Roadtrip – Page 2 – Roaming About

Category: Roadtrip (page 2 of 6)

The Trampoline of Death in Colombia – A Road Block in Mocoa & Visuals of This Notorious Ride

El Trampolin de La Muerte (the Trampoline of Death) in Southern Colombia connects the city of Mocoa with the town of San Francisco.

From Mocoa to San Francisco

Trampoline of Death road

Before we even reached this notorious route, we had to deal with bad roads, crazy drivers, more landslides…

(As always, click on or hover over photos in galleries to read their captions.)

Heavy load

The small bags on the sides of the car contain live chickens

Many potholes

Being passed before a curve is common practice in Colombia.

Roadwork – “siga” means “go”

Congested area

Landslide 1

Landslide 2

Landslide 3

…and one other giant obstacle: a road block with miles of backed-up traffic that had been there for days.

Backed-up traffic in Mocoa

Walking the multiple-mile line of traffic, mostly semi trucks

The truck drivers have been here a while…

A bus had to get towed

After waiting in a fuel station for five hours, one of the protesters took pity on us and guided us through the blockade. It was a slightly unnerving but peaceful experience.

Monthly Expenses of a Nomad in South America – April 2023 (Colombia)

May 6, 2023 / Liesbet / 38 Comments

Every month, I post a report of our expenses to show that it is possible to live a comfortable, exciting, and adventurous life without breaking the bank. The less money you spend, the less you need to make. 🙂

This report includes ALL of our expenses, in US$, for two adults and one 60-pound dog (we adopted Maya on June 4th, 2019). Under groceries we incorporate food, produce, and non-alcoholic drinks predominantly bought in supermarkets. Toiletries belong in that category as well. Dining out means eating at a restaurant/event or purchasing take-out food. The health category covers non-prescription medicines and vitamins/supplements; medical contains prescription drugs and doctor’s visits. Because of our income level, Mark and I are eligible for free health care within the state of Massachusetts. For check-ups and extensive care, we return to the US East Coast.

In April, Mark, Maya, and I kept exploring Colombia in depth with our truck camper Thirsty Bella. We drove quite a bit again, mostly south, because our visas would expire on May 8^th.

(As always, click on or hover over photos in galleries to read their captions.)

Heading to the Tatacoa Desert

Driving through Colombia

Driving on the Trampoline of Death road in Colombia

A beautiful part of the river

Three items were responsible for our above-average total: Mark’s upcoming flights to the US ($324), two bags of dogfood for Maya ($170), and a new part for our Ford engine ($160). If you don’t count this $650 of “extras,” we did pretty well, because we were extra careful with “splurges,” like eating and drinking out. We are on a tight budget after all.

And that’s why we didn’t want to drive into Bogota!!!

The first time this tire was removed…

The car category is the highest one last month, but not because of the fuel this time. For a while, we’ve been hearing a “funny” woowoo noise coming from the front, when the truck turns left. Mark suspected it was a bearing issue. When in Bogota, we visited a mechanic recommended to us by Juan from Overland Sally to diagnose the problem. Indeed, the bearing on the passenger side is bad and the hub needs replacing.

Waiting for the mechanics to do their job

Gas station in San Agustin; the price for fuel has gone up since we arrived six months ago

This mechanic has his shop on the street!

The mechanic located the correct contraption for an F350 in Colombia, but the price was over US$500. Mark did research on the spot and discovered he could buy one in the US for 1/3 of the price, so the guys just replaced the brake pads (which we had brought with us) and put everything back together.

Flat tire caused by tire terrorists!

This tube was maliciously fabricated and inserted into our tire!

That same day, leaving Bogota, our tire got sliced by a group of banditos on motorcycles. One of them stuck a purposefully created metal tube with a sharp edge into the front tire on the passenger side. It deflated in seconds! We were obliged to pull over immediately, which caused more damage as the rim shredded parts of the tire. It’s a long story, which I wrote about on my Roaming About Facebook page a couple of weeks ago.

Marking the first puncture

Second time in one day that this tire was removed from Thirsty!

Fixing our abused tire

The bottom line is that this was a scam to urge us to their tire shop for a new tire or overpriced patches. One of the guys even appeared with an air compressor and plug to temporarily hold air in our tire to reach this particular tire shop. Instead, we remained at the gas station we’d parked and used a tire shop there, after making a big scene that involved police officers, the head of the police department of Soacha (the town we were victimized in), and two undercover intelligence guys. They kept the tube, copied the footage we had on our dash cam, and inquired about video surveillance at the station. In addition, and at my request, they bargained the price down for the repair of the six (!) punctures in our newish, expensive, all-terrain tire that is not available here…

We involved the police

Explaining what happened to the police force

Showing the footage of the event on our tablet with dashcam

There is a fuel story as well. When we bought gasoline in Colombia, we always put the amount on our credit card. Just like at grocery stores, the attendants asked “Cuantas cuotas?” This basically means, “In how many installments do you want to pay this amount off?” We always reply “una” (one). Who knows how our American credit card company would deal with anything else? Well, we think one of the attendants typed in “6 cuotas” instead of “1.” This charge has not come through yet, so we will find out firsthand what will happen with that. There were a few more tolls as well, for good and bad roads.

One of the toll roads

Part of the toll road

Because we are always looking for the best deals and time is our friend, Mark spent about two months, every day, looking for affordable plane tickets from Ecuador (Quito) to the US (Boston). It was a frustrating and painstaking exercise with massive fluctuations, but eventually he snagged a decent price for his trip in the middle of June. The flights are awful, yet for this price, we can’t complain. The $324 is for one leg; we collected enough points for the return, which was the real deal at $125!

The other amount in the transportation category went to taxis (Uber and InDrive) getting to, from, and around Bogota, where we didn’t want to drive ourselves. Until going to the mechanic threw everything off – and destroyed our tire.

Inviting our motorcycle friends Katherine and Brandon over for a pancake breakfast in Bella

Buying produce in Cota

Vegetable market in San Agustin

On a long, eight-hour drive and many stops due to construction and land slides, we bought some snacks from vendors to hold us over.

A simple, but tasty pasta meal at home

Lunch at home consists of arepas, cheese, and vegetables, if we don’t find good bread for sandwiches (which is often)

The grocery category was normal for Colombia at just above $200 but Maya set us back a bit. We stocked up on two bags of her “fancy” dogfood, because, even at more than twice the price than in the US, the cost was lower than in Ecuador and Peru. We haven’t checked further south. She also went to her fourth vet in two months for a health certificate to cross into the next country ($6) and we ordered more heartworm medicine in the US. Now that Mark plans a quick visit there, we are ordering a bunch of stuff for him to bring back.

Another trip to the vet!

Passing the vet office on our drive out of San Agustin

As mentioned last month – and because of the extra costs we faced in April – we refrained from eating and drinking out too much. We succeeded, but still had a few fun and tasty outings.

Lunch out in Cota with our Colombian friends Caro and Andres

Waiting for lunch in Guatavita

My lunch – a tad too cheesy!

Mark’s meal

Dessert goodness in Guatavita

Tamales for lunch at $1 a piece

Chicken, rice, and vegetable tamale

Pizza out in San Agustin

Burger dinner out at El Gato in San Agustin

Set vegetarian lunch with soup…

… and a main dish in San Agustin, for $3 a person

The entertainment category was high and the Salt Cathedral was mostly to blame for that. We hemmed and hawed about visiting and initially only I would go and then show Mark the photos. But because so many people recommended this special site and we’d only be here once, we “gave in” and spent the $20 per person and $2 extra for Maya to be able to join us in a cart! Was it worth the money? I enjoyed the sights, but let’s just say that we would have stuck to the original plan on hindsight. To put things in perspective: $20 buys us six lunches/simple dinners out or two weeks of produce in Colombia.

Maya was not a fan of her cart

Colorful interior of the cathedral

Maya in the Salt Cathedral

The main nave and most impressive part of the Catedral de Sal

Maya goes to church

A highlight in April was our time at San Agustin’s archaeological park ($15/person); also not cheap, but no regrets there. Maya was allowed to join us on the trails and we spent three hours walking around and marveling at the statues and tombs.

Maya ventures with us into history

One of the many statues in the archeological park of San Agustin

Grave and tomb

These statues guard a tomb

Another one of the ancient statues

The other two attractions we visited last month were the Gold Museum in Bogota ($1/person) and a swimming pool in the Tatacoa Desert ($2/person).

Gold Museum in Bogota

Gold masks

More gold pieces in the museum

This pool is fed by natural spring water

Cooling off in the desert

Mark and I spent another $36 on two campgrounds (one night to meet up with our US friends Katherine and Brandon who are driving through Mexico, Central, and South America on their decked-out BMW motorcycles and a second night in San Agustin to fill with potable water, but the liquid was brown, so we passed on that chore) and several pay parking lots.

Meeting our US friends Katherine and Brandon at an $8 campground in Guatavita

Our paid camping spot ($8) for one night at La Cumbre in San Agustin

Mark makes a new friend, Perla, at the campground

One more night in the Cota parking lot to visit with friends

Parked for the night in the parking lot of the Salt Cathedral

All the other times, we slept for free in public spaces. Economical, but not always the quietest or most comfortable.

