Text: Julie Schwietert Collazo
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Projects begun months and even years ago are finally coming to fruition.

My photo essay about scientific research at Guantanamo Bay Naval Base was published by DISCOVER Magazine about a week and a half ago; it subsequently hit the front page of Digg. I started working on this piece almost two years ago, so it was gratifying to see everything finally come together.

A travel feature about our trip on Puerto Rico’s Ruta Panoramica appears in the September issue of Latina Magazine, which just hit newsstands today. Hope you’ll pick it up and read it! The article also features a couple of Francisco’s photos.

And speaking of the Ruta Panoramica, that’s one of the subjects I wrote about for Fodor’s Puerto Rico, 6th edition. The guide book should have appeared on bookstore shelves around the US this past Friday. If you decide to buy one, we wouldn’t mind if you clicked through from here:

Francisco’s been keeping his camera busy; in addition to covering the Carlos Varela, Garifuna Soul, and Susana Baca performances at Lincoln Center last week, he was also credentialed to shoot the Larry Harlow, Ruben Blades, Adonis Puentes show a few nights later. It was a pretty big deal– this marked the first time Harlow’s suite “La Raza Latina” has ever been performed live. The photos of Susana Baca are particularly good; you can see them all here.

Together, we’re working on (finally) completing an iPhone app for San Juan, Puerto Rico, which will be available soon through iTunes. To promote the app and to share more advice and insight into Puerto Rico, we’re also in the process of setting up a new website- PuertoRicoTravelGuides.com. We’re also on Twitter: @PRTravelGuides.

Finally, I’ve just published an article over on MatadorChange about a female Bolivian wrestler who has dismantled gender barriers in her country. The article, accompanied by Francisco’s photos, represents the first piece in a new editorial vision we’re rolling out at Matador. Expect to see “deeper” feature-length articles about the issues Francisco and I have always cared about- the environment, immigration, social justice, and the like.

Text: Julie Schwietert Collazo
Photo: Screenshot of Susana Baca album, “Eco de Sombras”
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In the world of “Latin music,” Susana Baca and Carlos Varela are both big names.

Baca is an Afro-Peruvian singer whose songs tell “the story of African identity as transplanted, transformed and even repressed in her native country.”* Varela is a 47-year old Cuban folk singer who, in his own words “es alguien que canta la realidad de la juventud cubana con [todos] sus defectos y virtudes.” ["someone who sings the reality of Cuban youth with all of its flaws and virtues."]. Not counting Pablo Milanes and Silvio Rodriguez–both of whom are older than he– Varela is probably Cuba’s best-known vocalist in this genre.

Though well-loved in New York City, Baca makes infrequent appearances here, and the United States’ persistently noxious diplomatic relations with Cuba always present an obstacle for artists like Varela when they go about securing a visa to perform here. Both will be here this week, though, as part of Lincoln Center’s annual Out of Doors Festival.

The free performance starts at 6:30 PM on Wednesday, August 11, at the Damrosch Park Bandshell, the outdoor amphitheatre behind the main plaza. Seating is provided by Lincoln Center, but get there early, as this performance will be well-attended.

Francisco will be photographing the performance for Lincoln Center.

To see photographs from last year’s Out of Doors Festival, click here.

If you’d like to listen to Baca’s and Varela’s music, we recommend Baca’s album “Eco de Sombras” and Varela’s recently released “All His Greatest Hits.”

*Quote by Larry Blumenfeld, of The Wall Street Journal

Text: Julie Schwietert Collazo
Photos: Francisco Collazo
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Actress America Ferrera

Before Mariel was born, Francisco and I watched a documentary or film every night; sometimes, we’d watch two or three.

Now, with a very active 10 month old, most of our movie watching is limited to film festivals. We make elaborate schedules of the movies we want to see and then trade off childcare for a week.

That’s what we’re doing this week, as HBO’s New York International Latino Film Festival kicked off yesterday in Manhattan with the showing of “The Dry Land,” a film about a soldier returning from the war in Iraq. Francisco was among the photographers at the pre-screening red carpet event, and has posted some of the shots here.

More than 100 documentaries, shorts, and features will be shown between now and August 1. We’re particularly excited to see:

“Boys of Summer”: A documentary about Curacao’s Little League Baseball team.

“Whitewash”: A documentary about black surfers.

“Mamachas del Ring”: A documentary about female wrestlers in Bolivia.

and a handful of films from/about Colombia, including “My Kidnapper,” “Sins of My Father,” and “The Two Escobars.”

If you’re in New York City and are interested in attending any of the screenings, you can check the full schedule here. You can also follow the event on Twitter.

Text: Julie Schwietert Collazo
Photos: Francisco Collazo

It’s true, we’ve posted nothing since April. Let’s skip the usual excuses and apologies, shall we, and just say that it’s been so long that we even forgot our own password.

It’s been a busy, fun time.

