Go Green Travel Green

Check out this photo we captured of the hot pools in Hells Gate on our recent trip to New Zealand:

(Don’t worry, we’ll tell you more about Hells Gate in an upcoming post.)

Coromandel Peninsula in pictures. Photos of our favorite sites in Coromandel including Hot Water Beach, Hahei Beach and Cathedral cove.

If you’re not lucky enough to be in Thailand or Australia to ring in the New Year, these photos will help you celebrate vicariously from afar. From Mexico and Sweden to Argentina and Japan, here are our picks for New Year’s Eve photos from around the world.

Koi Fish Pictures from the Japanese Gardens in Buenos Aires, cute pictures of the fish with their mouths’ open.

Glacier pictures from the Argentina Perito Moreno Glacier in El Calafate and El Chalten Argentina.

She picked me up in Portland and we saw some of the finest sights in The Beaver State (yes, that really is Oregon’s state nickname) on our way down the North Coast. Next time you’re in Oregon, I would definitely recommend a leisurely trip down the coast. It has it all: pop culture, wildlife, natural beauty, and cheese. What more could you ask for?

It was New Years Day and we stopped in Flores, Guatemala for lunch on our way to Tikal National Park …. Only a few shops were open and nearly no one was out on the street.

As you can see from the photos, Hopkins (and Belize in general) is an incredibly humble place. But the people couldn’t be happier and their friendliness is contagious.

Guinness Book of World Records named Main Street in Placencia, Belize the “World’s Narrowest Street.” It’s really more of a sidewalk, but since all the shops and restaurants line it and people walk or bike through town, it’s called a “street.”

There are 18 km (11 miles) between the main entrance of Tikal National Park, Guatemala and the actual visitor’s gate where you can walk the grounds. Unfortunately for anxious visitors, but fortunately for the many animals of Tikal , the speed limit between these entrances is only 45km/hr (27 mph).

Two questions came to mind when I saw this sign on the side of Hummingbird Highway near Hopkins, Belize: $3.00 Belizian Dollars or $3.00 American Dollars? ($1 American = $2 Belize) And $3.00 for each beer and girls, or $3.00 total?

Elizabeth captured this moonlit photo with her fancy camera last night, our final night in Hopkins, Belize. The moon was full so we knew it would be bright in the photo, but we were both surprised that picture practically looked like daylight.

After seeing penguins on Peninsula Valdes we wondered how much different it would be visiting Punta Tombo, home of over 600,000 Magellanic Penguins…. My favorite part was when the penguin parents would tire of standing over their chicks and suddenly just plop (like a bellyflop) right on top of the chicks.

Peninsula Valdes is the only place on the planet where Orcas beach themselves to catch seals. Of course, that only happens at certain times of year and even then it’s rare… We didn’t see any Orcas, but the elephant seals, penguins, ostrich-like rheas, llama-esque guanacos, seals, and seal lions more than made up for it.

During our two-hour whale watching excursion off Peninsula Valdes, near Puerto Madryn, Argentina, we floated in the ocean and watched as the Southern Right Whales (Ballena Franca Austral in Spanish) nursed, played, and swam under our boat…. While this whale let them nurse off her on this particular day, it was unlikely she would continue to do so as each baby eats over 200 liters of milk a day.

Shimmering lakes, snow-capped mountains, and dozens of cows provided the stunning scenery for our bus ride along the Ruta de los Siete Lagos (Route of the Seven Lakes). We weren’t sure the weather would hold out, but aside from some clouds and a few sprinkles of rain, it did.

We’re leaving Mendoza tonight on another 20+ hour bus ride. In less than a day we’ll be in Patagonia, where we’re hoping for some great scenery and good hiking. To tide you over, here are some of our favorite Mendoza moments and sights.

Elizabeth’s words when she saw this bird flying around right outside of the Jardín Japonés (Japanese Gardens) a few days ago in Buenos Aires…. Today we’re on a bus destined for Iguazú Falls (awesome waterfalls in northeast Argentina), where hopefully we’ll see many more colorful birds — though probably not any green cardinals.

So we hopped on a Buquebus ferry near Puerto Madero in BA for the one hour journey to Colonia, a small town on the Rio de la Plata. There’s not a lot to do in Colonia but enjoy the view and wander the cobbled streets, so that’s just what we did.

It was a cold, rainy morning, but the sun came out in the afternoon and the crowds rushed to trendy (but still cool) San Telmo Market in Plaza Dorrego, where you can buy everything from antique keys and original paintings to hand-knit scarves and glass necklaces. Some vendors were out in the morning, but many more came to enjoy the sun — and the tourists it brought with it.

Sometimes I wonder what in Buenos Aires I have missed by spending so much time looking at the ground — trying to avoid loose tiles, potholes, and lots and lots of dog shit…. These dog walkers don’t walk 1 or 2 or even 4 little dogs, I’ve seen one dog walker that probably had about 12-15 large dogs with him.

Photos from Recoleta Cemetery / Cementerio de la Recoleta in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Mendoza Wine Region photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/55898059@N00/2552365774/ 2…. Los Glaciares National Park http://www.flickr.com/photos/60627558@N00/178918885/ 5.

I’ve always heard that, second to the Cherry Blossom Festival, the best time to visit Washington, D.C.’s monuments is at night. But in the nearly four years I’ve lived in D.C. I’ve never walked the monuments at night.
With our move to Argentina just around the corner, we finally made the walk happen. I’m still learning [...]

To celebrate Labor Day, we went for a hike in Shenandoah National Park near Front Royal, Virginia. It’s an easy day trip from DC — about an hour and a half drive. It was pretty and peaceful in the summer, and I imagine it’s gorgeous in the fall.

When I read about Zheleznovodsk, Russia’s bronze enema statue in News of the Weird, I knew I had to see a photo. Well, here it is, for your viewing pleasure. My favorite part? The fact that the giant enema is held up by cupids.

Photo credit: AP
Read the full story on MSN. Ever since I lived [...]

Crabs at a seafood market in Chinatwon, New York City, NY

In celebration of the U.S.’s Independence Day we’ve pulled together some photos of events celebrated with fireworks around the world.  Enjoy!
United States of America: Fourth of July (Independence Day)

photo credit:  Poldavo (Alex)
England: Guy Fawkes Day (aka Bonfire Night)

photo credit: Docklandsboy
 Singapore: National Day

photo credit: Stephen_AU
Australia: Australia Day

photo credit:  Robert Whitehead
Brazil: Reveillon (New Year’s Eve)

photo credit: Experiencias de [...]

Elk, Bear, Coyote, Oh My!

Elk

Coyote

Bear
(Well, the closet we came was our bear spray and warning signs.)

Bighorn Sheep

Magpie

Ground Squirrel (aka Chipmunk)

Elk or Moose Bones?
(Perhaps the work of the coyote that ran across our path on this trail…)

And this ends our photos from Alaska and Canada. We’ll be back soon with some wordier posts!

Moraine Lake on a rainy day. (On a sunny day you can see 10 mountain peaks, the same scene that appears on the back of a Canadian $20 bill.)

Tall Tale Taxidermy aka U.S. Post Office in Ketchikan, Alaska

A red object among the blue jellyfish caught my eye as I walked down the Del Ray, Florida beach last weekend - a Heinz ketchup bottle covered in barnacles. It seemed to make a statement about consumerism and a lack of regard for the environment, so I ran back up the beach and grabbed my [...]