered in 1542 by Spanish commander Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca. They were created by a geological fault about 200,000 years ago, but ancient myths have a different explanation:

It is said that many years ago, there was a big and monstrous serpent god who lived in the Iguazú River, and its name was Boi. Once a year, the Guaraní people had to sacrifice a beautiful maid as an offer to Boi by throwing her to the river. All of the tribes, including the ones that lived far away, were invited for this ceremony. One year, a young warrior named Tarobá found out that the beautiful maid Naipí was chosen for the sacrifice. He rebelled to elderly members of the tribe, trying in vain to convince them not to offer her.

To save his beloved Naipí, he decided to escape with her on the night before the sacrifice. They stole a canoe and fled down the river. But Boi caught them and became furious. He drove his serpent body into the ground, which split the river and formed the falls, engulfing Naipí and Tarobá in their canoe.

Tarobá became the trees on the cliffs above the falls, and the beautiful Naipí was transformed into a rock. Their punishment is to always see each other but never be together again.

Boi retreated into a cave, where he watches Naipí and Tarobá be forever separated. However, on sunny days, a rainbow surpasses Boi's power and joins the trees to the rock, symbolizing Naipí and Tarobá's eternal love.

Photo courtesy of Yacutinga Lodge.

This entry was posted on January 10, 2014 at 2:10 PM and has received 370 views. There are currently 0 comments. Print this entry.

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From the early seventeenth century to the early nineteenth century, the Spanish established a great number of Catholic missions throughout what is now northern Mexico and the southwestern United States. These settlements were built to spread the Christian faith among indigenous communities and also served as a vanguard for the expansion of Spanish settlements and mining operations. Some of these sites and colonial structures still remain and are wonderful places to visit, especially in places where they are still essential to local cultural and religious activities.

The San Ignacio mission, located in the town of San Ignacio in Baja California Sur, Mexico, is one of these alluring cultural remnants. It was founded by the Jesuit missionary Juan Bautista de Luyando in 1728, and about 60 years later the Jesuits built an impressive church that is known as one of the most beautiful of all Baja's mission churches for its elaborate facade, engraved stone plaques, and plaster ornamentation. This church is largely in its original condition thanks to a 1976 restoration and is used to this day by the local community for masses, weddings, funerals, and daily worship.

Ecoturismo Kuyimá, a sustainable tour operator managed by a community council consisting 95% of local people, offers tours to San Ignacio and its church.

(Source, source)

This entry was posted on December 6, 2013 at 11:35 AM and has received 1157 views. There are currently 0 comments. Print this entry.

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Guanacaste, a province located in the northwestern part of Costa Rica, showcases some of the most beautiful sites in the country – and the beautiful Catarata Oropéndola is one of them! This waterfall spills an impressive 82 feet (25 meters) in a natural shower to a sparkling turquoise pool below. It is placed in a beautiful vegetated canyon of Río Blanco (White River), close to the Rincón de la Vieja volcano, making a picturesque tropical oasis that is inviting for a refreshing swim.

Hotel Hacienda Guachipelín organizes horseback riding and hiking tours to Oropéndula waterfall. Visitors can go by horseback 45 minutes on a scenic trail and then have a short walk to get to the waterfall canyon. There are two options available for those who prefer to enjoy a hike. One departs from the hacienda by minibus to the parking lot of the national park (10 minutes); from there, they walk 15 minutes to the waterfall. The second option is hiking a scenic forest trail from the hotel to the waterfall – approximately 1.5 hours each way.

This entry was posted on November 29, 2013 at 5:33 PM and has received 424 views. There are currently 0 comments. Print this entry.

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Machu Picchu is perhaps Peru's main attraction, but this country has many more impressive architectural gems worth visiting. One prime example is an Incan fortress located two kilometers north of Cuzco called Sacsayhuamán, a Quechua word meaning "place where the hawk is satisfied." The fort, which offers an impressive view of Cuzco, is so named because it was seen as a ferocious bird that guarded the empire's capital. Some archeologists theorize that Sacsayhuamán was not a fortress, but the Royal House of the Sun, created to worship the great sun god Inti.

