Looking back (5/5) Two days in Uruguay I booked my ticket for the boat leaving Buenos Aires to Colonia (Uruguay) when one of my classes was cancelled and spent two days in the quiet country of Uruguay. After a pleasant morning boat ride, I arrived in the charming city of Colonia. As soon as I landed I knew I was in a different country: drivers stopped to let me cross the streets! After recovering from my amazement, I headed for the old neighbourhood of Colonia where I spent the entire afternoon enjoying the calm atmosphere, traditional architecture and colourful landscape. It [View Full Entry]

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As the end of our stay in Buenos Aires is rapidly approaching, we decided to leave the capital for a short adventure and visit the Northern provinces of Misiones and Corrientes. Our itinerary: the impressive Iguazu waterfalls, the famous San Ignacio Jesuits ruins and the rich wetlands of Carlos Pelligrini. Our escapade started with a 17 hour-bus trip from Buenos Aires to Puerto Iguazu, a small city located in Misiones which is home to the famous Iguazu waterfalls, named world heritage site by the UNESCO. The name “Iguazu” comes from the guarani word “Y” (water) and g [View Full Entry]

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Spectacular, dazzling and breathtaking! Three words to describe the traditional Superclásico, a legendary fùtbol match in which Boca Juniors plays River Plate. And the best part of it…I was one of the 66,000 spectators present in the stadium singing, cheering and screaming! This game was undoubtedly a memorable cultural (almost religious!) Argentinean event! The teams The Club Atlético Boca Juniors is one of the most popular Argentine sports clubs, best known for its fùtbol team. Its home base is the neighbourhood of La Boca, in Buenos Aires. As for their performance on the in [View Full Entry]

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Part 2 of 3 of my adventure in the provinces of Misiones and Corrientes : Jesuits Ruins of San Ignacio After our visit of Iguazu Park and its impressive waterfalls, we took an early morning bus to the town of San Ignacio where we would visit the Jesuits ruins of San Ignacio (San Ignacio Mini), one of the several sites remaining in this part of Argentina. Despite the fact that this particular site was originally one of the smallest Jesuit colonies, it is nonetheless today the best preserved ruins. The rich history of those ruins goes beyond religion, politics, economics…it symbolizes [View Full Entry]

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Dear all: The year of 2006 is rapidly coming to an end and I can hardly believe that I have now embarked on my journey throughout South America! As you have already noticed, I have been postponing my travel blogs since mid-October mostly due to my hectic semester in Buenos Aires. Now that I have completed my academic semester, I will be catching up on my previous travel blogs and sending them to you...I should have updated all of them for a fresh start for the year 2007! You can therefore expect several different travel blogs from me in the next [View Full Entry]

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Well, it is Sunday night, the last day of a real weekend as my classes start tomorrow. I am sitting at the corner restaurant while sipping on my café con leche…the place is packed with people watching (and screaming at) the Sunday soccer match. You can definitely tell who is the foreigner…I am the only one turning my back to the TV! We just spent few days in Mar del Plata, a city located on the East coast of Argentina at about 400 kilometres from Buenos Aires. The bus trip to Mar del Plata was truly pleasant as we bought tickets [View Full Entry]

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Downtown Buenos Aires During our first weekend in Buenos Aires, we made our first visit to downtown Buenos Aires. It was an amazing feeling to see from my own eyes what I have been reading for the past year at school. Visiting the city on your own is one thing but having a local showing you around, telling you the history of the city and giving you his own perspective on the events that occurred is a totally different experience. This “local tour guide” was the same person we met on the plane, Ruben, who offered to show us the main [View Full Entry]

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As I mentioned in my previous travel blog, our first days in Buenos Aires were dedicated to finding an apartment. We therefore visited different neighbourhoods in order to get a real feel of the environment in which we would live. During this exploration, we discover the area of Palermo Viejo, a trendy neighbourhood with great restaurants and bars at each corner and filled with low old buildings. This small height created a feeling of open space, which is much needed in a city like Buenos Aires. It will undoubtedly be a weekend destination to enjoy good food and good wine on [View Full Entry]

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Dogs, leather, and buses Many people, especially Argentineans, have warned me about the insidious and manipulative nature of certain individuals. I agree that you have to be “street-smart” in order to be safe in such as a big city; however, I have to say that I find Argentineans to be extremely welcoming, helpful, warm, proud and generous. I will add that you cannot get mad at an Argentinean man to address you by “Cariño”, “Mi amor” or “Nena”. In all honesty, this has been the most important cultural shock since my arrival in the city! I wa [View Full Entry]

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Dear all: Many of you have expressed the desire to be included in my travel blog’s subscriber list in order to be kept updated on my South American journey. If you have changed your mind or eventually do not want to receive it, you have the option, every time your receive my travel blog, to unsubscribe through the respective link included in the email. In addition, please feel free to transmit my blog address to anyone interested to subscribe. You will also have the possibility to comment on my blog every time you receive it; however, if you prefer, you can [View Full Entry]

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