From Merino to Moreno

Following our exploits yesterday with Merino sheep, today we visited the Glaciar Perito Moreno.  Someone had suggested it might be cold and so we donned all the cold weather clothing we had including thermal undies (actually made from merino wool)!  The Parque National was about an hour from El Calafate and our first view of the glaciar was from a boat: we waited for quite a while to see if any ice would fall off into the water, but were unlucky.  The weather was wet and we were glad of our wet weather jackets.  We then got closer to the glaciar via a series of balcony walks and the sun came out and the clothes came off.  
 

 As you will see the ice was stunning and had wonderful blue colours in it.  As the sun came out, the ice falls came thick and fast preceeded by a rumble and what sounded like a clap of thunder. The trick was to know where the ice was going to fall, so your camera could be pointed in the right direction. 



Hide and sheep from the horses!

RM trying to birdwatch with his faithful frend!

HJ has now mastered the art of the graceful dismount!

This is what Patagonia is all about

We are now at a sheep ranch (El Galpon de Glacier) in Patagonia which is just outside El Calafate and on the banks of Lago Argentino (the fourth largest lake in South America).  The views are absolutely stunning with varied blues in the lake, brown, tawny mountains and snow capped Andes.  There are horses and sheep all around.  As you can see from the photographs we have been riding again, and as HJ is now an experienced horse-woman, she is able to mount and dismount with elegance!  MJ our guide thinks I will now be stiff competition for Zara Phillips!  We have also been birdwatching and seen a variety of ducks and flamingos.  HJ got rather carried away with the photographs and has beaten RMs all time record for snapping flamingos in Kenya.  The evening started with coffee and cakes ovelooking the lake at 5pm.  We then watched a sheep dog handling demonstration with kelpie dogs (a cross between a Scottish breed and Australian dingos), gaucho games, sheep shearing demonstration, a lakeside walk and finally finished with a fantastic lamb barbeque and traditional Patagonian dancing which fortunatley we didn't have to participate in!  A trip to the glacier beckons today.

Photo Gallery



The key to our cellar!




RM inspecting the vines




The two amigos



A dog as big as our horse!

A whole new adventure for today, Friday.  The day started with promising weather and so we set off for a hike to a distant church connected to the winery.  We were accompanied by Nog the Dog a huge cross between an elephant and hippo!  He came into the church with us and visited the gents loo with RM.  Half way back he was picked up by one of the posada staff and he smiled at us as he was whisked away in the back of the pick up truck.  We arrived back after our two hour trek to find him fast asleep.

We took advantage of the sun for a pre-lunch tanning session and after a suitably fortifying one, we embarked on our horse ride.  When I say ride, I mean we sat on the horse, clung on for dear life and allowed it to do what it wanted!   HJ struggled on and off and although the mount and dismount wasn't elegant, it was accomplished with the aid of RMs back and hand!  Our gaucho guide looked on in amused disbelief!

Even though we didn't get back until 5pm the weather was at it's best and so we sat by the pool sipping a bottle of the winery's finest malbec.

Patagonia beckons tomorow.

Our room is called Sauvignon Blanc!

We have transferred again this time to the Posada Salentein, a one and a half hour drive from Mendoza.  We thought it would be a rustic, fairly basic ranch - how wrong could we be.  On arrival we were not asked for passports and credit cards as usual, but asked the following three questions:

Would you like to go to your room or have a glass of wine?

Do you have any dietary requirements?

Do you want red or white?

I suspect you will guess our answers. 

We are actually staying in a 12 roomed posada at a winery (hence the name of our room).  There are beautifully manicured gardens, an outdoor pool and vineyards with nearly ripened grapes all around us.   We enjoyed a lovely lunch yesterday at their very modern restaurant which is attached to the winery before enjoying a tour which told us how they make the wine and a tasting at the end.  The Dutch owner is very interested in art and there was also a small gallery with modern Argentine works displayed alongside, very traditional paintings of windmills. 

