Yucatan, Mexico

The Sidereal Murphy's Law That Doomed the Dinosaurs


mini dinosaur
An iguana near the Temple of the Wind in Tulum. The devastation caused by the Chicxulub meteorite will have annihilated all land animals weighing more than 25kg. Of the huge predominant dinosaurs, much smaller specimens remained.
portal to the underworld
Another entry into the underground world of the Yucatan Peninsula, this time in the state of Quintana Roo, near Playa del Carmen.
Destination: Cuzama
Semi-railway transport that, along the Chunkanan farm, takes visitors and bathers to the Cuzamá cenote.
spoils of time
Chunkanan hacienda building, in ruins, not because of the meteorite impact but because of the foreseeable effects of the economy.
Life. Good Life.
Two gringos celebrate human life that, according to the increasingly popular theory, the extinction of the dinosaurs allows them to enjoy.
Flaminga Cuesta
Flamingos feed in the brackish lagoon of the El Corchito Nature Reserve, an area dammed up on the earth's edge from the meteorite impact.
a green fracture
An opening in the predominant layer of limestone that covers the terrestrial area of ​​the Yucatan Peninsula affected by the meteorite impact.
Cenote
Signal identifies the Cumaná cenote, a hidden sinkhole on the semi-abandoned Chunkanan farm, south of the city of Mérida.
bi-color pair
Horses rest on the stony ground (limestone) generated by the apocalyptic explosion caused by the Chicxulub meteorite 66 million years ago.
underground bath
Bathers enjoy themselves in the lagoon of one of the numerous sinkholes spread across the Yucatan Peninsula.
Scientists studying the crater caused by a meteorite impact 66 million years ago have come to a sweeping conclusion: it happened exactly over a section of the 13% of the Earth's surface susceptible to such devastation. It is a threshold zone on the Mexican Yucatan peninsula that a whim of the evolution of species allowed us to visit.

(Puerto) Progreso is, par excellence, the seaside resort of the meridians, especially in July-August, when heat and humidity tighten in these tropical parts of the Americas and make the atmosphere stifling.

During summer, homes and businesses on the waterfront overlooking the Gulf of Mexico fill with temporary guests.

Some of these homes are small, inelegant but picturesque houses that seem to squeeze together to enjoy the gentle coming and going of the sea.

Others, further from the center of the village, are sophisticated and open houses that the North Americans build to take refuge there from the winter frigidity.

In high season of Caribbean tourism, huge cruises dock at the village's pier, the longest in Mexico, with a modicum of 6.5 km.

So, the gringos disembark and wander around the malecon, before and after boarding vans and buses and heading off towards Mérida, Chichen Itza and other historical and natural places in the Yucatan Peninsula.

Often, despite the water being muddy all year round, they find the seaside flooded with bathers and guests from the region, a crowd given over to a sunny, exotic and amphibious celebration of life and their free time.

This is the picture we painted of living and hot. The one we found on a November morning almost turning to December is quite different.

After three days of cold front, the sky returns to blue, much more common in these parts. The sun shines, but with measured power. When we pass to the other side of the front of houses, the malecon it is delivered to the Norths, the prevailing and furious winds that blow down the gulf from the northern ends of America.

It's also deserted. The fact that we do not see a soul encourages us to flee and explore other corners of the top of the peninsula.

Iguana in Tulum, Quintana Roo, Mexico

An iguana in the vicinity of the Tulum Wind Temple. The devastation caused by the Chicxulub meteorite will have wiped out all land animals weighing more than 25kg. Of the huge predominant dinosaurs, much smaller specimens remain.

About Chicxulub. And the Abrupt Extinction of Dinosaurs.

All morning, we traversed an equally desolate domain of the Yucatan. We skimmed a circumference of the Earth in times of such disembowelment that its destruction gave rise to a kind of Global Winter and the consequent extinction of the larger species, especially the (non-flying) dinosaurs that have long dominated the planet.

The theory of the impact of a 15km diameter meteorite, about 65 million years ago, gained acceptance among scientists as the most pressing explanation for the sudden disappearance of these prehistoric reptiles.

