14 awesome photos from the only country in Africa where the official language is Spanish.
See the beauty of the untouched country of Equatorial Guinea.
Here’s a random fact you can use to impress people: Equatorial Guinea is the only sovereign state in Africa where Spanish is the official language.
Situated on the west coast of central Africa, Equatorial Guinea spans nearly 11,000 square miles, making it about the size of Massachusetts, and it’s home to only 1.2 million people. According to some reports, the country was the sixth least visited country in the world in 2015.
The country is gorgeous, too. It's one of many beautiful places around the world that you might not have heard of.
Don't believe me? Here are 14 photos that sum up what the country is all about:
1. Tiny fishing villages.
Every day, locals wait for the daily catch to be brought in at a beach in Annobón's Capital, San Antonio de Pale. Photo by Oscar Scafidi, used with permission.
2. 19th century colonial architecture.
La Casa Verde (“the green house”) is one of Malabo's architectural highlights and previously served as the Portuguese embassy. It was fully renovated in 2014. Photo by Oscar Scafidi, used with permission.
The country became known as the Republic of Equatorial Guinea ("Guinea Ecuatorial" in Spanish) when it declared independence from Spain in 1968. And although Spanish isn’t the only language spoken in Equatorial Guinea, years of Spanish education means the Spanish language and culture is still deeply entrenched in society.
3. Italian basilicas.
This is the Italian-designed Basílica de la Inmaculada Concepción in Mongomo. It is the second largest Catholic church in all of Africa. Photo by Oscar Scafidi, used with permission.
4. Lots of cathedrals.
The Santa Isabel Cathedral dominates the central Malabo skyline seen here from the port and was partially designed by renowned Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí. Photo by Equatorial Guinea/Flickr, used with permission.
5. Ornate decorations.
The entryway leading to the interior of the Catedral de Santa Isabel in Malabo. Photo by @jbermudezm, used with permission.
6. Members of the indigenous Fang tribe.
The majority of the population is made of up the Fang tribe, but the buildings still have classic Spanish facades. This is one such example: the Cathedral in Bata. Photo by John and Melanie/Flickr, used with permission.
7. Ruins on ruins on ruins.
The remains of a Claretian mission house on Corisco, an island in the Rio Muni estuary. Photo by Oscar Scafidi, used with permission.
8. Tropical beaches with palm trees.
Malabo is tropical and lush, which means jungle-like vegetation grows alongside palm trees. Photo by John and Melanie/Flickr, used with permission.
9. Untouched white sandy beachscapes.
The luxury hotel Sofitel Sipopo Le Golf in Malabo has a quiet private beach on a botanical island, and it also houses a spa and 18-hole golf course, which are said to be the first on the island. Photo via @mary_gdsg.
The country’s landscape is made up of the mainland territory, Rio Muni, and five islands (some volcanic), including Bioko, the largest.
10. Waterfalls surrounded by lush jungles.
This is one of many waterfalls in the southern beaches of Ureca in the Gran Caldera. It’s on the southern coast of Bioko with black volcanic sand beaches, whcih is also known as a sea turtle nesting site. Photo by @janzieglerphotography, used with permission.
11. State-of-the-art city plazas.
Independence Plaza in the capital city of Malabo. Photo by @jbermudezm, used with permission.
Oscar Scafidi, the author of the Bradt travel guide to Equatorial Guinea, says his experiences visiting the country were both wild and quiet.
“To get [to new capital city, Oyala], I drove for two hours from Bata, the mainland capital on the Atlantic coastline. I approached the city on an eight lane highway, completely empty in both directions, and when I arrived I was amazed. It is very strange to find a huge, modern, empty city under construction in such a remote location.”
12. Awe-inspiring sunsets.
Arena Blanca's beach is famously beautiful with warm water and gentle currents and several hiking trails. It is the only white sand beach in Bioko island. Photo by @quineaecuatorial, used with permission.
13. Delicious snacks.
Plátanos are similar to bananas but less sweet; they are typically fried, which extracts the natural sugars. Photo by @quineaecuatorial, used with permission.
14. Incredible mountains.
Pico Basilé is the highest mountain on Bioko with an altitude of 9,879 feet. It is the summit of the largest and highest of the three shield volcanoes that form the island. Photo by @lovetwp, used with permission.
“There’s an incredible sort of mini Dubai being built in the middle of the jungle, and on the other hand it’s a paradise if you’re into animals — western lowland gorillas, forest elephants and a sea wildlife unique to the area,” Scafidi told The Guardian about his visit.
But this untouched corner of the world also reminds us that beauty is hiding behind every corner, beyond typical tourist destinations and marketing campaigns.
We just have to look for it.
A Generation Jones teenager poses in her room.Image via Wikmedia Commons
An office kitchen.via 
An angry man eating spaghetti.via 
An Irish woman went to the doctor for a routine eye exam. She left with bright neon green eyes.
It's not easy seeing green.
Did she get superpowers?
Going to the eye doctor can be a hassle and a pain. It's not just the routine issues and inconveniences that come along when making a doctor appointment, but sometimes the various devices being used to check your eyes' health feel invasive and uncomfortable. But at least at the end of the appointment, most of us don't look like we're turning into The Incredible Hulk. That wasn't the case for one Irish woman.
Photographer Margerita B. Wargola was just going in for a routine eye exam at the hospital but ended up leaving with her eyes a shocking, bright neon green.
At the doctor's office, the nurse practitioner was prepping Wargola for a test with a machine that Wargola had experienced before. Before the test started, Wargola presumed the nurse had dropped some saline into her eyes, as they were feeling dry. After she blinked, everything went yellow.
Wargola and the nurse initially panicked. Neither knew what was going on as Wargola suddenly had yellow vision and radioactive-looking green eyes. After the initial shock, both realized the issue: the nurse forgot to ask Wargola to remove her contact lenses before putting contrast drops in her eyes for the exam. Wargola and the nurse quickly removed the lenses from her eyes and washed them thoroughly with saline. Fortunately, Wargola's eyes were unharmed. Unfortunately, her contacts were permanently stained and she didn't bring a spare pair.
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Since she has poor vision, Wargola was forced to drive herself home after the eye exam wearing the neon-green contact lenses that make her look like a member of the Green Lantern Corps. She couldn't help but laugh at her predicament and recorded a video explaining it all on social media. Since then, her video has sparked a couple Reddit threads and collected a bunch of comments on Instagram:
“But the REAL question is: do you now have X-Ray vision?”
“You can just say you're a superhero.”
“I would make a few stops on the way home just to freak some people out!”
“I would have lived it up! Grab a coffee, do grocery shopping, walk around a shopping center.”
“This one would pair well with that girl who ate something with turmeric with her invisalign on and walked around Paris smiling at people with seemingly BRIGHT YELLOW TEETH.”
“I would save those for fancy special occasions! WOW!”
“Every time I'd stop I'd turn slowly and stare at the person in the car next to me.”
“Keep them. Tell people what to do. They’ll do your bidding.”
In a follow-up Instagram video, Wargola showed her followers that she was safe at home with normal eyes, showing that the damaged contact lenses were so stained that they turned the saline solution in her contacts case into a bright Gatorade yellow. She wasn't mad at the nurse and, in fact, plans on keeping the lenses to wear on St. Patrick's Day or some other special occasion.
While no harm was done and a good laugh was had, it's still best for doctors, nurses, and patients alike to double-check and ask or tell if contact lenses are being worn before each eye test. If not, there might be more than ultra-green eyes to worry about.