Tag Archives: UNESCO World Heritage

2020, Alberta, Canada, Road trips

Waterton Lakes National Park: Where the Prairies meet the Peaks

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By Karlie Marrazzo

Southern Alberta is a special place in my home province and my favourite place to road trip. When most people think of Alberta, they picture the magnificent Rocky Mountains, crystalline blue glacial waters, and rival city hockey teams. I was born in the dead centre of the province, surrounded by prairies, not interested in hockey, and a four-hour drive away from the majestic Rockies. No matter how far I’ve journeyed in this wide, wonderful world, a chance to explore Alberta is one I will always enthusiastically take. And so far, Southern Alberta is my favourite part of the province to explore. Wheatfields stretch into an endless horizon, hoodoos and coulees provide mystery and intrigue, and the Indigenous history is rich and fascinating. The mountains are there, too, jutting sharply from the ranch land at their base. Horses, cows and hay bales dot the landscape consistently; this is real cowboy country.

Summer 2020 has been a difficult one for so many reasons, for people all over the globe. Still in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, taking care of our mental health, alongside our physical health, is of paramount importance. While most of us on the planet are restricted by local and international travel restrictions, getting out and safely exploring our own backyards has become more popular than ever. After having to cancel a trip to Italy earlier this spring, I have made it a priority to get out on a few Alberta road trips this year. For our second summer road trip, my boyfriend and I headed south to Waterton Lakes National Park, with a few stops along the way.

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2019, Colombia, South America

Cartagena: Queen of Colombia’s Caribbean coast

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By Karlie Marrazzo

Cartagena de Indias, casually referred to as Cartagena, is the beauty queen of Colombia’s Caribbean coast. Splashed with bright colours, Colonial architecture, kilometres of historic defence walls surrounding the city, and lively music wafting through the sultry Caribbean air, there’s something special about this magical city that has to be felt to be understood. Declared a UNESCO World Heritage site thanks to its “strategic location, this eminent example of the military architecture of the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries was also one of the most important ports of the Caribbean,” Cartagena is Colombia’s second most popular city with visitors.

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2018, Central America, Guatemala, North America, Solo travel, USA

Tikal National Park: Guatemala’s mystical Mayan ruins

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anicent mayan pyramids set in lush greenery against a blue sky

By Karlie Marrazzo

I rose before the sun on another tranquil day in Antigua, Guatemala’s magnificent crown jewel, on the penultimate day of my solo trip through the Central American country that had already captured my heart. My alarm went off at 5:30am; I rubbed my eyes, stepped into the clothes I had laid out the night before, and ate a quick breakfast on the rooftop of my hotel before catching a pre-arranged shuttle to Guatemala City. For the final leg of my week in Guatemala, I would base myself in the small city of Flores. From there I would visit the mystical Mayan ruins of Tikal.

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2018, Central America, Guatemala, North America, Solo travel

Antigua: Guatemala’s charming crown jewel

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By Karlie Marrazzo

My first trip to Guatemala began with a blissful three days in the spiritually charged village of San Marcos, peacefully tucked along the shore of Lake Atitlán, one of the most gorgeous places I have been lucky enough to experience thus far in my travels. Even though I could have stayed there for weeks, months, forever, I only had a week in Guatemala and my itinerary told me that it was time to move on. Next stop: Antigua, a UNESCO World Heritage city bursting with colonial architecture at the base of three volcanoes; Acatenango, Volcán de Agua and Volcán de Fuego, an active stratovolcano that erupted twice in 2018 alone.

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2016, Alberta, Canada, North America

Jasper Dark Sky Festival: An astronomical weekend in the Rockies

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Bighorn sheep stand on the road in Jasper National Park.

By Karlie Marrazzo

A glow-in-the-dark map of the Solar System graced my bedroom wall when I was a little girl, accented by luminescent cutouts of stars, moons and planets pasted to my ceiling. As I gazed upon my artificial universe, my mind drifted to far-off worlds, fueling dreams about the endless wonders of the universe and who else might be out there with us. My passions turned to travel and the arts as I grew older, but I still find joy in gazing upon the heavens and letting my mind fly high amongst the stars. The Jasper Dark Sky Festival, presented by Rocky Mountaineer, aims to connect people of all ages to the wonders of our universe and to stargaze in one of the world’s largest dark-sky preserves.

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2016, Mexico, North America

Life is Beautiful in the Heart of Puebla

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A view of the Puebla Cathedral and a fountain lit up at night.

