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A friend and I are planning to visit Ecuador in the winter. We're American students and will have about 3 weeks max to spend. Just looking for general advice, what to do/not do type of things. Really want to go to the Galapagos Islands but not sure if it would be practical to squeeze into the 3 weeks. Is there enough to do there independently and not on guided tours to warrant a visit? How about something interesting to do for the New Year? Please share your experiences and opinions, anyone who has been.
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Aug 30, 2009 10:16
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Ecuador is a nice place. I didn't do the Galapagos because of cost, but everyone else who has said it's great. Just kind of expensive, like $700 for a week or something. Apart from that, Quito, Banos, Guayaquil, Cuenca and some other places should be enough to keep you busy for 3 weeks, especially with the Galapagos trip.
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Aug 30, 2009 18:05
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From what I hear about the Galapogos is that it's totally awesome but also really expensive so if you've got a limited budget and only a few weeks it's probably worth an entire trip on it's own down the track.
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Aug 30, 2009 19:08
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For the people who've been to Venezuela recently: if I bring USD into the country, are they going to react? Force me to convert to bolivars? Basically my family there wants to buy my ticket to Venezuela, but then have me pay them back in dollars. I have no problem doing this, but fear that 800 dollars or whatever could be suspicious. If I just lie and say I'm a tourist who has my money blah blah, is that cool?
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Aug 31, 2009 04:50
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King Lur posted:A friend and I are planning to visit Ecuador in the winter. We're American students and will have about 3 weeks max to spend. Just looking for general advice, what to do/not do type of things. Really want to go to the Galapagos Islands but not sure if it would be practical to squeeze into the 3 weeks. Is there enough to do there independently and not on guided tours to warrant a visit? How about something interesting to do for the New Year? Please share your experiences and opinions, anyone who has been. You can definitely fit the Galapagos Islands into your trip. I was there 3 years ago and spent about $1000 for that trip. You can either do a cruise or tour the islands more or less independently by staying in hotels/hostels on each island and booking day tours/doing things yourselves. Just know that you are going to pay at least $350 for airfare from Quito/Guayaquil to the Galapagos and a $100 park entrance fee. But there are hostels/hotels for as low as $5 a night on the islands and there are grocery stores where you can buy and cook your own food to keep costs down. It was generally $30 to take a ferry to get from island to island and day tours were around $30-$100, or you could just hang out on the beach for free. I was able to do lots of things like swim with the sea lions, sea turtles, etc., horseback riding on a volcanic island with the second biggest crater in the world, scuba diving, etc. I never experienced New Years in Ecuador but it seems they have some interesting traditions. "New Year's Eve is an exciting holiday in Ecuador, full of tradition, politics, and history. Like Halloween, people of all ages dress up in costumes, the most popular being men dressed as the widows of the "old years". Instead of candy, they ask for money, offering a dance in return. At midnight, firecrackers pop across the country as años viejos burn on almost every street." As far as where to go for new years, "In Quito, the Amazonas Avenue is the place to head early in the evening, to check out the stalls and the open-air entertainment. You may see effigies being burned and you will certainly see fireworks. Outside of Quito, the coastal town of Salinas is a popular Ecuadorian New Year's Eve haunt." As for planning your itinerary, you ought to just visit some travel websites and pick what seems most interesting to you. There is a well establish gringo trail in Ecuador so you should have no problem finding information about each place. If you let me know what you like to do I can recommend some places to visit.
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Aug 31, 2009 05:08
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DustingDuvet posted:If you let me know what you like to do I can recommend some places to visit. Outdoor oriented stuff, mostly. I like to do everything from lounging about on the beach to strenuous activities like rock climbing. Definitely want to go snorkeling, see the wildlife, and maybe do some moderately difficult hiking. Also want to interact with the people there and get to know the culture. Basically anything that you found fun and interesting I would like to hear about. Probably the most important deciding factor is finances so the cheaper the better. Thanks for the reply.
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Aug 31, 2009 05:40
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Wooh posted:For the people who've been to Venezuela recently: if I bring USD into the country, are they going to react? Force me to convert to bolivars? Basically my family there wants to buy my ticket to Venezuela, but then have me pay them back in dollars. I have no problem doing this, but fear that 800 dollars or whatever could be suspicious. If I just lie and say I'm a tourist who has my money blah blah, is that cool? It´s not suspicious or illegal to bring USD in, the only law relates to the official exchange rate. The only problems you might have is with actual border guards finding it during a bag search it and wanting a taste. (unlikely) We went with 1000USD cash and my girlfriend just stashed it down her underwear. We more did this as a precaution because we crossed some semi sketchy land borders, if you're flying you'll be fine. Remember to take plenty of Dollars for spending money unless you want everything to be 3X the price.