The first days of April were spent in a parking lot in Cota, near Bogota

We stayed at this spot in Guatavita for over a week, to sit out Semana Santa

Parking spot for the night in Silvania after arriving late due to the tire incident

Our free camping spot for a week in San Agustin

One night along a brown river after dealing with a barricade in Mocoa and a nighttime arrival

Surrounded at 7am in the morning by members of a meeting!

Blocked in; this happened more than once

Camped in El Puerto; it has been raining a lot, every day…

Our alcohol amount ($43) was exactly the same as in March and Mark managed to order a new SmartPhone for $28; another thing he’ll bring back from Massachusetts in June. Laundry was manageable – the owner of a parking lot in Cota, where we spent almost a week, let us use her washing machine for free and the loads I had done in San Agustin were affordable.

Great little laundromat in San Agustin

This laundry lady only has one washer and dryer, but does an excellent job!

Last month was the cheapest ever regarding internet. We bought a 15GB Claro data plan for $7 and it came with another 15GB for free. That was plenty for our remaining two weeks in Colombia. In Ecuador, data costs more than twice. The rest of our pesos went to my contraceptive meds (yes, I found the same kind), a hot beverage each, and a new dish towel. In case you wondered…

Filling up with water at a fuel station in San Agustin, after a failed attempt at the campground

We managed to fill up with water for free all month and, to conclude, a few photos of the nicest, quietest, yet hottest spots we boondocked in April.

Free camping in the Tatacoa Desert

One of our four camping spots in the dessert

Our fourth night in the desert – it even rained on us here!

Find all our expense reports here. To learn what other full-time nomads spend each month, check out the blogs of our vanlife friends Duwan and Greg at Make Like An Ape Man.

If you are enjoying these posts, please consider donating to Roaming About in support of our website and our lifestyle. A big thank you to all our readers who have helped out in the past!

Monthly Expenses of a Nomad in South America – March 2023 (Colombia)

April 9, 2023 / Liesbet / 17 Comments

Every month, I post a report of our expenses to show that it is possible to live a comfortable, exciting, and adventurous life without breaking the bank. The less money you spend, the less you need to make. 🙂

This report includes ALL of our expenses, in US$, for two adults and one 60-pound dog (we adopted Maya on June 4th, 2019). Under groceries we incorporate food, produce, and non-alcoholic drinks predominantly bought in supermarkets. Toiletries belong in that category as well. Dining out means eating at a restaurant/event or purchasing take-out food. The health category covers non-prescription medicines and vitamins/supplements; medical contains prescription drugs and doctor’s visits. Because of our income level, Mark and I are eligible for free health care within the state of Massachusetts. For check-ups and extensive care, we return to the US East Coast.

In March, Mark, Maya, and I kept exploring Colombia in depth with our truck camper Thirsty Bella. We drove quite a bit, mainly covering the distance between the Medellin and Bogota areas. On top of filling our fuel tank a few times, we continuously paid for toll roads, which are expensive by local standards. In other countries, we avoid toll roads, but here this could mean we’d never reach our destination, turn a two-hour ride into an eight-hour one, or damage our rig.

(As always, hover over or click on photos in galleries to read their captions.)

On the road again

Driving through Jardin

We have encountered a lot of police checkpoints in Colombia, but have rarely been stopped

Busy dirt roads near a river crossing

Lots of rain causes landslides and construction work

It’s been raining on us every day for months in Colombia

The exchange rate between the US dollar and the Colombian peso is getting worse and prices are rising, like elsewhere in the world. Gasoline now costs almost $2.50 a gallon, which is 50 cents more than when we arrived five months ago. A long day on the road sets us back $20 in tolls, which is easily one or two meals out for both of us. Still, life is affordable here, which is one of the reasons why we love this country so much.

Driving through another town on the way to Cota

This toll road was actually worth its fee!

Driving through La Linea, the longest tunnel in the Americas

The first highway (paid) where we could actually drive the speed limit! No potholes!!

The weather and visibility deteriorated as we approached Cota after ten hours on the road

You might remember that we hit a nasty pothole on a highway a couple of months ago. It damaged our camper, which we fixed in Medellin the previous month. But, in Bogota, we discovered that, besides a serious dent in our truck bed created by the impact of the front edge of the camper hitting the metal, the top layer of the bed had come lose from the bed frame (and even warped part of it underneath). A welder managed to spot weld the top pieces back together.

Home for a week in Cota – nothing glamorous (or quiet)!

Back from the carwash, but the weather wasn’t ideal

When the truck (Thirsty) and camper (Bella) were separated to allow work on both, Mark took Thirsty to a carwash as well ($4) and bought a safety kit (fire extinguisher, safety triangle, vest …), which is required gear in several of the South American countries. I never got to take a photo of the sparkly truck as Mark and our friend Juan took it offroading in the mud soon after.

The living room of a family in Jardin, that’s turned into a restaurant

The day menu – soup, rice, plantain, a salad, beef, a piece of arepa, and a juice – for $3

A birthday appetizer at Cafe Jardin de Jardin

This coffee shop, Jardin de Jardin, is cute, friendly, and affordable

Birthday dinner out at Bon Appetit in Jardin

Our grocery amount was average (for here), but our dining out expense proved very high. We splurged in the cute towns of Jardin and Filandia, went out for a nice meal on Mark’s birthday, and treated our friends Juan and Lali to a couple of dinners as a thank you for their help and hospitality. On the flipside, a new acquaintance took us – and his paragliding friends – out for a meal and Lali prepared a traditional “Colombian chocolate” for us, which involved soaking cheese in the sweet liquid! This month, we are reigning in our eating (and drinking) out escapades.

Burger dinner out with new friends in Jerico

Lali and Juan invited us over for a traditional chocolate meal

Japanese dinner out to treat our new friends

The main reason we spent a week in the town of Cota, outside of Bogota, was to visit Juan and Lali from Overland Sally and to build a wooden frame to raise our camper. Recently, maybe because of the dent in the bed of our truck, the front edge of the camper and the roof of the truck cab collided frequently. Bang. Bang. Bang. Not ideal and the sound got annoying on bumpy roads, of which there are many.

Granted, the distance between both parts was a bit tight at half an inch (1cm), but thus far, it hadn’t been a problem; we tried to have an as small as possible footprint with this camper – height- and lengthwise. While small for American norms, we are still (too) big for Colombian towns and roads. Nevertheless, we needed more distance between the camper and the cab, so had to build a platform. Juan was the perfect partner for the job and we strongly recommend his services.

Juan and Mark built a frame for Bella

The platform is finished! Just the non-stick horse stall mat has to go on top

The entire contraption, right before loading the camper back on

Instead of two thick sheets of plywood, we opted to create a structure with wooden planks and a thin sheet of plywood on top to save money and weight. It was still expensive and heavy, though, as we picked high-quality wood and even crappy plywood is pricey. Our rig sits 1 ¼” (3cm) higher now, which affects us when entering our home via the (raised) steps. But the frame shouldn’t break, the camper shouldn’t hit the cab anymore, and the new contraption doesn’t budge.

Waiting for the view – and valley – to clear, which usually happens in the afternoons.

Getting ready for the jump and flight

Ready for a new adventure

For my birthday in November, I requested an exciting activity. It wasn’t until last month that I found it: paragliding with Nube Extrema in Jerico for 230,000 pesos (US$50). This was a first for me and I was happy with the location, once the fog and clouds cleared. While the experience was peaceful and special (not scary at all), my motion sickness acted up, in the air and on the fast, bouncy, windy 40-minute drive back up the mountain, despite sitting in front. I also bought a leather purse for myself and a postponed gift, a screw organizer box, for Mark’s birthday.

Liesbet paragliding with Nube Extreme

Liesbet and Juan Carlos in the air

Many purses to choose from, but I went with something simple and practical

Having a chat with the iconic Oscar, owner of this bar, while wearing my new purse

The alcohol and drinking out numbers aren’t crazy and also include treating our Colombian friends. Nevertheless, we will try to do better with these categories in April. We are spending too much. Mark had a chipped tooth (and a cavity) taken care of in Cota as well. We had a productive week there.

Cute and cheap bar on the outskirts of Jardin

Hot chocolate and coffee time on the square of Jardin, at the famous Cafe Macanas

The square in Filandia has little booths that sell juices, coffee, hot snacks, and desserts

Drinks out at a cool bar, La Cueva,, surrounded by rock

Having a drink at the eclectic bar of Oscar – he only opens during the weekends

While in North America we tried to stick to free activities, we are doing this South American trip only once, so are allowing ourselves paid entertainment. In March, we visited a bird sanctuary, natural hot springs and wax palm strands on private properties, and we took a funicular up a mountain (Cerro Monserrate) in Bogota. We had hoped to take a ride up and walk down, but dogs are not allowed on the path and stairs.

The cock-of-the-rock or Gallito de las rocas bird

Natural hot springs near Volcano Nevado del Ruiz

Termales El Sifon

Valle del Cocora, a highlight for many tourists to Colombia

Hike through the lush valley

Waterfall along the 6-mile trail

We had to cross many foot bridges in the jungle

I had the last spot – standing room – in the funicular and Mark the first one at the top, with Maya, next to the conductor

View over Bogota, a city of 11.5 million people!

We bought another monthly Claro data plan for $22, which gives us 80GB of data (currently with a promotion of another 80GB, so 160GB in total, which we could never use up) and filled our 20-pound propane tank, which seems to last about two months and is used for heating and cooking. We managed to get potable water for free.