In 1978, Glen Penfield, a geophysicist researching oil for the Mexican company PEMEX detected a crater about 300km in diameter.

It was named Chicxulub, a village a few kilometers south of Progreso, which we approached after admiring the flocks of flamingos in the brackish waters of the El Corchito Ecological Reserve and, to the east, in the Laguna Rosada.

Flamingos in El Corchito Nature Reserve, Mérida, Mexico

Flamingos feed in the brackish lagoon of the El Corchito Nature Reserve, an area dammed up on the earth's edge from the meteorite impact.

The reserve predates the port of Chicxulub, a kind of marine extension of the town namesake of the interior, in turn, close to Dzibilchaltún, a smaller Mayan archaeological site that we also take advantage of to take a look at.

As far as El Corchito and Laguna Rosada are concerned, we can see on the map that they are just two domains of the vast dammed area below the almost insular coastline that encloses the Yucatan.

Such weakness – or geological fault – turns out to be only broader and more exposed than those that dot the peninsula, including its countless cenotes, (deep sinkholes) and the underground rivers that supply and connect them.

This Swiss-cheese panorama is, after all, the geological consequence of the sidereal phenomenon that killed the dinosaurs.

An Apocalyptic Impact

Recent studies carried out in the shallow bed of the Gulf of Mexico allowed to conclude that the meteorite has fallen in one of the least favorable places on the face of the Earth.

If the impact had occurred a few hours before or after, the most likely would be that the meteorite would have reached a deep area of ​​the Atlantic or Pacific ocean and that depth would have cushioned the impact.

At the time and place in which it occurred, the meteorite fell into a shallow sea, covered with a kind of mineral plaster.

The collision was devastating. It opened a crater in the Earth's crust that was 100km long and 30km deep. This crater later collapsed and more than doubled.

Now green fracture in the limestone surface of the Yucatan peninsula

An opening in the predominant layer of limestone that covers the terrestrial area of ​​the Yucatan Peninsula affected by the meteorite impact.

Today, its marine section (almost all) is covered by XNUMX meters of sediment. The terrestrial, in turn, was under a layer of limestone, as we have already seen, dotted with sinkholes and related erosive phenomena.

The explosion generated by the impact of the meteorite had a power equivalent to ten billion atomic bombs "Little Boy”, the one that the B-52 “Enola gay” dropped on Hiroshima. It generated earthquakes and tsunamis that swept much of the planet. It released huge amounts of vaporized rock and sulfur, as well as soot that also combined particles of other substances.

Joanna Morgan, a British professor and scientist who participated in the most recent investigations, says that 325 gigatonnes of sulfur were projected, an estimate that guarantees conservative.

Whatever the amount, an apocalyptic cloud obscured the atmosphere. It so blocked the sun's rays that the temperature dropped between 8 and 17°C and several areas suffered catastrophic droughts.

In the northern hemisphere, climate change was more pronounced and lasting than in the south. This, in an era when the Earth's climate had been cooling for some time due to an intensification of volcanic activity.

It is believable that the rainfall had dragged part of these vaporized particles back to the sea. Kunio Kahio, a renowned Japanese scientist, argues, however, that a substantial portion was left to circulate in the upper atmosphere.

Cenote Sign in Chunkanan, Mérida, Mexico

Signal identifies the Cumaná cenote, a hidden sinkhole on the semi-abandoned Chunkanan farm, south of the city of Mérida.

Chicxulub, from Extinction of Dinosaurs to Renewal of Life on Earth

If we go back to the probabilistic facet of the impact, we will see that, over the millennia, several other meteorites of similar dimensions have fallen on other parts of the Earth: Chesaoeake Bay, in USA., Bavaria, among others.

But only a rare and exceptional terrestrial surface – laden with hydrocarbons – like the one around Chicxulub, could bring about an atmospheric change and a mass extinction like the one that took place.

On the suffocated and frigid Earth that the meteorite bequeathed, vegetation of significant size quickly succumbed. Without food, possibly frozen, followed the dinosaurs and many other species, it is believed that 75% of all animals or at least all terrestrial animals weighing more than 25kg, although mostly bird dinosaurs survived.

