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. Other health issues are resolved locally and out of pocket where needed and possible.
After spending three months in Europe and the US over the summer, Mark, Maya, and I returned to Argentina on September 21st, the first day of spring (primavera) down here. While the initial three weeks of the month had been cheap, thanks to the generosity of our parents regarding food expenses and car use, we immediately blew the budget once we moved back into our truck camper, Thirsty Bella . The flights had been paid for last March.
(As always, hover over or click on photos in galleries to read their captions.)
Returning from grocery shopping in Belgium
A wonderful gift of beer and chocolate from our friends!
Leaving Europe
Belgian chocolate – for friends, family, and ourselves
So, September 2024 was an expensive month for us, especially since we spent it all in the final ten days! Some of the high costs were expected, like Maya’s export permit, storage for our camper, an official campground, and renewing our car insurance for South America; others were not only surprising but also scary…
One of the mechanics needs to lie on the engine to work on it.
Our low-mileage F350 truck engine developed a serious issue – factory induced – when we did some maintenance on it upon our arrival in Argentina. A miss-threaded sparkplug (one of the sixteen) was difficult to remove and appeared to have damaged threads. This made it impossible to replace with a new one and caused profound worries about how to fix the issue. Especially since the spark plug hole was hidden, so out of view and difficult to access. We were stranded!
We moved our car closer to the building to work without too much hinder from the strong wind.
Mark organizing his tools for this day-long project
Old ignition coils and sparkplugs lined up
The culprit of our engine issue: a damaged, previouly miss-threaded sparkplug.
Long story short: we needed to hire professional, cautious, and capable mechanics who wouldn’t only be willing to drive to our campground an hour and a half outside Buenos Aires, but who could also solve our predicament. The pair came out twice and managed to install the new spark plug without damaging the engine block or anything else. The price tag: US$600 (reduced to $570, since we paid some in the local currency). It would have been cheaper ($500) if we would have possessed the full amount in pesos.
First visit from the mechanics – the job was too complicated without the right equipment, which they didn’t bring.
Second visit of the mechanics – in the evening this time!
This time, they brought an endoscopic camera to see what was going on. Very important!
They worked on the car with special tools until 8:30pm.
We renewed our Mercasur countries liability insurance for another year for $358, which was three times as high as six months ago! Yes, prices keep rising in Argentina. The storage fee for our camper at Julian’s place was cheap. He charges only 25,000 pesos a month, so we tipped him another 30% to make the bill exactly $100. We also paid $3 for toll roads.
Reunited with Thirsty Bella at Julian’s place
Being waved off by Julian and his wife
Julian and I guide Mark and our fat camper through the narrow gate
Julian and his wife Sofia
To reach that whopping $1,079 for the car category, we also ordered tools to work on the sparkplug and ignition coils projects, bought fuel for my mother-in-law’s car in the US, and paid $2 for parking at Salisbury Beach, which is very close to our home base in Massachusetts, but I’d never been.
Using the car from Mark’s mom for visits to friends. Driving in Boston turned bad. Twice.
Visiting friends in Duxbury, on the other side of Boston
First visit to Salisbury Beach, close to Newburyport
Our camper pantry and fridge were totally empty when we returned to Buenos Aires, so a giant stock-up was needed. On our first day back, we stopped by a small shop for necessities, before reaching the Zapparancho campground, where we’d regroup and prepare for the rest of our South American journey.
One of the chain grocery stores we visited
The international food chain
After the weekend, we drove to the town of Lujan to visit two supermarkets for a first heavy-loaded run. We immediately missed the diversity and quality of goods we’d gotten used to in the US and Belgium. It will take a few more grocery stops to fill the camper up.
Maya needed a new international health certificate from the US to enter Argentina, so there went another $225. We are super happy that vet fees and shots are much more affordable down south!
Another thing I did back in Massachusetts was reclaim my Plunge books from the local bookstore, where the owner had “archived” them in the storage room, because none had sold in the last two years. Better to distribute them from our camper!
Reclaiming my Plunge books from a local bookstore. The owner had put them in the storage room!
On the first day of our return to the continent, we filled our camper with potable water, installed a new part on the water heater – which leaked and needed a few tightening attempts; we hate plumbing! – and discovered the bathroom faucet was leaking. We use this handle in the sink and as a shower head. Wasting water in a small camper is detrimental.