Parked for one night at the Nube Extrema paragliding station, where we filled with water as well

Filling Bella with potable water for the next ten days

Maya is helping with the water fill at Meraki

In mid-February, Maya lost a toe nail and we had a vet come check it out. Three weeks later, the claw wasn’t growing correctly around the flesh, so another vet visit was needed (with a small procedure and meds) and we had to start over, treating the wound and restricting long hikes. The end of March, we visited a third vet to get our girl another rabies shot for her upcoming entry into Ecuador, which requires this vaccination to be administered between 30 days and a year before arrival. The cost for this last vet consultation, the shot, and a pet passport was a mere $4!

Holding Maya for an unpleasant procedure at the vet

Our vet in Jardin getting ready to heal Maya

Getting weighed at yet another vet

After her shot, Maya gets a “pet passport” – for other paperwork, we’d have had to wait another day

We kept our stays in paid campgrounds and parking lots to a minimum – mostly because we have no use for the facilities – and spent $24 on accommodation for the entire month. We spent two nights in a parking lot of a restaurant (Meraki Salento) in return for ordering dinner and drinks. We filled our water tank here as well.

Home for ten (!) days in Jardin

Camped for a few nights at the lookout (mirador) in Jerico

Boondocked in nature at 13,000ft

Parked for a handful of nights in Filandia, another cute town

We stayed a couple of nights along this street in Salento – so much rain…

We parked an extra night at Meraki, since the rain kept pouring for 24 hours

A night at this parking lot in Valle del Cocora was pricey at $6 with no facilities

We had to stay – and pay for – an extra (second) night, because I couldn’t leave due to another killer migraine after our strenuous hike

While in Cota, we took Uber and InDrive taxis into Bogota and we reimbursed Juan for some of his fuel carting Mark around. All this was still more convenient, faster, and less stressful than taking our truck into the capital, like we did in Medellin. Our F350 truck, just by itself, is still a beast on the narrow roads of this country. Maya and I also took one tuk tuk ride when her toe nail was still healing.

Tuk tuks in Jerico

Taking a ride home with Maya

Maya sniffing the scene from a tuk tuk

Laundry was affordable last month, since I could drop a few loads off in Jardin for the price of self-service in the US and the owners of the parking lot in Cota were super helpful in letting me use their machine for two washing cycles. I should have taken a photo of the lines I strung and clothes I hung among the dozens of parked cars on the gravel lot!

Because of the humidity and constant rain, our laundry didn’t dry in one day, so we turned the heater on and “hand dried” the wet pieces before bedtime

After laughing at tourists and locals alike – and motorcyclists – wearing “plastic bags” over their clothes and around their shoes when rain arrives, we gave in and bought a plastic poncho as well, mainly to protect our backpack during a walk in Valle del Cocora, where the chance of rain was 100%. I have to admit that it came in handy!

Mark, happy with his $1 poncho

Maya and a cousin on the Valle del Cocora hike

And that’s a wrap-up for our March expenses, which were much higher than we preferred (we have to do better) in a country like Colombia, but which are still under our average monthly amount of $1,300.

Volcano Nevado del Ruiz was only visible early mornings – it is currently expected to erupt!!!

Natural hot springs all to ourselves!

The pretty scenery of the Cocora Valley

The famous wax palms, Colombia’s national tree

We made it to Colombia’s capital!

Find all our expense reports here. To learn what other full-time nomads spend each month, check out the blogs of our vanlife friends Duwan and Greg at Make Like An Ape Man.

If you are enjoying these posts, please consider donating to Roaming About in support of our website and our lifestyle. A big thank you to all our readers who have helped out in the past!

Monthly Expenses of a Nomad in South America – February 2023 (Colombia)

March 8, 2023 / Liesbet / 22 Comments

Every month, I post a report of our expenses to show that it is possible to live a comfortable, exciting, and adventurous life without breaking the bank. The less money you spend, the less you need to make. 🙂

This report includes ALL of our expenses, in US$, for two adults and one 60-pound dog (we adopted Maya on June 4th, 2019). Under groceries we incorporate food, produce, and non-alcoholic drinks predominantly bought in supermarkets. Toiletries belong in that category as well. Dining out means eating at a restaurant/event or purchasing take-out food. The health category covers non-prescription medicines and vitamins/supplements; medical contains prescription drugs and doctor’s visits. Because of our income level, Mark and I are eligible for free health care within the state of Massachusetts. For check-ups and extensive care, we return to the US East Coast.

I think a lot of people skip my expense reports, because they are not interested in the financial details of our nomadic lifestyle. But these posts offer a glimpse behind the scenes and show the practicalities of a life on the road; the photos providing a sense of the action. Plus, because I’m so behind with my regular travel posts, these reports are the most up to date about what’s recently going on with the three of us.

(As always, hover over or click on photos in galleries to read their captions.)

Wonderful views in the Colombian mountains

Congested town centers

Botero Plaza, Medellin

Mural in the center of Medellin

A dogfood dispenser for strays in Guatape, what a concept!

Glimpse of the Guatape reservoir

In February, Mark, Maya, and I continued our Colombian overland explorations in Thirsty Bella, our truck camper disguised as a cow. It was a good month for us. We finally reached our goal of spending less than US$800. Of course, it helped that there were only 28 days. It’s safe to say that this is probably a one off!

Drinks and lunch out with friends in El Retiro

Having dinner with our Guatape hosts Jake and Monica

The grocery and dining out categories have to be seen in conjunction with each other. When we don’t cook, we order food. Because life is much more affordable in Colombia than in western countries, we splurge a bit more on eating out. Usually for dinner; once in a while for lunch. Yet, we still try to keep things under control and did pretty well with the alcohol budget.

Cooking dinner on our grill

Dinner on the grill

Fresh produce in Guatape; total cost: $4

A chunk of money went to fuel, which is also quite cheap here, at US$2/gallon (don’t ask us why the prices are per gallon when everything else is part of the metric system). I guess we covered some miles in February. A negative about doing all this mountain driving is that Thirsty only gets about 8.5 miles to the gallon. Compare that with our (still poor) average of 10.5 miles in the US and it gives you an indication about the road conditions in Colombia. They aren’t pretty! And, they are the reason for our new rule of “four eyes on the road at all times!” Yes, after hours, this gets exhausting.

Typical dirt road

Busy on the backroads

Some of the roads are tricky and tight

Some paved roads have toll booths. But don’t assume that these routes are a breeze! If anything, one has to pay even more attention than on the slow gravel and dirt roads, as sunken road surfaces, potholes, and cracked pavement creep up fast to the unsuspecting eye. And, you get the privilege of paying for those surprises. While $3 for a stretch of semi-decent road might not seem like a lot, for Colombian living standards it is, and after a few a day the amount adds up.

Yes, this is a toll road – don’t drive too fast!

The other side of a toll road

Oncoming traffic

Parking, on the other hand, is cheap at an average of less than a dollar an hour, for a guarded lot in town. After three or four hours, it makes more sense to pay the daily rate. We took just our truck into Medellin once to run errands and go on a guided walking tour. The lots were overflowing, but we pulled into one anyway, being on a deadline. That’s when we discovered you leave the key with the attendants and they will move cars around as they see fit, or as people need to depart. Since the back of our cab had heaps of gear in it (part of the back seat acts as storage), we were a tad worried about handing over our key, but these are professionally-run parking lots, so we needn’t have stressed.

Leaving the parking lot with Thirsty

Parked by the Home Center in Medellin to buy supplies

Let’s talk about Maya. The good news is that we can find her exact (high-quality) dogfood in Colombia. The bad news is that it costs twice as much as in the US. This is probably the only thing so far that has been more expensive here than in the States. We’ll take it…

Maya found her food in a Home Canter in Medellin

Treating Maya’s injured toe

Maya’s paw has to be wrapped for weeks, in order to protect her injured toe.

Taking escalators on our Medellin tour – is this where Maya’s toe got injured?

When we were in Medellin, our girl lost a toe nail. We don’t know how exactly it happened, but this is a painful injury, as the “quick” underneath became exposed. It’s like an open wound. From the moment we arrived home, we disinfected it and kept it wrapped up. Worried about an infection, we involved a vet and received some remedies. But the main healer is time. So, no more decent walks for a while! After three weeks now, we can finally see progress, but her toe is long not recovered. As you can see in the report underneath, vets are not expensive here.

Parked for one night on the town square of Florian

Moved slightly out of the town center of Florian for a few nights – a quieter experience

Free overnight parking at a restaurant in Marinilla, after eating dinner there

Free camping next to a cemetery in Rionegro- finally peace and quiet!

Camped for a handful of nights in El Retiro

Boondocked on a sandspit/gravel pit in Guatape

Parked in Medellin for a couple of nights

Mark and I are still trying to camp for free as much as possible. Because we don’t need services, this is an area where we can save money, as long as our spots are safe. That being said, we needed to do repairs on our camper in February, so stayed about a week in an established campground, where we could take the camper off and fix our issues. We also paid for one night at the Rio Claro.

Camped for one night at Rio Claro

Al Bosque campground in Santa Elena, an hour from Medellin, was home for almost a week.

In Guatapé, we were invited to camp for free for a few days on the amazing property of ex-overlanders, which was a very nice and welcome gesture.

