Category: Argentina

A short flight but a late evening arrival in Bariloche led to the quickest car rental I think I have ever had. We drove down (Katie loves it when I describe a direction as down or over) to our AirBnB which turned out to be lovely with views of one of the lakes from our balcony.

We battled some rain the next day but nothing really hard. We had ponchos on for a short while but mainly just raincoats. We did a lovely 6.5 mile hike in Llao Llao which had spectacular views of the lakes and the Andes despite the cloud cover. We completed the circuit Llao Llao in the car with more beautiful sites and a fox just standing on the roadside!

We picked up food for a couple dinners at home which we haven’t had for a month. 

Still intermittent rain the next day so we walked around San Carlos de Bariloche stopping to have a Gin and Tonic in memory of Paul.

The following day brought sun and we were up early. We repeated the circuit Llao as the views are spectacular.

We then stopped at a chair lift that takes you up to the top of Cerro Centenario, a must do if you are here. It seems to be a small cinder one that rises up enough to see the surrounding lakes and mountains in a full 360 degrees. The downside was the temperature and wind. The wind chill was reported to be 22 degrees F at lake level. I’m thinking it was close to zero at the top. I couldn’t feel my fingers after briefly looking through the binoculars.

We drove on looking for the gondola to the top of Cerro Otto but after a number of false stops we found the base but it was closed for maintenance. So, we drove up the dirt road to the top of Cerro Otto. Actually not as bumpy as the road to the Stanislaus. We then hiked the Sendero Piedra de Hapsburg which turned out to be otherworldly! Fall colors mixed with trees covered in hanging moss.

At the end of the trail there is a Refugio which is placed at the top of a prominence with gorgeous views of the surrounding lakes and mountains. It was not open now but you could see the bar with its taps thru the window. It must be a fantastic break on a summer’s hike. The Piedra (stone) was a massive stone overlook of the Lago Gutierrez. Eagles were flying above us as we looked out at the jaw dropping scenery.

We managed a swim in the pool back at our AirBnB, then out to dinner at Stags which is perched over the Lago Nahuel Huapi. Wonderful Tenderloin steaks and Malbec wine. 

We went off on a drive the following day, following the Circuit of the 7 Lakes on Ruta 40. The drive out was limited on views as it was SNOWING! We had good laughs along the way and jumped in and out of the car in record time at viewpoints. We were surprised by a very friendly hawk at one pullout. He jumped right on the hood and watched the windshield wipers go back and forth.

When we turned around, some 2 hours out, lo and behold (does anyone say that anymore?), Sunshine. We now had snow capped mountains and beautiful lake views. 

Katie has had a little stomach issue so we napped the rest of the afternoon. We still rolled out for steak downtown. As usual delicious Beef, this time sold as Bife de Chorizo. Not that this is sausage. They say chorizo to describe an elongated steak. They also use it for wiener dogs calling them chorizo.
checkout was today so we packed up but managed a 3 mile hike out and back to Duendes Falls and beyond. A gorgeous day tempting us to stay if w3 could.

The flight to Iguazu Falls was mostly notable for being and hour and a half delayed with no information ever given to the waiting passengers. Once we arrived, Katie and I got an Uber from the airport to our hotel. We stayed at The Hotel Saint George which turned out to be really nice. We were hungry and thirsty after our delayed trip and what do you know, across the street from the hotel was a Patagonia Brewery outlet. We got some IPA’s and a regular pizza, then off to the park via Uber.

The driver didn’t say anything on dropping us off there but I suspect he knew that the park closed at 4 for entries and it was 4 o’clock. We did salvage it by learning about tickets and trains etc, and we purchased our tickets online for the next day. Weirdly the ticket office there will not sell tickets for the next day to you. You have to buy them online. Back in an Uber and back to the hotel. We did get up early the next day and we were at the park just before 8 when it opened. We pushed by a few kids after they dropped the rope (we were recently at Disneyland where we built up our skills) and we were able to catch the first train out of the station bound for Garganta del Diablo.

Turned out to be stunning and only a few people there so easy to get great views. Huge roaring waterfall surrounded by many other waterfalls.

We followed that up with the Superior Circuit Loop and then the Inferior Circuit Loop which was really not really inferior to the superior if you know what I mean.

Along the walkways we ran into a couple of locals.

We headed back to town and did a long walk along the river that separates Argentina from Brazil. End of the road was the 3 corners where the borders of Argentina, Brazil, and Paraguay meet. We had us a lovely spot for a Gin and Tonic.

A rather poor imitation of tacos and margaritas followed, then off to the airport for the flight back to BA. 

We stayed at a new hotel in Buenos Aires, located in the Recoletta district, The Trianon Residence. This did allow easy walking to the sites downtown but I think staying in the Palermo SoHo district might have been a better choice. There are more things going on there and a larger selection of restaurants and bars.

