OUR TRIP TO BUENOS AIRES

MARCH 16, 2006
I finally am about to realize my dream of going to South America. First stop is Buenos Aires! Then on to Iguassu Falls, and finally to Rio.




My friend and travelling companion John, a Filipino-Chinese doctor who lives in beautiful, bucolic Spring Glen in upstate New York, came to my apartment at 2 o'clock with his luggage. We promptly went to my favorite neighborhood Japanese restaurant, Isohama, for some sushi and sashimi.

After taking a short taxi ride to La Guardia Airport, and a short wait for the first leg of our flight, we were finally off the ground and arrived in Washington D.C. to catch the plane to Buenos Aires. The plane was full and as luck would have it, I was seated next to an Argentinian lawyer, Christian, who lives in D.C. He's flying back for his brother's wedding.
We had an enjoyable and enlightening conversation about Buenos Aires. He pointed out the places we have to see. So, I was already almost familiar with the city by the time we alighted almost eleven hours later.

MARCH 17, 2006
It was drizzling when we landed in Buenos Aires. A little disappointed but it was warm, so still much better than being in cold wintry New York. We checked in at Americas Tower in the Recoleta area and were quite pleased with our accomodations. After a quick refreshing Scotch-on-the-rocks, we were ready to start our first real view of Buenos Aires. Even though it was drizzly (we bought a couple of umbrellas), I instantly liked the city. It had a cosmopolitan air to it, quite European and old-world. The people at the airport and the ones who picked us up for the transfer to our hotel all seemed very nice and pleasant. The bellman who took our luggage to our room was extremely pleasant, too. So far, so good.

We went out and headed towards the Teatro Colon, where originally we wanted to see La Boheme on March 25. The travel agent had to change our itinerary because they couldn't find a flight for us to Rio on our date of departure but the flight to Buenos Aires was available. Unfortunately, La Boheme was not being performed yet on the days that we were in B.A. So, we had to contend to just looking at the facade of the famous opera house. We continued walking on Avenida 9 de Julio toward the Obelisco and browsed at windows.

Dinner that night, around 10 pm, was at Cafe Tortoni on the Avenida de Mayo. Cafe Tortoni is famous for being the place to see and be seen. King Juan Carlos of Spain and even Hillary Clinton visited the place. Cafe Tortoni even had a Tango Show in the basement club. We had Campari-Soda, tapas, and a very nice bottle of Argentinian Cabernet Sauvignon from the Mendoza region.

MARCH 18, 2006
This morning, Saturday, we took a city tour to get a general overview of the city. We drove past the Teatro Colon and the Obelisco. Our first stop was at the Plaza de Mayo where we strolled through the park and went into the Catedral Metropolitana. We took pictures of the government building (the Cabildo), and the Casa Rosada which used to be the President's residence. It was at Casa Rosada's balcony where Evita sang "Don't Cry For Me Argentina." Next, we were shown La Bombonera, the Junior Boca Soccer Stadium. The Argentines are mad about their home team!

Then we stopped next at the Caminito, an area where immigrants used to live. This area is defined by its very colorfully painted tenements. There were also a lot of street vendors and souvenir shops. I bought a couple of beautifully crafted glass ashtrays, gifts to a couple of my smoker friends. Then I found a wonderful Venetian-inspired mardi-gras mascara de cuero from a very nice handicraftsman, Nicolas. I also bought a few handpainted bookmarks and some interesting matches with collages on the covers.

The tour bus took us next to the Palermo area, their Embassy Row. It was also a very nice residential area. Our final stop on the tour was the Recoleta area which is the ritziest part of town. The Cementerio de la Recoleta where Evita was laid to rest, the Basilica de Nuestra Senora del Pilar, and a nice handicrafts fair were pointed out to us. We decided to be brought back to our hotel to freshen up before we check out Recoleta later in the afternoon.

We had lunch back at the Recoleta, in one of the outdoor restaurants across from the basilica. Very pleasant alfresco lunch, Argentine beer and seafood salad. Then we checked out the church, the fair, the huge metallic "flower" that opens up in the morning and slowly closes toward the end of the day, and the famous cemetery where we saw Eva Peron's final resting place.


On our way back to the hotel, we met an old friend of mine, Alejandro, a Military School cadet. We invited him for a drink, and then he was off to school.

Back at the hotel, I checked my e-mail, had a glass of scotch, and had a little rest before dinner. About 10 o'clock that night, we were ambling up Libertad Street to go to a concierge-recommended seafood restaurant when we passed by a very nice white building, recessed from the sidewalk, a nice semi-circular driveway, and a few steps up to the building. It was an Italian community club house and there was a restaurant inside so we went in and checked out the menu. It turned out to be a very nice restaurant with very fresh seafood and home-made pasta. It was a great dinner!

MARCH 19, 2006









Sunday morning after breakfast, on our way to the subway to go to the San Telmo flea market we passed by a movie crew shooting a commercial for dog food. One of the crew members, Julio, asked us where we were from, so we had a nice chat with him for a few minutes.

After a few stops on the subway, we got off and walked in San Telmo till we found the flea market. Very interesting shops, reminds me of Porte de Clignancourt in Paris and Portobello Road in London. Not to forget W. 25th Street and Avenue of the Americas in New York.

After checking out all the stalls, booths, and shops, we rested our weary feet at a corner bistro, the Plaza Dorrego Bar, and had Argentine beer, peanuts and some toasted ham and cheese sandwiches, watching the Sunday flea market vendors and buyers or browsers. Later on, we decided to go back to the Caminito and after a short taxi ride we were back in the festive atmosphere of the Caminito.


We saw Nicolas at his booth and I bought another carnival leather mask while John bought two. A couple from England who have been travelling the world bought a few of the well-crafted masks. They're planning on a Las Vegas wedding and the bride-to-be said she might wear one at her wedding!


That evening, we met up with a friend from San Francisco, who we met at the airport, for dinner. David told us about a nice restaurant with great steaks and fabulous selection of wines. Las Nazarenas was at Reconquista Street, a few minutes walk from the hotel. David knew the sommeliere so he took us down to the wine cellar and we had a capsule lesson about Argentine wines. John and David had steaks and I had lamb which unfortunately was overcooked. The wines we tasted were excellent, however, again from the Mendoza region in Argentina.

MARCH 20, 2006
Woke up early this morning, my birthday, had a nice breakfast at the hotel, finished packing for our trip to Iguassu Falls. Our transport to the airport came on time and we were at the domestic airport in no time considering there was an accident in the highway which caused a few minutes delay. Our flight was delayed a couple of hours but we were warned that domestic flights were usually rescheduled especially if the plane has few passengers. Finally arrived in Iguassu Falls, Argentina, but our pick-up was nowhere in sight. Ended up hiring a cab to take us to the Brazilian side of Iguassu Falls where our hotel Das Cataratas is located.