Hello! I am starting to think about where I might be next year.
I have always wanted to go to South America, and I think this might be the year!
I love - nature and history. I love being out in nature, whether that’s surfing, camping in the mountains, or walking on glaciers. I love to just feel lost in the vastness of the beauty of the world. Like, I would love to backpack in Patagonia or up to Machu Picchu. I also really like to learn about the culture and history of where I am. I think it’s part of being a responsible visitor to a place; taking the time and energy to learn about the history and culture of the people and country who are hosting me. And I love to learn about a way of life that’s not mine.
Don’t really care for - partying or drinking. But! I do want to meet people.
I have done a very fast paced DN so far, the longest I’ve stayed in a city is about 1 month. Mostly, I was packing up and getting on a plane every week or so. I’m thinking of switching that up next year, maybe spend a month in a place before moving to the next.
I am also fairly confident as a traveler - been to over 30 countries, lived in 4 different countries (not DNing). But I also want to be mindful and cautious about the places I put myself in.
Oh I also speak Spanish. Where would you recommend?
Thank you so much!
-EDIT- I initially was going to buy a car in Mexico, and just drive it straight down until I got to the tippy tip of Patagonia. I decided that probably isn’t safe to do, now that I’m going to be traveling alone. Hence why I’m looking for new ideas and suggestions!
Cuenca Ecuador is a nice city and pretty safe, has nice nature even in the city (rio tomebamba has a great walkway). Ecuador in general has absolutely amazing nature. The internet there in general has improved in the last few years to a point where it’s viable to DN there
BTW you can’t drive through to South America from Mexico. At the bottom of Panama you will get stopped by about 60 miles of jungle known as the Darien gap. It’s required to put your vehicle on a ferry to Colombia at that point
That sounds lovely, thank you! Ecuador seems super cool too. I actually really want to explore the Amazon, but probably internet isn’t good in the rainforest, right?
I have not been to the Amazon in Ecuador, only Peru. I would be interested to know how it is in Cuyo. Ecuador has improved their infrastructure a lot in the last few years, not sure if that’s everywhere. It was good in Banos, on the edge of the amazon. In Iquitos, Peru the Internet was dial up and took about 2 days to load a page. I loved it there but had to leave, bc work was waiting undone
I see, thank you!
As someone who has spent a good amount of time in both Colombia and Argentina, choose Patagonia. Better weather (I love seasons), scenery is so diverse and stunning, and it’s much cleaner. I love Colombia but it’s hot, very dirty and polluted, and a lot of it looks very similar. Also the food in Buenos Aires is leagues above Colombia 😝
Thank you for that recommendation! Do you think the weather in Patagonia in jun-aug would be okay? And I usually don’t really care that much about the cuisine actually, but if I’m going to live somewhere for a while, it matters a lot more! Haha.
That’s winter in Patagonia and it’s pretty cold.
Yeah, that’s what I was concerned about :/
Go to Cusco, it’s a delightful town
It’s delightful, but the Internet is atrocious as it is in most of Peru. Not good for DN
That wasn’t my experience, I was there for a month and had no internet problems
That’s great to hear, thank you for sharing!
Oh no, really?? I’ve struggled with internet a few different places (Guatemala and slovenia), and it was so stressful because I do video calls for a living. I’d love to visit peru, but definitely need to consider this, thank you!
Yes for real. Video not even possible in some locations. You’re welcome friend I hope you find the most awesome balance of internet to nature possible!
Thank you, I hope I will too! Patagonia is looking pretty high up there
I just spent all of October in Cusco and had no internet issues. I stayed in an Airbnb that posted their internet speeds. Cool city, easy to meet people, and Machu Picchu exceeds the hype. Dm me if you want the specific abb.
Wonderful! Great to hear that there are places with reliable internet in Peru. Thank you!