Cordoban Swine Flu

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Cordoba is a seriously cool little town. Like so many of these Argentine towns it looks very run down and 3rd world as you come in through the high density council housing and half finished public works projects that look like the money ran out about 8 years ago (which of course is exactly what happened)

But then you get into the city centre and there are these fantastic cobble stone streets with towering 18th century cathedrals and opera houses which have been converted into museums and art gallerys. Interspersed into all this is the university which uses the centre of town as its campus. Its kind of hard to describe but imagine if the classic old buildings of say university of queensland were positioned in and around the cobble stone streets, pubs and shops of say the Rocks in Sydney and you kind of get the idea.

The result is that almost everywhere you look there are students lounging around, drinking beers in the sun listening to fantastic street music and eating cheap food. It was very easy to just chill out and eat our weight in empenadas and knock back cervesas and watch the world go by... which is exactly what we did until Alison went and got the swine flu.

So then we embarked on a tour of the city's doctors surgeries and pharmacies. Negotiating the doctors was not an easy task. Everyone we asked gave us different directions and when we finally found the doctors it turned out that only members of a certain health insurer were allowed to use it. This scenario repeated a few times until we stumbled desperately into what appeared to be an orthodontist and we pleasded our case in appaling Spanish to the receptionist.

After a perfectly cued coughing fit from Alison we were ushered up 5 stories and were welcomed by a fantatic doctor whose English was about on a par with Jason's Spanish and somehow we managed to muddle our way through a diagnosis - and more importantly - perscriptions for a fist full of pharmaceuticals! Bueno!!

So we bid adios to Cordoba, vowing to return again to sample its famed nightlife and friendly hospitality again. Our final bus ride was a paltry 16 hours, and before we knew it the sun was rising over the foothills of the Andes and the snow covered peaks of the worlds longest mountain chain reminded us why we were really hear and all thoughts of flu were driven from our minds...

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Photos

cordoba1
The university just meandered in and out of the main streets of the town providing lots of sheltered little alcoves for "study"

cordoba2
Cordoba is home to some of Argentina best preserved Spanish Colonial Architecture.. if your into that thing... which I am

cordoba3
Another of Cordoba's converted churches - now a gallery

Comments

[Alessandro]

H1N1
Better to get that sort of caper early Kersnovske! I think all of Melbourne has had the wretched sickness.

[Brett]

Cool
Nice one guys! Looks like a sweet little town. Was it really swine flu?? Hope ya feeling better now Ali Love to ya both Brett and Kellie Kersnovske :-)