Buenos Aires
I´ve added some photos below for W-Trek, Perito Moreno and Fitz Roy, so scroll down if you haven´t seen them yet.
Buenos Aires is an interesting city. It took us a few days to warm up to it and to orient ourselves and feel just a little bit at home. We started to look around on a Sunday, which gave us a very different view. The streets are dirty with papers and dog poo, and because it was Sunday, not too much was open. When it came to Monday, and the rest of our time, the city took on much more character as there were shops open, people walking about and, well, character.
We walked or caught taxis everywhere as they were easy to get and quite cheap - usually about $AUS5 a trip.
On Sunday we went to the San Telmo markets which stretch over several blocks and consist of jewelry, knick-knacks, paintings, clothes and much more, as well as buskers playing music or dancing tango. It was somewhat remeniscent of Mont Matre in Paris, but MUCH bigger and even more crowded. We had a drink at Bar Dorrigo in the main square and did some people watching.
We then headed to Palermo Viejo, which we liked much more as many streets were tree lined and it seemed to have more cafes and bars open and still retain the character of cobble-stoned streets that San Telmo had. We tried to get into a really cool place, Olsen, a Scandanavian bar/cafe set in a garden, but it was full and we got sick of waiting at the bar, so we went around the corner to another garden cafe at Home Hotel. It was fun cafe hopping, but Eva tells me I´m eating too much, and she´s right.
We walked a lot after that, going through the botanic gardens past the japanese gardens (too crowded to go in) and along the embassy strip. Unfortunately it was here that there was an attempt to pick-pocket us. There were two women, and unknown to us one squirted brown liquid on our back and head as we walked under trees, and then ran over to help us clean up, using tissues around our pockets and backpack. Eva twigged to it before me, and as soon as we shooed them off they got into the taxi waiting a few meters away with another guy inside! At least they didn´t get anything, and we were even more careful from then on.
Next day we visited the Recoleta Cemetry, which is quite an experience as you walk past these huge crypts, many of which have a downstairs area (private) for more bods. We did the touristy bit and found Eva Peron´s grave and then wandered about as it was quite peaceful inside.
We walked to a really cool bookshop that was a renovated (or remodelated as a later tour guide would say) very classy theatre, complete with stage and three storeys of opera boxes. Just down the road we went to a great Volta place. Volta is a chain that serves ice-cream (not as good as Pompeii in Bondi) chocolates and coffee/cake. And yes, I did eat more there - a magnificent berry tart, and of course I just had to try the ice-cream (but threw half of it out as I was full).
Eva then went to a shopping mall for a short while and I wnet to a wine-store chain called Winery and had a tasting of 5 Argentinian wines. I liked the cheapest one.
That night we went ot see a Tango show at a famous cafe called Tortoni, the oldest in Buenos Aires. It was a classy place, lots of photos of famous people on the walls and chandeliers, nice floors and tables. We had dinner there and then were ushered in to the very small theatre to see the show, and had front row seats. The performance was amazing. The music, singing and dancing were fantastic. We shared a table with two young people (one from Spain and the other from Poland) and had a fantastic time. Another night we went to see a second Tango show at Viejo Almacen, and we were near the stage but had poor seats, and it was not nearly as good, even though it was longer and 3 times the price! It was still good though.
Next day we went on a city tour (good suggestion Marta and Kurt) and for nearly 4 hours we travelled to various areas by bus and heard statistics and tales from our informative and enthusiastic young guide. We had been to some places, but others, like La Boca we had not. Boca is where the Bca Junious come from (the team Diego Maradona played for) and it was fun to see the field, but an MCG it is not. The very tourisy area nearby has been remodolated (can´t stop saying that now) to be an open air museum of the multi-coloured houses of the immigrants who came sometime in the past (cannot remember that stat).
