Jacaranda and Sangria

Storyline: Buenos Aires to Lima Nov 2017

Buenos Aires (BA), the eclectic city of tango, steak and Malbec wine, European architecture and heritage, treed avenues and lovely parks and gardens, was where our wonderful journey with Rail South America began. We had arranged to stay at the hotel that was booked for our tour, for a few days before its start.

The hotel was centrally located on Esmeralda Street. We loved the location. It allowed us to walk to everywhere while on our own.

In November spring is in full bloom. The airy violet blossoms of jacaranda twinkling under the sun and fluttering in the breeze made this city magnetic for wanderers like us. We managed to use every second of our short time there and loved it.

The beginning of our adventure wasn’t that smooth though, as we missed a day due to a Copa airline mess-up right at the start at Pearson airport. Not entirely their fault though. And so:

November 3

You know how there is always someone that holds up a flight. Well, this time it was us. Fortunately for all the other passengers we did not actually delay the flight because all our luggage was with us. But we did hear the comment, “… there is always someone on the wrong flight”. We were not on the wrong flight either. It was a Copa airline staff error. If you fly to Argentina, there is a reciprocity fee (Canada charges for an electronic travel authorization to Argentine visitors, so Canadians must pay the equivalent to enter Argentina), which we had paid already. We only knew about it because I had done the research on the Canadian Travel Advisory site, although Copa Airlines was supposed to inform us during the ticket purchasing process. The Argentinian web site has no English until you get to the 3rd level of the menu, and even then there was very little English explaining how to register to the site. With my few Spanish words I navigated to the right form and paid the fees. The instructions were to print the document that comes next, which I did. The document was in Spanish. At the gate we were asked for this document and once presented, the staff told us that she’s never seen this form. Usually there is a bar code on it, she said, but nevertheless, let us board the plane. Fifteen minutes before taking off, she came and told us that they needed the document with the barcode. We had to log in to the Argentinian website and find the bar-coded document, which meant that we had to disembark the plane. It took 40 minutes for three Spanish speaking staff to navigate through the Argentinian web site and find the document they needed. By that time the plane had left, on time mind you.

It appears I had printed the receipt for payment and that was not enough. But if it took more than 40 min for a Spanish speaking person to find the right document, I am putting the blame on the Argentine agency for lack of clear instructions in English (or any other non-Spanish language – this fee is for foreign visitors, after all). We were rebooked onto the next day’s flight, so we went home and headed to our neighbours who kindly offered us lunch and a ride to the airport the following day at 6AM. And we’ll definitely have to learn more Spanish

November 5

The short version:

Slept 4 hours in the last 42 hours; almost got run over by a car at a pedestrian crosswalk; contrary to some beliefs Buenos Aires is more expensive than Toronto; and most shocking – Alex loved the tomato soup (OK, I’m not much of a soup fan, but this was amazing! – A). Mind you, expensive by Torontonian standards.

And so, we landed at BA airport sometime after midnight. By the time we cleared the formalities and were driven to the hotel (Peter, our to-be tour manager, had arranged for our safe delivery in the wee hours), it was almost 5am. We did manage to have a little nap before breakfast and off we walked to Galerias Pacifico to exchange some money. We were not going to take a chance with the street dealers, who are literally at every corner – and lots of places between, but the most impressive was the coverage of the pedestrian street Lavalle. One barely could walk without brushing one or another dealer yelling “cambio, cambio” and pushing some bills in your face. It was Sunday and thanks to Trip Advisor we knew that there would be one official cambio (exchange bureau) open at this mall. The mall itself was full of high-end stores and made us wonder who shops there. Clothes were more expensive than in Toronto. Argentina was and still is ravaged by economic crises and rampant inflation.

It so happened that they had just opened a branch of the cambio nearby on Florida street, so we were lucky to avoid the line-up at the mall. Banks, of course, were closed. We also knew that the banks and the cambios only accept new, clean US $50 and $100 bills. But a guy from Vancouver couldn’t get his cash – he had $20 bills. Hope he had his ATM card, although the charges for using such were insane. This just reminds you – do your homework for every place you go: don’t assume things will be as you know them.

The interesting thing for us was the exchange process. They take your passport and then you are called into a tiny room, hidden from external eyes, where you are given your money. I guess it is for safety reasons.

By the time we reached park San Martin it was well into the afternoon and we wanted to try a typical Argentinian restaurant. The girl at a tourist information booth directed us to El Federal, around the corner. It was neither lunch nor dinner, so we had the place for ourselves.

That is where we shared a delicious tomato soup and Patagonian lamb. Our shared portions were served split in two by the kitchen, but the lamb was so much that even half of the portion looked good enough for 4. We knew that they love their meat here. But boy, do they love it!

And good bread! Lots of it. It was our first exposure to Argentinian food and it was great! With a bottle of Malbec, of course. Cheers to a good start!

After this rich, late lunch which was also our dinner (could have skipped breakfast the next morning too), we walked to Puerto Madero, all the way to and beyond Puente De La Mujer (Woman’s Bridge), briefly visited the Maritime Museum: a vessel built 1874, used as training ship from 1877-1880 and for Antarctica expeditions from 1903-1922, and decided that we’d have to go back next day. (Next day is still to come.)

