Buenos Aires - 2

Well, we´ve been in Buenos Aires for a week now. The pace of life is returning to something closer to normal - we have seen the things that you need to see and now we can take on a more regular routine. Melanie is taking Spanish classes in the morning and I am being obstinate in my belief that I don´t need to take them (though I probably should). I take my lessons by reading the newspaper with my coffee.

We have been having a nice time in BA - it is one of those cities that, though there are tons of tourists here, you can get lost in the sea of people and not feel so conspicuous. And, like any other big city, there is plenty of stuff to keep one occupied. The owner of the hostel we stayed in the first week was born here and says she is still surprised at what she finds here.

They are having the Tango festival at this time, with many free events. The tango is big here. I mean really big. Everywhere. I am not a big dancer but it has been enjoyable watching the tango bands and the informal dancers who start tango-ing on the street (every time I speak to someone about the Tango, I try to tell them of the ´two left feet´saying that we have in English, but it doesn´t really work). The festival itself is more like a group of events that take place over the city. We watched a tango band (consisting of two accordionists, two violinists, a pianist, and a bassist, and sometimes a singer). Melanie has me convinced that we should take some of the free lessons they are offering as part of the festival. We´ll see how that goes.

On Saturday, we went to a football game. River Plate vs. Arsenal. It was in some ways a let down. I have been wanting to go to a real football game for a while (mostly after I heard my friend Sachin´s stories about a riot at one that he went to in Europe). What could be more fun than watching a bunch of soccer hooligans beat each other up (from afar)? The normal stadium they played at was being used for the Rolling Stones and U2 concerts, so they played at a different stadium. That, and the fact that everyone is still on vacation, meant that the stands were not filled with riotous fans. There was one section that was filled to capacity (the standing room only part) with hooligans, and they did make a lot of noise. I couldn´t understand the chants, but I think they involved calling the other team part of the anatomy that are better left unsaid. So, overall, kind of a let down. I didn´t get to see anyone cause a riot. The universal axiom that food and drink costs more at a stadium applies in Argentina, as well - we paid a whole dollar for a choripan (sausage on bread) and another dollar for a drink. Can you believe it?

We went to the San Telmo antique market on Sunday. As we were walking through the city towards the market, it seemed abandoned - there was nobody on the streets. Then we got to the market and saw where they all had gone. Wall to wall people and tourists and antique hawkers selling everything imaginable. Neither of us are very heavy into antique collecting, but I know some people (yes, I am talking about you, Mom and Sarah) who would love coming here.

Well, that is all for now - I will post some more pictures when I find an internet place that will allow me to hook up my camera.

Editing . . .

I have just noticed that things get kind of screwy when trying to use special characters or trying to use the spell checker (which I desperately need to use).

Sorry for any weird looking words. Will try to be better in future posts.

Thanks For Reading . . .

Thanks to all who have commented - we enjoy reading them and getting a glimpse into who is keeping up with us.

A temporary answer to the toilet puzzle -

Most of the toilets do not flush like American toilets. They use two opposing streams of water (at least the ones here in Argentina do), so any Coriolis effects are cancelled out.

We still have a lot of countries, so we will let you know when we find out.

Buenos Aires

From Bariloche, we decided to take the bus to the capitol and most important city of Argentina, Buenos Aires. After a 19 hours, three bad movies, and a Nalgene of wine we arrived in Buenos Aires. (Well, we didn´t finish the Nalgene because they really know how to do a bus trip in Argentina - they gave us wine with dinner and champagne (!) as a digestive after dinner. Maybe more people would take Greyhound if they were this nice.)

There´s not much to write now, as we are just beginning to discover and enjoy BA. We are staying in the theater district at a hostel that just opened - the place is extremely nice and the owners make you feel like one of the family, but it is in a semi-shifty neighborhood. We are looking for another place to stay next week, but as it is the high season, everything is jam packed.

When we arrived, it was hot and humid (think Houston without any air conditioning), but now the rains have come and cooled things down. The rain isn´t too good for walking around, but it is supposed to stop here in a bit. And there are plenty of cafes to sit in to wait out the heavy stuff. We go to a football (yes, I mean soccer) matomorroworow, so hopefully the rain will quit by then.

