Country Hopping

Ok, first an apology.  It's been over a month.  Ouch.  I'm going to split the time up into two posts with lots of pictures and less text; the second post will explain why I've been so busy and haven't posted.  But first, my trip over September Break!

It had been in the plans to go to Buenos Aires for quite some time, but it just so happened our Chemistry teacher Alejandra was headed to Uruguay for the week so I tagged along with her the first weekend.

After landing in Buenos Aires, we took the Buquebus ferry to the sleepy town of Colonia.  It was like stepping back in time.  Cobblestone streets, stone buildings, and an old fort characterize the city.

I felt like I was in Boston.

Beautiful lighthouse attached to some of the old fort.  Apparently the Spanish used Colonia to smuggle goods into Buenos Aires since it was the closest city across the river.

After our night in Colonia we hopped a bus to Montevideo to catch up with my friend Kelly who has been living there 2 years now.  She visited us in Santiago before winter break.

Kelly took me to a meat market that looked a lot like Mercado Central in Santiago but instead of fish it was all beef.  Tons of it.  There must have been 100 of these little parilla (par-ee-sha with the Uruguayan accent) spots and everything smelled unbelievable.

Melted provalone cheese in a red pepper with oregano.  Crazy good.

Sunday evening I took the ferry back to Buenos Aires.  After a cab driver tried to scam me into a $20 cab ride to our hotel, I decided to walk the 25 or so blocks.  I was glad I did.  I got to see some beautifully lit buildings, like the "Casa Rosada" (pink house) where the president lives and works.

Monday was very rainy so after my travel companions arrived from Florida we had a lazy day at the indoor pool and hot tub followed by a huge steak with a Malbec wine, a famous Argentinian combination.  That cow says "I'm Juicy".  The meat temperatures are different in Spanish, from least to most done: inglese, apunto, jugoso, tres cuartos, bien cocido which translate to English, at the point, juicy, three quarters, and well cooked.

This is Mike.  Mike and I taught together at St. Pete Catholic in Florida for a year.  He was a great travel buddy.  Each night after dinner we found a different scene to have a few beers.

Monday night was "Puerta Roja".  No sign, just a red door.  Fun spot, we played some pool and had Argentinian craft beer.

Tuesday brought much better weather so we went walking around the city.  We saw the Cathedral, Casa Rosada, Obelisk, and a number of government buildings.  Here's that Pink House again.  Just over Mike's shoulder is where Evita gave her famous speech.

Buenos AIres is famous for their ritzy cafes.  They're quite extravagant and serve good lunch food.

Here's the obelisk.  It was built to celebrate the city's 400 year anniversary.  Apparently the public wasn't crazy about it but by the time they mustered any support for a change it had become iconic to Buenos Aires.  It was most recently made famous in the final scenes of the Dexter series finale (which, in my opinion, could have been better).

I was struck by its location.  It's just plopped in the middle of the street!  Nothing like the Washington monument surrounded by all that green space.  I like this though, it's easily accessible and viewable from all over the city since it's a major intersection with several streets running to it.

Evita Perón's grave in La Recoletta cemetery.  The mausoleum next door is open if anyone wants to rest eternally next to her.  $250,000.

Memorial to the soldiers killed in the battle for the Falkland Islands (Las Malvinas to the Argentines).  This is still a very sore subject.  There are signs all over Argentina that say "Las Malvinas fueron, son, y siempre serán Argentinos".  The Falklands were, are, and will always be Argentinian.

Tuesday night we went to see a tango show.  Pictures were tough since no flash was allowed, but it was fantastic.  Incredible style and acrobatic dancing, a great band, and good food to boot.

Probably my favorite couple.  They were adorable and prove that dancing is a lifelong sport!

El Caminito in the Boca neighborhood is probably the most recognizable part of Buenos Aires.  Bold pastel colors and tango music course through the streets.  It's a little on the touristy side but it sure is beautiful.

Lunch plus tango at El Caminito.  The guitar players were phenomenal.

I couldn't get enough of the colors.  These buildings ran right to the water (Rio de la Plata, the world's widest river for those keeping score).

We figured we'd walk by the Boca Juniors stadium (probably the most famous soccer club in Argentina) as long as we were in Boca and we were lucky enough to get a tour.  What a beautiful stadium.

We learned all kinds of cool secrets about the stadium, its team and its fans.  It was a great stroke of luck!

Cafe Tortoni, the most famous cafe in Buenos Aires.  They're known for snooty waiters and good desserts.  I can account for both.

At dinner one night (delicious Italian food) I looked up and couldn't believe that the Tamba Bay Rays game was on.  Perfect for the Florida company!

After the Italian food Mike and I went to this awesome old mansion that was converted into a bar.

It felt like a huge house party that everyone in Buenos Aires was invited to.  Very cool atmosphere.

My travel companions hadn't been to Colonia so on Thursday we took the ferry across the river again.  I was glad we did, the weather was way better.  We rented a car and drove along the coast of the river.  Beautiful beaches.  I wanted to swim but lacked a towel so I settled for wading.

I also found some Uruguayan trees to climb.

Dulce de Leche flavored Gelato.  So good.

After returning to Argentina we took a nap and headed out on one of Buenos Aires' famous pub crawls.  4 bars and a night club.  It was a great way to see more cool spots and we met some fun Argentines.  A great final night!

All week we had heard how beautiful the opera house was, Teatro Colón.  So Friday morning we took a tour.  Everyone was right.  Here's the incredible foyer with marble imported from 4 different countries.

The artistry and craftsmanship is awesome.  Everywhere you turn yields a breathtaking view.

The Gold Room, added after several years of operation.

We were only in the auditorium a few minutes because there was some staging going on so I didn't get a lot of great pictures, but it was quite impressive.  They have a hole in the dome at the top to do "voice of God"-type scenes.  The acoustics are crazy, I'm sure the effect is perfect.

From the moment I read in my guide book that polo is popular in Argentina I wanted to see a match.  Unfortunately the rain at the beginning of the week made conditions unfavorable so there were no matches.  Something for the bucket list.

Our last afternoon was spent wandering the parks of Palermo.  They are stunning, and HUGE.  I'm always impressed when a city sets apart so much space for public parks.  I could have spend lots more time there but we had a flight to catch.

The Florida-bound flew Delta back stateside so after saying our goodbyes I was treated to this sunset as I walked between terminals.

I had a great week.  Great company, great food, and great memories.  Coming back to work was tough, and I could never have prepared for what I was walking into at San Nicolás.  New post soon telling all about it!