The Good, The Bad and The Ugly: 12 Months on The Road
It’s now officially been a year since I started traveling around Latin America.
I’d planned this trip for a very long time, and now this first year has concluded, I’ve had plenty of time to gather my thoughts on the whole thing.
1 Year in South America
What I’m going to share is personal, brutally honest, and definitely not one for those who want the “Disney highlights” that most bloggers only talk about after a trip.
The Good
I Completed my Life-Long Dream
Alright alright I know, I’m 26, not 76… however this trip really has been on my mind since I can last remember.
I was so previously obsessed with seeing this part of the world, that it interfered with my everyday life, and I lost / sacrificed a lot of friendships and relationships to make it happen.
However, I will never regret this, as it was something that I simply had to do. And boy do I feel fucking fulfilled and at peace with myself that I 100% committed going all-in for it.
I have much more Trust in Myself
When I think back to the bad things that happened, I think I am extremely lucky. I mean I must have had God (and some more) sitting on my shoulder as I was never robbed, assaulted, injured myself and so on.
However, when I think about it more, it’s not actually a coincidence or “luck” that it played out this way.
Aside from being a bald guy with tattoos walking around, I feel that years of traveling have made me a hell of a lot more intuitive when it comes to other people.
I mentioned this to a few close friends already, however travel (especially in dodgy areas of Latin America) has taught me to sniff out bad situations before they even happen. Yep, I guess you could call it my sixth sense.
I learnt Portuguese
Whilst I learned a bit before my trip, it was hardly to any conversational level.
I knew Spanish fluently so of course this helped, however when I got to Brazil (and the north especially) I felt a bit fucked as even Spanish was not really understood (English was a no go).
So how did I get there in just 9 weeks of being in Brazil? The Women. Walking around I saw so many beautiful women out and about that I simply couldn’t help myself.
Since English isn’t that well known over there, it literally forced my Portuguese to slowly get better each time, and here we are now. Legal.
The Bad
Costa Rica
When it comes to places, I always try to stay objective and let others make up their own mind. However, this is one that I simply need to tell others about.
Having already spent three months in Peru, the day I arrived in Costa Rica I was shocked at just how Americanised and gringo the whole place was.
The country lacked character for me, and I feel that literally wherever I looked seemed to be a show for hungry tourists who flocked to the country.
As a result of heavy tourism and many expats moving here, prices have gone up, and having met locals there it was really sad to see that they could barely live day to day because of this.
I planned 8 weeks but only stayed one. Of course getting dengue within my first three days didn’t help, but sometimes some places just won’t work for you no matter how hard you wanted it. Costa Rica was one of those for me.
Food Poisoning
News flash; if you’re from anywhere in the world that isn’t Latin America… and you’re heading to Latin America… there’s a high chance you’ll get some kind of illness.
I managed to get it 6 different times during my 12 months here, and by the end of it I actually got used to staring at the empty bowel of a toilet and wretching till’ I could wretch no more.
As I was on a strict daily budget, street food was naturally going to be a more economical option for me, which of course has its risks.
I guess I could look at this optimistically; that I now have an iron stomach resistant to most things over here…
Losing Balance
I’m someone that obsesses about one thing at a time, whether it be traveling, learning a new language etc.
I think multi-tasking is a waste of time, especially when you can prioritize just one thing and get really good at it, compared with being mediocre at many things in the same time-span.
So this year really was about going all-in with this travel stuff.
However I did let many things slip, with working out and keeping healthy the biggest one for me. The reality wasn’t that I didn’t have time, it was that I simply didn’t keep making time for this.
The Ugly
Living in a Perpetual State of Goodbyes
Such is the nature of traveling long-term, goodbyes are a pretty standard part of the lifestyle.
Even as someone who is pretty independent and loose with staying connected, I did find it pretty difficult a few times (one girl comes to mind as well as a couple of close friends I made).
Despite the same “let’s keep in touch” speeches I’d heard a million times over, the truth is you won’t hear again from 90% of the people you met and became chums with.
As well as this, life continues on regardless of you traveling, and when you come back somewhere things will have changed whether you like it or not.
Ayahuasca
But wait George… I thought you said it was life changing for you?! It was, however it’s very misunderstood how the process works.
It’s not a “magic pill” that changes your life, it’s actually the opposite; it will bring up the worst parts of you and you are forced to face them head on if you want to grow and move past them.
During the ceremonies you’ll vomit, shit and cry like no other time in your life.
Unfortunately, it’s impossible to grasp this unless you’ve done it, which is again why I recommend you to not watch too many videos and documentaries on it (just trust me on this – “Reading and learning” is not the same as living it).
The stories you hear of people that had changed their life in some way (including mine) only came through a fucking battle with oneself.
If you’re willing to let yourself get beaten into a pulp and then grow, this is for you. If not, I’d think twice about it.
Final Words
So that’s my insights in a nutshell after 12 months in Latin America.
I’m sure more things will come to mind, so I’ll update this article as needed, however, these were the main ones from my experience.
Have you had any reflections on your own backpacking trip?
Any highs or lows you want to share? Post below so other travelers can learn some more perspectives about reality on the road.
See more of my travel posts for latin america backpacking inspiration!
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