Wandering around on our last day in Buenos Aires

We hopped a bus over to the Plaza de Mayo with the intent of going to the oldest and most famous Cafe in BA, Cafe Tortoni. Cafes are where you sip dainty cups of cafe ( coffee) and maybe have a sandwich or pastry, they seem to be an integral part of the peoples lives here. Cafe Tortoni is so popular with tourists that there frequently is a line outside waiting to get in. They have a door keeper who will not let you in till he peeks in and gets an ok to let you in. We waited for awhile but had no luck, the door keeper seemed to have favorites he let in before us, boo to Cafe Tortoni. We ended up in the Cafe La Puerto Rico which was great.

After lunch we sat down in the Plaza to people watch. A young boy from Peru approached us selling jewelry he makes and he spoke good English. Didn't buy his jewelry but did talk to him for awhile. He is studying architecture at the university here in BA where the tuition is free, he said it is free in Peru also and the two countries reciprocate. Said it was expensive living here, shares a one room apartment with 15 other students, they have bunks stacked 3 high. He grew up with his grandmother who sent him to an English high school, misses her. Nice kid and I wish him success.

Pics, our private deck where Nita dries her hair each morning, Cafe Tortoni, Tortoni doorkeeper, Cafe La Puerto Rica, student from Peru and 2 tough birds at a modern art gallery.

Tren de la Costa

The English translation is the coastal train. Today we caught a train out of BA to Mitre where we transferred to the coastal train. It is a light rail electric train that travels north along the water to Tigre. Unlike the regular train this train has nice scenic views and a number of stops that you can hop off and back on a later train. We got off in the town of San Isido, this town is supposed to be one of the most affluent towns in AR. From there we continued on to Tigre again, there we played some slots on the casino, had lunch and headed back to BA on the regular train. The train was half full today so had a nice seat for the ride back. Vendors, entertainers and others jump on and off the train seeking to gain a few pesos.

Pics, cathedral San Isidro, loading boat in Tigre with supplies destined for the delta, train entertainer and getting off train in BA station

Junk Food Junkies

Tigre on the weekend is packed with people, vendors, fruit markers, food stalls etc. The food in Argentina is quite good, Sunday, after having a nice lunch in Tres Bocas we returned to Tigre and kept eating. Going to have to change our ways when we get home.

Pics, Waffles del Mundo...also more great stuff other than waffles, choice of goodies to put on waffle, to die for....strawberries, chocolate and vanilla, strawberries dipped in glaze and rolled in popcorn...apples too...didn't try but was tempted....price is 8 pesos... 2 bucks and bread and pastry shop.

Tigre and the Delta

On sunday it was a bus, train and boat day. Destination was the the town of Tigre about an hour ride north of BA. The town of Tigre is a popular destination located on the edge of the magnificent river delta of the Rio Parana. The delta is a maze of water ways, canals and islands formed by the accumulation of sediment brought down the Parana river which runs down fro the border of Brazil. The water is chocolate colored from the sediment. There are no roads in the delta but hundreds of homes that are serviced by beautiful old wooden public boats. Each home has a dock and the boats will stop anywhere you desire. There are other boats that just carry supplies and food Into the delta, there are also tour boats that take passengers for rides. Rowing is a favorite activity around Tigre where luxurious rowing clubs are located, from the club mansions the owners boats are moved to the water by porters with little hand pulled rail cars.

We got on one of the public boats and went up into the delta for about a half hour to a community called Tres Bocas, walked around the river and canals, had lunch on a dock overhanging the river, returned to Tigre and walked around snacking on good stuff. We got on a packed train and I ended up standing all the way back to BA, a young gentleman gave Nita his seat, no such luck for me. A nice 12 hour trip.

Pics, kids on the train snacking on cookies sold by train vendor, public boats in Tigre dock, coming-going and rowing, rowing,home and dock, boat stopped to drop off passenger...you gotta move fast, docks and homes on a canal...some restaurants too and Buenos Rowing Club...look at their mansion.

Recovery day

After a long day yesterday we slowed down today. Visited the Museum of Decorative Art and dropped by the Recoleta weekend market. The museum was in a historic mansion, quite nice but no photos allowed. Sat and people watched in the market, good entertainment.

