Peru, Bolivia

catoutthebag

So obviously my location is a bit flexible, I want to travel a week outside Europe, with lots of nice scenery

Voyager2002

catoutthebag wrote: »

South east Asian cooking uses lots of nuts, fish etc which I have severe allergies to..unless I could find a way round that, then it would appeal, especially solo travel with language barrier

Be VERY SURE that you know how to explain about these allergies in Spanish. Have an explanation written down, but also learn how to say this in correctly-pronounced Spanish.

Awareness of food allergies and their importance is much lower than in Europe and North America.

Voyager2002

catoutthebag wrote: »

True, but I'd like a little Amazonian trek

A nice idea but... in practice the Amazon forest is VERY hot and sticky (not to mention the insects) and so I have always felt too exhausted to enjoy walking in this region.

My most enjoyable experience of jungle walking was actually on Penang (Malaysia) where you are fairly high up and also close to the sea, so you don't get quite as hot.

Voyager2002

catoutthebag wrote: »

Thank you for the various comments and suggestions.

As mentioned, I agree 7-10 days is not massive. It won't be my last trip there, I'm young and have plenty of time, though not enough time and money to blow a month of work sadly.

Could you not skip a holiday one year and carry over the time to the following year? Even for Ecuador, I did it for a month once and that was barely enough.

merrydance

My son is in Bolivia back packing at the moment. He skyped the other night and said it is really cheap. He is a big eater and said you get a good dinner for a £1. Also taxi fares, he paid about 20p.

martindow

Voyager2002 wrote: »

Be VERY SURE that you know how to explain about these allergies in Spanish. Have an explanation written down, but also learn how to say this in correctly-pronounced Spanish.

Awareness of food allergies and their importance is much lower than in Europe and North America.

In many languages the translation of nuts is more complicated than in English. In Spanish you can be given nuez as a translation of nut but other things we would consider to be nuts are included in frutos secos.

benjus

catoutthebag wrote: »

I have been out of Europe.. north America, north Africa, Canada mainly, but not on my own.

South east Asian cooking uses lots of nuts, fish etc which I have severe allergies to..unless I could find a way round that, then it would appeal, especially solo travel with language barrier

That may be an issue in Peru and Bolivia too. Dishes like Sopa de mani (peanut soup), Papa a la Huancaina (potatoes with a peanut sauce) and other peanut-based dishes are very common, and don't expect restaurant kitchens to handle them separately from other ingredients. You will need to be able to communicate exactly what you are allergic to. And to be honest, I wouldn't be very confident that they will always respect your needs, even if they tell you they will.

Personally I prefer Bolivia, but I spent a lot more time there than Peru. It doesn't have any historic sites to compare with Machu Picchu, but it does have lots of spectacular natural scenery, some nice colonial cities, and generally more of an "off the beaten track" feel.

I wouldn't worry about this being your first long haul trip, if you're up for a bit of adventure.

catoutthebag

Well looks like I'm doomed if I'm not in Europe or north America or Australia, food wise:rotfl:

Tbh I'm leaning back to Peru.

I assume they will have a variety of cuisine as it's now heavily tourist driven and I can eat that or junk for a week or 10 days

martindow

catoutthebag wrote: »

Well looks like I'm doomed if I'm not in Europe or north America or Australia, food wise:rotfl:

Tbh I'm leaning back to Peru.

I assume they will have a variety of cuisine as it's now heavily tourist driven and I can eat that or junk for a week or 10 days

In big tourist towns, maybe, but as soon as you leave those areas you will find yourself eating in places that will have no awareness of allergies or cross-contamination.

It is the same being vegetarian - I remember have vegetable soup and finding small bones at the bottom (it's vegetarian but a little stock just for flavour).

As others have said you will need a some Spanish in most places especially if you need to explain allergies. Maybe it's better to go in a years time for at least two weeks and take language classes in the meantime. The flights are quite expensive but travel and accommodation are cheap so it's worth going for several weeks if you can.

Peccary

I would reconsider hostels as you could prepare your own food. Many backpackers in South America are older (I went at 29 and again at 35) most hostels have private rooms with en-suite but with communal kitchens and social spaces.
I have been to both twice and would chose Peru for a first trip and stick to the beaten track (Gringo Trail!) If you are worried about altitude, it's best to travel to Cuzco overland so you acclimatise slowly, you could be lucky like me and barely notice it apart from being a bit breathless at first (fyi Bolivia is higher so altitude would be worse.)