What is Gondwana? Inevitably, when people take a trip with Gondwana Ecotours, the question arises: “What is Gondwana?”. At last, we are prepared to reveal the meaning behind this strange word. Once upon a long-gone time, there was an Enormous (with a capital E) landmass adrift on planet earth. This was long before anyone had thought to name the oceans, …
Food, Glorious Food When one thinks of the Golden Heart City of Fairbanks, or any remote town of Alaska, culinary delights are probably not among the first images that come to mind. Yet Fairbanks is indeed home to a surprising array of flavors. Looking back at our travels in Alaska, we’d like to take a moment to honor the excellent …
Four years ago, I woke up at 4:00 AM and slowly made my way to my Achuar host family’s hut in the Ecuadorian Amazon Rainforest. I drank huayusa tea and gave it time to cleanse my body, as it was customary. All of the members in the family in a circle shared their dream and their elder, Celestino, interpreted them. …
Life is a series of moments; continuous and unyielding. Every now and then we can seemingly slow down time and appreciate an event that is somehow outstanding, special, and memorable. For me life is about the beautiful moments and travel can often inspire these powerful experiences just as nature can inspire the soul. When I think about what makes Gondwana …
In 2011, I volunteered in the Ecuadorian Amazon. I discovered a delicate yet complex world teeming with life and giving life. Seeing this ecological wonder in person is life-changing to me. My summer in the Amazon took me to a little village deep in the heart of the rainforest. To get there, I travelled from Quito, through the Andes Mountains …
Going to Alaska is quite an adventure, especially if you are out having fun in the snow and searching for the Northern Lights. To give you an idea of what an arctic experience is like, here are a few things you should pack: A Winter Hat This hat should protect the top of your head, back of your head, ears …
1. What time of year to do it: Photographing the northern lights is an incredibly rewarding activity, though a little knowledge goes a long way in capturing the dancing wonders. Autumn and Winter are the best times for viewing the aurora, while March and October are regarded as the two months with the most impressive light shows. However, visibility fluctuates …
A question we commonly receive is “When is the best time to see the northern lights?”. While we can maximize our odds, there really is no way to predict the Northern Lights or nature for that matter. Because of our understanding through scientific observation we are now capable of forecasting nature to a degree. Like storms here on earth, the …
My last post, 9 Things You Didn’t Know about the Northern Lights , inspired me to research other mythologies about the Northern Lights because the fact why it is called Aurora borealis: it was named after the Roman goddess of dawn, Aurora, and the Greek god of of the north wind, Boreas. This lead me to ask the question, before …
1. Aurora Borealis is a natural phenomenon named after a Greek god and a Roman goddess. The 17th century astronomer, physicist and philosopher, Pierre Gassendi, saw the Northern Lights on a trip in the North and named them the Aurora Borealis. Aurora was the Roman goddess of dawn who woke up the world with her torch. She was trailed by …
