Month 8: In Review (Top 8 in 8)

March 25, 2015 – April 24, 2015

Day 3: W-Circuit Trek, Frances Valley

This was a month of intense walking. Our cross-trainers we’d been wearing every day for the last seven months finally kicked the bucket, and after many blisters in New Zealand, we were happy to ditch these suckers! We finally broke down and bought legitimate hiking shoes, which could not have been at a better time.

After a crazy 48 hours of travel we arrived to a new continent: South America. It was the first time either of us had been anywhere in South America and we were excited to begin our travels by doing one of our favorite things: hiking. I rang in my birthday amongst glaciers, rivers and jagged mountain peaks as we hiked the W-Circuit in Torres del Paine, Chile. I couldn’t have asked for a better birthday! After Torres Del Paine, we continued racking up the miles walking. We moved into the Argentine side of Patagonia, visiting Los Glaciares National Park and hiking for several more days in the Fitz Roy Mountain Range. The sun was shining, the fall colors ablaze, and it felt like we were in a dream.

Month 8 Travel Stats

Countries Visited: New Zealand, Chile, and Argentina

Cities Visited:

• New Zealand – Auckland
• Chile – Punta Arenas, Puerto Natales
• Argentina – El Calafate, El Chalten, Buenos Aires

Budget

Month 8 = Under Budget. We managed to stay under budget in New Zealand (which was a miracle) thanks to our workaway experience and the extremely favorable exchange rate of the strong US Dollar. Hiking in Patagonia was free in some places, which helped offset the high prices of the Refugios on the W-Circuit trek.

Top 8 in 8

The top 8 foods we’ve eaten in 8 months

1. Khao Soi: Chiang Mai, Thailand

2. Seafood Chowder: Dingle, Ireland

3. Pizza: Naples, Italy

4. Pulled Pork Sandwich: Bega, Australia

5. Bife de Chorizo: Buenos Aires, Argentina

6. Mie Gorang: Ubud, Indonesia

7. Quiche: Paris, France

8. Piri Piri Chicken: Lagos, Portugal

Coming Up…

Next month we slow down a bit to explore the vibrant city of Buenos Aires. We set up shop for a couple weeks, enrolling in Spanish language classes, watching Tango, and indulging in the local specialties of their fantastic steak and wine!

Las Torres, in Torres Del Paine National Park