Our trip to Argentina was so so wonderful! We felt the mist of the powerful Iguazu Falls, were a part of the pulse of one of South America’s most cosmopolitan cities, savored one of the most beautiful views in the world, trekked one of the planet’s few advancing glaciers and hiked some of the most breathtaking trails. We met many people from around the globe and dined on some of the best beef ever. Something else that we will definitely remember is how HORRIBLE our luck was with air transportation. Strikes, volcanic ash, computer problems…you name it, it happened to us! Despite rough travels, we had a great vacation. I know that we will remember it for a long time.
Saturday, November 5th We arrive to Buenos Aires in the morning. We are greeted by a very friendly guide named Lorena who gave us recommendations on restaurants and things to do for our first half day. On the ride to the hotel, we drove down the city’s widest street, lined with trees with purple flowers and leading to the obelisk.
We are able to drop off our things and freshen up a bit at our hotel, Ker Recoleta, before we headed out for lunch: our first taste of Argentine pizza and empanadas. El Cuartito was just around the corner from the hotel and has been dishing up pizza and empanadas for 75 years in a little shop adorned with posters of boxers, basketball players and of course, soccer players. The pizza reminded me of my mom’s French bread pizza she used to make because the crust was buttery and cake-like. The baked carne empanada was a tasty little pocket of savory meat.
We walked over to the famous cemetery in Recoleta, visiting the grave of one of Argentina’s most famous figures, Evita Peron. Families purchased elaborate graves to hold several members in coffins. The cemetery also housed several friendly kitties. Outside the cemetery, street vendors sold their wares including fresh squeezed OJ and grilled meats served in soft rolls. Across the cemetery were outdoor cafes and a huge tree that needed supports just to stay up.
We went back to our hotel the get ready for the evening. We crossed the obelisk and strolled over to a pedestrian street that never sleeps filled with asados, souvenir shops and a Mc Donalds on the busy corner. Dinner was calling us. We decided to go light tonight since it was a busy first day and to save our stomachs for our first of many asados for the next day.
We duck into an Italian restaurant recommended by our local guide, Lorena, as well as the Lonely Planet book we were travelling with. It’s about 8:30 and the restaurant was pretty empty. We quickly learned that no one eats dinner before 10 in Argentina! The decor was typical Italian-green and red, tables set with wine glasses. The restaurant was run all by men (not at all uncommon in BsAs), they took our orders for fresh pasta dishes without writing a thing down. The guys in the kitchen were cheering on their soccer team playing on the TV. Our dishes were simply prepared, depending on just a few ingredients. A perfect end to our first night.
Sunday, November 6th Our day started with breakfast at the hotel where B first discovered the ubiquitous sweet little bundles of goodness: medialunas, or sweet crescents. The croissants were glazed with a slightly sticky and sweet sauce that was perfect in the morning. They weren’t gigantic so that you don’t feel so guilty eating them!
We took a bus around town during a morning city tour. We passed through Recoleta, past the only monument dedicated to Evita along with several other monuments dedicated to other important historical figures, San Martin probably being the most important. We stopped in front of the Rosada, also known as the Pink House, where the President works. Just outside the Rosada were signs of protest, although I couldn’t understand what they said.
The bus then shuttled us to La Boca, passing the famous soccer stadium where the Coca-Cola signs had to change from the signature red to blue because the rival team’s color was red! La Boca is known for the colorful buildings covered with aluminum siding. The colorful paints were given to the poor people who lived there years ago by the sailors who had left over paints used on the ships. Now, it has turned into a tourist spot with just a few blocks of colorful houses, coffee shops and restaurants. Beyond that is a rough neighborhood in despair. It wasn’t out of our way and worth a look but really not a highlight of the city.
We spent the rest of the day on foot. We started out in San Telmo, one of the oldest parts of the city. Being a Sunday meant that the street market was in full swing selling antiques, souvenirs and food. We sit down to a simple outdoor lunch of a shared lomito (a BBQ beef sandwich) with chimichurri and continue on our walking exploration. We pass the Rosada again on our way through the Microcenter, Congresso, stopping for empanadas and ice cream along the way. We make our way back to the the main avenue and get caught in what seems to be a funeral causing a lot of congestion on the road. We turned onto Florida Street and went into the Galeria Pacifica for just a bit until we realized that we couldn’t really afford to buy anything. Just outside the Galeria was the San Martin Park, paved with little square tiles and lined with trees.
Dinner was at a traditional steakhouse that had whole lamb slow-cooking at the window on the cross.
Monday, November 7th We have breakfast then just relaxed before heading to the domestic airport for our flight to Iguazu.
We arrive to Iguazu in the late afternoon and saw the falls for the first time from the lobby of the Sheraton, the only hotel located in the park. Once we settle into our own hotel, St George, we take a walk down to the very small main drag of town, have an early dinner. I had pasta with meat sauce and grilled vegetables. B had local river fish. After a short walk and dip in the at Hotel Saint George’s lukewarm spa, we turn in early.