We walked about town the following day (we have been averaging 6-7 miles/day) and rode the subway and Uber to various places. I don’t think I’ve mentioned the driving in Buenos Aires. The drivers tend to drive right on the bumper of the car in front. They tend to drive in the middle of two lanes, constantly changing lanes to get a few cars ahead. They toot their horns to say hello or warn off any pedestrians or cars and they use their hazard lights anytime there is a slow down in traffic. I never saw an accident though and despite what I consider aggressive driving there were no finger gestures, cursing, or using the car as a weapon issues. Now bike riders in this town, generally don’t stop for anyone. We were warned. Strangely, none of these riders wear a helmet! They didn’t really follow any traffic rules either. Police on bikes have a helmet but they don’t necessarily wear it.

We had dinner back out in Palermo, this time the Hollywood side at Hierro Parrilla Palermo. Another fantastic meal with Proveleta and then fantastic tenderloins. We rode the subway back to Las Corrientes, a street that resembles Broadway with many theaters and thousands of people walking the street. Many street performers, many lights all very fun and that got us back late to our hotel. We followed that up with another food tour the following day, this time down in the San Telmo district. Our guide this time? Yes it was Stan from our Palermo tour. Again an excellent tour going into bars that opened in the mid 1800’s and into family restaurants full of tradition and flavor. We visited the San Telmo indoor market for some new surprises there. Katie and I had eaten at the market already but these were new places and with stories attached to them. We ended our tour with fantastic ice cream.

Our plan was to buy leather jackets this day so after walking along Puerto Madero, we got on a subway to Murillo street ( Note Porteño’s say Muricho, 2 L’s are cha. Tortilla is Torticha and they laugh at the sing song Mexican version of tortilla that we all learned in school. Anyway, we visited 4 or 5 leather shops and we each found the perfect jacket. Paid cash mind you otherwise it would be significantly more in price. No receipt, no questions. 

We are flying out to Bariloche but needed some exercise so we walked our 6 miles about town and along the way I found some ear buds to replace the AirPods I ‘lost’ in Guna Yala. We stopped in Palermo for a Mate tasting. Basically tea but oh my gato, so many people carry these Mate cups and straws and they have a thermos of hot water to refill throughout the day. They sell and people carry, packs for their thermos and cups. I am convinced there is more than Mate in these things. People are drinking the stuff at all hours and in all places. It’s like they can’t stop! Neither Katie nor I would carry that stuff around having done the tasting.

They have a lounge at the airport so we went early for our flight to Bariloche. Well a little too early as they won’t let you check your bags until 2 hours before your flight! That’s a new one. Sometimes it feels like trying to get a patient to the OR at Kaiser. There is always a ‘new one’ to hold it up.

On to Bariloche

We made it to the airport on time from San Blas. We found the COPA lounge and they had showers! How great was that to get the salt water off and shave. Awesome. We both managed to sleep on the plane though they still were planning on giving us dinner at like 11:30 at night. We passed on dinner but ordered a bourbon and were off to sleep. We woke up to the now usual water carton that was left with us just before landing. We had a long drive in from EZE airport as there was much traffic. When we went thru our last toll booth on the highway, the police were pulling over every motorcycle. Apparently many hide their license plates to avoid toll so they were confiscating bikes. I saw at least 10 bikes up on trucks to be taken away. Our hotel had a room open at 9:30am so we moved in then walked down to Playo de Mayo and Casa Rosado. The latter is said to be pink from cows blood mixed in with the paint. The Casa is where the President of Argentina lives. The Mothers of Plaza Mayo still protest on the plaza every Thursday evening. They protest for lost ones during the last military dictatorship in the 70’s-80’s. Thousands were disappeared.

Walked down to San Telmo district with its cobblestone streets. We toured the indoor market there with its crafts, wine shops and food court. We stopped and shared fried cheese and chorizo with chimichurri, green Provençal, and salsa dips, and of course some wine and beer. Walked back to the hotel then later had dinner along the water at La Cabana, rib eye and top sirloin each about $45, many wines to choose from but most over $200, meal was $250.

We walked to Recoletta cemetery the following morning. The Recoletta district is kinda 60’s -70’s architecture. The Cemetery had huge tombs dating back to the early 1800’s but also modern era ones. Duarte and Eva Peron are buried here but there tomb is not too wild and not on the main aisle.

We had to have a beer across the street from the cemetery at the Rooftop Bar per Alex’s winner suggestion. Great views and super beer, Patagonia 24.7. We managed an hour at the National Museum of Fine Arts. Some Rodin sculptures, various impressionist paintings from Pissarro to Monet to Van Gogh. We walked around Floralis Generica, which is a crazy water art sculpture in a pond but they were setting up for a weekend event so mostly it was closed off. The weekend event turned out to be some kind of Formula F1 ‘demonstration’. Many roads are blocked off in the Recoletta with grand stands being erected. Stan, our food guide later that night said over 500,000 people were expected to watch the event so we will try to avoid that. We started walking back home but got a bit hungry so stopped for empanadas and G&T’s. $60 bucks later we were back walking. Haven’t found anything ‘cheap’ in this city except Uber and public transportation.

