Trace
‘Trace’ shows the evidence of a former human existence or presence.
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A Toyota Land Cruiser on the Salar de Uyuni. This salar, located in Bolivia, is the world’s largest salt flat. More than 65 million years ago, Bolivia was a sea that was connected to the Atlantic Ocean. During millions of years, the South American land was pushed up by the Nazca Plate. Because of this, today, the salt flat lies at an elevation of 3,656 meter above sea level. However, the Salar itself is what remains of a prehistoric lake, which existed around 40,000 years ago.
The Salar is a touristic attraction and a salt extraction side. Here, the salt flat is flooded, as it is the rainy season. This creates an amazing optical effect, as the horizon appears to dissolve.
A barrel filled with garbage on the periphery of the Salar de Uyuni. This salar, located in Bolivia, is the world’s largest salt flat.
The Salar is a touristic attraction and a salt extraction side. It is a beautiful place, but human influences cannot be escaped.
A look into the Perito Moreno Glacier. This glacier is located in the Parque Nacional Los Glaciares in Patagonia, Argentina. It is a 250 km2 ice formation with a length of 30 kilometres. At the terminus (the snout) of the glacier, the average height of the glacier is 74 meter above the water surface, and the ice moves with a speed of three meter per day. Therefore, at the end of the glacier, ice collapses constantly into the lake. The cracking of the glacier produces a sinister sound but is best compared with the sound of lightning. Scientists constantly measure the movement of the glacier by inserting devices into the ice. This hole in the glacier is small, but while walking on the glacier you have to keep your ices open for bigger holes. If you fall into one of these, you disappear under the glacier.
Colonia Carlos Pellegrini is a small and isolated, quiet Argentinian village located within the Natural Reserve of Iberá. This is an area with grassland, lakes, lagoons, swamps and has a high level of biodiversity. A great place to wind down but difficult to get as there are only sand roads leading to the town.
The Sukothai Historical Park in Northern Thailand contains the ruins of the old city of Sukothai, which was the capital of the Sukothai Kingdom that existed from 1238 until 1438.
Sukothai is Sanskrit for ‘dawn of happiness’. The most important temple in the ruins of Sukothai is the ‘Wat Mahathat’. Different Buddha sculptures, such as the one in this image, can be found here. The complete park covers 70 square kilometres and 193 ruins. You can easily spend a whole day here. A nice way to do this is by cycling through the park.
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– Research before the trip | The quest in Sri Lanka | Discovering the stilt fishermen | Photographing techniques
Type in Sri Lanka in a search engine. Among the first thing you find are the iconic images of stilt fishermen. Many photographers have made beautiful pictures of them. As I was about to visit Sri Lanka, I wanted to find and photograph them myself. You never know what new perspective you might discover, right?
– The two markets of Otavalo | Around Otavalo
Travelling through Ecuador is a colourful experience. And I’m not merely talking about the colours of nature. They are with the people too. It’s in their clothing, bags, art – everywhere! I guess, when you’re visiting Ecuador, there’s a fair chance you’d like to bring something home? Then the Otavalo artisans market is the place to indulge yourself. However, there’s more to this town than market stalls.
– Part 5: Overview & Tips | Preserving and visiting the Amazon
You’ve been able to read about our preparations at the beginning of this story. But I didn’t include a packing list, for example. In this final part of the story, I will give you a complete overview and tips. But first, here’s a brief explanation what we all can do to help preserve the Amazon.
– Part 4: Exploring the Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve
We were preparing for a night walk in the rainforest with Luis. It was pitch-dark. That meant headlight on and being even more alert as to where you’re going than during the day. Even more so because we were about to learn that it’s the very small that can have the biggest of consequences.
– Part 3: Exploring the Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve
As Luis guided us through the Ecuadorian Amazon, we experienced a continuous stream of amazement. We were walking in an unknown world. The jungle was teeming with wildlife. However, some of it dead and alive at the same time. We’re talking real-life Amazon zombies here.
– Part 2: Trip into the Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve | Arrival in Siona lodge and meeting the crew | First adventures
The moment I thought I had seen something weird, something weirder was around the corner. You can be pretty sure with hundred thousands of species surrounding you.
– Part 1: Why the Ecuadorian Amazon? | How to prepare and get there?
“Jump in the water!”, Luis said. Under normal circumstances, jumping in a lake would be no problem. But circumstances were not normal. The water was brown, unclear. It means you can’t see what’s in it. The problem was that I knew what’s in it…
I found this abandoned tricycle during a trip through Bolivia just outside aremote Andean village called Huayllajara, close to the Laguna Colorada, at 4:30 in the morning. The village is located in the desert and on the photo the Laguna Colorada can be seen in the background on the foot of the mountain. The village and Laguna Colorada are located at an elevation of 4,278 meter above sea level. Buy this!