Wrapping Up Buenos Aires

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Now that I am home and rested a bit, I wanted to go back and wrap up my time in Buenos Aires. As I wrote in my previous blog, I had a bit of a melt down at being back in the crowded city. It was oppressively hot and humid when I arrived in BA. My hotel was in San Telmo area, an old section of the city with a lot of history. Unfortunately, they did not have an adapter for my electrical devices. The one I purchased for this trip was not the correct one, but all of the other hotels had one that I could borrow. So, off I set in a light rain to find a store that would carry them. It took some doing, but I was finally pointed to the right store. I may not know the city or speak the language, but I am quite capable of getting done what I need done. Since I was so pleased with myself, I stopped at a coffeehouse/restaurant to grab a quick bite. Little did I know how smart that was. The skies opened up and the rain absolutely poured down. After a bit, hail started. It was so loud as it hit the buildings, streets and cars. I did take a few pictures of it, but it wasn't until I looked up at the tv and saw the live special reports that I realized that this was a pretty big storm. They had reporters out on the streets holding up chunks of hail, interviewing people and generally going on and on about the storm. By the time my food finally came and I had eaten, it was only lightly raining.

My second day I was not so lucky with the weather. It poured most of the day. After all of the wonderful weather I had, it didn't matter. I was very grateful that the rain was today and not on one days I was off doing my outdoor adventures. The thought of being on the Perito Moreno glacier in the rain was not one I could imagine. A blogger a few weeks back wrote how cold cold cold and rainy it was and how glad they weren't doing a hike in it. That of course set me off worrying about the weather. Can't say how lucky I have been with good weather this trip. Anyhow, so off I went to Recoleta area. Samantha Brown had a leather coat made at a store here, and I wanted to do the same. The store was right across from the Recoleta Cemetery so it was convenient for my next stop. I tried on many many coats until I found what I wanted. It is a lambskin light brown coat that was just perfect. They measured me to make it just right for me, and even added a belt loop to fix a strap that I didn't care for. After that, I went to the cemetery and found Evita's tomb.

The Recoleta cemetery was very nice. Although I haven't been to New Orleans, this is what I imagine their cemeteries to be like. All sorts of mausoleums with statues, stained glass and iron gates. The Duarte tomb was nice, but did not stand out. I spent a few minutes in front of it, then headed off to the Evita Museum. That was very interesting. I had watched a documentary on Evita a while back, so had an understanding of what she was like beyond the musical. Seeing footage of her speeches, seeing her clothes, shoes, some of her movies from her acting days, these were all very interesting. It gave me a lot more perspective on that part of history and what really went on. I took the Subte, subway, back to my part of town and had dinner on a plaza near where I stayed. Dinner was terrible, but sitting outside watching some Tango dancers on the square while enjoying a nice evening made up for it. Sometimes it is more about the ambiance than the food. Not always, but I could justify it this time. Even though my heart was still in Patagonia and I didn't want to do anything, today turned out to be a nice day.

My last day on this trip was Thursday. My flight was to leave at 9 PM, giving me the whole day to spend in Buenos Aires. I had arranged for a food walking tour of the area near my hotel, but had a few hours to kill before I had to meet the tour. It was a nice day, so I walked and walked and walked. First I went back to Casa Rosada for a few more pictures. I am glad I did. This place has so much history and is quite elegant. It is, however, completely surrounded by fence. I walked all around it looking at it from all angles. From there I headed down to Puerto Modero to see the Woman's Bridge. It is a beautiful, elegant bridge and was a nice walk. Right beside it is a Museum on an old war ship,so I toured the ship. Not many people were on board, so it was fun to walk around, smell the grease from the engines and imagine being on it when it was a functioning ship. Ok, so I was getting over the melt down and starting to enjoy being here. From there I walked to Avenida 9 Julio . The Obolesque is a smaller version of the Washington Monument. There wasn't much to do other than walk and enjoy the day and sights, so that is what I did. Oddly, I thought I could find my way back to the area where I wanted to be. I walked and looked at the buildings and people until I saw a Subte station that was so far from my hotel. Somehow I had started my jaunt in the wrong direction. So, yet another taxi ride. I have spent more time in taxis this trip than I ever have. But, I wasn't about to be late and miss my tour.

The food walking tour was a whole lot of fun. We met and went to several restaurants and shared platters of food and bottles of wine. It was a great way to end this trip. I will post some pictures of what we ate. Loved it all. After the food, we went to an old coffeehouse and sat and talked. The one couple live only a few miles from where I do. It is nice to run into people from home while out in the world. And one thing I can always count on no matter where I am is that I will see someone in Ohio State University clothes (and yes, I did see that in Buenos Aires.) I headed back to the hotel, put on my traveling clothes and took a taxi to the airport.

Looking back on this trip, I have to say that it is probably the best trip I have taken. Argentina is an incredibly beautiful country. The people are so friendly and it is a country that I want to come visit again. I would like to see some of the areas that I had to miss on this trip. If you look at some of the pictures, you will see how relaxed I was. There wasn't a lot of stress on this trip. No huge money issues, no worrying about having to drive and navigate unfamiliar streets. The more I travel, the easier it becomes. When I look back at how much clothes I used to bring with me I just shake my head. On this trip, I wore every single shirt and pair of pants. As planned, I tossed clothes and my tennis shoes to lighten the load as I went. I never wore my around the neck money pouch, but instead used my money clip. It is much easier to let things go and not stress about every little thing. My next trip was going to be Istanbul, but honestly, I may look into Chile and Argentina and Peru. Cities are not what get me excited it seems- adventure, hiking, climbing, scenic views, great food and wine. These are what I am looking for. So, I will leave you now. I hope you have enjoyed this trip and my blogs. I thank you for reading and following me and hope we can do this again soon. Until then, Ciao. B

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