My Favorite (and most unique) Places to Visit on Earth!

I began travelling beyond the bounds of Canada in my early 20's.  Although I haven't been to as many places as I'd like to, some of the places I have visited have been thrilling and rare in some cases.  Being a science student for five years, then graduating with student debt has made travel difficult, but I have been fortunate to see many specialised places which haven't been seen by many.  Here are my favorite places around the world!

1.  Jamaica's Bioluminescent Lagoon

Many people usually associate Jamaica with one of 3 things; lots of pot, expensive flights and Margaritaville.  Yes, Jamaica has an abundance of pot and pot plants everywhere!  The flights are darn expensive and Margaritaville is a nightclub dream for tourists.  After visiting Jamaica on a 2 week tour of the entire country, my perceptions changed quite a bit.  If one is lucky enough to check out the entirety of this country, you may come across this beautiful lagoon very near the town of Falmouth.  Jamaica is only one of five places in the world that supports bioluminescent organisms.

What is bioluminescence?  It is the emission of light an organism produces when it is disturbed (oxygen enables this chemical reaction).  Enough science, onto the cool stuff!  A large group of my friends paid this lagoon a visit at around 11pm -- perfect to see this amazing spectacle.  We hopped into several rowing boats which took us to the middle of the lagoon and were a bit hesitant to jump in the ocean during the dark of night.  But this is the best time to see these organisms in action!  We all hopped off the boats into the water and were immediately taken by what we saw.  When moving/swimming, the water all around each person's body lit up with this strong blue/green glow.  Suddenly we were no longer swimming in dark, but swimming in this beautiful array of light.  But I think that perhaps the most amazing thing was that the water surrounding your body instantly becomes as warm as bath water.  The organisms are microscopic but in such high abundance that the light energy they gave off produces a heating effect.  This was one of the most amazing things I had ever seen in my life!  Even after getting into the vehicle and driving the organisms on my bathing suit were still producing light the entire drive back to Montego Bay.

Although all of us had taken a million pictures at night, the bioluminescence did not show up in the pictures despite the strong illumination.  The picture above is part of the lagoon during the day and down below was after getting out of the lagoon (I'm in the middle).

If you ever get a chance to tour Jamaica, make sure to stop at this amazing lagoon outside of Falmouth!


2.  The Grand Canyon

During a recent drive down to the United States, I was fortunate enough to have an opportunity to visit the Grand Canyon.  I thought, well...I've seen so many pictures of the Grand Canyon on tv and the internet that I probably wouldn't be shocked by its awe and beauty.  Oh was I wrong!  The vastness and sheer size of the canyon is far more than one can even comprehend.  The history and creation of the canyon is spectacular.  We decided to walk along the geological timeline trail and were taken by the size of the canyon.  The Grand Canyon was carved out by the Colorado River and is approximately 450 km long situated in Arizona.

The Grand Canyon is astonishingly busy for most of the year.  The best time to visit is either in spring or fall when the temperatures are slightly cooler thus less tourists.


3.  Sunset Crater, Arizona

Back in March I toured quite a few states in the US.  At the time, I was fortunate to have a boyfriend who was somewhat of a United States loving traveller.  Although his love for the outdoors and US was perhaps a bit extreme, I was thrilled when he took me to Sunset Crater in Arizona.

Sunset Crater is located a few miles out of Flagstaff, Arizona and last erupted somewhere around 1050 AD and is part of the San Francisco Volcanic Field..  Me being the all knowing science queen, was floored to learn that Arizona was host to many cinder cone volcanoes.  To my delight, there was a small trail which we were able to follow and see the extent of the lava flow.  The views were spectacular! 

Unfortunately, the National Park Service closed the trail that leads visitors to the summit due to extensive and rapid erosion in an effort to preserve the cinder cone.  Sunset Crater also has a large visitors center run by the National Parks Service and is extremely interesting and informative --Violators caught taking volcanic rock face a $350 fine...so be careful!  Although I have only had the chance to visit 9 states in the US, I would have to say my favorite state is Arizona because of its beautiful weather and amazingly diverse landscape and geologic features!


4.  Paradise Island, Dominican Republic

I have only done the all-inclusive trip once and it was over Christmas in 2010.  Being able to drink, eat and sun yourself all day was a much needed getaway for myself.  Although all-inclusive trips are a blast, it makes it difficult to see the country in its full form.  Fortunately my family, all 12 of us, planned an excursion to Paradise Island.  After a short bus ride we were loaded into several speed boats with other tourists and whisked away to a large yacht.  Humorously, on our yacht ride, there were a couple older German women arguing on the boat.  The only picture I happened to catch of them was this:

After a long boat ride, a swim in the ocean and several drinks later, we arrived at Paradise Island!  The island was extremely small and isolated and could only be inhabited until around supper time when the high tide would come in and cover the island until the next morning.  The island (which I would call more of a sandbar) was at sea level but is a popular spot to go snorkeling and escape the ever so crowded resort.



I had purchased an underwater camera for the long snorkeling trip and it was a must-have!  The clear waters made for a great opportunity to take aquatic pictures.  Even though I am a very strong swimmer, I must admit I was nervous to snorkel in coral quite some distance from the island.  Our guides gave us sandwiches before we went into the water so that we could feed the fish....feed the fish???  Yes, there were thousands of fish waiting for this food as we entered the water.  The frenzy of people feeding the fish freaked me out so I tossed my entire sandwich and began to swim.  Although the swim is not for beginner swimmers (the ocean currents were strong), Paradise Island was a beautiful day trip and is recommended if staying near Puerto Plata. 

There are so many other places I've visited, it was difficult to chose a few of the best places I've been.  Muir Woods (San Francisco) and Montego Bay (Jamaica) were also amazing places to visit.  Next year I hope to visit a place I've wanted to see as a child, Yellowstone.  I'd love to hear about more interesting places from around the world!