Monkeys are Prevalent All Around the World

On February 13, 2024February 13, 2024 By Isobar ExpeditionsIn Gibraltar, Kenya, Mexico, Nepal, Rwanda, South America, Tanzania, Vietnam2 Comments

In some ways we are surprised that it seems like no matter where we travel to, there is a chance that we will see monkeys at some point during our visit. Whether it is North America, Central America, South America, Europe, Asia, or Africa, we have seen monkeys in so many different locations throughout our travels. Because of how expressive they are and the way that they share human traits, they are often fascinating to watch, but more often than not, they are troublemakers that have to be watched carefully. We have seen monkeys steal items from people who are not prepared for the fact that they will grab almost anything that they can get their hands on. They are extremely curious, and that curiosity often leads to a desire to explore items that you might have in your possession, especially if it is shiny.

Although monkeys can be found in the wild in Mexico, our first encounter with monkeys was actually in captivity during our trip to Puerto Vallarta, which is certainly not the experience that we prefer. Our second encounter was in Gibraltar during our trip to Southern Spain where we saw the Barbary Macaque Monkeys. During our trip to Panama, we actually took a tour that took us to several of the “monkey islands” that were created when the area around the Panama Canal was flooded to allow for the massive ships to pass through the canal. The smaller monkeys were trapped on the islands and are kept alive by the tourists who visit and feed them.

Up Close and Personal with Monkeys in Panama

It is no surprise that we encountered monkeys in the Amazon Jungle both during our trips to Bolivia and Ecuador. In Vietnam, we saw monkeys on the shoreline of Halong Bay after our boat went through Sung Sot Cave. For obvious reasons, we saw plenty of monkeys, especially baboons, during our safari in Kenya and Tanzania as they were prevalent at each of the parks that we visited. Earlier last year, we visited “Monkey Temple”, more appropriately Pashupatinath Temple, just outside of Kathmandu in Nepal. Then later in the year, we decided to trek to visit the larger primates, gorillas and chimpanzees in Rwanda.

As long as you know that these amazing creatures are unpredictable and you keep your eyes on them to ensure that they don’t take advantage of your curiosity, these animals are truly fascinating to watch. You can often see them almost deep in thought as they watch everything going on around them. Of all of the monkeys that we’ve seen, the ones that we trusted the least were the baboons as they almost acted like a gang where several of them will group together to distract you while others attempt to get away with your belongings. Our time with the gorillas was probably the most incredible experience that we’ve had and will be something we will treasure forever. What is your favorite or least favorite monkey experience that you’ve encountered?

La Quebrada Cliff Divers in Acapulco, Mexico

On February 3, 2022February 3, 2022 By Isobar ExpeditionsIn Mexico2 Comments

One of the highlights of visiting Acapulco is going to see the famous La Quebrada Cliff Divers. La Quebrada is the name of the cliffs where the divers climb to perform the death-defying dives into the narrow water below. The divers are all professionals of various ages that perform daily for the crowds that come to cheer them on. We chose to watch them from the La Perla restaurant in the El Mirador Resort that made them famous, but there is an observation deck where you can see them even closer without the expense of a meal.

La Quebrada Cliff Lit Up for the Performance

The divers perform one show during the day at 1pm and then they do four performances in the evening at 7:30, 8:30, 9:30, and 10:30. While the afternoon performance might be best from a photographic perspective, seeing them in the evening is quite impressive. We chose to go to the 7:30 show as we were able to watch a beautiful sunset around 6:30 as we enjoyed our meal and waited for the divers to start their performance. Just sitting and enjoying the beautiful views of the La Quebrada cliffs and the water crashing into the “Gulch” is a worthwhile experience.

Prior to the start of the performance, some of the younger divers came out to dive from the smaller cliffs below the observation deck. In addition to practicing the diving skills and warming up, it was also their responsibility to clear away any seaweed that had been brought in by the tide. It was surprising to see how young some of the divers actually were, but they made sure to dive from the lower cliffs. Once the main divers arrived, also working they way down through the crowds on the observation deck, they also dove into the water and swam around in order to loosen up for the performance.

Lobby of the Resort with Famous Tarzan Actor Photograph

Once it was time for the performance to begin, the first of the divers began the climb up the steep cliff wall using only his hands and his bare feet to scale to the top of the cliff. Then other divers started to climb the cliff with several of them going to a perch just below the summit. Each diver then patiently eyed the water below before leaping from the cliff and soaring through the air and into the water below. It is quite a fascinating show and certainly worth seeing when visiting Acapulco.

What is the Most “Touristy” Thing That You’ve Done?

On June 10, 2021June 10, 2021 By Isobar ExpeditionsIn Egypt, England, Mexico, morocco7 Comments

When traveling, we always try to have the most authentic experiences as possible. There are times, however, when a tour that we take includes something that is there just for tourists. They are often photo opportunities that locals believe that the people visiting want to take home with them, but often they aren’t realistic to the actual culture. More often than not, when we end up doing one of those types of things, we literally cringe when we see what we’re about to do. It doesn’t mean that we don’t enjoy them, it is just that we realize that it is a staged activity done just for tourists.

We have actually ridden camels twice, once in Morocco and then again in Egypt. It wasn’t as if we were riding a camel to get from one place to another, it was just us on a camel while someone walked us around. It wasn’t as if we saw people riding camels, although we know that they do in the desert, so it is just something that people have come to expect to do when they visit those countries. Another thing that we did when in Morocco was to see a snake charmer. Interesting as it was, it was still just a planned stop along the tour for us to take photos and tip the snake charmer in order for him to make a living.

When we were in Prague, at the end of the tour, we went to what was supposed to be a medieval restaurant, complete with cobwebs on the ceiling and waiters dressed in garments from the period. Having a meal at a wooden table in a dungeon, while fun, is probably not the way it would have been hundreds of years ago. When we visited Warwick Castle in England, one of the towers was set up as a torture chamber. It was basically a haunted house experience with people jumping out at you. Again, fun, but not anything representative of turn of the century Europe.

When we were in Cabo, we swam with dolphins in a large aquarium. It would be quite fascinating to swim in the wild with dolphins, but that would be a completely different experience than swimming with a dolphin that has been trained to do tricks. We took a cruise on a pirate ship in Puerto Vallarta where they put on a show and entertained the guests throughout the tour. Clearly these activities are a little different, but still very touristy. Obviously it is hard to completely avoid all of these types of activities, so when they happen it is best to just role with it and have fun. The camel rides were probably the most touristy of all of the activities that we’ve done. What is the most touristy thing that you’ve done when traveling?