Parked for a few nights on the driveway of a beautiful property in Guatape

Nice detail in the yard

Relaxing on the dock of our Guatape hosts

Maya also has a new friend, Mona

Boat ride on the Embalse (reservoir) of Guatape

In February, we also spent money on fun activities! The entrance fee for the waterfall pool in Florian, which was located on private property, cost about $1 a person, Mark and I joined two “free” walking tours in Medellin, for which we donated the equivalent of $20, we tipped musicians and a dance group, and we climbed the tall rock, El Peñol, in Guatape for $4 each. That gives you an idea about entertainment costs in Colombia.

View of the waterfall pool

Pool at the bottom of the weak waterfall

Our professional, smart, and funny guide German of Real City Tours in Medellin

Group photo Medellin Real City Walking Tour

Piedra del Penol, the rock

View of the Guatape Reservoir

Climbing the 675 steps of the rock

On the way back down El Penol

Comuna 13 tour with guide George of Zippy Tours

Dance group on our Comuna 13 tour

Because there was no payment for Google Fi anymore (our account was suspended), internet was very affordable last month. We buy 80GB (currently doubled for no extra cost, an amount we can’t even use up if we wanted to) monthly data plans for about $20 each. This is similar to “unlimited” internet use. We didn’t pay for other utilities as we managed to fill up with water for free (or at the campground), our propane tank is still quite full, and garbage service appeared at our door. 😊

Time to do some work on Bella

Fixing structural damage underneath the camper

Installing heavy-duty screws to keep the wood panels together

Taking our new fridge out for the tenth time in order to fix its problem

Running a new propane hose

Buying a piece of teak wood

We managed to fix several camper problems without breaking the bank, had to use public transportation in Medellin the second time we visited, needed household items (matching forks, something that Mark had been craving for a while, and a different basket that won’t flip its contents when we hit a pothole or tope), barely drank out, and only paid for one load of laundry (washing). These last savings are thanks to our friends Susan and John, who blog at Latitude Adjustment and also have a series of interesting posts about Colombia. They generously let us borrow their home’s facilities in El Retiro. I washed three loads of clothes and took over their hanging racks – and second floor – for three days in a row! ¡Gracias amigos!

Comfy Maya in Susan and John’s home

Meeting up with Susan and John in El Retiro

Garbage service on “our street”

Pick-up at home… 🙂

Taking the metro to Comuna 13

Find all our expense reports here. To learn what other full-time nomads spend each month, check out the blogs of our vanlife friends Duwan and Greg at Make Like An Ape Man.

Donate to Roaming About to help maintain this website.

Monthly Expenses of a Nomad in South America – January 2023 (Colombia)

February 17, 2023 / Liesbet / 32 Comments

Every month, I post a report of our expenses to show that it is possible to live a comfortable, exciting, and adventurous life without breaking the bank. The less money you spend, the less you need to make. 🙂

This report includes ALL of our expenses, in US$, for two adults and one 60-pound dog (we adopted Maya on June 4th, 2019). Under groceries we incorporate food, produce, and non-alcoholic drinks predominantly bought in supermarkets. Toiletries belong in that category as well. Dining out means eating at a restaurant/event or purchasing take-out food. The health category covers non-prescription medicines and vitamins/supplements; medical contains prescription drugs and doctor’s visits. Because of our income level, Mark and I are eligible for free health care within the state of Massachusetts. For check-ups and extensive care, we return to the US East Coast.

In January, Mark, Maya, and I continued our Colombian overland explorations in Thirsty Bella, our truck camper disguised as a cow. As expected, we are spreading joy and smiles driving through villages and the countryside. And we are getting stuck in narrow town centers and battered by country roads a lot, too.

(As always, hover over or click on photos in galleries to read their captions.)

Driving through narrow Barichara

Driving through the mountains on small roads

Crossing a river in the mountains

One of the many narrow and rocky dirt roads we traversed in January

Bumpy road surface

Our grocery amount was decent and similar to the previous month. We are eating out regularly now, which might explain a drop in grocery costs and a jump in eating out. Life is much cheaper in Colombia than in the US, allowing us to splurge more. A decent dinner costs around $5-$8 a meal. It’s possible to eat cheaper and more expensive. Grocery shopping is affordable.

Lunch at a Belgian-run restaurant with Sheri and Jeff in Guane

Lunch out in Guane

Dinner out in Barichara

Small grocery store in Gambita

Crepe with fresh fruit and whipped cream

Saturday produce market in Villa de Leyva

Milhoja dessert at a bakery in Villa de Leyva

Splurge from a French bakery in Villa de Leyva

Fresh fruit and vegetables are easy to come by in Colombia!

While in the US and Canada we always camped for free, mostly in nature. Once we arrived in South America, it’s been a mix of boondocking in or on the edge of towns or along roads and paid campgrounds. That’s what the accommodation cost of almost $100 is attributed to.

Camped (for free) along the beautiful trail to Las Gachas

Parked for the night along the square in Gambita

Camped along the dirt road between Gambita and Palermo

Boondocked (free) along the lake in Paipa

Lago Sochacota in Paipa

Parked for the night (free) along the square of Tibasosa, the feijoa capital of the world

Maya poses in front of the town’s sign

Camped for a few nights (free) at higher elevation next to Laguna de Tota

Lake view through our window

Laguna de Tota

Another night of parking at the edge of a town, Mongui this time

On average, campsites cost $4 a person per day. Don’t expect hookups for that. We merely pay for a flat place to park in a safe environment. Sometimes, there are amenities like showers, toilets, and trash cans. Once in a while, a common space like a kitchen, firepit, or lounge and laundry facilities are available. Secure overnight parking in a lot is cheaper at around $2 a night.

Camped with our friends at an official campground in Barichara for a week over New Year

Sunset in the mountains

Communal kitchen at our campground in Barichara

Outdoor showers at Camping Guaimaro in Barichara

A paid camping spot in someone’s (overgrown) yard in Villanueva

Parked for the night at the hot springs. We did have to pay extra for that.

One (paid) night at a parking lot in Raquira

Our cost for internet was high last month. We paid $50 for our Google Fi plan, which allowed international roaming. Warned that this option was going to be suspended in February, we finally registered our phones in Colombia (mandatory by law) and bought local Claro SIM cards and data plans. The good news: internet is cheap in this country; the equivalent of $20 for 80GB of data (valid for one month). Propane is affordable and we use much less with our electric fridge. Most of the potable water we obtained (up to 48 gallons) was free.

Getting our phones registered in Duitama required fingerprints instead of signatures.

Getting our propane tank topped up. It was still half full after one month

Little chapel out of a propane tank

Filling up with potable cistern water at a gas station

Filling our tanks with potable water from the convent in Villa de Leyva

In February, we planned a visit to our friends Susan and John in El Retiro, near Medellin. They blog about their worldwide travels and Colombian expat life on Latitude Adjustment. This provided us with a shipping address – yes, Amazon ships certain items to Colombia! – so we ordered a few camper necessities, like a waterproof tarp, new propane hose, fridge thermostat, and water filters. Our alcohol expense was decent.

Last month, we also managed to apply for – and receive – visa extensions. If I would have entered the country with my Belgian passport, this would have been free for me. But I boasted my US citizenship when arriving, so I had to pay the same amount as Mark, around $23. Totally worth being able to spend another three months in Colombia, of course! Recently, we managed to get the same extension for Thirsty Bella from Customs (free). All of us can now legally stay in the country until May 8^th.

In Villa de Leyva, while driving to a water spigot to top off our tanks, we passed through a narrow road, of which there are many in Colombia. It was a route we’d taken before, except, this time, a car was parked a distance from the curb. Instead of jumping out of the passenger seat like I usually do, I estimated we’d clear everything. When Mark rounded the parked car, we could hear roof tiles clatter onto the cobblestones. Darn…

We hit this overhang from a gate in Villa de Leyva

Pile of broken roof tiles on the ground

Our ladder had hit the decorative, overhanging tiles topping a cute gate. Luckily, the owners were relaxed about the scene and no harm was done to our camper. We gladly reimbursed the lady for eight broken tiles and the labor to fix the gate. Being in Colombia, paying for the damage didn’t set us back too much! That was the miscellaneous category.

Hiking in the mountains around Barichara

Hiking with our friends towards Guane

Hiking near Villanueva

The natural site of Las Gachas is free to visit, depending on which walking route you take.

Little known and free waterfall in Palermo

Maya meets a baby cow

Plaza Mayor in pretty Villa de Leyva

Strolling in the colorful town of Raquira

The colonial church and town square of Mongui

Maya in front of a historic bridge in Mongui

Besides hiking and exploring some natural sites and historic centers for free, we “splurged” on entertainment last month, visiting an interesting fossil museum in Villa de Leyva (El Fosil), hot springs in Iza (Piscina Erika), and a gorgeous waterfall near Gambita. Each destination was worth a stop or a strenuous hike!

The impressive top part of the waterfalls

Along the trail to the top of the waterfall

Piscina Erika hot springs

El Fosil museum

Depiction of the Monquirasaurus

El Fosil, a Kronosaurus that was renamed Monquirasaurus

The other categories were on the low end. Early January, I did laundry at a campground – three loads in three days, hanging everything to dry outside. The rest of the month, we washed by hand.