We got off on the way home at another shopping mall and pedestrian walkway to check out that area, but soon got sick of the crowds, so we headed for a bar called Milion, set in a multi-stoey house with a garden at the botton and had a coffee there. That night we had a fantastic dinner at Oviedo, not far from our hotel. They had a fantastic wine list and the food was amazing - one of our best meals (I had lamb, Eva had fish), with a dessert of floating islands in creme anglaise. Yum! Did I mention....yum!
Each day we got up at 7:30 as a breakfast tray was brought to our room at 8am. It was a great way to ensure we started the day early. On our last full day we walked about 4 or 5 km to Peurto Madero (another area in BsAs) which is a remodelated port area, and quite tastefully done. We walked on the cooler side of the buildings in front of the water and strolled along in the peace. We stopped for afternoon tea at Cabana Las Lilas, a well know tourist-trap but excellent food place, and had a nice front row seat to watch people go by. I wanted to try the grill so had little chorizo sausages that looked like dog droppings, but tasted nice. Very swish place, but the waiters were pushy and service slow. I noticed they had a Ben sized steak of 800gm (entree size for you Ben).
We had a walk on the Womens bridge (Puente de la mujer) a US$6M bridge built so you can walk over from the Hilton hotel on the other side. A lot of the streets in this area are named after women who fought for equality in Argentina.
That night we didn´t eat but went out to Viejo Almacen, but I´ve covered that above. I really like the tango and the music and singing that goes with it.
That was about it in BsAs. After a while we were getting around so well with walking. There are many narrow one-way streets, like in New York, and it is easy for pedestrians. No pushing of buttons for the lights, you just wait. The cars use the lane lines to indicate roughly where the road is, and I think the taxi drivers train in Rome, but they all respect traffic lights (but NOT pedestrian crossings). There are street signs on most corners that tell you which way the one-way goes and also what numbers of houses/shops are in that block. We saw many dog-walkers, people who are paid to take 10-15 dogs on leads to walk them for their busy owners.
I wouldn´t have minded another few days in BsAs, but Iguazu Falls were calling.
Hasta luego (hmmm...Í´ll have to brush up on my portuguese - what if I just drink port???).
Buenos Aires is an interesting city. It took us a few days to warm up to it and to orient ourselves and feel just a little bit at home. We started to look around on a Sunday, which gave us a very different view. The streets are dirty with papers and dog poo, and because it was Sunday, not too much was open. When it came to Monday, and the rest of our time, the city took on much more character as there were shops open, people walking about and, well, character.
We walked or caught taxis everywhere as they were easy to get and quite cheap - usually about $AUS5 a trip.
On Sunday we went to the San Telmo markets which stretch over several blocks and consist of jewelry, knick-knacks, paintings, clothes and much more, as well as buskers playing music or dancing tango. It was somewhat remeniscent of Mont Matre in Paris, but MUCH bigger and even more crowded. We had a drink at Bar Dorrigo in the main square and did some people watching.
We then headed to Palermo Viejo, which we liked much more as many streets were tree lined and it seemed to have more cafes and bars open and still retain the character of cobble-stoned streets that San Telmo had. We tried to get into a really cool place, Olsen, a Scandanavian bar/cafe set in a garden, but it was full and we got sick of waiting at the bar, so we went around the corner to another garden cafe at Home Hotel. It was fun cafe hopping, but Eva tells me I´m eating too much, and she´s right.
We walked a lot after that, going through the botanic gardens past the japanese gardens (too crowded to go in) and along the embassy strip. Unfortunately it was here that there was an attempt to pick-pocket us. There were two women, and unknown to us one squirted brown liquid on our back and head as we walked under trees, and then ran over to help us clean up, using tissues around our pockets and backpack. Eva twigged to it before me, and as soon as we shooed them off they got into the taxi waiting a few meters away with another guy inside! At least they didn´t get anything, and we were even more careful from then on.
Next day we visited the Recoleta Cemetry, which is quite an experience as you walk past these huge crypts, many of which have a downstairs area (private) for more bods. We did the touristy bit and found Eva Peron´s grave and then wandered about as it was quite peaceful inside.