We got on a food tour in Palermo Soho that evening and met up with soon to be ‘Porteño’ Stan and a couple from Australia-Donna and Chris.

Fantastic tour of a really interesting neighborhood. Lots of interesting stores, restaurants, breweries, and street art. Stan introduced us to Argentina pizza, apparently more than 50% of the population was Italian in the late 1800’s. Also empanadas at our first restaurant, ‘Picsa’. We went on to 4 other stops and were truly stuffed by the end, from rib eye to churipan to several other local dishes. We sampled good white and red wine and ended up with 2 desserts, Dulce de Leche and Italian Ice Cream.  Great tour and so informative on the culture, the politics, and the arts.

On the Uber ride home we saw street lanes blocked off from cars and full of people. There were performers from musicians to clowns and just a lot of happy noise. Times Square like but for city blocks. Stuffed and in bed by 10pm.

The following day was a Saturday so we walked thru several markets. Many many craft booths around the parks and squares in the city. We ended up back in Palermo for lunch which was a bust as the breweries there hadn’t opened yet as it was only 2 o’clock. We ended the day early trying to get some rest for our evening event

FUTBOL! Katie got us tickets to the River Plates futbol match on Saturday evening. Game time 9:30! The process was onerous. To get a validated ticket required passport scanning and facial recognition apps. We were finally approved and went off to the stadium by subway, then train, and then shoes. Oh, we did buy River Plate jerseys before the game as we heard that they were  important for safety reasons.

I read the stadium guidelines and left my belt at home (apparently a safety issue as well). Quite the waddle to the park for me! We followed a pack to the stadium, being redirected several times by police and volunteers to get us to the right gate as once inside,  the 80,000 fans in the stadium can’t just move around. There are barriers in place. On the way we ran into a gauntlet of police barricading the street.

They had large guns and held shields in their arms. What? Turns out the visiting team’s bus was crossing an intersection down the road and they didn’t want anyone close. Man these people have some history. We did get in using facial recognition and feigning ignorance multiple times. Well maybe not feigning at all. We were several hours early, as instructed . At 2 hours before game time, the stands were not occupied much except behind the goal where flags and umbrellas were dancing, drums were playing, and lots of singing. That continues throughout the game including halftime. The stadium gets packed!

The game was a blast to watch. Everyone had a great time, no fights, just hugging and singing. Luckily, the home team won. We left a few minutes early and caught a cab back to the hotel pretty easily. Some additional notes. Beer hasn’t been sold in the stadium for 28 years until this year and the process of buying and drinking is onerous and limited. Katie and I had a beer but we were some of the very few. Now mind you on the way to the stadium, numerous people were offering rum and cokes, beer, and shots. Plenty of people were pregame hammered. They just could not continue once in the stadium. We have noticed a high incidence of smoking in BA and though you can’t smoke in the stadium it was in reality everywhere. The security guards were probably smoking or lighting the cigarettes of the fans around them. They say America now has a less than 10% incidence of smoking and Argentina is at 22%. I think for Argentina they are measuring the incidence at any one time, as it seems everyone smokes.Another observation was how comfortable men were showing emotion to other men. This was in their greetings and their conversations. Just always close, hugging and greeting. Last observation, Argentina employs a lot of police. They are everywhere.

Slept in then walked to the Sunday craft fair in San Telmo. Good thing we used the ATM the day before as so many cool little things to buy. We had to buy little things as our bags are jammed and we still have quite a few weeks to go.

Visited Caminito street which is an artist haven with many painted buildings.

We slept in a bit the following morning then off to El Ateneo Grand Splendid, a converted theater. Now a bookstore. Fabulous interior but we were a little cold so we sat down to have a coffee. So happens a YouTuber was filming a ‘spontaneous’ performance of Cold Play’s Fix You. They had cameras all over, a choral group, multiple singers and guitar players pop up and there we were 10 feet from the guy, Joe Jenkins, who was playing the piano. Apparently some 4 million followers, well 4 million and 2.

We visited Palermo Hollywood but honestly not much to see. We visited SoHo again but very quiet as most places are closed on Mondays. We heard of a street with many leather shops so took off for there. Didn’t think I needed a leather jacket, but now I do. They definitely don’t like credit cards here as many places will give you 40% off for cash payments.

Yesterday we took a ferry over to Colonia de Sacramento, Uruguay. We walked thru the old town, down the allies and into a few of the open art shops but in general very quiet.

They do love old cars and trucks here.

We read books in a park waiting for our return ferry which turned out to be 1 1/2 hours late. We were going to go back to the hotel and freshen up but not enough time. In fact, we arrived about 10 minutes late to a food and wine pairing in Palermo Soho. No worries others arrived behind us! It’s hard to be late here.

We had an incredible ‘meal’. Eggplant with ricotta and peanuts, provoleta, blood sausages, pork, short ribs and rib eye steaks all paired with wonderful wines. Fantastic!

we are flying to Iguazu to see the falls. More to come.