Camped for free on the edge of
Villa de Leyva and doing laundry by hand – the town offers free water

We took taxis a couple of times in skinny Barichara (“transportation”), I needed aspirin and more acetaminophen for my headaches, Maya could use more treats, we bought a gift for friends, and I finally received a professional haircut. The hairdresser took pride in her work and finished with 10 minutes of hair blowing. This unnecessary touch-up cost an extra 5,000 pesos ($1), totaling $6 for the entire experience. Oh, and Mark drank one beer out as well. At these prices, it is easy, fun, and possible for us to support local businesses!

Tuk tuk taxi in Barichara

Fresh haircut in Villa de Leyva!

We didn’t quite make it under $900, but we keep trying. Luckily, February only has 28 days. Our goal is to spend less than $800 a month in South America. We still have a way to go. Colombia is probably the cheapest country of the continent, so if we fail here, we might have to alter that target.

Find all our expense reports here. To learn what other full-time nomads spend each month, check out the blogs of our vanlife friends Duwan and Greg at Make Like An Ape Man.

Donate to Roaming About to help maintain this website.

Monthly Expenses of a Nomad in South America – December 2022 (Colombia)

January 13, 2023 / Liesbet / 37 Comments

Every month, I post a report of our expenses to show that it is possible to live a comfortable, exciting, and adventurous life without breaking the bank. The less money you spend, the less you need to make. 🙂

This report includes ALL of our expenses, in US$, for two adults and one 60-pound dog (we adopted Maya on June 4th, 2019). Under groceries we incorporate food, produce, and non-alcoholic drinks predominantly bought in supermarkets. Toiletries belong in that category as well. Dining out means eating at a restaurant/event or purchasing take-out food. The health category covers non-prescription medicines and vitamins/supplements; medical contains prescription drugs and doctor’s visits. Because of our income level, Mark and I are eligible for free health care within the state of Massachusetts. For check-ups and extensive care, we return to the US East Coast.

The first two weeks of December, Mark, Maya, and I still stayed in Airbnbs in Cartagena, like the majority of November, to wait for our camper’s arrival from Texas. This was followed by a night in a hotel close to the port where we picked up our truck camper, Thirsty Bella, on the evening of the 14th. Rule #1 in developing countries, “Do not drive at night,” was immediately disregarded. We didn’t have a choice. Luckily, nothing was hit or damaged on that first drive.

(As always, click on or hover over photos in the galleries to read their captions.)

Our second-floor Airbnb in Las Caracoles, Cartagena

The entrance to our third-floor Airbnb in Boca Grande, Cartagena.

We loved our early morning strolls along the boardwalk with Maya in Boca Grande.

Our campers have arrived from the port!

The campers have arrived – daytime now

Our last night in the Cartagena area

We paid for all these nights with credit card points, depleting our account, leaving us with no buffer for a break from the road in the future. All because we had to wait two extra weeks for our vehicle. Oh well. We were beyond happy and relieved to be reunited with our home on wheels.

First night back on the road in San Pedro – a hot and humid place

Arriving at our first destination, Mompox, where we also searched for a hotel with parking big enough for Thirsty Bella; not an easy feat.

Dinner out in Mompox

Two of these pizzas did the job for dinner in Mompox.

It was tricky backing out of this parking spot in Mompox. Towns are just too tight for us, for driving and for parking.

After spending the first night on a hot and humid parking lot, we put in many more miles to reach Mompox, a World Heritage Site, for another night at a hotel. It was too uncomfortable to sleep in the camper. The other accommodation expenses went to campsites without hookups (just parking, sometimes with the availability of showers, toilets, a shared kitchen, and a laundry machine), which seem to range between $2 and $4 a person per night. It doesn’t sound like a lot, but $8 a night does add up for us, so we try to combine free camping andcampgrounds.

Camped in the cute town of Playa de Belen. Fireworks chased us out.

Parked for a couple of nights at the soccer field of Playa de Belen to get the camper back in order. The fireworks were still bad here.

Parked in Gramalote Viejo with our friends for what was supposed to be the Christmas period

Camping spot along Chicamocha Canyon

Parked for the night at a mirador (viewpoint) – free, but one of the loudest nights we’ve encountered in Colombia

Camping spot for one night at the balneario (swimming area) of Curiti – we couldn’t leave if we wanted to…

December was the first decent expense month since Mexico in February. We stayed under $1,000 for the three of us. The highest categories, “groceries” and “car,” were close, but not that crazy.

The Olimpica is a decent grocery store.

A big bag of red onions for the equivalent of $1

Cooking in the apartment with a headlight on. The lighting in most Airbnbs we stayed at was terrible.

One of our homecooked meals in Cartagena

Once, we cooked a dinner in the Boca Grande apartment of our friends Sheri and Jeff.

Sheri made fantastic hamburgers one night

A lot of the food in Colombia is fried

What we saved in groceries, we spent in eating out, by the looks of it. Again, this pastime in Colombia is affordable, but $8 dinners also add up after a while. Another balancing act is needed.

Buying bananas from a street vendor in Cartagena

We found this amazing panaderia (bakery) in a Cartagena neighborhood where we stayed for ten days.

Local restaurant at 10,000ft altitude

Because of the cold climate at 10,000ft, we all ordered a bowl of soup for $1 each.

A wonderful lunch in Cepita, at the bottom of Chicamocha Canyon

We did cover a bit of ground in those first two weeks on the road, but with gasoline at $2 a gallon, we don’t worry too much. The $40 insurance (SOAT) cost covers our vehicle for liability for three months. Our cost for tolls was actually higher than stated – amazing how many toll roads (Northern) Colombia has, and they’re expensive all things considered – but we received a refund for our toll device and credit we returned to Massachusetts before leaving the country.

Filling her up!

Maya has her backseat back.

On the road again – Chicamocha Canyon

A typical scene on the road

Toll booth in Santander – these cost around $2 each time for cars with 2 axels

The gift category should fall away next month. As usual, I created and shipped calendars to my family in Belgium and the US. Each month of the year exhibits a photo of the two or three of us in a different location. This way, we are somewhat present in the households of our loved ones. And we bought small Christmas gifts for our new friends Sheri and Jeff, whom we met up with several times over the last two months.

Parked for the night by the police station in Gramalote Nuevo

Not what we had in mind for Christmas Eve

Our night parked by the police station was the result of an attempted armed robbery in Gramalote Viejo

Special breakfast on Christmas Day, once we were safely settled at an official campground

Camped safely on Christmas Day

Christmas dinner at the campground

Propane is cheaper in Colombia than in the States, but it is a pain to obtain nevertheless. That’s why we changed our propane fridge out for an electric one that efficiently works on our solar panels. This way, a full propane tank (20 pounds), used only for cooking and heating, should last months instead of weeks. For internet, we still use a Google Fi global data plan, but we already have been warned this will be suspended next month, so we will need to find another, local solution in each country. We’ve been working on that.

I’d say our alcohol consumption was average last month, despite it being the holidays. Beer and rum are cheaper than what we purchase in the US, wine is similar in price. The only reason there is a clothing expense is because Amazon messed up one of the refunds before we left. Therefore, we were recharged for a pair of jeans.

We didn’t plan on buying dog food for Maya in Cartagena, since we carried plenty of it with us on the plane, enough for the expected three weeks there, plus an extra Ziploc bag in case four weeks of waiting were required. Not five, though. Luckily, we found food that she wasn’t allergic to and once Thirsty Bella arrived, carrying heaps of dogfood, Maya could go back on her usual diet. The meds we bought are herbal drops that should calm her down during all the stress and anxiety from Colombia’s daily firecrackers, bottle rockets, and fireworks.

Our drinking out cost is negligible – we usually prefer to have happy hour at home – and the low entertainment amount went to the entrance fee of Los Estoraques National Park in Playa de Belen, where we camped for almost a week as well.

Camped by the national park

Hiking in the national park

Maya in the national park

Los Estoraques National Park in Playa de Belen

Los Estoraques NP

The park has amazing rock formations.

Last month, we managed to only pay $2 for water, a donation to a friendly and helpful family along the way, and do laundry for free at the Airbnbs we stayed at.

Filling our tank with potable water from a private home, three days into our trip.

More generous Colombians offering potable water for our tanks

Our last two apartments had their own washing machine. Nice!

The total amount for shipping our truck camper from Texas to Colombia was $5,500, which is not included in this report as it is a one-time cost. Because moving our vehicle between continents was so expensive, we plan on making our time here worthwhile. A few years of slow travel should do it! 🙂

Find all our expense reports here. To learn what other full-time nomads spend each month, check out the blogs of our vanlife friends Duwan and Greg at Make Like An Ape Man.

Donate to Roaming About to help maintain this website.

Monthly Expenses of a Nomad – November 2022

December 11, 2022 / Liesbet / 38 Comments

Every month, I post a report of our expenses to show that it is possible to live a comfortable, exciting, and adventurous life without breaking the bank. The less money you spend, the less you need to make. 🙂

This report includes ALL of our expenses, in US$, for two adults and one 60-pound dog (we adopted Maya on June 4th, 2019). Under groceries we incorporate food, produce, and non-alcoholic drinks predominantly bought in supermarkets. Toiletries belong in that category as well. Dining out means eating at a restaurant/event or purchasing take-out food. The health category covers non-prescription medicines and vitamins/supplements; medical contains prescription drugs and doctor’s visits. Because of our income level, Mark and I are eligible for free health care within the state of Massachusetts. For check-ups and extensive care, we return to the East Coast.

