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October 7 2022

Best Things to Do in Bonaire: Vacationing in the Dutch Caribbean

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Staff, 2022-10-07 17:08:02,

“In Bonaire, you don’t think, you just do.” At least that’s what I repeat to myself standing at the edge of this cliff, eyeing the dirt-covered notch of fossilized coral beneath my feet. About 25 feet below that there’s clear, impossibly turquoise water. Maybe too clear: I think I see shadows of rock-masses right beneath the ripples, but hopefully my eyes are playing tricks on me.

On the southern end of the Caribbean, the Dutch municipality—the “B” between Aruba and Curaçao in the ABC islands—is less about tourist traps and more about outdoor appreciation. Here, 20,000 residents are relegated to two cities—Kralendijk, the capital, and the older Rincon—while about one third of the whole island is covered by Washington-Slagbaai National Park, where I am currently frozen.

The cliff in question. | Angelita Niedziejko/ Moment/ Getty Images

To get to this perch above Boka Slagbaai bay—once a setting for goat slaughtering (slagbaai comes from slachtbaai, Dutch for “slaughter bay”)—I trekked in aqua shoes up a lumpy trail lined with spindly candle cacti that sprung from the ground like electrified hairs. Take away the sounds of the ocean, and the landscape could easily double as a Western US desert. But then an iguana crosses my path, moseying along on Caribbean time. Behind me flamingos converge, feasting on a former salt pan. And at the top of the trail, I emerge to see the water—expansive, gorgeous, with coral reef all around, all protected thanks…

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August 30 2022

Intrepid Travel Launches Gullah Geechee Tour

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Staff, 2022-08-30 14:57:58,

According to Matt Berna of Intrepid Travel, the most popular trip for international travelers coming to the US is a multi-day exploration of the Southwest. And who could blame them? Our red rocks and wide gaping chasms are awe-inducing—the stuff of dreams and old movie backdrops. The area’s Indigenous tribes are rife with culture, community, and art. Plus, we make a hell of a Cowboy Steak. Less understandable, however, is their excitement over visiting a Walmart, but to each his own.

Embarking on a multi-day tour in a country other than your own is what Intrepid—and similar operators like G Adventures, Contiki, and others—are known for. They work especially well for solo travelers, and, depending on the provider and price point, you can hone in on your particular interests, whether it be food, adventure, history, or even old-timey train rides. Along the way, you’ll meet like-minded travelers, encounter new experiences, and, best of all, you don’t have to do a stitch of the planning.

Hiking in Montana backcountry with Blackfeet Outfitters, an Intrepid partner. | Blackfeet Outfitters

Intrepid was launched in 1988 by two adventurous and ambitious bearded Australians, Darrell Wade and Geoff Manchester. Today, the company offers more than 1,000 itineraries across Europe, Asia, Africa, North and South America, the Middle East, Australia, and both the Arctic and Antarctica. Their particular niche is creating immersive—or intrepid, if you will—travel itineraries for…

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June 14 2022

Best Juneteenth Celebrations in the US

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Staff, 2022-06-14 16:06:01,

Hit up a Juneteenth celebration and you might partake in a homogenous spread of red foods: watermelon and red velvet cake, red soda and hibiscus tea, red sausages and strawberry pie. Festive and delicious, but also sobering—the color is believed to symbolize the struggle and bloodshed of African Americans. This June 19 marks 157 years since Union troops galloped into Galveston Bay, Texas, and announced to the 250,000 people still enslaved in the state that they were legally free.

Though the Emancipation Proclamation technically went into effect two years earlier in 1863, it took longer for it to be implemented in states ruled by the Confederacy, and the westernmost Confederate state of Texas was the last to be notified. “Juneteenth” became a day of celebration by the newly freed population, first documented in Austin in 1867, and introduced to the rest of the country during the Great Migration. For decades, thanks to a combination of Jim Crow-era restrictions and plain old racism, the holiday was mostly celebrated behind closed doors by African American households.

The Civil Rights Movement brought renewed popularity to the holiday, which both honors our nation’s second day of independence and acknowledges the battles still yet to be won. In 1980, Juneteenth became a statewide holiday in Texas, with 47 states following suit. But it wasn’t until the racial reckoning of 2020 that many Americans were even made aware of the holiday. A campaign was soon launched to recognize it federally, and in 2021, Juneteenth became a federal holiday—which means one year later, the party is just getting started.

Here are some of the best and most compelling Juneteenth—AKA Freedom Day, Jubilee Day, Emancipation Day, or Liberation Day—celebrations going down around the US…

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