Hasta luego, chicos.

Random Sightings

Anyone familiar with Austin will recognize this:



which we saw pasted on the wall at the La Cruz brewpub in Bariloche. They also had Stevie Ray Vaughn playing on the stereo. I tried to ask if they had been to Austin, but my rudimentary Spanish and sign language didn´t get the question across.

Puyehue

There are a couple of things you can´t throw a stick at without hitting in the Andes, and one of them is volcanoes. I´ll get to the others later.

We decided to rent a car in Bariloche and drive into Chile to the Parque Nacional Puyehue and explore the surrounding area. We left at 11 am, thinking that the 200 kilometers we had to travel would be easy. Then we got to the border crossing. After three hours of waiting in a kilometer-long line of cars:



we finally made it through the crossing. The Latin American way of doing things does not make crossing international borders very easy.

The border crossing is at a pass, and we descended into Chile. I told Melanie that this was ´the place´, meaning that this was the place that I had in my head all of these months of planning and waiting to go on the trip. The park is situated in a river valley (el Rio Gol Gol) that you descend into from the pass. The valley is formed by two steep ridges that are covered with vegetation (Chile is on the wet side of the Andes). In the background you can see volcanoes and other mountain ranges. Spectacular.

After camping for the night, we headed for the park´s namesake, el volcan Puyehue. When you are looking for hiking trails in the Andes, take the difficulty rating with a grain of salt - these people are used to walking up hills. ´Easy´ means that you will be walking straight uphill for four hours. I would hate to see what ´Difficult´ means. So after four hours of walking uphill, you are greeted with this view:



which makes it all worthwhile.

And the volcano:



There are hot springs and geysers at the end of the trail, but we are not equipped for overnight backpacking, so that will have to wait until next time.

The next day, we headed along dirt road (an addendum to the joke about rental cars my brother always tells: what is the fastest car on a dirt road? the one you just rented) to Puerto Octay. This city is located near a:



You guessed it, a volcano (el volcan Osorno). We talked to perhaps the most friendly tourist information stand operator in South America who told us that there are two perfect cone volcanoes in the world - Mt. Fuji and Osorno. Of course, he was partial to the one in his backyard. He was a bit off his rocker, though, as he tried to give me the same map three times.

Puerto Octay was founded by German settlers and still retains the German style architecture and the tradition of making Kuchen (fruit-topped cakes). We enjoyed a nice slice of kuchen while viewing the volcano.

On the way back, we decided that it would be a good idea to head for the border the day before we were to return the car just in case. And of course, it took only twenty minutes to cross this time. Better safe than sorry.

Bariloche

Hola from Bariloche, Argentina.

All is well - it has been a while since posting, just because we have been waiting to get somewhere with cheap(er) internet. Since we left Mendoza in the wine country, we spent an uneventful day in the oil town of Neuquen. Not very exciting, and kind of expensive.

From there, we went to Junin de los Andes, which is a small, sleepy town in the foothills of the Andes. The bus ride was quite interesting - the landscape of the northern stretches of Patagonia are remarkably like western Texas and eastern New Mexico. You can tell where the people are by the stands of wind-break trees. One difference is that there are herds of rheas running around (I chanced to look up from my book and see five running along a fence line). The ranchers hang foxes they shoot on the barbed wire - foxes can learn not to eat easy prey like lambs and chickens by seeing their dead relatives, I guess.

Junin is small, and I guess the people are a bit jaded by the amount of non-natives there. Melanie said buenos dias to the neighbor of our hosteria three times and each time he stared at us like we were from Mars. No matter, because close to the town is the Parque Nacional Lanin, in the center of which is a volcano (Lanin) and a nice waterfall where we had our lunch:



This park has been our favorite out of the three we have been to so far, but it was kind of a pain to get to on the bus. And dusty as hell. One good thing about it is that there are no RVs running around trying to squash hikers (and like most other parks, once you get 15 minutes up the trail, the ammount of people drops precipitously). The backpacker culture here in Argentina is very strong, with many, many people backpacking (nonecessarilyly as much in the backcountry) to campgrounds.




