South American Trip Expenses and Experiences

Our trip through South America has ended. We were back in Chicago to enjoy the beautiful summer. We  met with our friends and co-workers. We had couple months "vacation from travelling" in Chicago.  We rested and cleared our heads.   Now we can get our South American trip review.  Here is some statistics from our trip:

The trip started January 23rd.  The duration was 168 days (5.5 months).

Colombia	Ecuador	Peru	Bolivia	Chile	Argentina
46 days	40 days	46 days	28 days	2 days	6 days
$60 / day	$40 / day	$38 / day	$81 / day	$150 / day	$45 / day

We stayed overnight in 43 different cities, towns or villages.  We passed through more than twice than that.
Our travel method was by buses and micro-buses (11,300 km / 7,000 miles). We used planes only twice.
We spent a lot of time in the mountains. The most spectacular views were in  Laguna 69, near Huaraz, Peru, with an altitude of 4,600 m / 15,100 feet.

The highest we've been was Mountain Pastoruri, located near Huaraz also, with an altitude of 5,240 m / 17,192 feet.

In total we spent almost $10,000 for two people per almost half a year, including transportation, plane tickets, accommodations, food, water, alcohol,  internet, tours, medical expenses, entrance fees, supplies and miscellaneous. Here is list of expense categories:

Lodging	Transportation	Food	Internet Phone Mail	Entrance Fees	Supplies	Tours	Water	Medical Expenses	Gift
$2,520	$1,460	$2,075	$160	$480	$85	$560	$75	$100	$440

We did most of the tours and bought all the gifts in Bolivia, since everything was cheaper there.  That's why our expenses average was higher than of Ecuador or Peru.  We loved the jungle tour and the Death Road tour.  The jungle reminded of the big forest, where everything is bigger.  Just being outside for a couple of days surrounded by tall trees and animal noises was an amazing experience.

Riding the bicycles downhill for 63 km / 39 m as the climate and views changed dramatically.  It was exhilarating.

Driving through the salt desert included the best and worst emotions.  The views and our tour group were perfect.  We saw red and green lakes with pink flamingos.  On the other hand, our driver got drunk one night, I got sick one evening, we had to sleep in the negative temperature dressed in all clothes we had.  The experience was definitely memorable.

The most relaxing and enjoyable time we had was in Manta, Ecuador: taking surfing lessons in the mornings, reading books during the day, and swimming in the ocean during sunset.  We made our own breakfast and dinner every day with fresh fruits and vegetables from the local market close to our hostel.  We had a room with the ocean view.  We took naps almost every day.  It was amazing 2.5 weeks.

The best food was definitely in Argentina.  We could not wait for a stake for every dinner while we were there.  The wine was also inexpensive and delicious.  The northern city Salta with its pink cathedral reminded us of Spain a lot.

The graffiti is amazing in all South American countries.  The street artists are great. 

We took 1 week of Spanish in Quito, Ecuador, but it was taking all of our time.  We spent 4 hours in the classroom and about the same time in the hotel room doing homework.  By the end of the trip, we were able to understand a lot of the travel lingo.  It would have been great, if we learned some Spanish before the beginning of the trip.

The most amazing experience was when 2 dogs followed us for 3 days on our trek in Colca canyon.  It was hard-breaking to leave them behind.  Local people live peacefully with street dogs.  The dogs have the freedom to run around, and sometimes get scraps from  locals or tourists.  What a life.

We had the most fun in Cali, Colombia, while we were stuck there because of the coffee farmers strike.  Colombians are very outgoing and friendly.  The most reserved, mean and old-fashioned people we met were Bolivians.  Even though we did make some friends in Bolivia, too.  Our Death Road tour guide Luis became our good friend.

We met a lot of travelers from all over the world. We met people from Brasil, France, Germany, Ukraine, USA, Canada, Australia, England, Poland, Lithuania, South Korea, Israel, Kurdistan (not official republic yet, part of Turkey), Japan, China, Austria, Switzerland, Spain, Finland, Denmark, Nederlands, Belgium, Belarus.
The majority of travelers were from England, France and Germany.  We did meet other people travelling with little kids, some travelling by car or even bicycle.  We got as much good advice as bad.  All people are different, they like different things and have different priorities, and everyone's experiences are unique.  All travelers are a little bit strange: some in a good way, some are just crazy, all have interesting stories to share.

We fly to Los Angeles on September 17th.  After a week in Los Angeles and San Diego, we start our next trip through Southeast Asia with a week in Taiwan.  Then we fly to Thailand in the beginning of October, where we can stay up to 2 months.  After that, our initial itinerary consists of Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia, Malaysia, and Indonesia.  We look forward to meeting more interesting people, learning new things, trying different foods, and evolving.