Jul 13, 2005 - Rio de Janeiro to Buenos Aires, Argentina

Today we got our stuff and act together and in no time were waiting patiently at the airport in time for our lunchtime flight to Buenos Aires. The flight was easy and painless and soon looking out the windows of our cab we could see what an immediate presence they city had. Broad roads, interesting architecture, people well dressed and a huge amount of restaurants and cafes. For the first time in the trip we would be renting an apartment which makes for a huge change to the usual hotel and hostel feel. The location is very central, being...

Jul 11, 2005 - Buenos dias from Buenos Aires!!

Ahh...finally somewhere I can understand the people (sort of) and they can understand me (or not..). We have finally put into practice our Spanish and are doing quite well. The only problem is that when you start speaking Spanish to someone they start speaking fast Spanish back at you with a series of questions you don't understand - we thought they would just hear our accents and speak English back at us!!! This is, however, a far better situation than we were in, in Brazil, wehere they only spoke Portuguese and would not budge for any...

Jul 10, 2005 - Buenos Aires - We are in love

We love Buenos Aires!! It is a vibrant, modern city full of energy and excitement. In the city and surrounding area, there are more than 12 million porteños (the name for people from Buenos Aires). It is so easy for all of these people to get around on the pedestrian-friendly wide sidewalks and by taxi, bus, and subway. There are interesting neighborhoods with historic institutions and colorful shops and restaurants. There are many parks, museums, theaters and markets. It's a shopper`s paradise with many boutiques and stores, although there...

Jul 5, 2005 - Cordoban kautta BsAsiin

Mendozasta jatkoimme matkaamme Argentiinan toiseksi suurimman kaupungin Cordoban kautta Buenos Airesiin. Cordoba oli aikoinaan jesuiittojen paapaikka, josta he hallitsivat valtiotaan valtion sisalla. He myos perustivat Cordobaan Argentiinan vanhimman yliopiston. Kaupungista piti loytya kaunista siirtomaa-aikaista arkkitehtuuria, mutta mielestani se oli lahinna halyisa ja sekava yliopistokaupunki, jossa katukuvaan palasivat koyhat myyden hengenpitimikseen kaikkea maan ja taivaan valilta. Cordoban lahella pienessa Alta Gracian kylassa vietti...

Jul 3, 2005 - Argentina- Buenos Aires

03/07 I have arrived in Buenos Aires!...I live in an apartment just outside the center of the city. First impressions: the city has a scale that rivals that of any international city I have been too. In terms of life-style the prices are dirt cheap and the food and wine are plentiful. 04/07 Today we walked across the largest road in the world it is by my estimate 15-18 lanes wide, and runs through the center of the city punctuated by a massive stone obelisk. 06/07 Today I danced the Tango in a small sea-side town of La-Boca. We went to a...

Jun 24, 2005 - Buenos Aires

Hola!! Nun sind wir also in Buenos Aires gelandet und wohnen in einem Hotel mit kleinem Schoenheitsfehler: die Duschwanne fehlt. Das heisst duschen ist gleich Ueberschwemmung im ganzen Bad oder vielleicht auch Zimmer.... Bis jetzt hat sich noch keiner so recht getraut das auszuprobieren, aber nach 1,5 Tagen wirds schoen langsam Zeit..... Aber sonst ist es hier wunderschoen, die Stadt hat von allem etwas. Der Strassenvekehr ist so schlimm wie in New York City, die Strassencafes so nett wie in Paris und Mc Donalds gibts wie Sand am Meer, nur...

Jun 18, 2005 - Chile -Santiago

hello there! I am writting this post-Santiago, so it is all one wrap-up message, The family I had in Santiago was better than anything I could have imagined. Everybody who was staying with us had arrived after the second day. There was 8 of us in total in the house, on 56 Guttenberg Way. The Chilli's: Daniel (father), Helena (mother), Borris & Fransisco (2 sons/bon-bons), and the 4 Americans: Max (the elder statesmen), Brendon (Big Nibble), Dillon Erb (actual name), & myself (lost in translation). It was a house with 7 guys and one...

Jun 8, 2005 - Buenos Aires

After an emergency landing in the middle of the night in the middle of an open field somewhere in Bolivia, I am very grateful to be alive and back in Buenos Aires! I have never been so scared. As soon as we took off I had a very strong premonition that I had hoped was wrong...it was that the plane would go down and not make it to BA. I felt it so strongly and I knew there was something wrong with the plane...but I also felt that we would just barely be okay somehow. I didn't see a crash or feel that we would die, but I told Romi what I felt...

Jun 1, 2005 - Exploring different colors of Buenos Aires

Buenos Aires, Argentina Once again I got up just in time for the breakfast and once again, I took shower with a glass-door looking the street outside. The new receptionist on the counter, Victoria, was also a nice girl with very friendly gestures. She was studying hotel management in the university and was trying to improve her English. After flirting with her a little bit, I first headed to San Telmo, a neighborhood that takes the credit of inventing Tango. Even these days its Plaza Dorrego fills up with Tango dancing, music, trading of...

Jun 1, 2005 - Buenos Aires

We`ve made it to Buenos Aires - party and Tango capital of the world! We're glad to report that the weather is much nicer here, and we`re having a great time exploring the city. Stu's very happy at the moment because we`ve managed to get tickets for the Argentina vs Brazil World Cup Qualifier on Wednesday, which is a real result! By the way - we managed to avoid flying with LADE up here, and from talking to the people who did this was a good move. The flight took them 7hrs (as opposed to out 3.5hrs on Aerolineas Argentinas), and included 4...

May 31, 2005 - Exploing the "Paris of the South" (unfinished)

Buenos Aires, Argentina After a good night's rest, I got up just in time not to miss the breakfast at the hostel. Although it was not enough to keep me going for more than half an hour, having a good cup of coffee before heading out is a welcome thing in the morning. I started my exploration in Recoleta area. Cementerio de la Recoleta is full of toumbs of the noble and the elite of Argentia. Although I did not know any of them except Evita, the architectural beauty of some of the toumbs were really admirable. Things to come.. - Palermo

May 31, 2005 - Tasting the best of Tango

Buenos Aires, Argentina For me, one of the main attractions of Argentina is Tango. I got a good sample of it yesterday when I attended a class as well danced a little bit and saw some good dancers dancing. That was still a scratch on the surface. Today was the day when I took a dive in Argentine Tango. As usual, I had no idea or plan. I was just taking a walk along the harbor and suddenly I felt an urge to do Tango. I put on my iPod and set it to some of my favorite Tango tracks. Then I started doing the things that I learned the day before...