Caribbean and Central America Travel

Central America is the name of the region that connect North and South America. It is also sometimes referred to as the “southern end of North America.”

This narrow strip of land separates the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea. On its narrowest point, Darien in Panama, the land is only about 30 miles (50 kilometers) wide. It is said that there is no area in Central America that is more than 125 miles from a body of water. Like the Caribbean, Central America also lies on the Caribbean Plate. This region gets its fair share of earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. The region is mountainous (with majority of its people living in the mountains than in the lowlands), though there are also a stretch of lowland along both coasts. The seven countries in Central America occupies a total land area of 202,265 square miles (523,865 square kilometers).
(more…)

Then people talk about the Caribbean, images of fine white sand beaches, clear turquoise waters and hammocks tied to palm trees first come to mind. It is indeed, one of the world’s primary vacation destination.

Located in the Americas, it is bordered in the north by North America, in the east by Central America and in the south, South America. The Caribbean is composed of over 7,000 islands resting on the Caribbean Plate.

Also known as the West Indies, this region comprises of several territories and countries. The United States, United Kingdom and other European countries like the Netherlands and France have territories in the Carribean.
(more…)

In the early fifteenth century, the Spanish conquistadores ventured into Central America from the Caribbean Islands, then known as the Spanish colony of New Spain. Spanish efforts to extend their dominion to the area that would be known as El Salvador were firmly resisted by the Pipil and their remaining Mayan-speaking neighbors. Pedro de Alvarado, a lieutenant of Hernan Cortes, led the first effort by Spanish forces in June 1524.

Sharing the island of Hispanoila with the Dominican Republic, Haiti lives up to is Tainos name, Ayiti, which means “mountainous land.”

Like the other Caribbean islands, Haiti was discovered by the Italian explorer, Christopher Columbus on his voyage to the Americas. Also, like the other Caribbean islands, Haiti had its share of slavery, rebellions and finally, freedom. Modern day Haiti is poverty-stricken, and has fallen victim to urban overpopulation. Though there is unrest in the country, Haiti’s culture remains vibrant with colorful art, sensational music, beautiful nature retreats and passionate people.

As typical in the Caribbean islands, Haiti enjoys a mild tropical climate with only two seasons throughout the year. Haiti, however, has two rainy seasons: from April to May and from September to October. June to September is the hurricane season in the region, though hurricanes don’t last the entire 5 months, it’s up to you if you want to risk vacationing in Haiti during this time.
(more…)