Buenos Aires

We left Bariloche in the dark and spent a long time queuing at the airport. 

We had managed to squash all our belongings into two bags under 15 kgs while others in the tour had much heavier bags and some got charged extra, while others didn't -  I think it depended on whether the person on the counter was a morning person or not - a tad unfair I thought.

It was an uneventful flight and after finding our rooms we went for a long walk before stopping for a late lunch.  The restaurant offered traditional food including an omelette with fried grated potato - it was quite tasty but I am looking forward to being able to eat fresh salads again. 

At a glance Buenos Aires belies it's fairly recent turbulent economic time. The centre is busy - with lovely architecture if you look above the shops. There are a number of people trying to coax you into their cafes and restaurants and a surprising number trying to get you to exchange US dollars for the local currency - our guide said don't do it as you will probably get counterfeit back and/or a poor rate. I now understand why we were told to bring US dollars - it is a better rate to exchange notes (if you know where to go) than getting money from an ATM machine where you might be charged up to 50% of the transaction in fees.  The ATMs are not holes in the wall like at home, but usually in a little cafe or corner shop or even a petrol station and so not available 24/7. 

The last night of our tour was spent at a tango evening - a very well done chronological journey through the life of the tango which started as a dance for two men fighting for the same girl!

Then we were on our own (no more being looked after by a tour guide) and with some of our new tour friends we boarded a Hop on Hop off bus the next morning.  It was a bit of a rigmarole finding it, as there were many places selling tickets but no where near the bus route.  We eventually hopped on a bus only to find they only accepted cash on board.  The driver did a full circle of the "square" to drop us back off at the kiosk where we paid and waited patiently for 30 minutes for the next bus. 

Buenos Aires is full of old buildings (even a few art deco) intermingled with new ones, some well cared for and others not so well cared.  It was hard to take photos as most of the architectural delights were scattered and higher than the power lines.  

La Boca was our first stop and after taking a few wrong turns and a very long wait for a coffee and apple strudel we found the vibrant, colourful, entertaining, football mad artisan suburb.  We were tempted to buy some of the colourful artwork but it wouldn't be ideal to squash it inside our bag.  

The drive back to the centre led us past some familiar streets which housed theatres, parks and the obelisk.  Our second stop was the Recalito Cemetery - one of those amazing places - a little village all on its own.  However, at this one we could peer in the windows and see coffins stacked on shelves, some old and derelict others prestine and polished.   I kind of felt envious that here families housed generations of ancestors - you would know where you would end up - with future descendants being obliged to keep up the maintenance on the shrines!!

Some sported special little prayer rooms, and were lovingly looked after, while others gave the impression the families had come to an abrupt ending or just didn't care - broken glass, deteriorating exterior walls and inside stairs and coffins showing their age. Evita's mausoleum was sign posted and covered in flowers - we didn't stay long as there were a number of respectful (and tearful) mourners standing outside.

There was time for an icecream before we said goodbye to our fellow travellers.  Scooping ice-cream is an Argentinian art - and I was mesmerised for the full five 5 minutes it took to scoop the ice-cream and then lovingly and artistically smooth it with a plastic spoon.  The queue grew as we watched the master piece form (and there were five of us - each wanting 2 scoops!).

For dinner we went to a cafe around the corner and ate bagels and sandwiches - we had a little coat stand beside the table, and only young men waiting on the tables in blue and white striped aprons over their clothes.  Quite the place!!

The last day we went for a walk along the River Plate. I had a free history lesson about the role the river played in World War 2 and the scuttling of the boat Graf Spey by its German captain. The waters lapped onto the shores just like the sea.  Looking at a map it was hard to tell when the river finished and the sea began. I guess one way was to taste the muddy water but neither of us were game for that.  Sign posts told us we could see a variety of birds, skins, snakes and furry rodents but we only saw the two legged locals out for their Sunday morning run or walk.  

On the way back to the hotel to collect our bags we were stopped by the "rotating" bridge - one boat went out and another came in.  We found another Argentinian pasta place where only men served their customers. 

We were flying United, which required the hassle of online check-in of hold and cabin luggage.  It took a while to enter all the details the night before but at the airport it was a breeze.  We reflected once again how the electronic age has made everything far more complicated for the traveller - we are looking forward to deleting airline and hotel apps from our phones at the end of the holiday.