5 SIGHTS OF SOUTH AMERICA YOU WON'T FORGET

Bored of beaches, banal museums and grotty hotels? Want to do something different this time you go away? South America harbours some of the most breath-taking natural phenomena in the entire world. No tour guide needed, just a sense of adventure. Put your phone away and soak in the surroundings, because no Instagram post will do justice to these sights. If this doesn’t give you wanderlust, nothing will.

by Rosalind Turkie

1. Blue tide at NIght.

Reggaeton aside, Puerto Rico is famous for its tropical surroundings: exotic hideaways, miles of white sandy beach, and stunning mountain scenery. Visit the Bioluminescent Bays to be completely amazed by nature – who doesn’t want to see the water glow a bright blue hue at the touch of your hand? The bays contain bacteria which emit a flash of blue light when agitated at night – so take a dive into the sapphire glow, or run across the sand and watch the waves light up as they lap at your feet.

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2. Monarch Butterflies

If you want to experience a moment of breath-taking beauty, catch the monarch butterfly migration in Valle de Bravo, Mexico. The Monarchs arrive during the last days of October to hibernate in the high mountains, having flown over 4000 km to get there. An old legend tells that these butterflies are the souls of the dead coming back to visit their beloved ones, as the traditional Mexican festivity of the Day of the Dead takes place on November 2^nd. The high density of Monarchs transforms the evergreen fir trees into a fire of orange and brown.

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3. Coral Spawning

Diving in Bonaire can harbour spectacular sights. Between September and October, those who are lucky can witness the cultivation of the corals underwater – the conditions have to be perfect, including water temperature and a special position of the moon. The water lights up when several coral species release their gonadal secretions at the same time.

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5. Catatumbo Lightening

Referred to as “La Dragontea” (or vipers’ bugles) by Lope de Vega, an atmospheric phenomenon in Venezuela known as Catatumbo lightning is possibly the most terrifying sight of South America. Occurring at the mouth of the Catatumbo River, its unique characteristic stems from the fact that the stormclouds form and persist in the same place every night, causing high frequency bursts of lightning. So lightning never strikes twice, eh?

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6. Iguazu Falls.

Legend has it these falls which form the boundary between Argentina and Brazil were created by a divine rage. According to the myth, a deity planned to marry a beautiful woman, who fled with her mortal lover in a canoe across the Iguazu river. The god sliced the river in anger, condemning the lovers to an eternal fall. It is considered one of the most spectacular falls in the world, composed of many different cascades producing vast sprays of water. Niagara, eat your heart out.

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