Guest Blogger: Mama Pat Murphy!

On November 30th Brian and I arrived in EZE airport BsAs for the start of our Argentine vacation and visit with Caitlin. The 11-hour trip was not nearly as bad as we anticipated. We got through immigration and found the driver who would take us to our apartment that did not look as good as it did online and the promised American kitchen did not exist. And yes the Bunsen burner did run out of gas and the rain on the roof sounded like gunshots but it was in a nice area and Caitlin was able to stay with us so all in all it was fine. Our first day consisted of eating lunch, visiting with Caitlin and having dinner. The following day began our series of “forced marches” through the city of Buenos Aires. Caitlin walked us until we could go no further most days! Our first stop was the Recoleta Cemetery where Eva Peron is buried. The cemetery is filled with the beautiful mausoleums of the rich and famous of BA. Caitlin has taken all her visitors to the cemetery and by now it is a little boring for her. She spent her time in the shade while we explored the cemetery.

During the following days we took 3 tours – 2 BA FREE tours that were super. The guides were hilarious and informative. The tours took us many areas of the city; we saw all the major buildings, plazas, the cathedral and neighborhoods. We experienced the protests which occur daily, learned not to be careless and step out in the street without looking (you WILL get run over), and were careful not to step in anything the numerous dogs left behind.

Protest

The bus tour, as Caitlin said, was the worst by far but it did take us to the Boca area that was colorful and interesting.

On our longest march we walked about 8 miles from Congreso to Puerto Madedo, walked an ecological reserve and then walked back to San Telmo! This is the day we managed to find bad beef in Argentina!! And while the meal was not great, we barely cared. We were happy to be sitting down!

Reserva Ecológica

We spent a day in Tigre a 45-minute train ride outside BA. It is part of the river delta area. We took a boat ride along the river, walked the riverfront and visited the art museum. The museum, a former casino, was a beautiful building housing Argentine artists.

We spent Sunday visiting the street markets in San Telmo and Recoleta. In San Telmo we watched Tango dancers demonstrate their moves and I found a Bolivian artist selling great watercolors. I bought 2 small village scenes I am delighted with.

On Monday we boarded a plane and headed for Puerto Igauzu and the Igauzu Falls. The Falls were spectacular. It is hard to imagine the power and grandeur of the many falls that roar out of the rain forest to empty into the river. We took a boat ride up the river to the Falls the first day. It included a truck ride through the jungle. We were surround by the noise of birds, dense vegetation and had our first experience with the friendly butterflies! Not long into the ride one landed on the woman seated in front of me and rode all the way to the river with us!

Approaching the falls from the river was amazing - you heard nothing but the roar of water and felt the spray of the Falls. We got soaked and stayed wet for the rest of the day. It was near 100 degrees and over 100% humidity. It was also the rainy season and the trail through the jungle we hoped to walk and spot túcans among other creatures was to muddy to hike. The park was a great place to visit. It had good trails, a train to take you to some of the furthest points, good restaurants and rest stops. And like the national parks in the States, visitors from everywhere. Our stay in Puerto Igauzu was delightful. It is a very small town with friendly people, easy to walk to and interesting to see after the city of BsAs. We found a great taxi driver, Basileo, who took us to and from the park each day and showed us the “Three Frontiers”, the area where Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay meet. On the third day he took us back to the airport where we waited for hours for our delayed flight back to BsAs. Our complimentary lunch from LAN Airlines was a no choice milanesa – breaded steak – which topped this worst meal list by a mile. We arrived back in BsAs in time to pick up Amy and go to dinner. We went to a wonderful restaurant in a truly beautiful building with a great tango band! It was a perfect last supper. The next day – our last – we had our only rain. We did a little site seeing, went to a museum, hugged Caitlin goodbye and headed for the airport. We had had a wonderful trip. Good food. Great sites. Time with Caitlin. Laughs with Amy. Plenty of exercise and stories to tell. The woman who checked us through customs kept looking at my passport and then at me. I was beginning to think I wasn’t going home when she indicated that I looked better then my passport photo. She waved her hand and said Bye Bye Patricia. And with that we were on our way home.