Day 20 - Buenos Aires, Zoo - then night bus to Mendoza

Our last day in Buenos Aires. We have booked a 9 o’clock bus that travels overnight to the Argentinian town of Mendoza – about an 11 hour bus ride. In the meantime, we pack our bags, grab some breakfast and head out for our last wander through our favourite South American city thus far.

We immediately head to the bus station, about 40 minutes away – and attempt to store our bags in the lockers. Ridiculously, the locker system has no signage (Spanish or English) that we could find – and it was operated by unique bus coins (not cash) that, eventually after half an hour, we figured out we had to buy from an obscure candy vendor in the middle of the terminal… More inane South American inefficiencies…

Anyway, having already completed two brilliant walking tours of the city, we decided to do something different and visit the Buenos Aires Zoo! About an hours walk through neighbourhoods and parks we hadn’t visited before – it was a lovely morning, strolling through the glorious sunshine. Arriving at the zoo, we’re immediately faced with the reason why the venue got such mixed reviews online, firstly, it was expensive (about £10 each) – and it looked old. By old, I don’t mean antiquated, I mean dilapidated.

Upon entering the zoo we’re met with rusty bars, brown walls, and most unfortunate, small enclosures. It’s difficult to appreciate a zoo when the aim appears to be more on exploitation than preservation. Moral dilemmas aside, the zoo actually had a very wide range of animals, from all the usual reptiles, birds, small mammals – to the more exotic big cats (lions, tigers, and jaguars), elephants, giraffes, hippopotamuses, rhinos, condors, etc… All in all, it passed the time well – and it was still lovely seeing these beautiful creatures up close.

Exiting the zoo in the early afternoon, we wander back through the parks we’d passed earlier. Having a little play on the outdoor gyms (that are so prevalent in South America) – we pass even more time revelling in our final few hours. 

Arriving back at the bus terminal, we proceeded to our bus company. It’s important to note that in South America – there are hundreds of bus operators in the terminals offering their individual (and equal) services – rather than one central office selling tickets (which would be so much more efficient…). We show our bus cubicle man our ‘e-ticket’, however, in Buenos Aires (and potentially other terminals) they have print shops below all the tour operators – forcing you to pay more money to have a physical ticket. Having sorted the ‘real ticket’ out, we board our first overnight bus. We paid a few extra pounds for ‘cama’ service – which is essentially a wider, more reclining seat than the regular (semi-cama – which are also very comfortable). We snuggle into our cushy seats, wrap up in the included blanket – and take off into the night.

Day 19 - Buenos Aires Ferry Crossing to Colonia, Uruguay

We have an early start today – grabbing a quick breakfast and coffee before heading toward the Buquebus ferry terminal on foot. Arriving in the large terminal – we go through security (felt up again!!) and grab a seat in the large departure hall. The hundreds of passengers slowly matriculate on to the boat – grabbing seats on either the upper or lower decks. We grab two of the cushy seats next to the window, and watch as the ferry slowly churns its way into the open water. From gate to gate, the crossing took about an hour and a half – as the unloading and passing through the lax security added a little extra time. We proceed to the information desk to inquire about our tour bus of the city and we were informed the tour left in 1 hour.

This meant we had time for a slow stroll around the small, colonial town of – Colonia. Primarily subsisting on tourism, Colonia is a small, cute town consisting of an old ruined fort, cobbled streets, a beautiful sea-side view, and dozens of restaurants lining the main roads. We head for our tour bus at the allotted time – and are met with, an empty bus. It turns out the main tourists are Argentinian and they don’t get many English speaking tourists. With the two of us, the driver, and a tour guide with a very thick Spanish accent – we head around Colonia. It was a very slow, somewhat informative, tour of the town – highlighting the old bull ring, now derelict, as well as informing us of various historical facts.

We finish our private tour with the information that our 19:30 ferry had been cancelled and had been changed to 20:30. It was now 17:00 and we’d seen most of what there was to see already. We headed into the small colonial church, very stark in construction – which was actually a nice change from the opulence of most churches we visit.

Heading down to the seaside – we enter a restaurant with a view of the port. Eating a surprisingly delicious dinner (not just salt for a change!) with a few relaxing drinks – we absorb the last of the sun’s rays and watch the beautiful sunset over the water. It was now time to catch our ferry - where we had a nice gentle crossing back in to Argentina, having an excellent final night in Buenos Aires.

Day 18 - Buenos Aires, Catedral Municipal

There isn’t much to write about today. We went to a 'laundromat' in the morning, visited the beautiful cathedral of Plaza de Mayo, Catedral Metropolitana, bought our tickets for our ferry ride to Uruguay - and then had a migraine which essentially wiped out the rest of the day in soul-blackening, eye bursting, unending torment. 

The end.

