Three steps. That’s all it took. I was three steps up a modest flight of stone stairs on our first evening in Cusco when my lungs completely slammed the brakes. My chest heaved, my heart hammered against my ribs, and I was forced to lean heavily against a wall just to catch my breath. Welcome …

Latin America is surging in popularity with American travelers now that they’re letting go of their reservations and starting to question their preconceived notion of the ‘dangerous’, ‘risky’ Global South, and how mainstream media portrays it. From a beautiful, sprawling Mexico City down to the beaches of Rio de Janeiro, they are (re)discovering the subcontinent’s …