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Aug 31, 2009 16:40
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Adnar posted:It´s not suspicious or illegal to bring USD in, the only law relates to the official exchange rate. Ah, that's great. Since I'm not crossing the border that shouldn't be an issue. And most places will quote a price in dollars, as well as bolivars?
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Aug 31, 2009 20:01
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Wooh posted:Ah, that's great. Since I'm not crossing the border that shouldn't be an issue. And most places will quote a price in dollars, as well as bolivars? No, it's illegal to quote prices in US dollars, all prices must be in Venezuelan Bolivares, DON'T exchange your dollars in the airport or any banks, you'll get shafted, if you have family there I'm sure they'll be more than happy to exchange it for you. This week you should be getting around 6.3 Bolivares per US dollar (official exchange rate is 2.15 Bolivares per US dollar)
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Aug 31, 2009 20:33
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FX2000 posted:No, it's illegal to quote prices in US dollars, all prices must be in Venezuelan Bolivares, DON'T exchange your dollars in the airport or any banks, you'll get shafted, if you have family there I'm sure they'll be more than happy to exchange it for you. Gotcha, that's what I assumed which is why I asked. The plan is definitely to exchange Bolivars with my fam, at some reasonable exchange rate (if the black market was 6.3, I'd probably do 5:1 or something because hey, they're family), and just live off that. My main fear was getting off of the plane with $1k+ and customs going "Heh, enjoy your 2:1 exchange rate."
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Aug 31, 2009 22:35
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In reality your family should give you a better rate. The unofficial rate is pretty arbitrary and you're just turning their useless Bolivars into savings that won't be worth 40% less this time next year.
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Aug 31, 2009 22:51
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Wooh posted:Gotcha, that's what I assumed which is why I asked. The plan is definitely to exchange Bolivars with my fam, at some reasonable exchange rate (if the black market was 6.3, I'd probably do 5:1 or something because hey, they're family), and just live off that. No, you'll be fine, unless you look like a bum they probably won't even check your bags other than passing them through the x-ray machine.
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Sep 1, 2009 15:40
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Adnar posted:In reality your family should give you a better rate. The unofficial rate is pretty arbitrary and you're just turning their useless Bolivars into savings that won't be worth 40% less this time next year. I probably will make more than any of them could ever hope, so I see no reason to make it out like I'm doing them some big favor when they're being kind enough to let me into their home for near endless amounts of time.  The "fair" way would be just to use the black market exchange rate. Why would I charge them more than that when they could just go use the black market instead for their dollars, although I suppose I am riskless.
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Sep 1, 2009 19:50
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Wooh posted:I probably will make more than any of them could ever hope, so I see no reason to make it out like I'm doing them some big favor when they're being kind enough to let me into their home for near endless amounts of time. The thing is it's really hard to get your hands on dollars (hence why people pay so much more than the official rate) You definitely don't get the reverse of 6-1 when changing back to dollars (understand what you mean though, just an explanation)
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Sep 1, 2009 22:51
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Oh, I guess I forgot to factor in the probably huge bid/ask spread haha
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Sep 2, 2009 01:00
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King Lur posted:Outdoor oriented stuff, mostly. I like to do everything from lounging about on the beach to strenuous activities like rock climbing. Definitely want to go snorkeling, see the wildlife, and maybe do some moderately difficult hiking. Also want to interact with the people there and get to know the culture. Basically anything that you found fun and interesting I would like to hear about. Probably the most important deciding factor is finances so the cheaper the better. Thanks for the reply. There is still a lot more than what I am going to mention below. But these are most of the highlights. -Cotapaxi: The world's highest active volcano and is very popular to climb. I hear it's not very technical. Quito: It's the capital and the old town is full of colonial buildings, markets, etc. It is touristy still, but you will see more middle/lower class people and less wealthy