In the wake of this theory, different scientists discovered areas with tens of thousands of fossil fragments accumulated in a layer of sediment with just 10 cm.

Now, this concentration of victimized specimens buried in the same place would only be possible if caused by a fulminating and devastating event like the one that caused the Chicxulub crater.

That event annihilated the dinosaurs forever. At the same time, it shuffled the data of life on Earth. In such a way that, as the atmosphere normalized itself, the evolution of the species received an increment that led to the incredible diversity verified for some time now, and to the emergence, proliferation and supremacy of the human species.

Entrance to a cenote near Playa del Carmen, Quintana Roo, Mexico

Another entry into the underground world of the Yucatan Peninsula, this time in the state of Quintana Roo, near Playa del Carmen.

Also there, on the edge of the crater, in the geological legacies of the impact, as in those that mark the anthropological progress of Man, native men and women and outsiders live and celebrate the life that, believing in increasingly accepted theories, the catastrophe meteorite to them will have granted.

The post-impact tropical scenario of the Yucatan Peninsula

From Progreso, we zigzagged through the territory of the Yucatan, first through the Mexican state of the same name, then through the rest of the peninsula. Like thousands of visitors from other distant parts of the affected planet, we are dazzled by the cities that Mayas disseminated in this, which, after an incredible migratory epic, became their corner on Earth.

After Dzibilchaltún, we explore the Chichen Itza ceremonial complex and other places like the yellow city Izamal where vestiges and heritage Maia and Hispanic colonial live together class a class, street a street.

As is also common sense, we decompress from some tourist stress in several of the natural water spas that abound in these parts. In the absence of bathing conditions on the coast of the Gulf of Mexico, we ventured into the depths of the Rio Secreto (an underground river).

We bathe on the perfect Caribbean beaches of Quintana Roo, the newest of the Peninsula states; also in Tulum which is crowned by one of the rare architectural ensembles Mayas erected almost over the Caribbean Sea.

Ruins of the Chunkanan farm in Mérida, Mexico

Chunkanan hacienda building, in ruins, not because of the meteorite impact but because of the foreseeable effects of the economy.

On another tour of the Yucatan, we return to the interior of Mérida, discovering a farm darkens secular, once producing cacti used for clothing fiber and other uses.

A Legacy of the Meteorite, the Yucatecan cenotes

Hacienda Chunkanan dates back to the time of Mexican President Porfirio Diaz. As the resident guide tells us, Diaz offered it, in 1937, to peasants in the area so that they could take their livelihood from it. This happened until, in 2002, in a context in which the raw material had already been devalued, a hurricane called Isidoro devastated it.

Since then, the recovery of infrastructure and production continues to be delayed. For want of better, the peasants take advantage of what survived the cyclone and what the Chicxulub meteorite left them.

"Make yourself comfortable, we'll have ten minutes to travel." Jesus Pech Arjona, the driver of the carriage we took, instructs us. Faced with growing outsiders' interest in the Yucatan's historic farms and most impressive sinkholes, native workers made use of the property's basic rail system.

Transport access to the Cuzamá cenote, Mérida, Mexico

Semi-railway transport that, along the Chunkanan farm, takes visitors and bathers to the Cuzamá cenote.

Accordingly, a leisurely horse tows us and the small carriage along a corridor cleared of tropical vegetation. Ten minutes later, we disembarked. “See that sign at the bottom of the stairs? The entrance is through there!”

We went forward and peeked at the opening where the stairs were tucked away. Downstairs, lightly lit by the plunging sunlight, the cenote de Cuzamá, a deep and wide sink with a pool of translucent emerald water. We put on the bathing suits.

Cenote (dolina) in the state of Mérida, Mexico

Bathers enjoy themselves in the lagoon of one of the numerous sinkholes spread across the Yucatan Peninsula.

We went down the stairs and joined four or five other bathers who were already enjoying the unusual lagoon. We splashed, swam, investigated the strange bottom of the flooded cave.

And we floated for minutes on end, just thinking about the irony of the same furious meteorite that annihilated the dinosaurs, having validated us. And to the delicious geological whim in which we felt renewed.

