Travel Journal
By: Justin G.
Introduction
Trip to Mexico City, Mexico- History
Mexico City has a very unusual history. Today I visited a museam. There I learned that Mexico City was originally called Tenochitan by the Aztecs. Eventually a Spanish fleet led by Hernan Cortes conquered Tenochitan.
The Spaniards renamed it Mexico City, according to the tour guide. Later in the Mexican-American War, The U.S. took control of Mexico City. Mexico City used to control territory as far as Panama and California. Also, under Porfio Diaz's rule, the city was remodeled to rival European cities.
Finally the Republican Constitution of 1824 established Mexico City as the capital of Mexico.
In all I learned a lot of interesting things about Mexico City. The fact that it was built on top of ancient cities is very surprising, and it adds to the immense history of the capital city of Mexico.
Mexico Coin
Part of the currency of Mexico
Map
A map of Tenochitan, the ancient city Mexico City was built on top of.
RIngs
Olympic rings from the Mexico City olympics
Trip to Negril, Jamaica- Culture
Today I checked into Negril, Jamaica. I spent most of the day at the Long Bay. It is the longest beach in all of Jamaica. Negril is almost always rated in the top ten of beach quality by travel magazines.
I had dinner at Rick's Café where I watched cliff jumpers jump into the sunset. I listened to different types of reggae music, Jamaica's most popular music choice. Did you know famous people like Bob Marley, Peter Hill, and Jimmy Cliff are from Jamaica?
For dinner I had chicken with rice, a popular Jamaican meal. They also sell fish, beans, fruits, and vegetables which are all delicious. It shows off Jamaican culture.
Most people speak a blend of English and Spanish. Everyone I met was very kind to me. I also went snorkeling at West End Road. It was a very enjoyable experience. I saw many interesting sites.
Tomorrow I'm going on a luxurious cruise. Negril is definitely a great place to hang out in. All the hotels I saw looked nice, and the one I stayed at was amazing. I can't wait for tomorrow!
West End Road
Here is a picture of West End Road, a beautiful place to visit.
Cliff Jumpers
Here is a picture I took of a cliff jumper at Rick's Cafe. It looks scary!
Sunset
Here is one of the great sunsets in Negril. They sure do look amazing!
Trip to Bogota, Colombia- Geography
After that I went shopping for souvenirs. I learned that Bogota is very rich in emeralds.
Later, I drove to the Bio-Park which has a wide variety of animals like butterflies, and reptiles. I drove by some beautiful waterfalls on the way back to the hotel.
Tomorrow I will go to see more sights like Lagunade Guatavia which was one of the sacred lakes of the Muisca, the former Colombian natives
Bogota has so many interesting sites!
Laguana De Guatavia
Here is Laguana De Guatavia. It is one of the sacred lakes of the natives of Colombia.
Bio-Park
Here is the Bio-Park home to may interesting reptiles, and other animals.
UFO
Here is a famous UFO sighting from Juaica Hill.
Trip to Brazil- Economy
I checked out the stock exchange, which is one of the largest stock exchanges in the world. It is another important part of Brazil's economy. Another part of the economy is that they produce automobiles, steel, petrochemicals, and aircraft. Brazil is beginning to industrialize.
Brazil is blessed with many natural resources including iron, manganese, nickel, tin, uranium, copper, zinc, gold, and much, much more. The economy is very strong with an unemployment rate of about six percent. The country is beginning to rely less on petroleum, and more on environmentally healthier chemicals like hydroelectric power. Oil used to account for over 70 percent of Brazil's energy. They also get rubber from the Amazon Basin, and harvest mahogany wood from the Amazon Rain Forest.
In all, Brazil has a stable, growing economy.
Stock Exchange
Here is a photo of the stock exchange i visited in Brazil. It's filled with people wanting to make investments.
Amazon Rainforest
The Amazon is being cut down in order to harvest wood to export to other countries.
Mineral Resources
Here is a mineral I found in Brazil. It is rather common to find these because there is so much.