people. Avoid La Mariscal if you don't want to be near other tourists and don't care for the nightlife. The Teleferico, the world's second-highest cable car is pretty cool because you can see the entire city and also do some hiking. Parque El Ejido and Carolina are huge public parks where you can play soccer, do aerobics, etc. Really fun! I would also recommend going to the local prison to visit some foreign prisoners, as it is really interesting to see. Mitad del Mundo Way over hyped. You should skip this. Baños The adventure capital of Ecuador. In this city you can find an active volcano having small eruptions of ash and lava. Volcano Tungurahua. There are also many hot spring mineral baths, white water rafting, bungee jumping, etc. I would reccomend renting atvs one day, and then mountain bikes another day to bike the 40k from Banos in the mountains down to Puyo in the jungle. Cuenca Big city with lots of colonial buildings Guayaquil Biggest city in Ecuador and has a much different feel, if your interested in experiencing a different side of Ecuador. Mindo A beautiful cloud-forest famous for birdwatching. You can also do some great hiking and also go tubing down a river. Otavalo Small town famous for its Saturday market of indigenous crafts and livestock. It's really touristy. Riobamba Don't even bother because it was once famous for its train ride where you ride on the roof but thats now closed. Canoa Small beach town with hotel's right on the beach. You can do some paragliding here too. Tena Jungle town with some amazing white water rafting with beautiful jungle scenery
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Sep 3, 2009 20:47
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Cross posting this from my thread here http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3166133&pagenumber=2#lastpost So can you guys help me figure this out. These are my plans. Right now I am in Florianopolis. I am considering going to Porto Alegre but not 100% sure. I am thinking I will bus it to the Iguaza Falls on the Argentinian side and stay in a hostel there for a couple of nights. Then bus or fly into Buenos Aires. From there I will fly to Sao Paulo, hit Paraty, Ilha Grande, on my way back to Rio. Staying 2 to 4 nights in each place. I always have a place to stay in Rio with my friend. I am still waiting to hear from the volunteer organization there. Which I want to do for about 3 to 4 weeks. Ultimately time is not much of a constraint. I also want to do the whole Manaus and Amazon thing. Not sure though since I do not have my yellow fever papers on me. Nor am I really much prepared luggage wise. I also want to go to Salvador but it is a bit out of the way. It seems my best bet for this is to get a RT flight from Rio for this. I would also like to visit Fordlandia. The place just outside of the city Santarem http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fordl%C3%A2ndia Thanks! Nostalgia4Dogges fucked around with this message at 17:51 on Sep 21, 2009 |
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Sep 21, 2009 17:35
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Christoff posted:So can you guys help me figure this out. These are my plans. Update please! Let me live through you while I am stuck in North America for the next 3 months.
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Oct 7, 2009 03:00
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Still reading through this thread but how safe is Columbia? Would a 22 year old white solo backpacker be reasonably safe?
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Oct 7, 2009 17:25
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DustingDuvet posted:Update please! Let me live through you while I am stuck in North America for the next 3 months. Heh. Went to Iguazu Falls from Flora on the Argentinian side. Then to Buenos Aires. There is a lot of other places I could have gone but I want to get back to Rio to settle in one spot and start my volunteering. I also did 2 nights in Colonia, Uruguay, from BA. I took a flight to Sao Paulo which connected in Montevideo. Which I wish I stayed at. It was quite a bit cheaper than flying to Rio so I figured I would head this way. I am going to bus it back to Rio. I want to go to Paraty and Ilha grande but everything there is centered around good weather. Which it does not seem to have anytime soon. Flora was cool when I went but the weather sucked so it kind of took out a lot of fun. So yeah. Back to Rio probably by this weekend. tektronic posted:Still reading through this thread but how safe is Columbia? Would a 22 year old white solo backpacker be reasonably safe? From what I have gathered from a lot of travelers is that it is a lot safer than you would think and the neighboring SA countries are probably much worst. A lot of people told me it was their favorite destination
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Oct 7, 2009 17:52
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tektronic posted:Still reading through this thread but how safe is Columbia? Would a 22 year old white solo backpacker be reasonably safe? I may have answered this question 100+ times in my life. I am just going to say this. It is safe to travel there.