More tourist information about the Yucatan Peninsula on the website visit mexico

Izamal, Mexico

The Holy, Yellow and Beautiful Mexican City

Until the arrival of the Spanish conquerors, Izamal was a center of worship for the supreme Mayan god Itzamná and Kinich Kakmó, the one of the sun. Gradually, the invaders razed the various pyramids of the natives. In its place, they built a large Franciscan convent and a prolific colonial houses, with the same solar tone in which the now Catholic city shines.
Campeche, Mexico

Campeche Upon Can Pech

As was the case throughout Mexico, the conquerors arrived, saw and won. Can Pech, the Mayan village, had almost 40 inhabitants, palaces, pyramids and an exuberant urban architecture, but in 1540 there were less than 6 natives. Over the ruins, the Spaniards built Campeche, one of the most imposing colonial cities in the Americas.
Tulum, Mexico

The Most Caribbean of the Mayan Ruins

Built by the sea as an exceptional outpost decisive for the prosperity of the Mayan nation, Tulum was one of its last cities to succumb to Hispanic occupation. At the end of the XNUMXth century, its inhabitants abandoned it to time and to an impeccable coastline of the Yucatan peninsula.
Mérida, Mexico

The Most Exuberant of Meridas

In 25 BC, the Romans founded Emerita Augusta, capital of Lusitania. The Spanish expansion generated three other Méridas in the world. Of the four, the Yucatan capital is the most colorful and lively, resplendent with Hispanic colonial heritage and multi-ethnic life.
Cobá to Pac Chen, Mexico

From the Ruins to the Mayan Homes

On the Yucatan Peninsula, the history of the second largest indigenous Mexican people is intertwined with their daily lives and merges with modernity. In Cobá, we went from the top of one of its ancient pyramids to the heart of a village of our times.
Champoton, Mexico

Rodeo Under Sombreros

Champoton, in Campeche, hosts a fair honored by the Virgén de La Concepción. O rodeo Mexican under local sombreros reveals the elegance and skill of the region's cowboys.
San Cristóbal de las Casas a Campeche, Mexico

A Relay of Faith

The Catholic equivalent of Our Lady of Fátima, Our Lady of Guadalupe moves and moves Mexico. Its faithful cross the country's roads, determined to bring the proof of their faith to the patroness of the Americas.
Campeche, Mexico

200 Years of Playing with Luck

At the end of the XNUMXth century, the peasants surrendered to a game introduced to cool the fever of cash cards. Today, played almost only for Abuelites, lottery little more than a fun place.
Yucatan, Mexico

The End of the End of the World

The announced day passed but the End of the World insisted on not arriving. In Central America, today's Mayans watched and put up with incredulity all the hysteria surrounding their calendar.
San Cristobal de Las Casas, Mexico

The Home Sweet Home of Mexican Social Conscience

Mayan, mestizo and Hispanic, Zapatista and tourist, country and cosmopolitan, San Cristobal has no hands to measure. In it, Mexican and expatriate backpacker visitors and political activists share a common ideological demand.
Campeche, Mexico

A Bingo so Playful that you play it with Puppets

On Friday nights, a group of ladies occupy tables at Independencia Park and bet on trifles. The tiniest prizes come out to them in combinations of cats, hearts, comets, maracas and other icons.

Mexico City, Mexico

mexican soul

With more than 20 million inhabitants in a vast metropolitan area, this megalopolis marks, from its heart of zócalo, the spiritual pulse of a nation that has always been vulnerable and dramatic.

Uxmal, Yucatan, Mexico

The Mayan Capital That Piled It Up To Collapse

The term Uxmal means built three times. In the long pre-Hispanic era of dispute in the Mayan world, the city had its heyday, corresponding to the top of the Pyramid of the Diviner at its heart. It will have been abandoned before the Spanish Conquest of the Yucatan. Its ruins are among the most intact on the Yucatan Peninsula.
Barrancas del Cobre (Copper Canyon), Chihuahua, Mexico

The Deep Mexico of the Barrancas del Cobre

Without warning, the Chihuahua highlands give way to endless ravines. Sixty million geological years have furrowed them and made them inhospitable. The Rarámuri indigenous people continue to call them home.
Creel to Los Mochis, Mexico

The Barrancas del Cobre & the CHEPE Iron Horse

The Sierra Madre Occidental's relief turned the dream into a construction nightmare that lasted six decades. In 1961, at last, the prodigious Chihuahua al Pacifico Railroad was opened. Its 643km cross some of the most dramatic scenery in Mexico.
chihuahua, Mexico

¡Ay Chihuahua !