Day 17 - Buenos Aires, Galeria Pacifico & Teatro Colon

Today’s adventures were much slower in pace. Having a very relaxed start to our day – we spent the early afternoon wandering the streets, soaking in more of the thriving Buenos Aires atmosphere. We made a brief stop to the elegant Galeria Pacifico – which housed some of the top names in fashion in a building suitable to match – with high ceilings, painted with beautiful murals, held aloft by columns of marble, it was definitely a high class establishment. Though speaking of high class establishments, after a quick meal in a typical Argentinian restaurant (meat…), we headed for the highest of class – the Theatre Colon. 

Dressed in our finest wicking tops and wind-resistant trousers – we stood out like sore thumbs! Never the less, amongst the beautifully dressed and dinner suit clad citizens of Buenos Aires – the true beauty was the ornate theatre itself. Gilt in gold leaf, with marble everything, beautiful paintings, and chandeliers hanging from every ceiling – the theatre was absolutely gorgeous. Naturally, we bought a bottle of champagne to try and blend in before our ballet performance of Don Quixote.

The ballet – divided into three intense acts – was stunning. The stage production to the costumes were all intricately designed and equally ornate – and the dancing – I’m no expert in ballet, but it seemed flawless, with male and female counterparts gracefully prancing and flying through the stage with ease.

If ever in Buenos Aires and you have a mind for these things – this was an unmissable stop and an evening to remember.

Day 16 - Buenos Aires, 'Recoleta' Free Walking Tour, Bellas Artes Art Gallery, & Tango!

Our third day in Buenos Aires and we begin to get a good feel for the city. Local restaurants, cafes, and shops become familiar as we wander the streets with savoir faire. Today we join another walking tour, exploring the other ‘down town’ areas of BA. Fernando is our tour guide, a lawyer, who provides a more light-hearted, jovial tour than the previous night (which was very historical and rather morose). Both were excellent tours providing insights on to different facets of this beautiful city. Fernando, much like Martin, points out architectural oddities, the juxtaposition of western and eastern influences, famous statues, and unique districts along the way. Interestingly, Buenos Aires has the 4^th largest community of Jewish peoples in the world, the second religion of the city behind Christianity.

We wander through lush parks, learning of this historical person or that – often with a theme surrounding the shaping of Argentina. Famous throughout Argentina (Chile, Bolivia, and Peru as well) is the figure of San Martin – a military leader who helped defeat the Spanish and grant autonomy to Argentina. Often depicted on horseback, pointing to the West – toward the Andes – mimicking his valiant crossing of the Andes with 5,000 men - in only 16 days, defeating the Spanish overlords from these 4 respective countries. In anyone one of these countries (and each city within) you will undoubtedly find a road San martin, a plaza San Martin, a San Martin shopping centre etc…

Our tour ends in the famous Recoleta Cemetery, which is renowned for it’s large, opulent mausoleums of the aristocracy from Argentina – all built in jagged streets, imitating a small unique city of the dead. Saying goodbye to Fernando, we headed to the National Art Museum – which housed numerous painting from many of the greats – Van Gogh, Monet, Manet, Pollock… A true pleasure to visit.

After a quick dinner with a bottle of local vino – we head to our evening Tango show. Located in the famous Café Tortoni – we’re seated in a dusky subterranean, brick theatre – imitating the streets of yester-Buenos Aires. Sipping on champagne – we’re enthralled by the rhythmic gyrating bodies entwined on stage, dancing to slow-then fast-then slow tango songs. A lone performer took the stage – swinging long ropes with wooden balls on the ends. The dancer spun and smacked the instruments on the ground – choreographing a song and tap dance to his fast paced twirling. The show ended with a lone singer on stage – belting out some powerful melody that was completely lost on us verbally – but was none the less a beautiful performance. We highly enjoyed our show – and walked back to our hotel thoroughly satisfied in today’s adventures.

Day 15 - Buenos Aires, Evening Free Walking Tour

What is with cities in South America? Our room, on the 5^th floor, felt very secluded and quiet. That was until cars entered and/or exited the parking garage across from the hotel – triggering a flashing light (luckily we couldn’t see it) and a loud siren – presumably to warn other cars and passengers about the emerging vehicle. A good theory, in principle, however, this garage (and seemingly all of them throughout the city) was constantly busy – meaning that darn siren was going off every 10 minutes every hour of the day and night. Eventually your mind drowns it out, getting used to the shrill cry – however, the first night we weren’t sure whether to evacuate the building or what to do, as it sounded exactly like a fire alarm.

Anyway. 

