Amigo Juan Hawley

It is that time of year when some begin planning their 2006 vacations. For me it won’t be a return to the Philippines as one neighbor friend has requested for April. Costa Rica is always a great time. Another gringo friend has returned to Thailand to spend Christmas there with his wife. I’m invited to join them in coming months for fun in Bangkok, Chiang Mai, and Phuket, but for my liking that would certainly have to be after the long summer heat at which point he will have returned. Aside from excursions into Costa Rica’s neighboring countries of Panama and Nicaragua this year, I’m most interested in visiting some of the South American countries.

This survey of possible South American vacation spots begins with Argentina, Bolivia, Peru, and Brazil.

Argentina the birthplace of Che Guevara has much to satisfy a liberal or conservatives wanderlust with wonderment. Toucans are seen in their forests and to the south of Patagonia, the penguins paddle along the icy South Atlantic shore. Igauzu Falls along the border of Argentina and Brazil is a tropical variation on that long list of wonders of the world like Niagara. Buenos Aires, the capital, where 20 percent of the Argentine people reside is wide-awake all the time and turned on by a litany of cultural, arts and entertainment activities. Over 90 percent of the people are of Spanish and Italian decent, which contributes to the adage that, “Argentina is the most American of all European countries.” They are especially known for dancing the Tango and Evita was their Jackie O. Their gauchos herd Aberdeen Angus beef that finds its way to European and U.S. restaurant and dinner tables. However, they consume the highest per capita quantities of beef in Buenos Aires where steaks are considered an art form. Leave the Tofu at home.

Argentina has been a democracy consistently since 1983. Their currency suffered in 2002 after removing its peg against the U.S. dollar, as has been suggested China do. Yet, although economic growth is accelerating and a $12,000 per person share of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) would suggest Argentines have one of the highest per capita incomes in South America more than 40 percent of them remain in poverty. Median age of Argentineans is 30 years old with a 0.7 percent incidence of HIV/AIDS, according to the CIA Factbook (source for all stats herein). By comparison in the U.S. the median age is 36 years with a 0.6 percent incidence of HIV/AIDS.

Bolivia the national namesake of Simon Bolivar, may be best known along with Peru for their Andean Inca history, but supposedly pre-Colombian civilization there dates back 21,000 years! The Inca civilization provided roads (the Inca Trail) that remain as excellent footpaths amongst exotic scenery leading to the antiquity embodied at the end of the road at the archeological masterpiece of Peru’s Machu Picchu ruins. Bolivia is one of the poorest nations in South America, landlocked after losing coastline to Chile and other territories to Peru, Argentina, and Brazil. Coca farming is a notorious endeavor in Bolivia and Evo Morales, a front runner in today’s (12/18/05) Bolivian presidential election is a proponent of legalizing the farming of coca. Bolivia has been a democracy since 1982. Bolivia’s per person share of GDP is about $2500, and more than 60 percent of Bolivians live below the poverty line. Travel advisories discourage women tourists from doing so in Bolivia except in large reputable group tours. Okay, so the guys will bring back pictures from this trek. Median age of Bolivians is 21 with a 0.1 percent incidence of HIV/AIDS. Bolivian ethnicity is 30 percent Quechua natives, 30 percent mestizo (mixed Amerindian and white), 25 percent Aymara, and 15 percent white. Definitely not a trip for the “why don’t they speak English” crowd.

Aside from the aforementioned Andean Mountain city of Machu Picchu, Peru offers the Inca capital at Cuzco and numerous Spanish colonial towns to tour. Peru is considered home to a relatively untouched portion of the Amazon River basin known as Amazonia, which supposedly on the whole the basin is home to seventy percent of the Earth’s species of flora and fauna. Better take the Deep Woods Off with DEAT for this one! Ecotourism is a significant business in Peru. They have a democratically elected government after the ouster of the U.S. supported Alberto Fujimori in 2000. Peru’s per person share of GDP is about $5500, and more than 50 percent of Peruvians live below the poverty line. The median Peruvian age is 25 years with a 0.5 percent incidence of HIV/AIDS. Peruvian ethnicity consists of 45 percent Amerindian, 37 percent mestizo, 15 percent white, and the remainder a mix of black, Japanese, Chinese, and other minorities.

Brazil in my experience is best known for Carnaval in February and certainly deserves a stamp in the passport of any fan of the pre-Lent New Orleans Mardi Gras debauchery. Brazil’s activities in the Sambódromo (venue for the parade) looks like a Girls Gone Wild video relative to a Sunday school class comparison with New Orleans hosted Mardi Gras in recent years.

Portuguese is Brazil’s official language, but many likewise understand Spanish and some English. Brazil is the largest and most populous of the South American countries with some of the most interesting and intriguing nightlife in Rio de Janeiro and nearby beaches, which include Copacabana, and Ipanema Beach. Barry Manilow popularized the Copacabana in song and two million Brazilians and international guests likewise popularize it converging there each year to bring in the New Year. San Paulo is the largest city and rivals Rio in every area except notoriety.

Brazil has diverse ecosystems and tour opportunities including unexplored parts of Amazonia, wetlands, and waterfalls. There is the curious port at Manaus, in the Amazon, a thousand miles inland where sea going ships load and unload goods transported along the tributaries and course of that mighty river. Brazil has a thriving industrial sector, which includes automobiles, military, and other heavy equipment manufacturing with significant European Union trade relations. Brazil has had a democratically controlled government since 1985. Brazil’s present President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva led the Latin American trade delegation in Hong Kong (12/13-18) where he called for ending agricultural subsidies in the U.S., Europe, and other industrialized nations that supposedly results in stymieing economic growth in developing nations in South America. Brazil’s per person share of GDP is about $8000, and less than one quarter of the population is below the poverty level. The median Brazilian age is 28 years with a 0.7 percent incidence of HIV/AIDS (even considering they have Carnaval). They are a population of 55 percent white, 40 percent mulatto, six percent black, and lesser percentages of Indian, Japanese, and Arab.

Thus far all these countries look interesting and worth a visit, but there is limited vacation time, money, and more countries to review here in coming weeks.

Dónde vamos nosotros? Aqui o alli amigo?