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Oct 7, 2009 19:43
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Hey Dusting nice to see you are still answering questions. I am thinking of going to Ecuador for a month (volun-tourism again), but since I am a cubicle stiff who has some tricky work situations to navigate right now, I probably won't be able to start solidly booking till maybe 2-3 weeks before I leave. A cursory search says Ecuador is relatively cheap to fly to (600ish especially compared to 1800 i paid for Brazil last summer), can I generally expect those prices? Do you know anything about refundable international tickets? Does the atmosphere (holidays, number of foreigners, stores closed for inexplicable reasons, population going on vacation) vary in Ecuador much from say late Oct to mid Dec? How would you compare Ecuador to Peru (my second choice, do they treat Asians sort of differently given their history)? CatchrNdRy fucked around with this message at 21:05 on Oct 9, 2009 |
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Oct 9, 2009 20:55
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CatchrNdRy posted:How would you compare Ecuador to Peru (my second choice, do they treat Asians sort of differently given their history)? I liked Peru way more than I did Ecuador. Probably more touristy, but just way more interesting things there.
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Oct 10, 2009 07:11
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CatchrNdRy posted:Hey Dusting nice to see you are still answering questions. Its good to see you still around. It must be 2 years now since we both went to Salvador! Tickets to Lima Peru are almost always going to be cheaper than tickets to Quito Ecuador. I think flights from Ecuador generally run at $400-$700 depending on when and where you are flying from. Flights to Peu run at around $250-$450 I think. With that that, I would just end up going to whichever place is cheaper for when I was going to book the flights. I have never been to either country during those times. During the times I have been in South America where there is a public holiday or festival it just meant either everything was closed that one day or that everyone went wild out on the streets that one day. Either way it can be a lot of fun. I would reccomend checking out the holidays going on around those times and seeing if any interest you. For instance, the Day of the Dead is around that time and I am pretty sure that could make for a great experience. http://www.amautaspanish.com/amautaspanish/english/peru/fiestas.asp http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_holidays_in_Peru http://www.ecuadorexplorer.com/html/holidays.html Their is a rather large Asian population is Peru, especially in the big cities. I think people would probably be more educated because of that. I remember in Ecuador that if you looked Asian they would call the person a China, just as they would call a black person a negro. It's not meant as a bad word or anything. But if you are going to be offended if someone calls you China then Peru might be a better choice for you. http://www.everyculture.com/South-America/Asians-in-South-America.html Both Ecuador and Peru seemed not all that different. Both countries have the jungle, the Andes mountains, nice beach towns, ruins, decent cities, big indigenous markets, good sea food, similar indigenous cultures, good hiking, etc. Price wise they are both very similar and both countries receive a lot of tourists. If you want to do a lot of traveling Ecuador might be better because its such a small country that nothing is to far away. One possible deciding factor is that Peru has the Machu Picchu while Ecuador has the Galapagos islands.
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Oct 11, 2009 02:56
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Christoff posted:Heh. Went to Iguazu Falls from Flora on the Argentinian side. Then to Buenos Aires. There is a lot of other places I could have gone but I want to get back to Rio to settle in one spot and start my volunteering. I also did 2 nights in Colonia, Uruguay, from BA. I just came across this awesome deal you might find useful. http://www.voeazul.com.br/aspx/passaporteAzul.aspx
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Oct 13, 2009 00:49
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DustingDuvet posted:Its good to see you still around. It must be 2 years now since we both went to Salvador! Tickets to Lima Peru are almost always going to be cheaper than tickets to Quito Ecuador. I think flights from Ecuador generally run at $400-$700 depending on when and where you are flying from. Flights to Peu run at around $250-$450 I think. With that that, I would just end up going to whichever place is cheaper for when I was going to book the flights. It was actually only a little over a year ago! Thanks for the links they were informative; I think I'm going to lean toward Ecuador if my work situation clears up. Founders Day looks great. It seems its a bit easier to get around in, and I like the idea of being able to do a lot in a smaller country. Funny racial terms from foreigners (well non-North Americans) never bother me, I just don't want to be associated with seizing political power. I got most crap China itself for having a Joe Middle America accent.
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Oct 13, 2009 22:58
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Hey y'all, booked a ticket for South America today so figured i'd drop by to try and get some tips. We have about 6 weeks all up. Not as long as i'd like but i'll take what i can get. My mate and I fly into Buenos Aries the 9th november, stay there for about a week, the fly to Sao Paolo, bus to Rio, then fly back to BA for a flight to Bogota. We make our way to Lima then fly to Cuzco for the Inca trail, then make our way back to BA for our flight home. Very much looking forward to the night life in BA and Rio, what are some good places to hit up? Most of that part probably speaks for itself though so it's more Columbia etc that I'm looking for advice on. From reading the thread, that oasis Huacachina looks fantastic. What are the cheap flights like? The low cost airline thing has taken off in asia, but from the looks of it not so much in south america yet.
