Down the Amazon River
The Amazon rainforest really needs no introduction. Hundreds of thousands of tourists each year go to visit. It has the title of biggest in a lot of things: biggest river, biggest rainforest, biggest wildlife diversity, and biggest piranhas. (Though that’s not a high bar, since all piranhas are in the Amazon). It’s also home to some of the very few remaining areas in the world which have been untouched by human intervention.
Categories: All Blog Posts, Fun Things To Do, South America Uncovered Tags: amazon, brazil, iquitos, macaw, nature tours, peru, rainforest, river, wildlife
Angel Falls, Venezuela
As they are known in Spanish, Salto Angel, is the largest single drop waterfall in the world, plunging almost a kilometer from the Auyantepuy plateau in the south eastern Venezuelan province of Bolívar. It’s scenic location and wonderful surroundings lead it to be a finalist as one of the seven natural wonders of the world.
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The Caribbean and the Spanish Main
Who hasn’t heard of the romantic tales surrounding the Spanish Main? And the Pirates that plied the waters of the Caribbean, swashbuckling and riding the high seas? Of course part of the mysticism of pirate lore is that the Caribbean is a tropical paradise. Sparkling crystal water of soft white sands, warm tranquil weather and nature just a few steps away. Who wouldn’t be entranced?
Categories: All Blog Posts, Attractions, Fun Things To Do, South America Uncovered Tags: amazon, beaches, birdwatching, caribbean, jungle, mountains, rainforest, wildlife
Venezuela at a Glance
Nowadays, Venezuela is becoming most known because of its eccentric and news-generating President, Hugo Chavez. But there is much more to this Caribbean nation than one man, of course. On the crossroads between the romanticized Spanish Main and the impenetrable vastness of the Amazon, there is a feast of activities and sites to see throughout Venezuela.
There are several well-known romantic vacation spots, such as Maracaibo and Curaçao (the latter being the namesake of a special spirit that is popular throughout South America). Most of the Venezuelan attractions are along the Atlantic coast, which is part of the Caribbean, and they are almost all stunning white beaches with palms waving in the breeze, hammocks swaying lazily with a travel snoozing under a straw hat. Across a small stretch of water are the Carabbean islands, with Trinidad and Tobago being the closest.
Categories: All Blog Posts, Attractions, Fun Things To Do, South America Uncovered Tags: amazon, beaches, birdwatching, caribbean, jungle, mountains, rainforest, wildlife
Paraguay at a Glance
Sandwiched between Argentina, Brazil and Bolivia, Paraguay could often go unnoticed if it weren’t for one very large and spectacular thing: The Iguazú Falls, or Foz do Iguaçu in Portuguese. Comparing them to the Niagra falls is to fall sort on the description; they are much bigger and spectacular than that.
But gushing about the falls aside, Paraguay has plenty of interesting places and activities that make it worth a visit. By South American standards, it’s a relative small country –barely the size of Germany- which is located predominantly in an arm of the Amazon basin called the Chaco valley.
Categories: All Blog Posts, Attractions, Fun Things To Do, South America Uncovered Tags: amazon, cataratas de iguazu, chaco, foz do iguazu, iguazu, jungle, paraguay, rainforest
Colombia at a Glance
Colombia has two things that have made it famous, and both of them are actually not deserved: coffee and drug cartels. Yes, Colombia produces a lot of coffee, but Brazil produces a lot more, and frankly, a lot better. And while Colombia has been struggling with a virtual civil war financed by the drug trade, the conflict has stayed mostly on the fringes of society, and the country has blossomed despite it. Now its pretty much coming to an end, and Colombia is as safe to visit as any other Latin American country.
Categories: All Blog Posts, Attractions, Fun Things To Do, South America Uncovered Tags: amazon, beaches, caribbean, coffee, colombia, jungle, rainforest
Brazil at a Glance
Not only is Brazil the largest country on the continent, it’s also one of the largest in the world, both in population and land mass. This means there are lots of things to see. Most of the country is dominated by the Amazon rainforest, which accounts for well over half of the total land surface. Most of it remains unexplored to this day, with indigenous populations dotted throughout living as they did before European influence.
Categories: All Blog Posts, Attractions, Fun Things To Do, South America Uncovered Tags: amazon, beaches, Carnival, copacabana, jungle, rainforest, rio