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Published: June 13th 2017
Rose garden
Patrick Arnall, Marti Lanese, Candace Martz
Barcy Fox, Anne Leverone, Tommye FlemingGeo: -25.6836, -54.4757
Day 11 -- November 1
Breakfast was in the hotel (I don't believe I mentioned we stayed at the Caesar Park on Posadas, which is probably 4-star based on facilities and location). Then a quick dart for several of us to the high-end mall across the street for a Starbucks. I collect their location mugs and was anxious to get one for Buenos Aires or Argentina. The mall doesn't open until 10 am, so Starbucks doesn't open either. Holy latte!
Luckily for me, the bell staff screwed up the luggage pull and mixed checked bags with carry-ons so Murray had to spend a few extra minutes straightening that out. So I got my latte and a clever BA mug with tango dancers on it. Happy camper here.
Both mornings when we headed out, one of our favorite sights was the famous dog walkers. There are 500 of them in BA, some walking as many as 12 or 15 dogs at one time, headed to Palermo Park for their morning exercise. My personal favorite was a group of retrievers, mostly Goldens, many of whom were playing in the mud. Reminds me of my "mudder", Bear, back home. Our other Golden, Cassidy, would
have been the lead dog in the pack of 15; she wouldn't have it any other way.
The 400-acre Palermo Park has an outstanding rose garden. We were all pleased as punch with an idyllic stroll past banyan trees, roses and trellised respites.
Once again, we passed many, many purple jacarandas. This is not unlike Washington, D.C. at cherry blossom time. We are blessed to be here the first week in November, the height of the blooming period.
We drove along several avenues of huge beautiful homes, many of them now embassies. We saw USA, Saudi Arabia, Belgium and the Vatican among others. Avenue Ortiz de Ocampo has a canopy of Tipas, tall elegant trees which have leaves or blossoms all but 25 days a year.
Someone asked about the threat of earthquakes and our local guide, Gaston, replied, "We don't have natural disasters; we have enough with our politicians."
Our tour took us past the polo fields (one of Argentina's most popular games and one they excel at) and the race track, the Argentine equivalent of Churchill Downs.
The bus zipped along Rio de la Plata which, although named after silver, is called "the great lion-colored river." Along with the
Amazon, this is tied for the widest river in the world … 150 miles in some places.
Next up was Recoleta Cemetery, which contains elaborate marble mausoleums, decorated with statues, in a variety of architectural styles. The cemetery is laid out in sections like city blocks. It is here that Eva Peron found her final resting place (after 17 years!). Great photo adventure.
But who is this Santa Evita?
Why all this howling, hysterical sorrow?
What kind of goddess has lived among us?
How will we ever get by without her?
She had her moments, she had some style
The best show in town was the crowd
Outside the Casa Rosada crying, "Eva Peron"
But that's all gone now
As soon as the smoke from the funeral clears
We're all gonna see and how, she did nothing for years
--- Andrew Lloyd Webber/Tim Rice
We walked to our lunch restaurant, Primafila, where we had a choice of three starters, four entrees and three desserts. The restaurant was pleasant, so was the food. The service left something to be desired.
We then transferred to the Buenos Aires domestic airport just 15 minutes from downtown where we were required to check in individually. Tauck picked up any fees for overweight charges.
Temperatures were moderate (60-65F) and skies were overcast so many donned jackets and raincoats for most of the day. The temperature in Iguazu, Argentina, where we are headed next was 73, about 25 degrees cooler than it had been running for the last three weeks … an odd direction for the temperature to go in early spring.
When we landed at Iguazu, there was more confusion about luggage, but everyone agreed that we would rather be delayed than have a luggage problem. It all worked out in the end. An exquisite rainbow popped into the sky as we headed to the Sheraton … definitely a good sign.
Tomorrow is our big day – Iguazu Falls. The falls are the widest in the world -- 1.25 miles wide. We were told to wear good walking shoes that can withstand water, wear bug spray (lots of bugs in the area, but no malaria or yellow fever!) and bring along a spare towel. There is an optional high speed boat tour which most of us are going to take. Sounds exciting.
When we arrived at the hotel, I made a mad dash to the rear patio to try and nab a photo of the rainbow. No such
luck. But I did get a sunset in a rainbow of blues and pinks … and an almost-dark photo of the falls off in the distance. Our room overlooks the falls. There will be many opportunities tomorrow to preserve them for posterity.
Dinner was a buffet which was a refreshing change. We each found things we liked and retired early.
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Bear and Cassidy
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Woo hoo! Another mention of us it's starting to get cold here. When are we going back to Florida?