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Oct 26, 2009 14:34
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That's cramming a lot of wide ranging areas into 6 weeks. Have you booked the Inca Trail yet? If not you'll have to do one of the alternative treks, which are still fine. Colombia is great. Loved Bogota and Cali, though I hope you like salsa if you want nightlife. Bogota is kind of far from Lima, as in like 60 hours on a bus, so definitely would want to fly there. Huacachina isn't that great. Only worthwhile thing is the dunebuggying and sandboarding, which is only worth really staying a night or so there. It's around 6 hours or so if I remember right from Lima, which if you aren't making a through trip down the coast, it doesn't make that much sense. Granted, you could continue down to Nasca and then take a bus over to Cusco from there.
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Oct 26, 2009 15:29
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Yeah we booked the Inca trail when we got the ticket - not how I normally do things, but with the limited availability of the permits, our limited time, and the fact it's gonna be scorching hot we figured we may as well get it out of the way. The other thing I wanted to ask about was Ayahuasca - can anyone give me the low down? Do you have to do hardcore jungle adventures to find it or has it become a tourist thing ? Is it all over the continent or just in specific parts? Expensive? Dangerous? Life changing? Lemme know your experiences.
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Oct 27, 2009 00:11
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Shenadigins posted:The other thing I wanted to ask about was Ayahuasca - can anyone give me the low down? Do you have to do hardcore jungle adventures to find it or has it become a tourist thing ? Is it all over the continent or just in specific parts? Expensive? Dangerous? Life changing? Lemme know your experiences. It has become really popular with tourists and you can find it in Ecuador, Bolivia, Peru, and in a few parts of Brazil. Its pretty easy to buy it premade in many "traditional" markets that see a lot of tourists, as in the Otavalo market in Ecuador for instance. Most cultural aimed jungle tours will offer visits with a shaman who will actually perform a ceremony where you can take some of it. I would personally enjoy it a lot more under the supervision of a shaman out in the jungle rather than a dirty hostel bathroom. I have personally never tried it before. I do know it is not expensive. This is a complete guess but I doubt you would pay more than $20 for a water bottle filled with it in a market. I know its a pretty awful experience as it makes you vomit a lot and pretty sick. "Unless a tourist spent a long while getting to know a practitioner, the character of a commercialized ayahuasca ceremony would probably be shallower than a ritual conducted solely for the benefit of the shaman's relatives and community. In a commercialized ceremony, one could observe the ritual procedures and enjoy listening to the chanting of icaros. Probably the dose of ayahuasca would be mild, as the shaman would usually rather err on the side of caution, preferring to give too little rather than too much."
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Oct 28, 2009 05:19
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Any of ya'll be in Ecuador between Thanksgiving (the American one) and just before Christmas?
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Nov 3, 2009 21:10
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Can anyone tell me about El Salvador? I'm heading there and I honestly don't have much of a clue what there is to see and do. I don't surf (or enjoy anything that requires me in a bathing suit immersed in a large body of water) but I do like going on hikes and poo poo.