We walked to a really cool bookshop that was a renovated (or remodelated as a later tour guide would say) very classy theatre, complete with stage and three storeys of opera boxes. Just down the road we went to a great Volta place. Volta is a chain that serves ice-cream (not as good as Pompeii in Bondi) chocolates and coffee/cake. And yes, I did eat more there - a magnificent berry tart, and of course I just had to try the ice-cream (but threw half of it out as I was full).
Eva then went to a shopping mall for a short while and I wnet to a wine-store chain called Winery and had a tasting of 5 Argentinian wines. I liked the cheapest one.
That night we went ot see a Tango show at a famous cafe called Tortoni, the oldest in Buenos Aires. It was a classy place, lots of photos of famous people on the walls and chandeliers, nice floors and tables. We had dinner there and then were ushered in to the very small theatre to see the show, and had front row seats. The performance was amazing. The music, singing and dancing were fantastic. We shared a table with two young people (one from Spain and the other from Poland) and had a fantastic time. Another night we went to see a second Tango show at Viejo Almacen, and we were near the stage but had poor seats, and it was not nearly as good, even though it was longer and 3 times the price! It was still good though.
Next day we went on a city tour (good suggestion Marta and Kurt) and for nearly 4 hours we travelled to various areas by bus and heard statistics and tales from our informative and enthusiastic young guide. We had been to some places, but others, like La Boca we had not. Boca is where the Bca Junious come from (the team Diego Maradona played for) and it was fun to see the field, but an MCG it is not. The very tourisy area nearby has been remodolated (can´t stop saying that now) to be an open air museum of the multi-coloured houses of the immigrants who came sometime in the past (cannot remember that stat).
We got off on the way home at another shopping mall and pedestrian walkway to check out that area, but soon got sick of the crowds, so we headed for a bar called Milion, set in a multi-stoey house with a garden at the botton and had a coffee there. That night we had a fantastic dinner at Oviedo, not far from our hotel. They had a fantastic wine list and the food was amazing - one of our best meals (I had lamb, Eva had fish), with a dessert of floating islands in creme anglaise. Yum! Did I mention....yum!
Each day we got up at 7:30 as a breakfast tray was brought to our room at 8am. It was a great way to ensure we started the day early. On our last full day we walked about 4 or 5 km to Peurto Madero (another area in BsAs) which is a remodelated port area, and quite tastefully done. We walked on the cooler side of the buildings in front of the water and strolled along in the peace. We stopped for afternoon tea at Cabana Las Lilas, a well know tourist-trap but excellent food place, and had a nice front row seat to watch people go by. I wanted to try the grill so had little chorizo sausages that looked like dog droppings, but tasted nice. Very swish place, but the waiters were pushy and service slow. I noticed they had a Ben sized steak of 800gm (entree size for you Ben).
We had a walk on the Womens bridge (Puente de la mujer) a US$6M bridge built so you can walk over from the Hilton hotel on the other side. A lot of the streets in this area are named after women who fought for equality in Argentina.
That night we didn´t eat but went out to Viejo Almacen, but I´ve covered that above. I really like the tango and the music and singing that goes with it.
That was about it in BsAs. After a while we were getting around so well with walking. There are many narrow one-way streets, like in New York, and it is easy for pedestrians. No pushing of buttons for the lights, you just wait. The cars use the lane lines to indicate roughly where the road is, and I think the taxi drivers train in Rome, but they all respect traffic lights (but NOT pedestrian crossings). There are street signs on most corners that tell you which way the one-way goes and also what numbers of houses/shops are in that block. We saw many dog-walkers, people who are paid to take 10-15 dogs on leads to walk them for their busy owners.
I wouldn´t have minded another few days in BsAs, but Iguazu Falls were calling.
Hasta luego (hmmm...Í´ll have to brush up on my portuguese - what if I just drink port???).
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