Even though the three of us have been “stuck” in Cartagena for over a month, November went by fast. For once, we didn’t care, because the sooner we would be reunited with our camper, Thirsty Bella, the better. Guess what? We are still waiting. But the end of that is coming near.

This is where the RORO car carriers dock in Cartagena Harbor

Mark, Maya, and I flew from Houston, Texas, to Miami, Florida, on November 7th. From there, we continued on to Cartagena, Colombia, the following day. Since the 8th, we have been apartment hopping in this hectic, dusty, hot, and humid city, not spending a lot of time in tourist areas but immersing ourselves in the noisy and affordable Colombian way of (city) life.

(As always, hover over or click on photos in galleries to read their captions.)

Landing in Cartagena, Colombia

Rush hour traffic near Airbnb #3

Buying our breakfast bananas at a fruit stand

Visit to the panaderia

Pastries from the panaderia (bakery)

We booked our plane tickets in early October, using credit card points (valued at US$590) and we managed to do the same for our airport hotel in Miami (US$112) and five Airbnb rentals (the equivalent of US$945 in total, so far). The estimate was to be here for three weeks (an important factor for packing our belongings, toiletries, and food for Maya, all in carry-on luggage), but we will have been here over five weeks by the time we pick up our vehicle at the port. I will elaborate on the why another time.

Airbnb #1 – outside

Airbnb #1 – inside

Airbnb #2 – outside

Airbnb #2 – inside

Airbnb #3 – outside

Airbnb #3 – inside

On our last week in the US, we bounced between uncomfortable overnight parking lots and parks, meeting up with friends and preparing our vehicle for leaving the country.

Spending the night on a Home Depot parking lot in Houston

Spending the night on the parking lot of Cracker Barrel in Houston

Figuring out where everything can be stored and hidden

Lifting the camper a bit to wedge items underneath once it’s lowered again

Parked in the driveway of our Houston friends for the last three nights

The last weekend saw us finalize everything at and in the convenient house and driveway of friends.

Drilling holes in the plywood to attach the tension bars inside the rig

Sorting through our stuff: what comes for the flight, what doesn’t?

Packing dog food for Maya

Lots of paperwork and photo copies to figure out

Tension bars and wood installed on the cabover part

Every cabinet was rearranged and stuffed.

The food cabinet holds items usually stored elsewhere.

Empty fridge for the ship journey

Dinette area boarded up

Bella boarded up

Totally empty truck cab – nothing stayed behind

What’s going on?

Then, camper drop-off and moving day happened, followed with the rest of the month living in Cartagena. We had a lot of extra expenses in November, yet we managed to not go too far over our average budget.

I am now reporting on camper costs as well, because the basics of our conversions, improvements, and upgrades were finished in October. I will post a separate report about buying and equipping Bella in the near future. This camper category was the highest by surprise, because, you know, nothing goes as planned…

A lot went wrong when Mark finally dropped our camper off at the port of Galveston, which caused added stress on an already logistically stressful day, but I will just elaborate on one episode for now.

There are quite a few rules if you want to ship a vehicle abroad. One of those, regarding campers, is that the propane tank has to be empty and a certificate to prove this is required. We called the issuing company in League City to inquire about the certificate and were told those are only provided for fixed tanks. We had a portable 20-pound tank, so should be fine. Our tank was empty. Our tank was newish. We taped the purchase receipt to the tank, just to not get into trouble.

Nope. Not enough. We needed the certificate. It was 2pm in the afternoon. The port closed at 4pm. Our plane left that evening. We didn’t see an option for Mark to leave Galveston port, drive to League City 40 minutes away, get our tank certified – or buy a new one with a certified receipt – and get the vehicle cleared for shipment, plus visit Customs, before four. Oh, and the escort to guide you through the port costs $50 per hour and once you’re ten minutes over that, a second hour is charged…

Phone numbers of port escorts on the day of our drop-off

Mark called me (I was waiting in a public park with Maya and all our luggage) and we concluded we only had one choice if we wanted to catch our plane: remove the tank from our camper and leave it at the port. This was a huge problem and complication: our tank had US fittings, fit snugly in its compartment, and all our cooking and heating facilities (including hot water and grill) depended on this particular set-up, which we would not be able to find and reproduce in Colombia (different fittings and tank sizes).

Waiting for Mark in a Galveston park

We were screwed and almost gave up on this whole journey (for the first time). Employees, including Mark’s escort Kaylyn, understood, but there was nothing they could do. Mark continued the drop-off and clearing out procedures and joined me in the park. We felt defeated – and homeless – without even having left the US.

Thirsty Bella in Galveston port

Thirsty Bella in line to be loaded on a cargo vessel… three weeks later!

On that picnic bench in Galveston, we brainstormed. We had another hour to kill before airport focus was upon us. A crazy idea emerged, one that would be hard to pull off…

Mark called his escort Kaylyn, asked her if she would be able to deposit a new propane tank inside our camper if we had someone deliver it. The answer was surprising, but music to our ears: “Yes.” Question #2: “Would you be willing to pick one up if we order it? We will pay you for your help, of course.” Another “yes” followed and life looked up again.

Dealing with the propane tank disaster

Over the next half an hour, we called the propane place in League City and paid for a new tank and its certification, emailed them Kaylyn’s information, and copied her on any correspondence with Baygas Propane. Our angel called us three days after we arrived in Cartagena. She had picked up the tank and needed instructions about where to put it – and how to get there. We walked her through storing the new tank safely and securely inside Bella, made sure she locked our home properly again, and sent her $100 as a thank you. Hence our high propane cost last month…

This is where Kaylyn wrapped and stored our new propane tank (we think)

The other amount paid for the camper went to protection (wood to board up the windows and tension rods to keep them in place) and gear to potentially fix our fridge issue. It was our goal to have a fully-working (brand new) fridge before shipment, but that failed.

Buying cut plywood at Home Depot and storing it for a few days – back and forth from the bed of the camper to the back seat of the truck

To bring Maya into Colombia, we needed an international health certificate and a couple of extra shots. That required a vet visit of multiple hours and approval by the USDA; an expensive ordeal. The temporary import permit for Colombia was only $11 and took an hour of red tape.

Vet visit in Texas City

Temporarily importing Maya into Colombia

Back in Houston, we treated our generous and hospitable friends John and Harriet to a Thai take-out dinner. The rest of the eating out category was spent in Cartagena – one “expensive” meal and drinks for my birthday ($60 for two people) in a nice restaurant and the rest on local food.

Birthday dinner out in Getsemani with new friends Sheri and Jeff

Hearty dinner at a local restaurant

The grocery category was low – we needed to eat everything up before leaving the US and Colombia is cheap. We still cooked most of our meals to save money and eat relatively healthy. After we recovered from being sick the first ten days, our Venezuelan friend Nathalie, who lives in Manga, Cartagena, invited us over for a yummy salmon-pasta lunch.

Preparing sandwich lunches for two days of plane travel

Dinner rich in vegetables (at home)

Making French toast with crappy Colombian (sweet) bread

Another dinner at home, with take-out chicken

Lunch at Nathalie and Danny’s place

We didn’t spend a lot on fuel last month, only enough for dock workers to move our truck on and off the boat(s). Your gas tank can only be 1/4 full. We had a last-minute tire alignment and rotation done two days before we left.

Fueling Thirsty for the last time in Texas

This amount differs from the one in the report, because we received credit back from our fuel app Upside.

The front tires were wearing down in an uneven way

Taking the camper off yet again; this time to deal with the truck tires

Transportation was another extra category. The Uber from Galveston Island to Hobby Airport in Houston cost a whopping $50 and we have been getting around Cartagena in local taxis. The price for the port escort was also $50.

Cab in Manga’s flooded streets

Our monthly amount for internet went up. We finally retired our amazing unlimited AT&T data plan that was $35/month for years (we sold it on) and switched to a Google Fi worldwide plan, sharing an account with our friends Duwan and Greg. After the initial set-up fees incorporated in this report, the new monthly amount should be $50 for 50 gig of data.

The only other thing worth mentioning is that I finally spent the second half of Mark’s birthday gift for me from last year (November 2021) on goodies at Trader Joe’s. I totally forgot I had some “credit” left for that! As I write this, I’m eating my final dark-chocolate-covered almonds from the US…

The food bag – just now am I finishing those chocolate-covered almonds!

We are all resting and waiting!

Find all our expense reports here. To learn what other full-time nomads spend each month, check out the blogs of our vanlife friends Duwan and Greg at Make Like An Ape Man.

Donate to Roaming About to help maintain this website.

Monthly Expenses of a Nomad – October 2022

November 13, 2022 / Liesbet / 32 Comments

Every month, I post a report of our expenses to show that it is possible to live a comfortable, exciting, and adventurous life without breaking the bank. The less money you spend, the less you need to make. 🙂

This report includes ALL of our expenses, in US$, for two adults and one 60-pound dog (we adopted Maya on June 4th, 2019). Under groceries we incorporate food, produce, and non-alcoholic drinks predominantly bought in supermarkets. Toiletries belong in that category as well. Dining out means eating at a restaurant/event or purchasing take-out food. The health category covers non-prescription medicines and vitamins/supplements; medical contains prescription drugs and doctor’s visits. Because of our income level, Mark and I are eligible for free health care within the state of Massachusetts. For check-ups and extensive care, we return to the East Coast.