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Nov 5, 2009 11:49
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lt_kennedy posted:Can anyone tell me about El Salvador? I'm heading there and I honestly don't have much of a clue what there is to see and do. 1) Beaches (El Salvador is perhaps a world class surfing destination): West: El Tunco has a nice vibe, surfing, varios hotels - higher end: Tekuanki Kal (but still small boutique), others like La Guitarra, La Sombra, etc. El Sunzal beach is next to it and there is the high end Casa del Mar (but still small boutique) hotel. Also look up El Zonte (Esencia Nativa, Horizontes Surf Camp), San Blas (Punta Roca), Mizata (Mizata Surf Lodge), etc. All inclusive (and maybe only big, big hotel): Decameron Salinitas near Los Cobanos Also: Los Cobanos Lodge - there is a Pacific Ocean reef at Los Cobanos. East: Look for Miraflores, Las Flores and El Cuco (Las Flores Surf Club, Mira Flores hotel, Azul Surf Club) 2) Ruta de las Flores: various small coffee growing towns. Juayua (Hotel Anahuac) - coffee beneficiaries and plantations, waterfalls, weekend food fair, Salcoatitan (on the way to Juayua), Apaneca, Ataco - also Tacuba (Mamas and Papas waterfall tour near Imposible mountain range) 3) Lakes: Lake Coatepeque (Torremolinos hotel, Las Palmeras restaurant by the lake...) Ilopango 4) Volcanoes: Go to Cerro Verde (itself an extinct volcano), from where you can go climb the cinder gray Izalco Volcano or the massive Santa Ana Volcano. Also, El Boquerón or San Salvador volcano is near the capital and easily reachable by car, and there are cafés on the way down. 5) Quaint sleepy towns: Suchitoto, to the Center East, near the Suchitlan lake. Alegría to the Center East, near the Alegría lagoon. Perquín (or Perkin) Northeast, where the small civil war museum is, and near the Mozote site of war atrocities, La Palma in the North with its colorful handicrafts and paintings, and near the high points of Miramundo and El Pital. 6) Capital San Salvador: Museums like Anthropology Museum and Modern Art Museum in San Benito District. Night life at Zona Rosa (Zanzibar, Jala la Jarra), Multiplaza Mall, La Gran Vía Mall, Escalón district. The chaotic but vibrant city center: the Cathedral with its mural, the El Rosario church, the National Palace and National Theatre. 7) Archeological Sites: (not as impressive as Guatemala's Tikal and Honduras' Copan, but since you are here...) Tazumal (the tallest of the country) and nearby Casa Blanca where you can dye a t-shirt with indigo, San Andrés, Joya del Cerén (some houses that were buried under ash, preserving the lifestyle of the pre-columbian settlers) "The countryside of El Salvador is breathtaking, with volcanoes and mountains offering "green" adventurers exactly what they are looking for. Many of environmentally-oriented community-based organizations promote eco-tourism, and there are a number of beautiful and secluded beaches and forests scattered throughout the country. A well-maintained and practically deserted national park is found in the west at Bosque El Imposible. Additionally, there is Montecristo Cloud Forest, and a quaint fishing village with incredible local hospitality and remote coconut islands in La Isla de Méndez. Isla de Olomega in the department of San Miguel is an excellent eco-tourism destination, as are the beautiful Isla El Cajete in Sonsonate, Isla San Sebastian, Conchagua, Conchaguita, Isla Conejo, Isla Teopan, and Isla Meanguera. One should also visit the colonial towns of Apaneca, Juayua, Panchimalco, and Suchitoto as well as the Mayan sites of San Andrés, Joya de Cerén (The Pompeii of Central America and an UNESCO World Heritage Site), and Tazumal, whose main pyramid rises some 75 feet into the air. The on-site museum showcases artifacts from the Pipil culture (the builders of Tazumal), as well as paintings that illustrate life in pre-Hispanic El Salvador. Souvenir hunters will find some of the best artisans in San Juan el Espino and in La Palma (the artisan capital of El Salvador). The capital, San Salvador, is a cosmopolitan city with good restaurants highlighting the country’s fresh seafood, as well as plenty of shopping, entertainment and nightlife. " -Wikitravel http://wikitravel.org/en/El_Salvador "You're going to El Salvador. People ask why. You tell them about the surfing, the hiking, and the museums, and they've already stopped listening. You mention being interested in the civil war and they turn around and ask you: 'Isn't it dangerous there?' You remind them the war has been over since 1992, for more than a decade. They're not convinced - and they may never be. But that's their loss. You, meanwhile, will return with photos of cloud forests in Parque Nacional Montecristo-El Trifinio or the moonscape on top of Volcán San Miguel. Maybe you'll learn to surf on the best waves in Central America, at Punta Roca in La Libertad; or catch a funk band at a boho bar in San Salvador? Or perhaps you'll go hiking in Perquín with a guerrilla-turned-tour guide, who'll tell you about the war as it was: terrifying, thrilling, boring, inspiring, confusing, sad. Or experience eco-tourism at its most rewarding, somewhere way off the beaten track, like Tucuba for instance. More than likely, you'll eat pupusas in a city park, watching little boys chase pigeons. It's hard to understand a place like El Salvador before you go. All you see are the shifting grounds: the gangs, the long war, the refugees. You don't see the broad valleys, the sudden volcanoes, the black-sand beaches, the stories told with a laugh, the people who tell them. Like a colonial church, bright blue, battered by earthquakes, El Salvador is still standing." -Lonely Planet http://www.lonelyplanet.com/el-salvador R2ICustomerSupport fucked around with this message at 14:52 on Nov 12, 2009 |
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Nov 10, 2009 14:54
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DustingDuvet posted:stuff about ELS I should have mentioned that I'm El Salvadorian but I've lived my whole life in Australia. I can speak enough Spanish to not be totally lost and I think my relatives there are quite well off so it won't be the most backpackery trip ever. I'm wondering (with full knowledge of the possible dangers) is there anything to do there INDEPENDENTLY or should you cling to your guide/local like a life raft or risk being dismembered by the MS13?
