Getting ready to go on a big trip abroad can be extremely daunting. There are a lot of things to think about, and a lot of feelings to go with them; how long should I go for, what should I pack, where should I visit, how will I get around? The sense of excitement and uncertainty can lead to a weird mix of sensations that are hard to describe, but the feeling once you arrive is almost certainly worth it.
Like a lot of people, escaping mundane life to go and explore an exotic new continent has always been a dream of mine. While I feel extremely lucky to have grown up in England, there is only so much of the grey skies, terraced brick buildings and battered food you can experience before the appeal of experiencing something a bit different starts to nag at the back of ones mind. I have always loved visiting other countries and soaking up the different atmospheres, meeting different people and sampling new foods. But a couple of weeks in Europe a year only did so much to sate my appetite for exploring, there was a whole world out there after all full of landscapes beyond my imagination and cultures which were completely alien to me. So in the summer of 2022, when my best friend told me he was planning on travelling South America for several months the following year and asked if I’d like to come with, I didn’t think twice.
This blog is just a little way for me to look back on my trip and put together some tips and advice for any who are thinking of doing something similar, but have no idea where to start (lord knows I didn’t). I’ll go a bit into how we went about planning, prepping and plotting our adventure, as well as how most of that went out the window the minute we landed. I’ll also detail the route we took including how we got from place to place, and some recommendations for what to do and where to stay in each location. Whether you’re just thinking about planning a journey or in the final stages before you leave, I hope you will find something useful in this post.
An Englishman in New Shorts 
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