Topping up with water
Filling with water and checking all the systems
Fixing a plug for the water heater
Replacing the pressurized bar of our door
Who would be returning to Buenos Aires soon as well? Our US motorcycle friends Katherine and Brandon! And, yes, they could bring back the small and light replacement part. We paid more than normal to ship it to their address in time. A few random other parts rounded out the camper category.
The faucet part that leaked and had to be replaced, and its size
The new faucet part delivered by friends, installed, and leak-free!
In general, our health and fitness category is low, since we rarely go to hair dressers or buy health products. But, a visit to the US is the opportune time to stock up on specialized toothpaste (which I now rely on), a bottle of aloe vera, and nine months’ worth of vitamins.
Another pile of Amazon packages awaits us, mostly from Vine.
Even a checked-bag was available on Vine, with some patience.
Mark and I always fly with carry-on luggage only, unless we have a huge amount of gear, products, and/or parts to bring back. In this case, we checked one bag for $60 and donated it afterwards. Many packages waited for us in Massachusetts after our break in Belgium. Most were Vine Voice items, which we order for free in return for an honest review. We brought back a lot of useful products!
A moose antler for Maya – the first toy that holds her attention for more than a few seconds!
New flip flops for Mark
I ordered a soft, fleece blanket for Maya. I mean, Mark.
My new, stainless-steel water bottle
New cushion covers for the dinette, ordered through Vine
Laundry basket from Amazon Vine
And we brought Maya’s new, free bowl as well.
We counted on a week at an official campground to get ready for the road again – unpacking, organizing, shopping, cleaning, filling with water, fixing issues, engine maintenance, catching up on sleep, and researching a route and upcoming destinations. Our unexpected engine issue extended that stay, so we paid around $50 for eight nights at Zapparancho.
Being welcomed by Herman at Zapparancho
Zapparancho has a new mural since last time we visited in June
Two of our three website domain name registrations were due for renewal in September and the monthly subscription fee for our Starlink satellite internet service went up. Depending on the exchange rate, we now pay about $80 a month, half of which is taken care of by our business.
Within an hour of arriving in Bella, after getting Thirsty’s engine started with an extra boost (first things first), Mark unpaused our internet service and reregistered our Starlink account in Argentina instead of Peru, where we’d bought the unit. The fees in Peru had risen enormously and being registered here works better if the policy of only being allowed two months outside of the host country will be enforced.
A nice evening with friends at their lake house in New Hampshire
Money also went to alcohol/wine ($29) in the US as gifts for friends and in Argentina for ourselves, an Uber taxi from the airport in BA to our camper 45 minutes away ($22), shared meals at Zapparancho and a food stand choripan ($18), a new doormat and baskets from Dollar Tree ($4), and laundry ($3).
The asado cook grabs us a chorizo (chori) for the bread bun (pan)
Ordering our first choripan at a stand in Villars
Social evening with pizza, wine, and music
The old, small washing machine for campers at Zapparancho still works well.
The chocolate we brought back and our share of the Airbnb we rented with our German friends in Liege was paid for with my Belgian funds, which are not part yet of our bookkeeping records.
I paid for part of this Airbnb rental with my money in Belgium.
A perfect space for four adults and two dogs
Snacks in Liege for a 20-hour reunion with German friends
While our total amount for September is well above average, we did manage to stay under $2,000 despite the extra expenses. We boondocked after leaving Zapparancho and are cooking all our meals at home. Having been “sponsored” in Belgium, I did realize that Mark and I never went out for a meal just the two of us, there or anywhere else, in the last four months.
Our first night back on the road at a truck stop in Zarate
Our free camping spot in Gualeguaychu
Can you believe how hot it was in the beginning of spring? Luckily, only for one day.
On the plane back home to Bella, I promised myself I would become less frugal when it comes to spoiling ourselves, which includes eating out. It’s something we thoroughly enjoy and, you know, cooking and doing dishes every evening gets old. Then, we faced that extra $600 bill for the engine (the world’s most expensive sparkplug), and my intentions went out the window! Give me a few months without unexpected bills and I might reconsider again. 😊
