Anywhere you live, there will be things you love and things you hate about the place. Korea, is a place where the good overwhelmingly surpass the bad. I won’t lie and say that it is flawless, as there are also things I dislike about Korea (that list will be coming soon!) but I thought it would be best to start on a positive note.
I have been fortunate enough to have been able to live in this country for the last 3.5 years and I must say that they have been the best years of my life. Whoever told you that those days would be in college Read more →
When I was making my itinerary to Peru a few weeks ago, I was sure I had hit all the highlights. Trip to Machu Picchu, check. Extra tickets to climb Waynapicchu, check (here is the official site to book). Place to stay at the Huacachina Oasis, check. Figure out how to see the Nazca Lines without being hustled or breaking the bank, check. I thought I had all of the angles covered. Then, I received an email from my friend Sarah who was going on this trip with me. She suggested that we do something that gave back to the local people directly. Now, why didn’t I think of that? Read more →
click to enlarge [No image modifications]Location:Nasca, Ica, Peru
Visited: June 30, 2013
Opinion and Background:
[Note: This post is dedicated to the Columbian guy who was on the same plane and asked if I could upload the pictures I took. Also, for the purposes of originality, I noted any alterations I made to the pictures.]
The Nasca (sometimes spelled “Nazca”) and Pampa Lines and Geoglyphs are some of the more mysterious finds of ancient Peru. Tagged as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, they are a set of drawings depicting animals, geometrical shapes, and people which were carved on the desert floor near the towns of Nasca and Pampa nearly two thousand years ago. The drawings are amazing because they range from 30 meters (“the astronaut”) to over 300 meters across (“the heron”) meaning they can only be truly appreciated from the sky, which begs the obvious question, why would a civilization that lacked aviation technology make something that would only be seen from above? (Cue dramatic music and Read more →
Living in Korea for the last few years has given me a new and rather unexpected perspective I would not otherwise have. That is to say, if I hadn’t lived here, I probably wouldn’t have written the article you are reading right now. I know, it sounds weird, so let me explain. South Korea is a hotbed that attracts English speaking foreigners from all over the (native-English-speaking) world. Alright fine, Americans and Canadians. In California, we live in a bubble (I don’t mean that offensively) where our perceptions of Mexico influenced by our friends, and in my case, family which happen to be Mexican. Pretty much everyone in California is either Mexican, or knows quite a few Mexicans, giving you (us?) kind of an ‘inside-scoop’ into the culture.
With that said, what does the rest of the country, and by extension, the rest of the world think of Mexico? The people I have met in Korea (foreigners in this case, but also Koreans) have given me an idea of the misconceptions. Given what often makes the headlines, I guess I shouldn’t be surprised, but it isn’t pretty. In addition, I was surprised that very few people have actually been to Mexico, with the exception of border towns, given how close our two countries (okay three, you’re included this one time Canada) are to each other. Maybe the title is a bit deceiving as some of the items on this list are, to some extent, true. Nonetheless, this list hopes to calm your fears about traveling to Mexico, and/or to give you an insight to encourage you to visit what is easily (bias alert) one of the best countries in the world.
Here are people’s misconceptions about Mexico…
5) Mexico is a Third World Country
Credit: theatlantic.com
First off, what does that even mean? The term ‘third world’ was invented Read more →
While planning my Italy itinerary, I had the good fortune of knowing a friend who had recently visited, and for the first time in my life, I took her advice when she insisted that I skip staying the night. The area is walled off from the rest of the city, which actually looked much prettier than I expected, but she was right in pointing out that the tower and plaza were the main attraction.
