Blogs from Argentina, South America - page 8

The predictions for the weather were not great…they said it was going to be around a six on a 15 point scale…but assured us it was well within what our boat was capable of withstanding…excellent, great, thanks. But things, so far, have turned out better than anticipated. We knew we were entering the Drake around midnight and there was a definite increase in motion throughout the night, together with some shaking and early morning chucking. But we were medicated and prepared and things have apparently been far better than predicted. The side effect of the constant rocking, and maybe the drugs, is that pretty much every time I sit down, I fall asleep. Lucky today has been full of not all that much, so I’ve had ample opportunity to find out how much of any easy ... read more

I have done many tests and exams in my time but I don’t think I’ve ever been as nervous as getting a cotton tip shoved up my nose in a random Argentinian clinic. After stressing myself senseless over the past few days (let’s be honest, months and weeks), I think I had basically maxed out and was resigned to whatever fate the Q tip would bring. Spoiler alert: it’s all in the title. Started the day with breakfast at the hotel, and, having failed yesterday’s mission to seal our fate, we headed back to the clinic for some brain tickling action. They assured us that we’d have the results in 2-3 hours. Lucky we had some experience in their prowess in the whole organisational competency thing, so when they still hadn’t turned up in my inbox, ... read more

So we left it til last to check out the ‘sights’ of Buenos Aires - we’ve struggled a bit to really get into things here - there are some interesting and beautiful pockets, but on the whole, we’ve found it to be a big busy city with a bit of a lack of identity. Maybe we found it today. Or maybe we’ve struggled with a combination of jet lag, the heat, the constant worry of Covid scuppering our plans combined with lots of lining up. First stop today was a local coffee shop then a walk to Recoleta Cemetery. A wander around looking at some of the very ornate graves, possibly a missed opportunity with our lack of knowledge of Argentinian history. But we soaked up the peace and pondered the creepiness of a nighttime tour! ... read more

Start as you intend to continue they say…so we have kicked off the eating and drinking with a food walking tour of Buenos Aires…to get the body moving and some sun after hours being cooped up in airports and planes. Arrived yesterday with a couple of zombie children but successfully found one lost suitcase and navigated unfortunate gravitational pull on Apple juice and the disastrous effects of lack of sleep on a moody teen. Checked in to our apartment, managed some dinner and stayed awake until almost bed time. A bit of a wander around our neighbourhood before heading to Plaza de Mayo for the start of our food tour. Sandwiches, pizza, empanadas, meat (of course!) followed by ice cream and coffee filled our bellies and gave us a good stroll around the city. Hopefully tomorrow ... read more

Ohhhh, we’ve been eating well in Argentina, we have. Patagonia is a haven for carnivores and we’ve had our fill of the beef, lamb and pork available in the many good restaurants of Bariloche and El Bolson. Parillla y asadors are very popular here. Parilla means ‘grill’ and asador means ‘roast’. Some restaurants have whole roast lamb on display in the window. They cook over hot coals for half a day before they are put on a plate at dinner time. Menu’s are quite simple. There are only about 6 different meat dishes and perhaps only three sides to choose from. We’ve learnt that we don’t need to order one each. Servings are huge and can easily be shared. As well as dinners, we’ve enjoyed the many chocolate shops in the area. I’m not sure why ... read more