Mexicans have adapted this expression as one of their favorite manifestations of surprise. While we wander through the capital of the homonymous state of the Northwest, we often exclaim it.
Chichen Itza, Yucatan, Mexico

On the Edge of the Cenote, at the Heart of the Mayan Civilization

Between the XNUMXth and XNUMXth centuries AD, Chichen Itza stood out as the most important city in the Yucatan Peninsula and the vast Mayan Empire. If the Spanish Conquest precipitated its decline and abandonment, modern history has consecrated its ruins a World Heritage Site and a Wonder of the World.
Real de Catorce, San Luis Potosí, Mexico

From New Spain Lode to Mexican Pueblo Mágico

At the beginning of the XNUMXth century, it was one of the mining towns that guaranteed the most silver to the Spanish Crown. A century later, the silver had been devalued in such a way that Real de Catorce was abandoned. Its history and the peculiar scenarios filmed by Hollywood have made it one of the most precious villages in Mexico.
Real de Catorce, San Luis Potosí, Mexico

The Depreciation of Silver that Led to that of the Pueblo (Part II)

With the turn of the XNUMXth century, the value of the precious metal hit bottom. From a prodigious town, Real de Catorce became a ghost. Still discovering, we explore the ruins of the mines at their origin and the charm of the Pueblo resurrected.
Xilitla, San Luis Potosí, Mexico

Edward James' Mexican Delirium

In the rainforest of Xilitla, the restless mind of poet Edward James has twinned an eccentric home garden. Today, Xilitla is lauded as an Eden of the Surreal.
Residents walk along the trail that runs through plantations above the UP4
City
Gurué, Mozambique, Part 1

Through the Mozambican Lands of Tea

The Portuguese founded Gurué in the 1930th century and, from XNUMX onwards, flooded it with camellia sinensis the foothills of the Namuli Mountains. Later, they renamed it Vila Junqueiro, in honor of its main promoter. With the independence of Mozambique and the civil war, the town regressed. It continues to stand out for the lush green imposing mountains and teak landscapes.
Host Wezi points out something in the distance
Beach
Cobue; Nkwichi Lodge, Mozambique

The Hidden Mozambique of the Creaking Sands

During a tour from the bottom to the top of Lake Malawi, we find ourselves on the island of Likoma, an hour by boat from Nkwichi Lodge, the solitary base of this inland coast of Mozambique. On the Mozambican side, the lake is known as Niassa. Whatever its name, there we discover some of the most stunning and unspoilt scenery in south-east Africa.
Hippopotamus displays tusks, among others
safari
PN Mana Pools, Zimbabwe

The Zambezi at the Top of Zimbabwe

After the rainy season, the dwindling of the great river on the border with Zambia leaves behind a series of lagoons that provide water for the fauna during the dry season. The Mana Pools National Park is the name given to a vast, lush river-lake region that is disputed by countless wild species.
Braga or Braka or Brakra in Nepal
Annapurna (circuit)
Annapurna Circuit: 6th – Braga, Nepal

The Ancient Nepal of Braga

Four days of walking later, we slept at 3.519 meters from Braga (Braka). Upon arrival, only the name is familiar to us. Faced with the mystical charm of the town, arranged around one of the oldest and most revered Buddhist monasteries on the Annapurna circuit, we continued our journey there. acclimatization with ascent to Ice Lake (4620m).
shadow vs light
Architecture & Design
Kyoto, Japan

The Kyoto Temple Reborn from the Ashes

The Golden Pavilion has been spared destruction several times throughout history, including that of US-dropped bombs, but it did not withstand the mental disturbance of Hayashi Yoken. When we admired him, he looked like never before.
Totems, Botko Village, Malekula, Vanuatu
Aventura
Malekula, Vanuatu