October was a rough month for us, in terms of discomfort, stress, frustration, and bad luck. Nothing, truly nothing, went according to plan. But we persevered and, once again, friends came to the rescue. I’ll explain when going through the numbers.

Mark, Maya, and I arrived in the Houston area of Texas several weeks earlier than planned, because our brand-new, state-of-the-art $1,400 Isotherm fridge had to be replaced under warranty. The most economical way for us to arrange this (from Colorado) was by picking up a replacement 1,100 miles away, in Seabrook, Texas, ideally as soon as possible. This would give us “plenty of time” to make sure fridge #2 worked as advertised and expected. Well, it didn’t, and to this day – now out of the country – we are trying to diagnose the cooling issue. We bought extra tools and gear to keep working on this in Colombia.

Massive container ships in Galveston

One day soon, Thirsty Bella will be outbound on a similar car carrier

Delays of the ship that would bring Thirsty Bella to Cartagena had us pinned in Eastern Texas even longer. And, believe me, there is another story coming about that as well. This post of last month was just the beginning. I think Mark and I could produce our own drama series or soap opera by now!

But, let’s get back to our expenses. The grocery category ($354) was on the high side, because we had emptied our fridge the previous month, since it had to be replaced and we had no cool space in 100-degree Texas to store perishables. So, we started over, with a similar goal: finish eating all/most of the food by the time we’d leave the country.

Almost empty fridge

Taking our fridge back out to reverse the fan

Texas is big, but we figured that once we had reached Houston and Galveston (from where our camper ships), we’d stay put for the month. Fuel is pretty much the cheapest in the country here. Yay. Maybe we could get by on one tank?

Nope. The weather chased us around, from county park to the beach, onto the mainland, and back to grassier environs. Incessant heat, 90% humidity, being sandblasted by wind, and a good sprinkle of mosquitoes had us drive the two-hour distance between Galveston and Anahuac multiple times.

Bolivar Peninsula

Beach camping on Bolivar Peninsula

Tea time at the beach

Sunrise on the beach

Sandy nose!

Sweating and cuddling

We also did more preemptive car maintenance ($120) in preparation for the big trip: changing the air filter, transfer case fluid (one extra top-up needed), and coolant (three flushes) in our engine. These were tasks that couldn’t be done in sand, on windy days, in parks, surrounded by mosquitoes, or during the heat of the day. The tolls were paid to cross a $2 bridge between Galveston Island and San Luis Island, where we hoped to spend a week and finally relax a bit, but the wind had something else in mind. More driving.

Great beach spot on San Luis Island – I wished we could have stayed longer

Heavy winds sandblasted our home and car – not good!

Flushing the coolant

Picking up trash – everywhere we parked in Texas, we found lots of litter

Mark and I bought three bags of dogfood ($131) for Maya to give us a head start in South America. Since our girl is allergic to corn and chicken (and a lot of other things), finding suitable food will be a challenge. We also stocked up on another container of her fish oil supplement ($49) to keep her coat shiny and her health optimal.

The alcohol category was surprisingly high ($81). I guess we tried to drink some of our worries away. We also hung out with friends and bought wine and rum to share.

Our new grill in action! (Photo by Duwan Dunn)

For the first time in years, there was an accommodation cost! One we happily obliged to. Our Houston friends, John and Harriet, graciously offered us the use of their condo right on the beach in Galveston, when we met up at their house in the city, the end of September. Our only contribution would be the cleaning fee at the end of our stay. We eventually planned on using this accommodation for our last week in the US, during which time our camper would be shipped. We’d be able to see the car carrier leave from the condo’s balcony!

The Galvestonian is an incredible place to stay

Condo balcony on the 7th floor

But the anticipated schedule was not to be, delays messed everything up, and we felt no need for a condo when we could still live in Bella. So, we cancelled our reservation for the end of October. Our camper was to be dropped off on November 7^th at that point, with our plane to Miami leaving the same day…

As most of you know, Mark and I never stay in and pay for campgrounds. We wouldn’t be able to afford this lifestyle otherwise. We boondock pretty much 100% of the time, which means we camp without facilities and amenities. Not that electricity hookups would matter, since we don’t have an air conditioner on board. And this is an important factor: nobody lives, let alone camps, without AC in Eastern Texas this time of the year. After weeks of suffering from the high humidity, we finally realized why we were always the only RV wherever we parked for the night…

Ferry from Bolivar Peninsula to Galveston Island

Second ferry ride to Galveston

Our go-to beach camping in Galveston, when not too windy

Texas City skyline

Sleeping under a bridge in Texas City after not finding a better option for the night

Watching the full moonrise from this park instead of over the ocean on San Luis Island, as planned

So, when it all became too much – the sweating, the running around, the stressing over issues and logistics, the bugs – we inquired about the availability of John and Harriet’s condo and snatched a glorious week there to cool down, take a deep breath, keep working on the fridge issue and more logistics, go for long beach walks with Maya, and… be sick. Maybe it was the AC? Maybe the culmination of everything going on? Maybe it was finally “letting go” for a bit? It was mostly Mark being under the weather last month, but now, here in our Airbnb in Colombia (with AC), it’s my turn.

Beach and bay walk – the water was much warmer than expected!

Happy hour with a view

Maya gets comfy in the weirdest places

Maya frolicking in the water

Poolside at the condo

Curled up in a ball under my chair

Sunrise seen from the condo

The cost for our utilities ($48) was similar to previous months. It was the last time we paid for our fantastic unlimited AT&T data plan of $35 a month, which doesn’t exist anymore for new subscribers and which we managed to sell on. The rest of the amount was for propane. Frugal as we are, we only bought two gallons, since our tank needed to be empty in order to ship our camper (which is another incredible story for later). Then, Mark discovered a propane leak. It took weeks to diagnose and fix that issue, and more propane.

Checking for a propane leak

Getting free potable water at the sewage plant in Texas City

One for the books: taking a cold shower at the sewage plant of Texas City

The last week of October, our good friends and fellow nomads Duwan and Greg joined us in Texas. We started out at Fort Anahuac Park for three nights (a permit is needed) and – contrary to what we were told previously – discovered we couldn’t stay at other Chambers County Parks for another week. The hunt for free camping in the region then had us stay at a boat ramp, rest area, and Harvest Host brewery location, finishing up at the beach in Galveston again when the wind finally subsided.

Camped at Fort Anahuac Park – we stayed here three times in October, for nine nights in total

Parked for the night at a rest stop – here, we saw an abandoned dog and four cats

Camped among the cargo ships

Maya loves visiting Duwan and Greg’s van, Ballena Blanca – lots of treats to be obtained there!

Last evening together with our friends

When camped at the Equal Parts brewery in Houston, our group went out for drinks and appetizers ($30) on their patio and street tacos at a Mexican food stand ($10). My (bad) Spanish was rewarded with a free Agua de Jamaica (hibiscus juice) and meat taco. 😊

Camped on the brewery parking lot (Photo by Duwan Dunn)

Ordering street tacos (Photo by Duwan Dunn)

As always, we cooked and ate most of our meals at home, by ourselves or with friends. Mark spoiled me with his favorite recipe a couple of times: mushroom burgers on a bed of lettuce with aioli and jasmine rice.

My favorite Mark meal: mushroom burgers from scratch

Leftover mushroom burger on a bun with sweet potatoes and spinach

Amazing salad – healthy, diverse, and tasty

Mushroom burgers for everybody in Bella

Greg’s delicious van pizza

Van pizza made by Greg and Duwan and eaten in Bella

Broccoli in the electric oven!

Fried cauliflower and roasted broccoli

I finally met Lexie, a fellow adventurer whose blog I have been following for years. She treated us to lunch and gifted us Texan goodies, which we savored for days.

Meeting blogging friend Lexie in League City

The money spent on household items went to yet another clock and stain and brushes for our new cabinet. I’m still baffled at how we managed to pick the perfect color from memory – no samples and no photos had accompanied us to Home Depot.

New clock – attempt #6 is a winner!

Old clock – it stopped working after a week

Staining the new fridge cabinet

Finishing up the painting project

Can you believe the perfect match with the rest of the cabinetry (to the right and left of the photo)?

During our 24 hours in the big city, Duwan, Greg, Mark, and I also enjoyed free entertainment in the form of historic buildings, street art, a walk in Buffalo Bayou Park, a glimpse of and in Rothko Chapel, and a stroll through the impressive and fascinating Menil collection.

Houston skyline (Photo by Duwan Dunn)

Mural in Houston

A Picasso painting at the Menil Collection

Rothko Chapel and a monument dedicated to Martin Luther King Jr.

To top it off, our total expenses for October were not bad at all – under our monthly average. Maybe this is the start of affordable living again…

(PS: We did have $101 of Lance camper expenses in October as well – diagnostic tools and extra parts – as preparation for our upcoming multiple-year South America trip, but since we budgeted for that, it becomes part of our purchase price. I plan to write a separate post about those projects and costs in the future.)

Find all our expense reports here. To learn what other full-time nomads spend each month, check out the blogs of our vanlife friends Duwan and Greg at Make Like An Ape Man.

Donate to Roaming About to help maintain this website.

