Reflections on South America

Let me start with a simple statement that we all loved South America (SA). After that, it gets complicated. Since the beginning of the 20th century, it has been a land of promise, but for many, the promise has been, and probably will continue to be an empty promise.

People in Europe may think that the USA is capitalism pure or that the market solves everything, but in reality, the US has various safety nets for the poor, the unemployed, and the old. In fact, South America is much closer to pure capitalism than the US. So life is a struggle for most, and many people told us how hard they had to work, just to have their basic needs. For example, all the Colombians we spoke to, except the two who worked as prison guards, had never left the country.

Alongside the core individual struggles, there is widespread political instability, even though the dictators are gone, in all but Venezuela, and the proxy left right battles ( US vs Russia/Cuba) are no more.

Despite all that, it's astonishing just how positive people are. They are welcoming, they are helpful, they like to dance, sing, and party. They talk positively, and they have ambitions. None of the gloomy European or US mentality.

For visitors, there is also endless variety. From stone dry 🏜 deserts to tropical rain forests. With giant salt flats surrounded by high volcanic peaks. From glaciers in the South to beaches ⛱️ in the North. From the Incas in Machu Pichu to modern cities like Cartagena or Puerto Madero in Argentina( best steaks in the world, no exceptions) or Miraflores, Lima ( food capital of the Americas).

If you have never been here, where to begin a trip? what to see first? I honestly don't have a clue as there is so much that I can recommend, and that's without having mentioned the variety of animals and plants, or the pre European history and the natural wonders. All I can say is that if you have 3 or 4 months, you can see a vast variety of things and enjoy the company of warm and welcoming people., and you will get closer to them than in Asia, because communication both spoken and cultural is easier to understand than in Asia or Africa.

A word of warning that many countries are huge. Brazil is 200x larger than Switzerland. You can travel most places by flying or bus, whereby bus is not necessarily cheaper and can take way longer. Example Cuzco to Lima is $60 to fly, and $48 by bus, but the flight is a bit more than an hour, whereas the bus takes 24 hours ! Whilst most inland flights are cheap, there are exceptions, particularly in Brazil. Flights across country boundaries are often prohibitively expensive or don't exist. Example, barely any flights Chile to La Paz. Whilst some trips are loooong, some are also simply spectacular, such as 5 days on the Amazon or Uyuni to Calama by bus.

Things could get better for the people, but it's not clear if they will, with Brasil, Argentina, Peru, and Chile all experiencing varying degrees of instability. The people deserve it, but will it happen? Czytaj więcej