Skip to content

Tag: Latin America

Published on

By jtmanley

Iguazú FallUnfortunately, I did not heed TLC's advice. I spent last weekend in the Argentine province of Misiones to enjoy Iguazú Falls. One of the New Seven Wonders of Nature, Iguazú Falls forms a natural boundary between Brazil and Argentina, and it is a hotspot for a wide range of flora and fauna. During my short time there, I was able to explore Iguazú National Park in its entirety via foot, boat, raft, and train! Going to Iguazú let me get away from the hustle and bustle of city life (which makes that of Washington, D.C. look like child's play at times). ...continue reading "Don’t Go Chasing Waterfalls"

Published on

By rachels522

Last week my group returned from a two week trip along the Caribbean side of Costa Rica and Nicaragua. We went to Los Chiles, Nicaragua, which is only accessible by boat. We went on a beautiful ride through the jungle of Nicaragua and Costa Rica where we saw Howler Monkeys, Slider Turtles, Crocodiles, and tons of cool birds. After roughly four hours we got to Los Chiles. It’s a beautiful town. There are no cars. We stayed at a rustic lodge. While in Los Chiles we went on a hike of the Indio Maiz reserve, which was amazing. I had never been somewhere where I felt so secluded (until later in the trip…). While in Los Chiles we got a chance to talk with Minor and Armando, two migrant workers. We were specifically supposed to talk to them about their experiences working on Pineapple Plantations in Costa Rica, but the conversation really branched out. They both work illegally in Costa Rica. They barely get paid enough to survive. It took Minor until he was 21 to finish high school because he kept leaving to go to work to make money. Now he studies agriculture and works whenever he is not in school. It seems like such a hard life. It can be a many hour walk to get to the plantations. While they live in the barracks at the plantations they must work every second they can to make as much money as they can in order to return to Nicaragua with enough money to support the family. It seriously puts into perspective the relative ease in which I live my life and the corrupt way in which food is produced. I’m going to seriously start looking into what is grown in the DC and Boston areas and start trying to make the Eat Local movement something that everybody that I am friends with is aware of and knows about. ...continue reading "Far From Boston….."

Published on

By rachels522

It is no secret the global climate change is a major problem. In fact, part of the reason I flew 7,000 miles to Costa Rica was to study ways to decrease global climate change and it’s effect on the environment. It is also not a secret that one of the worst contributors to carbon in the environment is our use of gasoline and fuel. Therefore, it is slightly ironic that I flew all this way in order to study how to reduce the amount of carbon that we put into the environment. My flights to and from Costa Rica are not the only times I am in a vehicle. My program spends a month traveling around the country, often by bus. It is incredible how much a sustainability student can contribute to the problem. ...continue reading "Carbon Sequestration In Costa Rica"

Published on

By jtmanley

Teatro ColonOn Saturday, April 20, I think I might have had the best cultural experience in Buenos Aires so far. I went to see Bizet's opera Carmen, one of the most noted and performed operas, at Teatro Colon. Buenos Aires' main opera house, Teatro Colon is widely considered one of the best concert venues in the world.

As an opera aficionado, I will not bore you will a full-scale review of the opera itself (which was brilliantly executed by the performers and orchestra in case you wanted to know). As a Baltimore-Washington Metro Area native, I've always enjoyed going to the Kennedy Center. As a GW student, I take pleasure in being able to walk less than 10 minutes to enjoy the free Millennium Stage performances , the Washington National Opera, and the National Symphony Orchestra. But going to Teatro Colon might have taken the cake. ...continue reading "Night at the Opera"

Published on

One of the joys of living in a country with a diverse landscape is the selection of fresh fruit year round. Markets or "ferias" are scattered throughout the city. Some our housed in buildings as grand as this one and others set-up in make shift fair grounds. This particular market is next door to my university and is the perfect place to spend the ten minute break in between classes.

Corner Roof
This market has two levels - the first for farmers the second for restaurants selling some of the city's freshest seafood.

...continue reading "Feria"

Published on

By kbartz34

I spend most of my time abroad trying to blend in, but sometimes you have to be a tourist in your "own" city! A few friends of mine and I took a free day from classes to wander the streets of Valparaiso. From the street musicians to the bohemian restaurants  Valparaiso feels a bit like my hometown of Portland, Oregon. Enjoy this small taste! And for those of you reading this from your couch, I recommend trying this type of "adventure" the next time you have a few spare hours!

Gazing down one of Valparaiso's famous cerros (hills)
Gazing down one of Valparaiso's famous cerros (hills)

...continue reading "Afternoon Walk"

Published on

By jtmanley

Cristina at Puerto MadrynOn April 2, Argentina observed the Día del Veterano de Guerra y de los Caídos en la Guerra de las Malvinas (Day of the Veterans and Fallen of the Malvinas War). President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner gave an impassioned speech where she reiterated the Argentine position that the Malvinas/Falkland islands (currently under a sovereignty dispute between Argentina and the United Kingdom) belong to Argentina and that the dispute should be resolved through diplomatic dialogue. But just six days later, news from the United Kingdom put the issue back in world headlines.

On April 8, former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher died at the age of 87. Prime Minister Thatcher, the first woman to hold the position, led the Conservative government from 1979 to 1990. On April 2, 1982, Argentina and the United Kingdom went to war over the Malvinas/Falklands islands. The two-month war, which resulted in a British victory, was decisive in the downfall of the Argentine military government  and the re-election of Thatcher Ministry the following year. But for Argentines, the loss of 650 of its young men, many of whom were forced by the military government to fight, has not faded from memory. ...continue reading "The Iron Lady & Argentina"

Published on

By rachels522

Tonight is the first night of our second field trip. We are staying in a fairly remote town on the Nicaraguan border named Los Chiles. During lecture outside we heard the loudest music. We then decided to go explore what this loud noise was in this quiet little town. We stumbled into a fair! ...continue reading "Cross Cultural Connections?"

Published on

By rachels522

I have consistently met great ticos. One thing that I wasn’t fully expecting was how amazing the non-ticos are. I have met awesome adventurers and environmentalists from all over the world.
One of the best parts of this program is bonding with the 20 other students on this program. It’s great because by virtue of being here we all have similar interests. Since we spend roughly 13 hours a day together I have gotten to know all of my peers very well. This has taught me so much about myself. For instance, a bunch of the students are from the Northwest US, where bluegrass music is super popular. I have never really experienced bluegrass music before. I now love it! Also since this is an environmental program there is a ton to learn about different fun environmental things to do in the US. It is truly inspirational to hear about everybody’s backpacking, hiking, and camping trips. I can’t wait to start doing all these things when I get back to the States. I even signed up for a backpacking class for next semester! It is very different than the city people I am used to from Boston and GW. ...continue reading "non ticos?"

Unless otherwise indicated, the content and opinions expressed on this web site are those of the author(s). They are not endorsed by and do not necessarily reflect the views of the George Washington University.
Privacy Notice
Viewing Message: 1 of 1.
 Notice

This site uses cookies to offer you a better browsing experience. Visit GW’s Website Privacy Notice to learn more about how GW uses cookies.