Visiting Wine Country – Mendoza, Argentina

One person says “Mendoza, Argentina,” and all people immediately think of wine. After spending a week in this beautiful city, I concluded that there is good reason for this. It is, after all, where I fell in love with Malbec.

This small city of about 115k people, should not be missed while venturing around the Southern regions of South America. With hundreds of wineries (and counting), Mendoza has been named one of the nine “Great Capitals of Wine” in the world. The Greater Mendoza region is the largest wine-producing area in Latin America. And wine tourism is booming!
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May 4, 2014

Wandering Around Valparaiso, Chile

After having the privilege of spending a weekend wandering around Valparaiso, Chile, I am saddened to read of the unfortunate event that occurred within the past month. As one of my favorite stops on a six month journey through South America, I’m finding it difficult to see that several neighborhoods in this colorful port town have been reduced to burning rubble from a fire that spread over 3 days. From April 12th – April 15th, over 2,500 homes were burned to the ground, dispersing over 11,000 people and leaving them homeless. The wooded hills surrounding the area will be forever changed, with the fires affecting a large number of the poorest communities, which had homes largely built from wooden huts.
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May 1, 2014

Day Trip to Colonia del Sacramento, Uruguay

Colonia del Sacramento makes for a perfect getaway from the action-packed Porteño culture of Buenos Aires. Located just across the Rio de la Plata from Buenos Aires, this colonial Portuguese settlement entices around 2 million visitors every year. Historic, cobble-stone streets and a quiet, friendly atmosphere have given the downtown area the privilege of being listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. With the oldest streets in Uruguay, dating back to the early 1680’s, the town gives a much different feel than that of the lively neighbor to the West.
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April 25, 2014

El Calafate, Argentina

El Calafate holds a very special place in my heart. As obvious through the photo above, it was the first place that gave me that unique, pure “awe” moment.

Nestled in the frozen South of Argentina, this quick weekend trip into Patagonia both amazed and frightened me. Amazed, in the sense of its pure beauty and marvelous landscapes. Frightened, in the sense that it made me realize how much of an insignificant speck of dust that I am, standing beneath such powerful, towering, and beautiful creations.
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April 14, 2014

A Day-Trip to Jost Van Dyke

A common occurrence one finds after moving to St Thomas, is that the locals have considerable respect for the other surrounding islands in the area. This is very different from the competitive (usually friendly) nature of US residents residing in larger cities, comparing their city’s accomplishments & stating that their city is better for this reason or that reason. But talking to any person living on St. Thomas, you will see that they rave about their other US neighbors – St. John, toward the East, and St. Croix, toward the South. There is very little competitive feeling – More of a mutual cooperation among the residents, and admiration for the beauty of each island.
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