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Nov 12, 2009 12:21
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I'm about to book my plane ticket from Panama to (I think) Bogota, Colombia. Can anyone recommend a cheaper city to fly into from panama city? I'm not particularly picky, I'll travel by bus to Colombia at some point. I'm hoping to hit up every country in South America but I'm running out of time to get my Paraguay visa. I also noticed Suriname requires a visa as well. Does anyone have experience getting visas for those countries at a consulate office in Columbia or Venezuela? Can anyone shed light on bus travel from Venezuela through the Guyanas and Suriname? It doesn't really look like there's much of a coastal route from Venezuela to Georgetown, and I'm thinking about skipping those three countries altogether. What are your experiences couchsurfing through SA? Better luck in some countries than others? Any goons going to be in SA December-January? It looks like CatchrNdRy will be in Equador, but that's going to be near the end of my trip (January). Also can someone point me towards a good resource for figuring travel time by bus from point to point. Hadlock fucked around with this message at 15:35 on Nov 19, 2009 |
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Nov 19, 2009 13:47
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Hadlock posted:Any goons going to be in SA December-January? It looks like CatchrNdRy will be in Equador, but that's going to be near the end of my trip (January). I'll be in Peru from Dec. 14th until Jan. 13th. We should meet up and have some chelas if you're in the area.
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Nov 19, 2009 16:01
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Hadlock posted:I'm about to book my plane ticket from Panama to (I think) Bogota, Colombia. Can anyone recommend a cheaper city to fly into from panama city? I'm not particularly picky, I'll travel by bus to Colombia at some point. All of these airlines provide flights from Panama City to somewhere in Colombia. Its just a matter of you finding the best price by looking at all the options. Aires: Barranquilla, Cartagena de Indias, Pereira Avianca: Bogotá Copa Airlines: Bogotá, Cali, Cartagena, Medellín Copa operated by AeroRepública: Barranquilla, Bogotá, Bucaramanga, Cali, Cartagena de Indias, Medellín, Pereira Hadlock posted:I'm hoping to hit up every country in South America but I'm running out of time to get my Paraguay visa. I also noticed Suriname requires a visa as well. Does anyone have experience getting visas for those countries at a consulate office in Columbia or Venezuela? Can anyone shed light on bus travel from Venezuela through the Guyanas and Suriname? It doesn't really look like there's much of a coastal route from Venezuela to Georgetown, and I'm thinking about skipping those three countries altogether. I have no experience doing any of that. All I have to say is that I hope you understand how big South America is, and that while some roads are decent they literally go around mountains everywhere and take a lot longer. To visit every country in South America in under 2 months is very ambitious. Hadlock posted:What are your experiences couchsurfing through SA? Better luck in some countries than others? Couchsurfing is pretty big in Colombia, Peru, Argentina, and Brazil. I know its tiny in Bolivia and am not sure about the others.
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Nov 19, 2009 18:50
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billy cuts posted:I'll be in Peru from Dec. 14th until Jan. 13th. We should meet up and have some chelas if you're in the area. Are you still doing your research work there?
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Nov 26, 2009 02:27
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DustingDuvet posted:Are you still doing your research work there? Yep, I have a few different research projects I'll be working on while I'm down there. Unfortunately I can only stay a month this trip, but it's looking like I'll be able to make it back down in May or June if all goes as planned.
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Nov 30, 2009 18:28
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kalicki posted:I liked Peru way more than I did Ecuador. Probably more touristy, but just way more interesting things there. hmm maybe i should have considered that statement more carefully. i haven't been here that long and have till before Christmas. It's alright in Quito, but I can help but compare it to Salvador, brazil, which is a hard comparison for any place. i haven't gone on any day trips and done anything except work at the volunteer center and chill with my host family and drink with the other dumbass americans. can someone give a run down on Banos again, i'd search but internet is cruddy no goons round South Quito?
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Dec 2, 2009 01:04
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