Sacsayhuamán features murals more than 29 feet high on exterior walls made of stone blocks that weigh more than 350 tons. The complex has underground tunnels, amphitheaters, terraces, aqueducts, and spaces for performing rituals. It is estimated that its construction took about 50 years and required the labor of approximately 20,000 men.

This photo is courtesy of the sustainable tour operator Andean Adventure Tours.

This entry was posted on November 15, 2013 at 3:59 PM and has received 1124 views. There are currently 0 comments. Print this entry.

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One of the architectural jewels of the beautiful city of Antigua in Guatemala is the Hotel Museo Casa Santo Domingo, a historical relic that housed one of the largest convents in the Americas: the order of the followers of St. Dominic de Guzmán.

Casa Santo Domingo promises to "transport you to another time and place" from the moment you pass through its doors. The property includes 128 rooms that showcase elements of the 16th century Baroque period. It also offers a "Museum Walk" tour that connects the city's five museums. On the tour, you'll visit extensive collections of pre-Columbian and colonial objects as well as a contemporary art gallery.

This photograph shows one of Casa Santo Domingo's beautiful gardens on a clear night, the stars and a nearby volcano framing the shot in the distance.

This entry was posted on November 1, 2013 at 5:14 PM and has received 629 views. There are currently 0 comments. Print this entry.

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Dominica is a small island (only 750 km2) but it has a tremendous and unspoiled natural wealth – in fact, it has been nicknamed the "Nature Isle of the Caribbean"!

One of the most amazing places in Dominica is the Morne Trois Pitons National Park, a luxuriant natural tropical forest and an UNESCO World Heritage Site centered on a 1,342-m-high volcano with the same name. The sights in the Morne Trois Pitons (which means "mountain of three peaks") include the Valley of Desolation, an area with about 50 fumaroles and hot springs; a flooded fumarole called the Boiling Lake; Titou Gorge ("little throat"), a small waterfall situated deep in a water-filled gorge; and Emerald Pool, located at the base of a 40 foot waterfall.

This is photo from Rosalie Bay Resort, a sustainable hotel that is located at the foothills of the Morne Trois Pitons.

This entry was posted on October 4, 2013 at 7:55 PM and has received 895 views. There are currently 0 comments. Print this entry.

The island of Ometepe is quite a unique place: formed by two twin volcanoes joined by a low isthmus, giving it the shape of an hourglass, it is the largest volcanic island in a freshwater lake in the world.

There are many activities to enjoy in Ometepe: hiking the steep volcanoes, riding motorbikes, visiting waterfalls and eco-farms, swimming in the massive blue lake, and going kayaking along the Istian River– one of the most popular tourist attractions!

Istian is a sanctuary for resident and migratory birds. The river and the swamp are not large, but there are a few different canals to paddle down where you can enjoy being surrounded by rich vegetation and spotting birds, monkeys, turtles, and caimans. During the relaxing ride, you will also be treated to some of the most amazing views of the Maderas and Concepcion volcanos.

This photo is from Totoco Eco Lodge, which helps guests arrange tours on the Istian River.

This entry was posted on September 20, 2013 at 12:24 PM and has received 621 views. There are currently 0 comments. Print this entry.

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Caracol, located in Belize's Chiquibul National Park, 4 miles from the Guatemalan border, is the largest Maya archaeological site in the country. Around 650 AD, during the peak of its development and expansion, the urban area of Caracol had a radius of approximately 10 km and covered an area much larger than the city of Belize today. In fact, this archaeological site is larger than the impressive ruins of Tikal in Guatemala, but most of it has not yet been restored.

So far, the three main plazas that have been discovered in Caracol are surrounded by pyramid-shaped temples and various sculptures. More than a hundred tombs and a huge number of hieroglyphic inscriptions have also been found. One of the main attractions in this refuge is the "Caana" complex, which in Maya means "place in the sky," since it rises more than forty meters above the plaza below.

This photograph is from the San Ignacio Hotel Resort, which organizes tours to Caracol and other archaeological sites in Belize.

This entry was posted on September 6, 2013 at 1:36 PM and has received 904 views. There are currently 0 comments. Print this entry.