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Lake Quilotoa is gaining a reputation as one of the most attractive destinations in Ecuador. The surrounding area, of rugged mountains and dirt roads, offers some of the most rewarding cycle touring in the Andes.

Biking Ecuador’s Spectacular Avenue of the Volcanoes

Home to a string of high peaks, including 20,564-foot Chimborazo, the area offers some of the finest cycling, hiking and adventuring country anywhere

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The Fishy History of the McDonald’s Filet-O-Fish Sandwich

How a struggling entrepreneur in Ohio saved his burger business during Lent and changed the McDonald’s menu for good.

The dream of a gold miner—a nugget so big it can be handled like a small marble.

Hunting for Gold in the Amazonian Jungle

The author joins two American fortune-seekers on a gold-panning outing at the confluence of the Negro and Paute rivers

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What Makes These Avocados Different From All Others?

The spectrum of the fruit here is almost as varied as the people who grow them, and for avo advocates, Ecuador is an excellent place to go tasting

From a chain of Los Angeles drive-ins in the 1940s, “good food is good health.”

10 Vintage Menus That Are a Feast for the Eyes, If Not the Stomach

From the late-19th century to the 1970s, restaurants had one surefire way of standing out

Teenagers in the West Bank hit a Volkswagen Beetle with a snowball.

A Snowball Fight in the West Bank

For the first time in their lifetimes, these teenagers got to enjoy the thrill of a fresh layer of snow

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The Best Reasons to Go to Norway in February

It may get cold, but the trolls, bobsleds, skiing, Scandinavian delicacies and (heated) art museums make it all worthwhile

Meals in a Jar: From Pancakes to Baby Back Ribs, Just Add Water

Ready-made meals, good for months on a pantry shelf, work for busy nights, camping trips and power outages

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Can Chemistry Make Healthy Foods More Appealing?

Making healthy foods like tomatoes more palatable may increase our desire to eat these foods while decreasing our gravitation towards sugary snacks

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Vilcabamba: Paradise Going Bad?

Life in this legendary town in Ecuador’s Valley of Longevity may be too good—and too long—to be true

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No Salt, No Problem: One Woman’s Life-or-Death Quest to Make “Bland” Food Delicious

The more salt we eat, the more we crave. This new approach to less-salty cooking might help you step off the treadmill

Black rum, charred orange and allspice.

How Does McCormick Pick the Top Flavors of the Year?

Ten years ago, the spice company identified chipotle as a taste on the rise. They’re back at it again with new predictions for 2013

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When Cane Juice Meets Yeast: Brewing in Ecuador

The sugarcane trail takes the author across the Andes, into liquor distilleries and from juice shack to juice shack as he pursues fermented sugarcane wine

On Black Day, single Koreans drown their sorrows in a bowl of jjajang myeon noodles.

Korea’s Black Day: When Sad, Single People Get Together And Eat Black Food

Each year on April 14, singles in South Korea drown their sorrows in a bowl of black noodles

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What Makes the Trout in Ecuador Look Like Salmon?

Aiming to catch a few trout for dinner, the author decides to try his luck at one of the region’s many “sport fishing” sites

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This Artist Uses Meat As His Medium

Dominic Episcopo’s red and raw images capture the spirit of Americana.

The intent stare of an unknown dog strikes dread in the experienced cycle tourist. Most healthy-looking animals, no matter how mean, probably do not have rabies, but if bitten one must receive treatment.

Bike, Bark, Bite, Blood: The Perils of Cycling in Rabies Country

An unfortunate run in with a mutt in Ecuador turned into a trip to the doctor’s to be treated for rabies, a surprisingly fatal disease

Footballer in the making? This young Ecuadorian seems drawn to the oblong shape and peculiar design of a football on a soccer field in the city of Cuenca.

A Football Team With No One to Play Against

Listen closely around the public parks of Quito, Ecuador, and you just might hear that familiar sound: “Hut hut hike!”

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The Iditarod Is Being Threatened by Warm Temperatures

A lack of snow is affecting the annual Iditarod sled dog race

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Tour the Grand Canyon From Your Computer With Google Street View

Now, thanks to Google, you don’t need a plane ticket or hiking boots to experience some of the Grand Canyon’s geologic magic

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