We awake to a small continental breakfast – with terrible, burnt coffee – and make our way to the meeting point for our walking tour. The tour, Buenos Aires Free Walking Tours, was led by a well-informed, well-spoken sociologist named Martin. The tour began at the Congresso Nacional and meandered through the city – highlighting key elements from Buenos Aires’s rise and fall from grace. A very beautiful city, Buenos Aires is an eclectic conglomeration of European architecture – a result of the aristocracy trying to mimic the grand cities of Europe – Paris, Florence, etc… Buenos Aires has many parks, statues, and importantly to portenos' (locals), wide avenues. We toured around parks, observing and learning the importance of many of them – including one of the (16?) Rodin’s Thinker statues. We observed many sights including a high rise inspired by Dante, a giant homage to Eva Peron, as well as the central obelisk – commemorating the independence of Argentina from the Spanish.

As we walked through the city, Martin describes in detail the rise of Argentina – with wealth overflowing among the aristocracy, each trying to outdo one another by building the next grandest building. Buenos Aires was the most important port-  as such the wealthy became immensely wealthier. However, the stability of the economy in Argentina was never very solid – leading to many recessions throughout the decades, slowly reducing the influence of its finest city, Buenos Aires.

Many dictatorships occurred throughout the 20^th century – including one military coup, which resulted in the, reportedly, 30,000 disappearances of dissidents within Argentina. Argentina has never recovered from corrupt governments, leading to its current economic crisis – with around 35% inflation – reducing the buying power of the locals’ currency immensely.

We finished our tour at the Pink Building, or the office of the politicians. In Plaza de Mayo – the building is surrounded by iron gates and a constant police presence – often including a riot water cannon. Buenos Aires has seen many protests (rightly so), and these measures surrounding the presidential office are a constant reminder to the people – do not disobey.

The Plaza de Mayo, excluding the militant feel, is very beautiful – with many historical buildings brilliantly lit at night. The cathedral – fashioned in Roman style – faces one of the only remaining colonial buildings (the Argentinians destroyed most of them to erase their Spanish past), which is a Museum of Colonial history.

With our informative tour now over, we wandered through the lively streets of Buenos Aires – enjoying the animated atmosphere – before grabbing a pizza and calling it a night.

Day 14 - Foz do Iguacu (Brazil) to Buenos Aires

An early start today – grabbing a quick bite at the 7am breakfast, ready to catch a taxi into Argentina (pre-arranged). Crossing the border into Argentina was once again a breeze, with barely a look into the car. We arrive at the small airport (IGR) with plenty of time before the flight – in fact, we couldn't check in our luggage until an hour before, and we weren't allowed through ‘security’ until 30 minutes before the departure time. Of course, after my obligatory pat down, we arrive in the departure lounge as our plane is called – very efficient. We board the plane – thankfully more leg room than the previous – and we’re on our way to Buenos Aires!

Arriving in Buenos Aires around 2 hours later – we exit the plane into a modern, large, clean airport. This time – we’re determined not to take a taxi to our hotel. Local transport all the way. That didn't quite work out however. It seems in the few years since Rach’s guide book was published and our arrival – the buses have had an overhaul, becoming entirely cashless. We board bus ‘45’ which should head down town. The bus was empty and the driver didn't speak any English. Waving around bills, saying Cuanto? 5, 10, 20? And hearing only – No..no.. He just waves us to the back of the bus. Oh that’s nice of him we think to ourselves. Little did we know he goes a few stops then motions This is the last stop. Oh right… We exit the bus then check our maps – ah, the ‘45’ is on a circular and we happened to catch it on the wrong side of the street, whoops. We wait 20 minutes for another ‘45’ to arrive – still not quite sure how to pay. We hop on and the bus is completely empty – and again, the driver speaks no English. Cuanto? I ask. No no we receive again. Why don’t they want our money?! After a few more waving of bills and spouting of random amounts, once again, we’re waved to the back of the bus – clearly not bothered about a couple of ignorant Gringos. It wasn't until a few minutes later, when other passengers started filing on to the bus, we noticed the card reader and people swiping in. Oops. Feeling guilty, though satisfied in our free ride – we drive for 40 minutes before reaching our stop. Muchos gracias senor! we shout to the bus driver before swiftly exiting the vehicle.

Ahhh, Buenos Aires. Clean, modern, and a breath of fresh air (maybe not literally). Our hotel was in the down town area – which was filled with lots of restaurants, bars, and cafes – exactly what we’d been looking for and missing in Sao Paulo (still good) and Rio (not quite as good), in terms of selection. We unload our bags into our surprisingly spacious room and head out into the city. Tonight we just enjoyed a long stroll through – well, wherever our feet took us. We ended up at a lovely Italian restaurant where we finally enjoyed a meat free meal that wasn't laden with salt.

After our meal, we strolled along the well-lit avenues, including Ave. de Julho – the widest avenue in the world (they’re very proud of that fact), as well as Florida street (pedestrian only road – famous for the blue market Cambio money changers), and Plaza de Mayo. Our first experience of Buenos Aires was a pleasant one – and we went to bed eagerly looking forward to the next day’s walking tour.