Tuesday, November 8th We are picked up in the morning to head to Iguazu Falls. We first take a walk through a heavily wooded area to arrive to the eco-friendly train which will take us to the park’s biggest (literally) attraction, the Devil’s Throat. We wait for about 45 minutes in pretty uncomfortable humid weather…..and it isn’t even noon yet! Some people decide to hike, but after passing the hikers on the train, I’m glad that we waited for the train! It would have been a hot and unscenic walk. The only thing that we passed by that was interesting was a HUGE lizard that B spotted walking along the road!
To get to the Devil’s Throat, we walk over the river speckled with small little islands on a long catwalk. The river is pretty calm, but I can hear the roaring water. I wonder how close the falls are. Eventually, we can see water swirling and bubbling to the right of the catwalk. A large Argentine flag marks the end of the path.
The most spectacular thing about the falls is the sheer power and movement. Everyone is getting wet just from the vapors. You can’t even see the water hit the bottom. The sound is almost deafening. The swallows that make their nests behind the falls playfully chase each other, diving down deep into the falls.
We spent the rest of the morning walking the catwalks of the Upper Trail that had some awesome views of the rest of the area. We meet a Thai kid from Singapore travelling on his own. He was the only person who was able to take a decent picture of me and B that didn’t have random people in them or was composed of all flooring rather than the beautiful views.
After a lunch of fried beef and egg empanadas, we took a 4X4 to a boat launch for an up close look of the lower falls….it was awesome! Such a view! And the getting SOAKING wet was soo welcome on such a hot day:)
We returned to the park after dark to see the Devil’s Throat under the moonlight. For five nights around each full moon, the park conducts tours. Our path was lit solely by the moon. We took the train and walk on the catwalk feeling just a little more serene than this morning. Unfortunately, we didn’t have the right photo equipment to take photos, and it was really really wet! We didn’t remember getting so wet in the morning. I didn’t know if we just didn’t notice or if the lower temperatures made the difference. We didn’t last very long, and maybe it wasn’t worth the price we paid, but we had a good laugh!
Wednesday, November 9th
The following day was the first of our travel mishaps. I checked into our flight and learned that we had a 4 hour bus ride ahead of us because the Bariloche airport was closed for repairs. On top of that, our 90 minute flight turned into a 4 hour waiting game with computer problems delaying passenger check ins and mechanical issues. The airport was heating up with so many stranded passengers waiting for their airline meal voucher food.
We tried to get ahold of our travel agent by phone but couldn’t figure out how to use the pay phone or our own cell phone. I finally logged into my email to let her know that we would be missing our connecting flight to Bariloche. We hoped that we would be able to catch the next flight out from Buenos Aires, but once we spoke to an agent back in the capital, we learned that all of our flights were grounded because of volcanic ash! The worse part of it was the flight we missed was the last flight that actually took off that day. What luck! Several hours later, the airline found a place for us to stay and booked us on the last flight the following day.
I couldn’t sleep very well that night, worrying about what we were going to do if the flights were grounded again. Would we completely skip our leg to Bariloche? That would be so much extra money Would we take our chances and wait it out ANOTHER day?!
Thursday, November 10th
The following morning, we tried to make use of our day in the capital. We got an optimistic call from the travel agent who said the rain last night has cleared the skies. She was pretty confident that our flight would take off. But, there was still some doubt since the morning flight was cancelled. We took a walk along a beautiful urban park and enjoyed coffee and tea with our new favorite breakfast, medialunas. We took a cab ride from a wonderful driver and past familiar sights that we had seen on foot just days before. We were dropped off in a new neighborhood that we didn’t get a chance to see the first time, Palermo. We received a call from our travel agent who was a little concerned that the flight did not come with the airline-arranged bus ride to Bariloche. The only way we would be able to make it to Bariloche from Nequen would be to take a commercial bus. She was concerned because the people of Nequen didn’t speak English and she thought we would have trouble getting to the bus station from the airport. B looked at me and he knew that we were going to be able to do this, so we enthusiastically said that we were going take our chances and do it!
We grabbed a quick bite to eat at Parrilla 33 after a local pointed us in the right direction. Our Lonely Planet book didn’t mention that it had moved. We shared a lunch special of 2 short ribs, salad, bread and a Coke all for U$6.50!
We arrived to the airport only to gather that most or all of the flights to Bariloche didn’t make it that day. Our flight was still considered ‘on time,’ so all we could do is wait and see if we get on that plane today! After yet another delay, this time 4 hours, but we were so happy to get off that ground! We had missed the bus reservation that our agent was nice enough to arrange Because it was so late, we would have to purchase another ticket ourselves once we got there. To top it off, there were no hotel rooms to be found that night, so under the advisory of our travel agent, we stayed a few hours in the bus station till our bus arrived at 5:15 AM. We managed to make it to the bus station and buy our tickets. We were pleasantly surprised that our bus seats were plush, comfy and retracted back! We were able to get a few hours of good sleep. When I woke up, we were just under an hour away from Bariloche. It was a clear and beautiful morning. I knew that we were going to have a fabulous day in Bariloche!
Nesting On A Hill 