“Fun Slide,” Aibonito, Puerto Rico, June 2010

Though we never would have expected it when we high-tailed it out of Puerto Rico with all engines thrusting, the island we called home for more than 2.5 years has become one of our writing and photography niches. Fodor’s Puerto Rico, 6th Edition will be hitting bookstore shelves in August. Julie wrote several features for the book, including “History You Can See,” “State of the Arts in Puerto Rico,” “Salsa,” “A Guide to Puerto Rico’s Carved Saints,” and a 14 page itinerary for the Ruta Panoramica, the first time the Ruta’s been featured in the Fodor’s guide. Several of Francisco’s photos illustrate these and other features.

Yes, the guide book has mistakes. And yes, parts of it are already out of date. That’s why you’ll need to supplement it with the iPhone app we’re (slowly but surely) producing. More on that later.

Julie also has a feature article about Puerto Rico’s Ruta Panoramica (Panoramic Route) that will be published in the September issue of Latina Magazine, and several of Francisco’s photos will accompany this piece as well.

A mid-June trip to Puerto Rico and a return trip planned for September will see other writing and photography projects come to fruition. In the meantime, you can read about violence on the island and the problem with lionfish on PR’s Southern coast over at Matador, and take a look at photos from Yauco (one of PR’s coffee-producing towns), Aibonito (home of the annual flower festival), and other cities and towns we visited in June.

Between now and our next Puerto Rico visit, Julie will be headed to Cuba to visit Francisco’s family and to work on a few stories, including several pieces about Havana’s Chinese Cuban population, a subject that she’s been working on for the past couple years.

And other projects abound- a photo essay about scientific research at Guantanamo Bay Naval Base for Discover Magazine and the conversion of CollazoProjects from a blog into a full-blown website.

What are you up to these days? Fill us in by leaving a comment below!

Text: Julie Schwietert Collazo
Mexico & Colombia Photos: Francisco Collazo
Cuba Photo: Brayan Collazo
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Back in December, Lola Akinmade invited me to participate in the Tripbase Best-Kept Travel Secrets Project. Time got away from me and I never followed through.

Earlier this week, Katie Erica, the writer who started the project, invited me to participate- again- so this time, I won’t let her down!

The idea behind the project is to crowd-source an epic list of travel writers’ favorite places, preferably places that are “secret.”

Now you can argue whether sharing “secret” places is a good idea, as the excellent writer David Page did in the article “Travelers’ Omerta: Is There No Place We Should Keep Secret?” It’s a valid question and one that leads to important reflections.

But the places where I travel aren’t really secret. They’re pretty much in plain view for everyone to see and visit… they simply choose not to.

So here are my three “best-kept travel secrets” and my defense of why you should visit each of them:

Mexico City, Mexico

If I could have any job other than the one I have, it would be a full-time evangelist for Mexico City.

Seriously, this is THE most exciting city on the planet, and if you know me or read my writing regularly, you know I don’t use words like “most” or “must-see” frequently.

I will spend my life trying to write a more persuasive, poignant description of Mexico City than David Lida, but until then, I’ll simply cite him with gratitude for articulating my exact feelings about “el DF”:

“I had been utterly seduced by the constant sensations of contrast, surprise, even tumult.”

“[I]t has absorbed and swallowed all the centuries of its history, yet most of them are still in evidence in some regurgitated form on the streets.”

“Mexico City is constantly improvising a new invention of itself.”

I could go on and on, but do yourself a favor and read Lida’s book, First Stop in the New World: Mexico City, The Capital of the 21st Century. Start reading his blog. And then, put Mexico City on the top of your travel list.

And once you’re there, make sure you witness the daily flag ceremony in the Zocalo. Go to a lecture at Casa Lamm and then visit their restaurant for an overpriced but totally worth it martini (try carambola). And throw yourself into a visit to Mercado San Juan like it’s the most important thing you’ll do all year. Just don’t forget your camera.

CUBA

First, understand this: Cuba is not closed.

It’s very much open for tourism and business and even if you’re an American you can go there.

I explain how in “How to Travel to Cuba and Why You Should Do It Now.”

I guarantee that you’ll come back from Cuba a changed person, one who has begun to understand what a complex nation it is, one that exists outside of all the polarized rhetoric about it. And if you don’t, well, I’ll take you out for dinner and we can talk about it.

What should you do while you’re there? I’ve written about some favorite Havana attractions for TravelMuse and favorite nightlife spots for Matador.

3. Mompox, Colombia

You’ve got to be determined to get to Mompox. You have to cross a river in a sketchy boat, then take a motorbike or sturdy vehicle to this UNESCO World Heritage site.

But if you do, it will be worth the effort, especially if you plan a visit of a week or longer.

Colombia’s legendary river, the Magdalena, runs right through the town, which is rumored to be the inspiration for novelist Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s imaginary town of Macondo. There’s not a raucous nightlife here, or dozens of museums, but there are lots and lots of stories.

If you visit, book a bed at Matador contributor Richard McColl’s La Casa Amarilla, which Francisco and I tended for a month in 2008.

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What are your favorite travel “secrets”? Share them–or not!–in the comments.
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And be sure to check out the blogs of these writers, who I’m “tagging” to participate in the Tripbase project:

Hal Amen: WayWorded
Donna Arioldi: Prepare for Crosscheck
Megan Hill: See.Write.Live.
Reeti Roy: Clickety Click Click
Michelle Schusterman: MusicTravelWrite