The restaurant in the Posada is also modern and last night we enjoyed a fabulous meal: the ubiquiutous empanadas to start with, a goat ragout which was absolutely delicious (HJ pretended it was beef), steaks with salad and potato wedges followed by creme caramel and coffee.  We sampled Pinot Noir, Malbec and a sparkling win with dessert.

Our room is large and spacious with a brilliant bathroom although it does have frustratingly slow wi-fi and so pictures may or may not get posted.

All in all, we think we are in heaven and wish we were staying longer than two nights, especially as te sun is threateninhg to warm us up.


 

Sun and hailstones

This will be a quick photo-less post today as we only have 30 minutes free internet access at our current hotel in Mendoza (the more expensive and bigger the hotel, the more they charge!).

Yesterday we flew from Igazu Falls to Mendoza (via Buenos Aires) and had a very smooth trip on LAN airlines. It´ s just a shame that all they serve is soft drinks, a small bag of savoury crackers and two incredibly sweet biscuits.  We managed to arrive in time for a lovely dinner at a tapas bar near our hotel.  It was obviously accompanied by a bottle of local wine.

Today we´ve been visiting the city centre, the five main plazas, a small museum of modern art and a huge park on the outskirts of town.  The day started off really sunny but just as we got back into town the heavens opened and it started hail stoning.  We´ve never seen anything like it - huge shards of ice raining down like mad.  This continued for about 10 minutes and then torrential rain followed.  Fortunately we were able to shelter under an awning.  The drains at the side of the roads, which are designed to cope with the melting snow from the Andes, were virtually full.  We move again tomorrow to an Estancia (ranch) for a spot of horse riding!

Argentina 4 - Brazil 2



A walkway on the Brazillian side

 When I said yesterday I wanted to wet your appetite, I didn't think it would be so literal.  We have spent the last two days at Iguazu falls soaked to the skin!  Sunday was spent at the Argentine side on three walks and a boat ride that took us right through the full spray of all the falls. We were able to get right up to the falls and we had a very exhilarating full day.  Today, Monday, we visited the Brazillian side.  It is meant to offer the best views of the falls but if we'd known the hassle of getting in and out of Brazil, we may have thought again.  We spent around two hours getting there (a 15 km journey with two immigration controls) and three hours getting back as two Spanish speaking ladies failed to turn up for the coach.  However, the views were spectacular and the walks just as wet.  So all in all, we think it is a win for the Argentines.


From the Argentinian Side



A rather wet HJ

 

The day ended on a high point when we found Hito Tres Fronteras: the point where Paraguay, Brazil and Argentina meet across two rivers.  There was a restaurant with lovely views across and so we thought we'd splash out on a good late lunch.  The wine was rather expensive and so we chose what we thought was a reasonably cheap rosada: we ended up with half a bottle of sweet dessert wine!!  It needed all our aqua con gas to make it like an asti spumante!  However the food and views were excellent.  To finally round off our day, we have just spent an hour by the pool, getting wet yet again!  Must now go for showers before dinner!



At a platform near you . . . .

 . . . . is the natural gas powered train taking us on the ecological trip along the upper Iguazu River to the entrances to of the upper, lower and devil's throat circuits.

A full report on our visits to both sides will appear later, but here is a photograph to whet your appetite!

Evertroublesome GB - please note that this is especially for you!



More queues (sic) than a billiard hall!

We always knew that transfer days would not be good and it turned out we were quite right!  Having got used to a very lazy Uruguyan way of life, we were up at 7am for a transfer back into Argentina (via Buenos Aires).  The first flight was only 20 minutes late but then on arriving at immigration, there were two queues: (1) Residents and foreigners and (2) people from Canada, Australia, NZ and the USA.  We obviously joined the first queue, but were sent back by a very rude man and then had to join the tail end of the second one, which started processing our line as all the nationals were safe and dry - shame was mr rude avoided us.  We then had to queue for an hour to drop our bags off for the flight to Peuerto Igazu (although we had checked in).  Our flight was called and we waited in the last queue of the day to board, only to find the flight was delayed by an hour and a half.  Aerolinas Argentinas have not covered themselves in glory so far! 