Then we headed further south to Bariloche, which is a largish, busy city nestled in the Andes on a lake. I can understand why people like to live and visit here - it is in quite a stunning setting. The downside of that is that there are tons and tons of people (now is the high season, when the Argetines have their vacation - the place is packed with people).

We took an all day hike to El Catedral:



Again, it is easy to see why people like to come here.

We have also been sampling the local beer scene, which is stronger here than anywhere in Argentina. There are several brewpubs, at one of which we met the guy who supplies all of the brewing equipment for microbreweries in the country. He will be a good contact for when we start ours down here. :)

You can't walk ten feet in Bariloche without seeing a a) chocolate shop b) ice-cream shop (our favorite . . .) c) an alpine themed building.

From Bariloche, we headed to El Bolson, which the book describes as the Berkley of Argentina. Nonecessarilyly a high selling point, but when I read that the valley was the major growing region for hops, I was on. El Bolson is sleepy and a bit run down, but still a nice place to stay for a couple of nights.

We hiked and had lunch next to the lake:




but the hikes were not as beautiful as our last two. Oh, well, because we then tried the big brewpub in town (El Bolson, with a camping ground in front), at which the lights went out and we had to have our beer by candlelight. Not too shabby. Then we tried the smallest one (Cavall de Foc), where the owner brews with homebrew equipment.

So, we are back in Bariloche now, as there is not much south of there that is not a painful busride. Sotomorrowow we pick up a rent-a-car and head across the border into Chile and some more parks. Then, we head to Buenos Aires, stay for a while there and then fly down to the southern most portion of Argentina to see some glaciers and more parks (it's much cheaper to fly from BA than from here).

Mendoza

Hola from Mendoza, Argentina.

The bus ride from Santiago to Mendoza is something to be done during daylight hours, as the views are spectacular. You can see the road we came up on the Chilean side:



Our last days in Santiago were nice - it is always nice to have a local show you around, as our new friend Vinka did. She was born and raised in Santiago, and she went overboard in helping us out and showing us her city. It was interesting to hear from her about the repressive Pinnochet regime and how it affected her life and how it has left an impression on the Chilean people.

Some of my friends have told me that they didn´t care for Santiago too much, which, I must admit, I wasn´t diggin´on it too much at the beginning. But, with someone to show you around, things are different and we had an excellent time.

Dave at the top of the Cerro in downtown Santiago:



Here´s a random arty photo because I was feeling like a photographer:



On to Mendoza - we are struggling to understand the Argentinian Spanish, but when the locals realize we are staring at them blankly, they speak slower and we can understand most things. Mendoza is a nice place - the Argentenians enjoy the sidewalk cafe culture and hanging out with friends and family. This is a nice change after the ´work,work,work´ culture back in the states. And the wine . . . it is nice to go to a place and spend six bucks for a great bottle of wine. Not that I could tell you what great wine is, but it tastes good to me.

Tonight we take the overnight bus to Neuquen - one step closer to the national parks in the south of Chile and Argentina. I am looking forward to being outdoors outside of a city.

Santiago

Hola from Santiago.

We made it fine - all night flights are not the most fun in the world, but you gotta do what you gotta do. On the bus from the airport into town (. . . watch out for the ravenous taxi busquers if you come to Santiago . . . ) we sat next to two women from Atlanta who 1) had quit their jobs to come to South America 2) are going to stay five months 3) had originally planned to go around the world 4) are traveling the same route as we are 5) etc. I think we were living in parallel universes. They had a lot more stuff than we did, so we got them there (though we need to get rid of some of ours).

A bit about Santiago - it is a big city . . . I don't think we'll be spending too much time here. Earthquakes have taken care of most of the colonial architecture prevalent in many Latin American cities, though there are some nice old neighborhoods here and there. There are many sidewalk cafes where the locals like to drink their coffee and many sidewalk bars where the locals like to pound beers. The food is decent, though not much to write home about. Melanie described one thing we had - pastel de choclo (kind of like grits with some meat mixed in) - as a 'mound of carbs'. They do like their carbs here. They like fresh salads, too, which is nice when you are traveling and eating at restaurants often.

We are trying to meet up with a local (met through a friend at the old job) - we are looking forward to having a local to talk to and get advice from.