Monthly Expenses of a Nomad – September 2022

October 11, 2022 / Liesbet / 28 Comments

Every month, I post a report of our expenses to show that it is possible to live a comfortable, exciting, and adventurous life without breaking the bank. The less money you spend, the less you need to make. 🙂

This report includes ALL of our expenses, in US$, for two adults and one 60-pound dog (we adopted Maya on June 4th, 2019). Under groceries we incorporate food, produce, and non-alcoholic drinks predominantly bought in supermarkets. Toiletries belong in that category as well. Dining out means eating at a restaurant/event or purchasing take-out food. The health category covers non-prescription medicines and vitamins/supplements; medical contains prescription drugs and doctor’s visits. Because of our income level, Mark and I are eligible for free health care within the state of Massachusetts. For check-ups and extensive care, we return to the East Coast.

A lot has been going on the last few weeks (again), which means I barely have time to breathe, let alone keep up with my diaries, answer emails, practice Spanish, read a book or blog posts, write, research products and destinations, or work on my own blogs. This one has been ten days in the making, half an hour each time I make an attempt, not my usual approach.

Quick stop to look at the Capitol of Utah in Salt Lake City

Natural arch in Utah

Summer colors in Utah

Chimney Rock in Colorado, near the ranch of our friends

The new fridge we picked up in SLC, Utah, traveled on the back seat, so Maya needed to ride up front…

Drive through Silverton on the way to a weekend of camping with friends in the mountains

It’s been busy on the road – driving huge distances, dealing with logistics to get us all to South America, returning wrong Amazon packages, fixing items that shouldn’t break, maintenance on the car, dealing with failing equipment, disappointments, and limited customer support, and keeping up with our current life – finding free camping spots, locating stores to buy specific items, picking up packages (which require an address), finding the resources we need, and hopping from store to store and campsite to campsite and fuel station to fuel station.

Climbing the dirt roads of San Juan National Forest to camp for a few days

Scenic rock in the national forest

View near our free campsite in San Juan National Forest, Colorado

I’m due for an update here on Roaming About, but first we have to find a decent (and free) location to sit for a while. This proves to be hard in the Houston area. Maybe next week. Back to our expenses of last month…

In September, Mark and I drove a lot – from the middle of Oregon through Idaho, Utah, a tiny piece of Colorado, and New Mexico to the Houston area in Texas. And then a bunch more in this state as well. With our crappy fuel economy (10.5 miles to the gallon), it is no surprise we spent $900 on gasoline to drive 2,000 miles. The idea was to sit still somewhere, once we arrived in our last US state, but the weather has not been cooperative. High heat and humidity, nasty bugs, and heavy wind have kept us moving about.

Unfortunately, we didn’t come to sightsee – it was super hot and we needed to keep moving

We wish we could have stayed longer in Colorado – which was the plan.

Our time in New Mexico was short lived

We did another oil change and bought spare parts for our engine. Our grocery expenditure was relatively low. One of the reasons for that was needing to empty our fridge, because we had to “swap it out” and staying for a few days at a decent beach without shopping for food beforehand. I really enjoy getting rid of things – whether it is by eating food or donating material belongings.

We spent ten days on one of the properties of our friends Danny and Christine in Colorado, where we parked in and used their workshop

Much easier to do camper projects under the cover of a shop and with any tool one could ask for

On the opposite end of the spectrum, we keep on buying and buying for this upcoming South America trip – mostly on Amazon. Mark and I purchased new KEEN hiking shoes (you can find Mark’s here and mine here), ZEEPORTE snorkel gear (Mark picked grey ones here and I chose blue ones here), and a new CUISINART grill (which you find here). We are still considering replacing our 5-year-old COLEMAN camping chairs before leaving.

New snorkel sets – our last pairs were left on our sailboat Irie in Tahiti, seven years ago

New shoes for us as well – Mark swapped his out, I’m keeping these as spares for now.

The advantage of this particular CUISINART grill is that the regulator is easily removed and it allows you to use the low-pressure propane from your RV tank. As always, we researched these products, checked their reviews, and bought them at a great price (at half their original price or heavily discounted), because they are Amazon warehouse deals – the perfect way to save lots of money. To see if there is a warehouse deal on the product you are interested in, click on the “New & Used” box at the right side of the purchase page. The same Amazon rules and conditions apply.

Finally we own a grill again – this has been since 2015 on Irie as well

Side note: My parents usually give us Amazon gift cards as New Year and birthday presents and I asked these in advance this year, because we won’t be able to order stuff down south. The money is to be used for “fun stuff”, not camper parts or necessary items to sustain ourselves. Yet, based on the timeline and returns and refunds for wrong parts, the categories of these might change over time. Our end-of-the-year expense report is therefore more accurate in terms of categories and amounts. The personal goods in this report are supposed to come off the gift cards, which are currently used for spare parts, car maintenance items, and household necessities as well.

Visit to Mark’s nephew Randall and his wife, Rebeccah, plus dog Duke in SLC

Adoring four little kittens at the ranch

A pack of dogs kept us company at the ranch

The alcohol and gifts (dessert goodies) last month came with us when visiting friends and family, and we paid the annual fees for one of four website domains. The total for our hosting fees is around $200 a year. I hereby want to thank everyone who has donated to this cause, so far.

This truck passed us at a 75mph and – no doubt – scratched the driver side of our camper. It was hard to catch up with him to take this photo. Luckily, the damage was negligible but we did chew through extra gas as it took twenty minutes, before we caught up!

Accommodation last month was free again, thanks to friends inviting us to camp on their property or offering a guest room and us boondocking everywhere else.

We had to climb into the mountains to camp from Utah on, as the daytime temperatures were around 100 degrees Fahrenheit

Sometimes, the dirt roads were pretty bouncy…

View through our window in the mountains of Central Utah

Bella camped with like-minded souls

One of the residents during our walk with Maya

Attractive campsite in a park when passing through New Mexico. We needed shade on our drive south, which was hard to find.

We also never paid for sightseeing – once because our friend Christine has a National Park pass; other times because the destinations and activities didn’t cost anything.

Visiting Chimney Rock with Christine and her daughter Sophie

Reading up about this kiva and other ruins at Chimney Rock National Monument in Pagosa Springs, Colorado

Quick stop in Pagosa Springs on the way south

September wasn’t a cheap month, but it brought us to Texas (prematurely, but more about that another time) and we are now biding time in the Galveston area, which is where we will ship Thirsty Bella from. Plus, we stayed under $2,000. Maybe that should become our goal, instead of the usual average of $1,300. It is certainly more realistic. For now.

My first ATV ride ever!

Louie and Maya ride in the back of a golf cart

Weekend in the Colorado mountains, near Silverton

Horse riding on the ranch of our friends, Danny and Christine

(PS: We did have $1,711 of Lance camper expenses in September as well – mostly to buy a new fridge – as preparation for our upcoming multiple-year South America trip, but since we budgeted for that, it becomes part of our purchase price. I plan to write a separate post about those projects and costs in the future.)

This post contains affiliate links to Amazon. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases without extra cost to you.

Find all our expense reports here. To learn what other full-time nomads spend each month, check out the blogs of our vanlife friends Duwan and Greg at Make Like An Ape Man.

Donate to Roaming About to help maintain this website.

Five Days in the Badlands of South Dakota – A Photo Story of Spectacular Scenery & Wandering Wildlife (& a Daring Dog)

October 27, 2021 / Liesbet / 59 Comments

Day One

We approach Badlands National Park mid-afternoon, after crossing the width of South Dakota. The burning question: do we buy the $80 annual National Park pass (what we usually have) or a 7-day ticket for $30? We’ve been doing without a pass for over a year. We are leaving the country soon. It’s nice to be covered “everywhere” and sometimes get discounts on camping, though. But, we usually camp for free anyway. If we have to spend another summer in the US (instead of heading to South America in 2022), we will need and use the pass… “We either lose $50 or we lose $30,” Mark says, “Your choice.” Life has become very expensive on the road. Eighty dollars is a lot of money. We buy the week-long entrance ticket.

That’s when we realize we didn’t even check the pet rules… A quick search online reveals that dogs are not allowed on ANY trails. As a matter of fact, they aren’t even allowed at the look-outs. Pets are only welcome to walk around in campgrounds and parking lots. Great! Did we just waste $30?

I go for a short walk. Mark is annoyed and takes Maya around the parking lot. We drive through a small part of the park to our first free campsite for the night, in Buffalo Gaps National Grassland. Much more dog-friendly!

We crest a little hill and pick a flat spot among smaller badland humps. Because of the underground (sticky clay and sand), you don’t want to park here during rain. Many cars and campers have gotten stuck here, doing just that. But, there is no rain in the forecast, so we should be fine!

We take Maya for a walk and then this happens…

Roaming About

A Life Less Ordinary

Category: Roadtrip (page 2 of 6)

The Trampoline of Death in Colombia – A Road Block in Mocoa & Visuals of This Notorious Ride

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Monthly Expenses of a Nomad in South America – April 2023 (Colombia)

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Monthly Expenses of a Nomad in South America – March 2023 (Colombia)

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Monthly Expenses of a Nomad in South America – February 2023 (Colombia)

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Monthly Expenses of a Nomad in South America – January 2023 (Colombia)

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Monthly Expenses of a Nomad in South America – December 2022 (Colombia)

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Monthly Expenses of a Nomad – November 2022

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Monthly Expenses of a Nomad – October 2022

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Monthly Expenses of a Nomad – September 2022

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Five Days in the Badlands of South Dakota – A Photo Story of Spectacular Scenery & Wandering Wildlife (& a Daring Dog)

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