Meat and Bone Cannibalism

Until the early XNUMXth century, man-eaters still feasted on the Vanuatu archipelago. In the village of Botko we find out why European settlers were so afraid of the island of Malekula.
4th of July Fireworks-Seward, Alaska, United States
Ceremonies and Festivities
Seward, Alaska

The Longest 4th of July

The independence of the United States is celebrated, in Seward, Alaska, in a modest way. Even so, the 4th of July and its celebration seem to have no end.
Oulu Finland, Passage of Time
Cities
Oulu, Finland

Oulu: an Ode to Winter

Located high in the northeast of the Gulf of Bothnia, Oulu is one of Finland's oldest cities and its northern capital. A mere 220km from the Arctic Circle, even in the coldest months it offers a prodigious outdoor life.
Lunch time
Margilan, Uzbekistan

An Uzbekistan's Breadwinner

In one of the many bakeries in Margilan, worn out by the intense heat of the tandyr oven, the baker Maruf'Jon works half-baked like the distinctive traditional breads sold throughout Uzbekistan
Ooty, Tamil Nadu, Bollywood Scenery, Heartthrob's Eye
Culture
Ooty, India

In Bollywood's Nearly Ideal Setting

The conflict with Pakistan and the threat of terrorism made filming in Kashmir and Uttar Pradesh a drama. In Ooty, we see how this former British colonial station took the lead.
Reindeer Racing, Kings Cup, Inari, Finland
Sport
Inari, Finland

The Wackiest Race on the Top of the World

Finland's Lapps have been competing in the tow of their reindeer for centuries. In the final of the Kings Cup - Porokuninkuusajot - , they face each other at great speed, well above the Arctic Circle and well below zero.
Gothic couple
Traveling

Matarraña to Alcanar, Spain

A Medieval Spain

Traveling through the lands of Aragon and Valencia, we come across towers and detached battlements of houses that fill the slopes. Mile after kilometer, these visions prove to be as anachronistic as they are fascinating.

little subject
Ethnic

Hampi, India

Voyage to the Ancient Kingdom of Bisnaga

In 1565, the Hindu empire of Vijayanagar succumbed to enemy attacks. 45 years before, he had already been the victim of the Portugueseization of his name by two Portuguese adventurers who revealed him to the West.

View of Fa Island, Tonga, Last Polynesian Monarchy
Got2Globe Photo Portfolio
Got2Globe Portfolio

Exotic Signs of Life

Champagne Beach, Espiritu Santo, Vanuatu
History
Espiritu Santo, Vanuatu

Divine Melanesia

Pedro Fernandes de Queirós thought he had discovered Terra Australis. The colony he proposed never materialized. Today, Espiritu Santo, the largest island in Vanuatu, is a kind of Eden.
Brava Cape Verde Island, Macaronesia
Islands
Brava, Cape Verde

Cape Verde Brave Island

During colonization, the Portuguese came across a moist and lush island, something rare in Cape Verde. Brava, the smallest of the inhabited islands and one of the least visited of the archipelago, preserves the authenticity of its somewhat elusive Atlantic and volcanic nature.
Era Susi towed by dog, Oulanka, Finland
Winter White
PN Oulanka, Finland

A Slightly Lonesome Wolf

Jukka “Era-Susi” Nordman has created one of the largest packs of sled dogs in the world. He became one of Finland's most iconic characters but remains faithful to his nickname: Wilderness Wolf.
Baie d'Oro, Île des Pins, New Caledonia
Literature
Île-des-Pins, New Caledonia

The Island that Leaned against Paradise

In 1964, Katsura Morimura delighted the Japan with a turquoise novel set in Ouvéa. But the neighboring Île-des-Pins has taken over the title "The Nearest Island to Paradise" and thrills its visitors.
capillary helmet
Nature
Viti levu, Fiji

Cannibalism and Hair, Fiji Islands' Old Pastimes

For 2500 years, anthropophagy has been part of everyday life in Fiji. In more recent centuries, the practice has been adorned by a fascinating hair cult. Luckily, only vestiges of the latest fashion remain.
Mother Armenia Statue, Yerevan, Armenia
Autumn
Yerevan, Armenia

