Chichen Itza
KNOW YOUR HISTORY
IS ONE OF THE MOST ICONIC AND HISTORICALLY SIGNIFICANT ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITES OF THE ANCIENT MAYA CIVILIZATION, LOCATED IN THE YUCATÁN PENINSULA OF MEXICO. ONCE A POWERFUL CITY AND CULTURAL HUB, IT THRIVED BETWEEN THE 9TH AND 13TH CENTURIES AND FEATURES A BLEND OF MAYA AND TOLTEC INFLUENCES IN ITS ARCHITECTURE AND ART.
THE SITE’S MOST FAMOUS STRUCTURE, EL CASTILLO (TEMPLE OF KUKULCÁN), IS A MASSIVE STEP PYRAMID DESIGNED WITH REMARKABLE ASTRONOMICAL PRECISION. DURING THE SPRING AND FALL EQUINOXES, SUNLIGHT CASTS A SHADOW ALONG THE STEPS THAT RESEMBLES A SERPENT SLITHERING DOWN THE PYRAMID—AN HOMAGE TO THE FEATHERED SERPENT GOD, KUKULCÁN.
BEYOND EL CASTILLO, CHICHEN ITZA IS HOME TO OTHER IMPRESSIVE STRUCTURES LIKE THE GREAT BALL COURT, THE TEMPLE OF THE WARRIORS, AND THE SACRED CENOTE, A NATURAL SINKHOLE USED FOR CEREMONIAL OFFERINGS AND SACRIFICES. THESE MONUMENTS REFLECT THE CITY'S ADVANCED ENGINEERING, RELIGIOUS DEVOTION, AND SOCIAL COMPLEXITY.
RECOGNIZED AS A UNESCO WORLD HERITAGE SITE AND ONE OF THE NEW SEVEN WONDERS OF THE WORLD, CHICHEN ITZA CONTINUES TO ATTRACT MILLIONS OF VISITORS EACH YEAR, OFFERING A GLIMPSE INTO THE SOPHISTICATION AND MYSTERY OF ANCIENT MESOAMERICAN CIVILIZATION.
El Yunque
KNOW YOUR HISTORY
EL YUNQUE NATIONAL FOREST IS THE ONLY TROPICAL RAINFOREST IN THE UNITED STATES NATIONAL FOREST SYSTEM, LOCATED IN THE EASTERN REGION OF PUERTO RICO.
THIS LUSH, MIST-COVERED HAVEN IS HOME TO THOUSANDS OF PLANT AND ANIMAL SPECIES, MANY OF WHICH ARE FOUND NOWHERE ELSE IN THE WORLD. REVERED BY THE TAINO PEOPLE AS A SACRED PLACE, EL YUNQUE IS RICH IN SPIRITUAL ENERGY, FLOWING WATERFALLS, AND VERDANT TRAILS THAT CONNECT VISITORS TO THE ANCIENT RHYTHMS OF THE LAND.
IT STANDS AS A LIVING SYMBOL OF THE ISLAND’S NATURAL POWER AND INDIGENOUS HERITAGE. THE FOREST’S NAME COMES FROM THE TAINO WORD “YUKE,” MEANING “WHITE LANDS,” A REFERENCE TO ITS CLOUD-COVERED PEAKS. FROM CASCADING FALLS TO STONE PETROGLYPHS, EVERY CORNER OF EL YUNQUE HOLDS A STORY.
HIKING THROUGH ITS TRAILS OFFERS A CHANCE TO IMMERSE YOURSELF IN THE SAME LANDSCAPES THAT NURTURED ANCESTRAL WISDOM FOR GENERATIONS. HERE, NATURE SPEAKS IN WHISPERS AND ROARS, REMINDING US THAT SPIRIT STILL LIVES IN THE LAND.
Los Tres Ojos
KNOW YOUR HISTORY
LOS TRES OJOS NATIONAL PARK IS A STUNNING LIMESTONE CAVE SYSTEM LOCATED IN SANTO DOMINGO, DOMINICAN REPUBLIC, FEATURING THREE CRYSTAL-CLEAR UNDERGROUND LAGOONS SURROUNDED BY ANCIENT ROCK FORMATIONS AND TROPICAL VEGETATION.
THESE NATURAL POOLS, KNOWN AS “EYES,” WERE FORMED THOUSANDS OF YEARS AGO AND HOLD BOTH GEOLOGICAL BEAUTY AND CULTURAL SIGNIFICANCE. THE SITE IS BELIEVED TO HAVE BEEN SACRED TO THE TAINO PEOPLE, WHO VIEWED CAVES AS SPIRITUAL GATEWAYS.
VISITING LOS TRES OJOS OFFERS A PEACEFUL ESCAPE INTO A HIDDEN WORLD OF NATURAL WONDER AND INDIGENOUS HERITAGE. EACH “EYE” HAS ITS OWN UNIQUE TEMPERATURE, DEPTH, AND ENERGY, INVITING REFLECTION AND A SENSE OF MYSTERY. A FOURTH HIDDEN LAGOON CAN BE ACCESSED BY A SMALL BOAT, ADDING TO THE SITE’S SECLUDED AND SACRED FEEL.
LOS TRES OJOS REMAINS A POWERFUL SYMBOL OF EARTH’S ELEMENTAL FORCE AND THE SPIRITUAL WISDOM OF THE LAND’S FIRST PEOPLES. ITS STILL WATERS AND STONE WALLS INVITE EVERY VISITOR TO PAUSE, LOOK WITHIN, AND CONNECT TO SOMETHING GREATER.
