Two dozen new sites were added to UNESCO’s World Heritage List this month, ranging from cultural treasures to natural wonders.
12.07.2024 - 22:20 / insider.com
There's more to see on the white sand beaches of Costa Rica's Nicoya Peninsula than the beautiful jungle coastline.
As one of the world's original Blue Zones, residents there live longer, healthier lives than the global average. And while the keys to living that lifestyle are deeply ingrained in local culture, the habits that keep it alive aren't always immediately clear.
If you look closely, as I did while visiting the Blue Zone last month — partly because of a wonderful work assignment but also because of a newfound obsession with wellness as I enter my 30s — you can glean lessons on longevity to take back home with you.
Here are three things I learned that I'll be reminding myself of as I prioritize healthy living going forward:
In Costa Rica, a surge in tourism means a surge in various luxuries cropping up to provide outsiders with easy and familiar places to eat, shop, and relax. McDonald's, Pizza Hut, and Pollolandia — a local fried chicken chain — have made it to the most remote corners of the Central American country.
Locals I spoke to said the Blue Zone lifestyle is real, but it's fading. Instead of balanced meals of fruit and freshly caught fish, it's quicker to pick up a burger at the fast food chain that moved in once the tourists did. Why get up at 4 a.m. to tend to your livestock and split wood to keep a fire going if you no longer need a farm and you've had electricity for years?
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Maintaining a Blue Zone lifestyle in a modern-day world doesn't happen automatically — it takes daily effort and intention.
Watching how locals lived in the beach towns of Paquera, Tambor, and Montezuma showed me that wellness-centric habits don't have to be complicated. No one I spoke to had elaborate gym routines or chlorophyll drops to add to their oat milk smoothies.
Instead, most everything was pared down to its most essential elements. The Blue Zone diet included fresh, whole foods, rarely prepared in any way more complicated than roasting; exercise was daily but rarely vigorous — like walking to the grocery store for ingredients rather than interval training.
A man and woman I spoke to had lived on the beach their whole lives, making their living selling coconuts. They were 64 and 68, kept remarkably young by their active work and limited-stress lifestyle. In speaking with them, it became clear that Blue Zone living makes wellness a routine built into daily life, and simple habits are best for that.
In addition to being habitual, wellness in the Nicoya Peninsula was very clearly holistic. Locals approached longevity not just as a physical goal but as a mental and social one, as well.
Yes, they ate balanced meals and moved often, but another key element of wellness in Costa Rica was
Two dozen new sites were added to UNESCO’s World Heritage List this month, ranging from cultural treasures to natural wonders.
Embedded in a lush slope of jungle, my villa peered over the glimmering bay below, the whole scene animated by butterflies, bird songs, and the treetop rustling of monkeys. As I floated in my private plunge pool, reminding myself to take it all in, I reflexively grabbed my phone to check the weather app. I placed it back down on the towel, scolding myself for the lapse in mindfulness. Within seconds I grabbed my phone to check it again before remembering I just did.
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Visitors to one of the most popular national parks in the United States may need to adjust their plans. Yellowstone National Park's 'Biscuit Basin' area is closed due to a recent hydrothermal explosion that occurred on Tuesday morning, according to a news release. The closure affects parking lots, trails, and boardwalks near the Basin, which is located just north of the still-open Old Faithful geysers. The explosion was described as «localized» and occurred near the Sapphire Pool in Biscuit Basin. Videos of the incident, taken by tourists and then shared on social media, show large plumes of liquid and debris bursting in the air and then raining down on outdoor enthusiasts. Fortunately, no injuries have been reported at this time, according to the NPS. The park did not provide a timeline of when the area will reopen.
Paris is expected to welcome 11.3 million visitors during the Olympic Games, significantly increasing its population density. This surge in visitors is spurring travel demand to international destinations, such as Italy and the United States, that harness this desire to leave crowds behind, also benefiting United Kingdom, Spain, and Greece, as well as farther destinations, such as Thailand or Japan.
I graduated from college two years ago and set a goal for myself to visit at least 50 countries before I turn 30.
Luxury travel curators are pushing the boundaries of indulgence, crafting experiences that redefine exclusivity. Gone are the generic “luxury” packages; today’s high-end traveller craves “ultra-premium” adventures, seeking the rare and authentic.
A global IT outage on Friday canceled thousands of flights and forced several airlines to request ground stops, throwing travel into chaos.
Next time you think about getting a gift card from the display rack as a last-minute gift, you might want to think again. According to the Federal Trade Commission, gift card scams accounted for $217 million of the more than $10 billion U.S. consumers lost to financial scams in 2023.
This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Ivette Cuevas, a café owner living in Costa Rica, and her 16-year-old son, Vincent Alcampo. It has been edited for length and clarity.