Ushuaia

Departing the cruise ship in Ushuaia (pronounced u-shwhy-ah), we ventured out from the city which holds the distinction of being the southernmost city in the world, to Tierra del Fuego National Park.  Created to protect the southern portion of sub-Antarctic forests, the park provides opportunities to enjoy the Andes, as well as the region's rivers and lakes, with camping, hiking, climbing, and kayaking.  With only a few hours to explore, we caught only the highlights of this extensive and popular park.  The world's southernmost post office in the world is located here.  Unfortunately, we didn't come prepared to mail postcards postmarked from the 'End of the World'.  Our planned catamaran cruise out into the Beagle Channel was canceled due to high winds and rough seas, even though all appeared calm within the protection of Lapataia Bay.  

Originally settled by the Yaghan, the estimated population of 10,000 indigenous people was mostly wiped out within 10 years of the arrival of European settlers.  Their deaths were due primarily to a lack of immunity to typhus, pertussis, and measles, introduced by the new arrivals.  The city was founded as a penal colony, and prisoners became forced colonists.  Prisoners were responsible for most of the buildings in the city, utilizing wood from the surrounding forests.  They constructed a railway system out to the forest for harvesting the lumber, which now runs as a tourist attraction, the "Train to the End of the World".  The prison was closed in 1948, the building now houses a maritime, art and history museum.

Tourism is now a major industry, as visitors come to explore the unique landscape of this remote destination.  The area is also a stopping point for ships en route to Antarctica.  Settlers are incentivized to stay in the area by higher wages (roughly double the wages in Buenos Aries) and a tax-free society.  With average summer day temperatures around 45-50 and frequent high winds, it's easy to understand why settlers are not rushing to the area.  

By the time we arrived back to the ship, winds had increased to 50-60 mph, foreseeing a rough cruise around Cape Horn.

Looking out to the Andes

Lapataia Bay

Feral horses in the park

End of the World Post Office

End of the Pan American Highway, located in the park at Lapataia Bay

Black-necked swans

Buenos Aires

Arriving in the 'Paris of South America' on a Sunday, we found most of the streets fairly deserted, and businesses shuttered.  In fact, we enjoyed a quiet city for our next two days as well, due to a two day Federal holiday.  Strolling through the Defensa Street Sunday Market, however, there were hoards of people looking, shopping or haggling at the nearly 2 km. of stalls featuring leather goods, jewelry, paintings, woven goods, and assorted other crafts.  Several vendors sold cups and filtering spoons for yerba mate, a popular South American non-alcoholic herbal beverage.  Drinking the mate provides a caffeine buzz, and it's not unusual to spot people drinking from cups made primarily from gourds, throughout Argentina.

Having reserved a room in the San Telmo/Montserrat neighborhood, we were perfectly situated to explore the most historic district of the city.  Our first evening, we were delivered by taxi to La Brigada Restaurant, considered one of the best steak places in the city, and Alan indulged in yet another premium quality steak.  Even though the menu was offered with English translations, the waiters did not understand English, which seemed to be the case at each restaurant we visited.  Alan's Spanish language skills came in handy on numerous occasions.

Hooking up with a small 'Pay what you want' walking tour the following day, our guide, Ceri, met the group at a typical Argentinian coffee shop, which offered scrumptious-looking baked goods.  Moving to the nearby government district, starting with the Government House, more popularly known as the Casa Rosada (Pink House), we passed through the Plaza de Mayo, a popular area for political demonstrations.  The pink house is surrounded by high fences and armed police guard, but entry to the house was not being restricted on the day of our visit.  Across the Plaza, Metropolitan Cathedral, first established in the 1600s, and located in the Diocese of the current Pope Francis, is the main Catholic church in Argentina.  Embellished with gold-leafing, silver, 18th-century statues and magnificent works of art, the cathedral is also the burial place of Argentinian hero, General San Martin, and two guards, in full dress uniform, stand over the memorial 24/7.  The government district ends on the opposite end of Avenue de Mayo, at the Capitol Building.  Several side streets in this area are blocked off as primarily pedestrian streets, and Monday-Fridays (10 AM-6 PM), only buses and taxis are allowed on the main streets.  We also took a short ride in the city's subway system, with construction beginning under Avenue de Mayo in 1913.  We were serenaded by a  guitarist riding the subway to earn tips.  Our tour ended at Los 36 Billards, a cafe and billard room providing background music by a classical pianist at the back of the room. 

During the early 1900s, millions of Italians immigrated to Argentina.  The Italian impact on the city is evident by the countless pizza/pasta restaurants.  The city reflects the diversity of European influences due to the presence of Spanish, French, German, Jewish, as well as Italian, through its architecture, art, and culture.  Beautifully detailed buildings line the main avenue, accented with finely crafted marble works and elaborate wooden doors.  