Pics, Jacaranda trees in purple bloom all over BA..smell nice too, man hears tango music coming from nearby dancers and decides to dance solo.

Colonia, Uruguay

Yesterday morning we boarded a high speed boat/ferry in BA and crossed the Rio de La Plata on a large bay that feeds into the Atlantic and arrived an hour later in Colonia, Uruguay. Colonia is renown for it's historic quarter and is a World Heritage Site. Colonia was founded in 1680 by Portugal and changed hands a number of times.

What a change from the fast pace and large population of BA. As soon as we debarked the ship in Colonia we found a quiet little town with pretty tree lined cobble stone paved streets. We walked the short distance from the terminal to the center of the historic area and kept walking around for the next 6 hours enjoying the sights and the people. We faded fast on the ride back to BA.

Pics, gate to old city, cobble stone street, flowering shrub through window, lunch, public school kids visiting museum ....their uniform every day is the smock and black ribbon, windows of colorful homes and emigration check in line for return to BA

Recoleta Cemetary

This is the number one tourist attraction in BA. There are 500 plots filled with impressive statues and marble sarcophagi. You can peek into the crypts and check out the coffins, many have stairways going down several floors to accommodate large families. Many of the presidents and military leaders are here. All plots are taken and owned by families and no other non family can be buried here. Many are elegant and others old and in need of repair.

Pics, Evita's grave....family name Duarte, President Pellegrini,  sad story according to our cemetery guide...this 19 year girl was on her first day of her honeymoon in Innsbruck when an avalanche crashed into her bedroom and instantly killed her....her bronze statue is in her wedding dress and with her dog...guide said one is supposed to rub the dog's nose for good luck..see how shiny it is

Argentina Ranch & San Antonio de Areco

Yesterday morning we headed NW out of BA for about 75 miles to the pampas and the land of the gauchos. Tina, our tour guide and Carlos, our driver, did a fine job of wining and dining and entertaining us.

Our first stop was the Ranch Don Silvano. The ranch is set up for visitors to get a feel for ranch life and to give an insight into the life of a gaucho. Gauchos were nomads who were mixed blood of the indigenous people and the Spanish. Their expertise was in cattle and horses. On arrival at the ranch we were welcomed with wine and empanadas, toured the ranch on a horse drawn carriage, visited the owners house and watch the gauchos perform with horses. Then it was serious eating with wood fire grilled beef, chicken and sausage accompanied with music and dancing. The beef appeared to be cut with a machete, there were no recognizable regular cuts of beef, but it was good and flavorable. The visit ended with a hot drink of mate (ma-teh).

From there we visited the town of San Antonio de Areco, famed for it's pretty town square, church, silver smiths, chocolate factory and preservation of gaucho history.

Pics, ranch owners home, gauchos rounding up horses wearing a bonia...a goucho beret, Tina and Nita awaiting lunch, silver harness...gauchos liked silver belts and to adorn their horses saddles and harness with silver, chocolate factory and Carlos with owner of 100 year old family store-old cat too.

La Boca

La Boca is a rough and tumble blue collar barrios/neighborhood of Buenos Aires. It is a very popular tourist stop due to the colorful painted corrugated houses. Another big draw is the La Boca soccer stadium that draws large crowds during games. You are warned not to stray out of the more popular areas around the stadium and the area of El Caminito where the tango restaurants and painted houses are located. We enjoyed hoofing it around there, took the bus over, which we are finally figuring out how to use, have to have the exact change, no bills. Kind of wore one of us out so took a cab back.

Pics, La Boca soccer stadium, tango restaurant, waiting for lunch and some colorful scenes.

Carlos Gardel Tango Theater

Carlos Gardel is one of the most famous singers, songwriter and prominent figures in the history of tango. He died in a plane crash in 1935. In the restaurant scene of "A Scent of a Woman" Al Pachino danced with a woman to the tango Pon Una Cabeza written by Gardel.

We attended the theater last night for the show. This is an impressive 500 seat theater. It was table seating and we were served empanadas and wine during the performance. The musicians with 3 accordionists were as great as the dancers. The musicians were elevated above the stage.