From the Maritime Museum we walked by the Casa Rosada (“Pink House” – the famed seat of government and presidential office), Plaza De Mayo (iconic 19th century square), and took Avenida De Mayo to BA’s famous 24-lane highway, Av. 9 de Julio. The locals are very proud of it. Just don’t think of it as the busiest Canadian highway 401.

It is busy, but it sooner resembles a multi-lane, multi-function boulevard, with lanes for busses, lanes for bikes and lanes for cars. And trees – many trees populating the multiple medians, flowering jacaranda everywhere. From there we headed back to the hotel and called it a day.

So today we touched Retiro to the North, Puerto Madero to the east, San Miguel to the south, Monserrat to the west, and – closer to our hotel – San Nicolas and Centro. All on foot, of course. Not bad for a first day in BA.

November 6

Jacaranda and Sangria:

After two days of trying Argentine food I was craving fruits. Walking by this place we asked if they had sangria. The guy said yes, but only a big jug… fruits and red he says… no, I want white… So white it was. The best thing – the jug was full of fruits. He made my day!

Today we walked through the northern parts of the city. So far, we loved it everywhere. Very European, as we had heard and read before our visit.

We started with a stroll on Av. 9 de Julio, walked by the opera house and Palacio de Justica, just behind a lovely city park.

From there it was time to visit the famous Recoleta Cemetery. We walked through the city towards it, spent some time photographing trees in the Plazoleta Enrique Udaondo, then up Uruguay and Vincente Lopez streets to the cemetery. Spent quite some time there after a coffee break at the nearby mall.

It is very impressive: the opulence of it that follows the rich even in their death. There were also some run-down monuments. The younger generation either does not have the money or doesn’t care to maintain them.

Here among many Argentinean dignitaries and rich others is the modest tomb of Evita Peron. Being a divisive character between the poor and the rich, she is buried very deep (30 meters) so that the enemies who opposed her can’t unearth her.

After Recoleta we continued to Palermo, passing by Las Heras Park and the botanical gardens, and further on. It was afternoon though, and we were getting hungry. Opted for finding a place to eat and give up on further walk. We turned on Av. Juan B. Justo and then walked back on Paraguay. We found a good-looking place at the corner of Paraguay and Thames – Parrilla Las Horas…

After a sumptuous lunch (meat and bread – and a lemon wedge – of course with wine) we took Paraguay all the way to our area.

Walking on Av. 9 de Julio close to our hotel we spotted a nice patio under the jacarandas. And that’s how we discovered the best sangria we’ve ever had! (Sorry, Spain.)

November 7

This was our last free day. We are just about to join our tour group. The first meeting is at 7pm.

Today it was a lovely meet-up with nature at a very walkable distance from the centre of BA. We walked back to Puerto Madero with the intention to cross the famous Puente De La Mujer and check the other side of it.

Preoccupied with taking pictures we walked past that bridge on the bank of Rio Dique and Rio Darsena to Azucena Villaflor bridge, where we actually crossed.

There, the river bank was lined with blossoming jacaranda trees, many cafes and restaurant patios. From park to park and building to building our curiosity led us all the way to Reserva Ecológica. Glad it did!

Everyone will tell you about the music and meat of Buenos Aires, but if you are a nature lover this is a must visit place. We regretted we didn’t have more time. It is a place one can spend a day (or more) picnicking, walking up and down the trails and chatting with the birds and the Coypu (Nutria). Perhaps another time.

On our way back we selected a nice restaurant by the river. Wanted something light and a Peruvian restaurant (yes, we will finish our tour in Peru) offered us a great selection of seafood. We opted for ceviche with white wine for me and beer for Alex.

On our way back we crossed Puente De La Mujer and headed to the hotel. This concluded our independent visit of Buenos Aires. We deliberately left out the sites that will be covered by the tour.

If you go… (Travel tips and suggestions)

There are many places to visit and things to do in Buenos Aires. We covered them all in 3 days. In no particular order here is our list, starting of course with food and music:

1. Food:

a. Steak and Malbec. Argentina is long known for its “best steaks in the world”. If you are not a vegetarian (I wonder why a vegetarian would consider Argentina? Vegetarian masochist? – A) it is a must. Visit a Parrilla (Steak house)

b. Alfajores – Havanna alfajores (cookies) are probably the most famous among tourists to Argentina.

2. Attend a tango show in El Telmo (El Querandi Tango Show and Dinner)

3. Walk through the city or take a city walking tour

4. Visit the colorful streets of La Boca, but be cautious or join a tour since it is a sketchy area of the city. Don’t walk to it, because you’ll face some slums and visitors are counselled to stay away from these areas. Stay on Caminato.

5. Walk through Recoleta Cemetery

6. See Floralis Genérica – a huge metal flower that opens and closes with the sunrise and sunset (Plaza de las Naciones Unidas)

7. Take a boat tour on River Tigre

8. Walk through Jardín Botánico and Jardín Japonés

9. Tour the Opera house

10. Tour Casa Rosada

11. Walk through Plaza de Mayo

12. Stroll on Av. 9 de Julio

13. Walk by the Obelisk at night

14. Walk on Corrientes Avenue, Florida street and Lavalle

15. Picnic in Reserva Ecológica

16. Visit Puerto Madero and cross the river on Puente De La Mujer