Not all of Bolivia or Peru is in the Andes. A big portion of Bolivia is in the Amazon basin and parts of the country around Santa Cruz and Cochabamba are temperate and at low altitude, but up on the Alto and in the mountains, you are pretty high up relative to where most Americans are used to living or traveling.

The Andes are the big attraction for most folks, but there are some really interesting places elsewhere in both countries. If you want to see the Amazon jungle, head out to Riberalta in Bolivia.

I'm not trying to dissuade anyone from adventuring; but when people ask, I also have a couple of "oh, I didn't think of that" cautionary tales that may encourage them to think a bit harder about what they are planning.