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1) Buenos Aires, beautiful city and culture, good public transport, but the people aren't that friendly.
2) Bogota, very friendly people, beautiful landscape and great nightlife and malls, but the weather and PT suck
3) Rio de Janeiro, stunning city, great beaches and people are fun but can be expensive and dangerous
4) Lima, beautiful town centre and great cuisine, but can be dodgy as, and the city is not memorable itself
5) Sao Paulo, the biggest city in South America, multicultural, but it is just a big city (PLUS a bit dangerous too), I rather go to NYC, Tokyo, etc
6) Santiago de Chile, VERY BORING CITY, but it is the safest city and most developed city in the region, perhaps that's why.
I choose Buenos Aires and Bogota, also these are other nice cities too:
Cartajena and Medellin in Columbia
Montañita in Ecuador
Valparaiso in Chile
Mendoza in Argentina
Cuzco in Peru
Last edited by usuariodeldia; 04-13-2018 at 09:34 AM..
Bogota friendly? Really? I would say semi-polite and aloof at best although I just came back from Israel & Poland and compared to these countries at least, you could say Bogota is friendly but nothing like the rest of Latin America.
Good thing is you don't have a big cash sign on you like you do in Peru or Bolivia. Most Bogotanos couldn't care less where you're from.
Bogota friendly? Really? I would say semi-polite and aloof at best although I just came back from Israel & Poland and compared to these countries at least, you could say Bogota is friendly but nothing like the rest of Latin America.
Good thing is you don't have a big cash sign on you like you do in Peru or Bolivia. Most Bogotanos couldn't care less where you're from.
i hung out mostly with costenos and they were the friendliest people ever, but bogotanos were very friendly too.
Interesting thoughts from everyone, and thank you esp. to PF for sharing thoughts and experiences within Bogota.
-Cool to hear about culture. I had heard about main attractions, but didn't realize this was so significant here.
-Hiking: Thank you for recommending some places to go, while there!
-Thank you again for all those other recommendations as well! Looking forward to a trip at some point now!
I appreciate the safety tips as well! I am 6"1, so not especially tall. I suppose I am prone to taking pictures.. A LOT, so in order to blend in, ideally I wouldn't be doing that QUITE as much as I normally do LOL.
I will note-I was not in Rio for all that long. I went as the beginning leg of a cruise with my parents and then fiance. What we did-in two days, was take a cab over to the Copacabana area where we walked around, grabbed a coconut, touched the water for an hour and strolled a few streets in the main area near the Grand Hotel, our cab on the way back took us past the Maracana and CBD. Second day, we took a guided excursion up to see the Christ the Redeemer (everything was shrouded in fog), and saw that surrounding neighborhood and a small exhibit on Carnival/where the Samba passes through. So... We didn't do too much there lol. Mexico City, we just did a month ago for 5 days (though admittedly, we had a friend who was a local with us), and went all around (including to less touristy areas like the neighborhoods of Insurgentes, Xochimilco, etc.)... So that certainly helps us I think. Based on what you're telling me, I think we will be fine still, but will probably experience more culture shock there than we did in Mexico City. I think we would plan to stay in the Northern Neighborhoods (Zona T/Parque 93, I believe this is right near the Rosales Neighborhood?) And hit places like La Candelaria, Macarena, Downtown (happening also?), Natural surrounding areas you mention, etc. throughout the day.
Tough choices. I am most interested in Brazil and Colombia among SA countries but I would rather visit Cartagena, Barranquilla and Cali over Bogota. Anyway of those on the list, I will choose Rio and Bogota. Actually would rather Lima over Bogota but wouldn't mess up a chance to visit Colombia by choosing Lima.
-Cool to hear about culture. I had heard about main attractions, but didn't realize this was so significant here.
Bogota is a UNESCO music city for a reason and some of the best British music producers/managers now call Colombia their second home from Adrian Sherwood to Quantic to Richard Blair to Andrew Loog Oldham - British music royalty.
Quote:
Originally Posted by cavsfan137
I think we will be fine still, but will probably experience more culture shock there than we did in Mexico City.
I doubt it. I know Mexico City and I actually thought it looked shabbier than Bogota when I was there in 2010. The tide might have turned now with the whole Reforma boom and the fact Bogota had a really poor mayor until 2016 but Bogota is rather elegant in many places. Zona T and Parque 93 is fine but that's too cookie cutter for me. Consider staying in Zona G or Chapinero Alto.
What aspects of Lima would you describe as most memorable or impressive?
1. The warmth of the people. Biggest plus it has over either. Peruvians are really friendly and open to travelers. They will recommend you spots to visit, invite you to parties, teach you how to dance, etc. If you speak decent Spanish you can make lifelong friends here
2. The food. Just amazing. Along with NYC, Lima has the most impressive cuisine of any city I've seen. And when it comes to seafood, even NYC can't compare
3. Affordability, Lima is really really cheap
4. Nightlife. Peruvians know how to party, and there are some really cool bars in Barranco. Many bars have a
more relaxed hippie vibe, which is a nice change
How are the beaches in Lima? That is one thing it has over Santiago and Buenos Aires.
They're nice, altho the best beaches are to the north and the south of the city. Never spent much time on the beaches tbh
Quote:
Originally Posted by manitopiaaa
I've been to 4 of these. I would rank them:
1) Buenos Aires
2) Lima
3) Bogota
4) Santiago (if you include Valparaiso, it shoots up to #2)
I found Lima and Bogota similar, except Lima has great weather and Bogota is rainy, cloudy, boring and depressing. I find Bogota's intellectual/hip vibe to be more interesting, but Lima's old town is far more beautiful.
Lol tbh I thought Lima's climate for horrible for 7 months of the year, it's only decent December-April. I've heard Bogota is even colder tho, it's scary
Wish I spent more time in Santiago, seemed like an awesome city. Not as good as Buenos Aires or Lima tho
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