A Capital between East and West

Heiress of the Soviet civilization, aligned with the great Russia, Armenia allows itself to be seduced by the most democratic and sophisticated ways of Western Europe. In recent times, the two worlds have collided in the streets of your capital. From popular and political dispute, Yerevan will dictate the new course of the nation.
Prayer flags in Ghyaru, Nepal
Natural Parks
Annapurna Circuit: 4th – Upper Banana to Ngawal, Nepal

From Nightmare to Dazzle

Unbeknownst to us, we are faced with an ascent that leads us to despair. We pulled our strength as far as possible and reached Ghyaru where we felt closer than ever to the Annapurnas. The rest of the way to Ngawal felt like a kind of extension of the reward.
Guardian, Stalin Museum, Gori, Georgia
UNESCO World Heritage
Upplistsikhe e Gori, Georgia

From the Cradle of Georgia to Stalin's Childhood

In the discovery of the Caucasus, we explore Uplistsikhe, a troglodyte city that preceded Georgia. And just 10km away, in Gori, we find the place of the troubled childhood of Joseb Jughashvili, who would become the most famous and tyrant of Soviet leaders.
Characters
Look-alikes, Actors and Extras

Make-believe stars

They are the protagonists of events or are street entrepreneurs. They embody unavoidable characters, represent social classes or epochs. Even miles from Hollywood, without them, the world would be more dull.
Surfers walk along Tofo beach, Mozambique
Beaches
Tofo, Mozambique

Between Tofo and Tofinho along a growing coastline

The 22km between the city of Inhambane and the coast reveal an immensity of mangroves and coconut groves, here and there, dotted with huts. Arrival in Tofo, a string of dunes above a seductive Indian Ocean and a humble village where the local way of life has long been adjusted to welcome waves of dazzled outsiders.
Mount Lamjung Kailas Himal, Nepal, altitude sickness, mountain prevent treat, travel
Religion
Annapurna Circuit: 2th - Chame a Upper BananaNepal

(I) Eminent Annapurnas

We woke up in Chame, still below 3000m. There we saw, for the first time, the snowy and highest peaks of the Himalayas. From there, we set off for another walk along the Annapurna Circuit through the foothills and slopes of the great mountain range. towards Upper Banana.
Train Fianarantsoa to Manakara, Malagasy TGV, locomotive
On Rails
Fianarantsoa-Manakara, Madagascar

On board the Malagasy TGV

We depart Fianarantsoa at 7a.m. It wasn't until 3am the following morning that we completed the 170km to Manakara. The natives call this almost secular train Train Great Vibrations. During the long journey, we felt, very strongly, those of the heart of Madagascar.
Street Bar, Fremont Street, Las Vegas, United States
Society
Las Vegas, USA

The Sin City Cradle

The famous Strip has not always focused the attention of Las Vegas. Many of its hotels and casinos replicated the neon glamor of the street that once stood out, Fremont Street.
herd, foot-and-mouth disease, weak meat, colonia pellegrini, argentina
Daily life
Colónia Pellegrini, Argentina

When the Meat is Weak

The unmistakable flavor of Argentine beef is well known. But this wealth is more vulnerable than you think. The threat of foot-and-mouth disease, in particular, keeps authorities and growers afloat.
Cliffs above the Valley of Desolation, near Graaf Reinet, South Africa
Wildlife
Graaf-Reinet, South Africa

A Boer Spear in South Africa

In early colonial times, Dutch explorers and settlers were terrified of the Karoo, a region of great heat, great cold, great floods and severe droughts. Until the Dutch East India Company founded Graaf-Reinet there. Since then, the fourth oldest city in the rainbow nation it thrived at a fascinating crossroads in its history.
Full Dog Mushing
Scenic Flights
Seward, Alaska

The Alaskan Dog Mushing Summer

It's almost 30 degrees and the glaciers are melting. In Alaska, entrepreneurs have little time to get rich. Until the end of August, dog mushing cannot stop.