By Karlie Marrazzo

Puebla is not a name that often crosses travelers’ lips. The medium-sized city of 1.5 million people is a treasure trove of colonial architecture and has earned a spot on the UNESCO World Heritage list. It is one of the great culinary capitals of Mexico, home to many classic Mexican dishes such as the ubiquitous mole poblano, a dark, rich sauce of 20 ingredients including chili peppers and chocolate. Despite the beauty of the historic centre, the endless opportunities for delicious meals, the proximity to Mexico City and Popocatépetl volcano, the second highest peak in Mexico, looming nearby, foreign tourists often overlook Puebla.

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2016, Mexico, North America

Teotihuacan and Tula: A Mesoamerican day trip from Mexico City

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The stone warriors of Tula atop a pyramid

By Karlie Marrazzo

Teotihuacan. The Pyramids of the Sun and the Moon, the Temple of the Feathered Serpent. The Avenue of the Dead. These words conjure images of complex ancient civilizations, ferocious warriors and a way of life that modern people could only imagine in their wildest dreams. Mexico is famous around the world for its wealth of ruins and archaeological sites, and Teotihuacan, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is among the most famous of them all. The ancient city is only 48km, or 30 miles, south west of Mexico City, making it the perfect place to get out of the bustling city for a day and to discover some Mesoamerican history. Never content with only the easiest option, we decided to tack on a visit Tula, a much less visited archaeological site featuring towering Toltec warriors atop a lone pyramid.

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2016, Mexico, North America

Hola! Mexico City

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The Angel of Independence monument in Mexico City

By Karlie Marrazzo

The 737 began its final descent into Mexico City shortly after midnight; the jet-black sky preventing me from seeing my first glimpse of the largest city in North America sprawled out below. Mexico is one of the top destinations for Canadians year after year, yet it was my first time visiting the country. The majority of those tourists plop themselves down beside the resort pool and don’t move for a week, but our plans were different. My travel partner and I are avid travelers and some of our vacation destinations in the past have garnered quizzical looks, and Mexico City was no exception. The city is a hub of Mexican culture, the home of brilliant examples of many architectural styles; it claims to have the most museums in the world, is a Mecca of Mexican cuisine, and is near to some of the most important ruins around. Despite all of this, it is often dismissed as a travel destination due to preconceived misconceptions about safety and culture. Continue reading Hola! Mexico City →

2016, Alberta, Canada, North America, Road trips

Beyond the bunny hill: Getting outdoorsy in Banff

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johnston-canyon-hike

By Karlie Marrazzo

Full of spectacular and abundant natural beauty, Banff is Canada’s outdoor playground, nestled in the Rocky Mountains and busy with visitors from around the globe all year round. In the winter, the town is full of people who love to hit the slopes at one of the three world-class hills in the area. Since I am not even close to proficient in skiing or snowboarding, I tend to save my trips for the summer, when the days are warm and the sun doesn’t go down until late at night. Expedia.ca encouraged me to see what I was missing, so I made the four-hour drive south at the beginning of March to experience what the area has to offer in the chillier months.
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2015, Central America, Nicaragua, North America

Granada and León: A tale of Nicaragua’s two cities

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orange-volkswagen-beetle

By Karlie Marrazzo

The colourful colonial town of Granada is one of Nicaragua’s main tourist draws. Low buildings splashed with paint in every shade of the rainbow line cobblestone streets, people on bikes and on foot lazily ambling in the heat while active volcanoes loom in the not-so-distant background. After hiking through Mombacho volcano’s cloud forest, my travel companion and I were deposited in the historic centre of town.

things-to-do-granada-nicaragua

The throngs of tourists the travel literature promised were nowhere to be seen. We settled into our casa, cozy rooms dotted around a courtyard with a shallow pool, reminiscent of the riads we loved so much in Morocco. We walked the sun-drenched streets without aim, settling in to the slow pace of life. On occasion we passed small squares with pretty trees and fountains at their centres. Our meanderings took us to Iglesia de Merced, a church was originally built in the 16th century, destroyed by pirates, and rebuilt in the late 1700s. It was damaged and repaired yet again in the mid-1800s. For the price of a mere dollar, we climbed the narrow stairwell to the top of the bell tower for the famous postcard views of the low-slung buildings with Mombacho to the south and Lake Nicaragua to the east. The rooftop is small and the bell is never far from your ears. As I was serenely enjoying the views, the giant bell was rung violently by men out of my sight, causing my head to spin for hours afterward.

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