Visiting a tango dance club, it was interesting to watch the dynamics of the social etiquette.  Typically, unless a couple comes in together, the men sit on one side and the women sit on the other side.  If a man wants to dance with a woman, he makes eye contact, if she turns away, he has been rejected, and he has not been publicly embarrassed by the rejection.  If she nods, he comes over and leads her to the dance floor.  For the price of a cup of coffee or other items from the menu, tango music is provided for anyone wanting to dance.  In the early 1900s, tango was a dance done by prostitutes for men in dance halls.  When the dance became popular in Paris, in the 1920s, the refined population of Buenos Aires decided it was acceptable.  Lyrics were cleaned up to reflect the sensibilities of the upper class, and tango took over Argentina.  

Blue notes are a means for travelers from the USA to maximize their travel dollars.  While the official exchange rate is 8.6 Argentinean pesos for one dollar, the rate along Florida Street runs quite a bit higher.  The rate depends on the day of the week and the types of bills being changed ($50s have a better exchange rate than $20s).  On the day we made our exchange the rate was 12.8 to 1, but we heard that at some points during our stay that the rate got as high as 14 to 1.  This is an illegal/legal activity.  Exchanges are done openly along Florida, with persons chanting "Cambio, cambio" (change, change) as you walk along the street, and blue note rates are published in the daily paper.

La Boca, an artsy vicinity, was one of our next stops.  Decades ago an artist decided to paint empty warehouse buildings in the blighted area with colorful paints, within a few years this began to draw visitors to the area.  The draw of visitors increased the number of businesses and the continuation of the color enhancement of buildings.  While the neighborhood is not considered safe for tourists after dark, during the day, busloads of tourists now arrive daily to walk the small neighborhood and buy souvenirs.

With the holidays over, the city was buzzing with activity.  Our final exploration took us to the Plaza de San Martin.  This lovely green park also contains a memorial to the Argentineans killed in the Falkland Island War of 1982.  Moving back to Florida Street, we exchanged a little more money and completed some shopping, including some Argentinean wine purchases.  We are now moving onto the cruise ship, which is heading first to Montevideo.  

Puerta Iguazu, Argentina

Torrential rains greeted us on our arrival to this city, best known as home to one of the world's most beautiful waterfalls, Iguazu Falls.  After some missteps, flight postponements, and cancellations, it seemed that this was not going to be the fairy tale portion of the South American trip we were expecting.  After settling in, we shared a bottle of a mellow, flavorful Malbec, as we waited for the rains to subside.  Argentina is known for its red wines and grass-fed beef, and the wine did not disappoint.

The following morning, we awoke to blue skies filled with puffy white clouds, perfection.  Staying at a B&B in Puerto Iguazu, we walked several blocks over the cobblestone streets to the downtown area to board a bus to Iguazu Falls National Park, founded in 1934.  About 30-minutes later, we were standing in line at the park entrance.  A system of small trains takes visitors to a central station, and then to the walkway leading to Devil's Throat.  This narrow, U-shaped portion of the falls is undoubtedly the most spectacular, but we spent about 6 hours walking around the park and were repeatedly blown away by the beauty.  The Iguazu River descends at approximately 275 spots along the Parana Plateau, the exact number of falls is dependent on recent rainfall.

In addition to the falls, we were treated to an exotic variety of flora and fauna in the surrounding subtropical jungle.  Most prevalent is the coati, a raccoon-like animal, with hundreds of the critters sighted as we moved through the park.  As aggressive beggars at the outdoor restaurants, it was safer to stand while eating.  Toucan sighting was the most desired for bird watchers, but we spotted only one elusive fellow; the Plush-crested Jay being far more cooperative.

As our energies were waning, the rains moved in for the day, so perfect timing for our departure.  An incredible visit, and worth the hassles of getting here.  Without going into all the details, I'll just mention the first oversight which threw a monkey wrench into our plans.  On Sunday evening, 48-hours before our first planned flight, we learned from a friend, that #1--it is necessary to have a visa to travel in Brazil if you are from the USA, and #2 --it takes 2-3 weeks to obtain a visa, needless to say, we didn't have the visa, and we were scheduled to fly into Sao Paulo, and then catch a flight to Fao do Iguacu (in Brazil).  Non-refundable tickets already purchased, things sort of went downhill from there, but in the end, it all worked out, and 24-hours after planned, we were at the beginning of our South American adventures.

Expecting a small village, we were surprised to learn this is a community of around 80,000.  By staying in the center of town, however, it felt like a small village.  "This town is boring," a local businessman said, in his way of describing the safety in the area.  Prioritizing Argentinian beef, Alan indulged in tender, perfectly cooked steak both evenings, and I enjoyed the local river fish.  Pacu and Suburi are found only in the rivers here, so I wasn't going to bypass the opportunity to try them.  Buttery and sweet, the small grilled pacu was perfect, served with mango chutney.

Heading next to Buenos Aries, we boarded a bus for an eighteen-hour trip.  Having opted for the upgraded ticket, we were able to recline our seats for sleeping but then everyone else did too, so once we were all settled in for the evening, it was something like being packed in like sardines, especially if you had an inside seat.  First-run movies in English, with Spanish subtitles, provided entertainment, but dinner was questionable, and I was glad we had some bananas and nuts to snack on instead.  All in all though a comfortable trip.  Now time to explore our new destination.