On to Mendoza, Argentina, next.

Bon Voyage

Well, Here it is, January 28th. We've got all of our stuff in storage (well, mostly) and it is time to go to Dallas (tommorow), from where we will be flying out to Santiago. Not nervous yet, but I am sure a bit of the nerves will strike when making final approach. Thanks to all who have given encouragement and special thanks to all who have given us help! This blog thing has been kind of slow, but if you're still checking, thanks and I expect to update it more often while travelling.

Note - I am going to clear out the map and start putting our route so it doesn't become too cluttered.

Dave--o's Goals

What do I want to get out of this trip? I'll tell you, but first I should say that most of what you get out of a trip comes out of the blue - something you never expect to see, realize, eat, drink, feel, . . .

- Naturally, a feel for the landscapes of South America - the mighty Andes, the oceans, the jungle that may not be around for too much longer, and landscapes that I don't expect to see. (From the geologist/geographer side of Dave--o)

- A better understanding of the people an how their being and ways of life are effected by the history of their repsective regions and also how current events (especially with respect to my home country) effect their ways of life. (From the cultural geographer side of Dave--o)

- "Out of the book" experiences. Too many times it seems like you just go from one "recommended" place or restaurant or site to the next and rely on the backpacker bibles too much to see beyond the next "must-see". (From the cynical, non-conformist (though small) side of Dave--o)

- Living in my isolated life in America, not too much happens that really shakes me to the core. I feel as if I need to experience some things that scare the shit out of me so that I will realize how good I have it. (From the ??? side of Dave--o)

- Some great food, some great wine, some great people . . . what more do you need?

We Bought 'em

Well, it's official now - we got our tickets. Departing DFW to Santiago, Chile, on 30 January 2006. Coming back from Lima to DFW, 29 June 2006. Woo-Hoo!

Was He Married?

Well, this place doesn't have much to do with South America (except that I hear the continent is desert-like for a beer-lover . . . bloody hell, what am I going to do?). A house made out of beer cans . . . do-it-yourselfers around the world salivate at the thought of accomplishing something like this. Maybe he drank all that beer to make living in Houston more bearable.

The most commonly asked question heard at this place: did he drink all of that himself?

The second most commonly heard question: was he married?

 
 

Stay Healthy!

Take some shots, keep yourself healthy! Of course, these aren't going to keep you healthy . . . but they'll help. And let me get to the first task at hand when we get there - getting the turistas out of the way so I can eat my fill of cuy, capybara, y ceviche without hesitation. (Maternal disclaimer - I'll leave the furry little succulent guinea pigs to the natives, Mom).

Brazil - TAM Airlines Deals

TAM Airlines has a South American travel deal where you can travel to different countries - I am a bit confused by the details of how it works, but from what I've heard from South American travellers, it is a good deal to buy airline tickets from outside of the country (or continent) you are travelling in.

TAM also has an internal deal that looks pretty good, too.

Brazil - Tips from Jeff

Some tips on Brazil from Jeff :

Great places I've never been but heard about:
-The Pantanal region (use Corumbá as your base)
-Olinda and Recife (very african and very interesting music and food)
-Salvador, Bahia (also very african and very spicy)

Great places I've been:
-Belem - go visit the largest fluvial island in the world near there,
but get yellow fever shots 10 days before
-Natal - beautiful beaches and dunes
-São Luis and especially the Lenções Maranaheses - blends amazonia and northeast cultures with french twist
-Florianopolis - surfer island in the south - most laid back capitol in Brazil
-Ouro Preto - like a little europe in central brasil - does have tourists because it is getting popular, but you can avoid them
-Some of the old pizza parlours in São Paulo that the locals go to

Some nice suggestions from a gringo with a Brazillian wife (ie. this shouldn't let down).

Hola

Well, here it is, November. We (Melane and I) are planning on going to South America for six months (too bad about the round-the-world trip, but you gotta do what you gotta do, eh?). Hopefully, we will be able to share our experiences, both planning for and actually going on this trip, with friends, family, and the gp. Something that has been a long time coming, for me at least, and a lot of pennies saved in the bank. I'm ready to go now. Anyone want a dog for six months?