Things to Do in Central And South America

One of the most expensive strips of real estate in Latin America, Avenida Paulista is São Paulo’s most iconic thoroughfare. What started out as a residential street lined with the ornate neoclassical mansions of 19th-century coffee barons has, in a little over a century, turned into an urban canyon of glass and steel and a modern hub of business, culture and entertainment.

Anchored on one end by busy Shopping Paulista mall and on the other by multi-use architectural standout Conjunto Nacional—vaguely reminiscent of the famed congress building in Brasília—, Avenida Paulista serves as the address for many of the city’s most important cultural institutions, including the São Paulo Museum of Art (MASP), lush Parque Trianon and the Casa das Rosas arts center (located in one of the last mansions remaining on the street).

Though several hundred thousand denizens file into Avenida Paulista’s office buildings every weekday, the street remains lively come nightfall, when restaurants and nightclubs along cross-streets in the adjacent neighborhoods of Jardins and Bela Vista fill with diners and party-goers. Anything goes on buzzing Rua Augusta, one of the city’s liveliest nighttime haunts, and even more goes on Rua Frei Caneca, epicenter of São Paulo’s gay and lesbian scene. Sunday afternoons, craft fairs and flea markets spring up at the foot of the MASP as families stroll along the strip, and throughout the year, big events such as the world’s largest gay pride parade (May/June), the renowned São Silvestre road race (December 31st), and New Year’s Eve celebrations bring a few million people into the area.

The Cosme Velho neighborhood is best known as the jumping-off point to ascend Corcovado Mountain to Christ the Redeemer. Most visitors to Rio will set foot in this small, historic area on their way to the city’s most iconic attraction, but it’s worth it to explore beyond that. From shady plazas overgrown with jungle to colonial architecture, Cosme Velho offers a taste of Rio’s old-time charm. The neighborhood’s principal street, Rua Cosme Velho, snakes up into the hilly area and to ‘Estação de Ferro do Corcovado,’ where visitors catch the funicular to the Christ Statue. Beyond the station, the neighborhood becomes mostly residential and continues way up the hill into the rain forest.

While in Cosme Velho, before or after seeing the Christ, allot some time to roam the winding, leafy avenues with quaint shops, or grab something to eat in one of the many open-air cafes. Just across the street and a few yards up from the funicular station lies Boticário Square (Largo do Boticário). This plaza of early 19th-century Portuguese buildings has fallen into disrepair, but the brightly colored colonial structures set among the rain forest scenery retain the square’s original charm. Art-lovers can head to the International Museum of Naïf Art just down the road from the station, where they’ll find a small colonial-era building housing an impressive collection of 6,000 paintings from 120 different countries, which focus on struggle and marginalized populations.

A unique site among all the Mayan caves in Belize is Barton Creek, a tall river cave that was once used for sacrificial purposes and can be explored only by canoe. The striking features of this site and the adrenaline of touring it are the low stalactite, so low you will have to occasionally bend back into the canoe to avoid getting struck. Over seven miles long, the ride to the very end is well worth it, if seldom done by tour guides, with sightings early on of Mayan ceramics high up on ledges, including human bones and a child’s skull.

Isla Bartolome, located off the east shore of Sullivan Bay, is a small but beautiful island most famous for its iconic Pinnacle Rock, arguably one of the most recognizable landmarks of the Galapagos. This incredible geological site is a staggering rock face, formed from an eroded lava formation from the eruption of an underwater volcano. Visitors can summit the island via a 600-meter (about 2,000 foot) trail and enjoy some of the most breathtaking views of Pinnacle Rock, Sullivan Bay, Isla San Salvador (or Santiago), and Isla Daphne. Photographic opportunities abound at this ideal spot.

Visit the north beach for wonderful snorkeling opportunities. Swim with beautiful fish and Galapagos penguins, or visit the southern shore to see white-tipped sharks, spotted eagle rays, and stingrays. Keep your eyes out for the green sea turtles, especially if you’re there during mating season (typically November to January).

Perched proudly at the end of the Barra peninsula and housed inside an ancient Portuguese fort, Barra Lighthouse (Farol da Barra) is a prime spot to view the spectacular sunsets and views across All Saints Bay (Todos os Santos).

Explore inside the lighthouse and you’ll find a small museum filled with maps, charts and artifacts – many of which were recovered from sunken European galleons that plied the seas transporting goods and slaves during the colonial days.

Admire the splendid fort (Forte de Santo Antônio da Barra), built in 1534 to defend the capital from indigenous and Dutch advances, then lie back against its old stone walls to take in the sunset over the bay.