We arrived at our hotel in Puerto Igazu at around 5.30pm and found a complete change in climate. The bad news is that it is very humid, but the good news is that with being in a constant sauna, we will lose weight.

It is an early start tomorrow to see Iguazu Falls from the Argentine side, and then it is viewing from the Brazillian side the day after.

PS: we opened the door of our hotel in Punta del Este this morning to leave, only to find it pouring down! 

Beaches and Boats



RM at La Manor (the hand)

 We are now in Punta del Este for five nights staying at La Capilla.  PdE is said to be said to be second only to Rio as the place to be seen amongst the South American jet set.  We arrived by public bus as it is aound 140km east of Montevideo.  It is situated on a peninsular which marks the spot where the River Plate meets the Atlantic: so on the left hand side the river is calm and on the right, the Atlantic provides huge waves for surfing. 

Our hotel is lovely and within a 5 minute walk of the Atlanti side beach.  It also has a small swimming pool, Italian restaurant and garden.  All in all, life is very gentle, easy and relaxing.  It is very Spanish in lifestyle with late starts in the morning, people still on the beach at 7pm and meals after 10pm.  On our first night, the turn down ladies were just leaving our room at 11.15pm as we were going to bed (so at least we managed to get the pillow chocolate!)

The weather is lovely although we've just come back from the beach where there is a very stiff breeeze.  It was in total contrast to Tuesday when we shelled out a rather expensive, but well worth it £20, to hire two loungers and an umbrella for the day.  The weather was very hot and the man who hired the beds to us, kept telling RM to put on 'mucho crema, mucho crema'.  This rather dented RMs ego as he thought his tan was building nicely!

It's easy to catch a bus into the main area which we explored yesterday.  The marina is huge with many very expensive boats and a whole family of sea lions coming in for their daily feed.  We had a long walk around the peninsula and the photograh below was taken where the river and ocean meet.  Unfortunately when HJ got up she'd been sat on a rather sharp rock and ripped her shorts so school girl sewing lessons had to be refreshed this morning!

Daddy Sealion

Nice photo - shame about the shorts!

On Valentine's Day . . .

 . . . there is only one person in HJ's life!

Montevideo is closed . . . . IT help required . . .

. . .  on Sundays.  We got up late and just got into the Catedral before the 11am mass started.  We'd looked at which sights we'd not seen the day befor and plotted them on our walking tour.  Unfortunatly Montevideo appears to close on Sunday - shops, museums, restaurants, the lot.   So we mooched around for the morning and headed to Don Peperone (again) for lunch as it was the only place apart from McDonalds, Burger King and the California Buito Company open.  In the afteroon we tried to put a video from our camera on to the blog and this is where IT help is required - does anyone know how to save a video clip from a camera into an MPEG or equivalent so that it can be posted onto a blog?  We assume that software might be required, but if anyone has the answer, there will be a prize for the first person!  We decided on drinks on the roof bar before going out but as the actual bar was shut but the door to it open we took our own up and out.  Lovely sunshine but on coming back down to the door found it locked...A call to the front desk enabled us to be brought down via the service lift.  Out for dinner at the only place in town (again) then home to the only bar in town - room 202 in the hotel.  At least we had a peaceful night as the loud crowd only do their 2.00am - 6.00am partying in the streets Friday and Saturdays, lucky us.  Tranfer to Punta del Est next.

 

Peter's video

Meat and Museums

 This morning started with a walking tour of Montevideo through a couple of lovely plazas heading our way down to the port area and in particular the Mercardo del Puerto which is a series of meat roasting restaurants in a covered market.  The smells were wonderful and so we



just had to imbibe.  But to really get our appetite ready, we had a pre lunch drink of medio medio a mix of white wine and fizz (it was a bit sweet and like drinking asti!). For lunch we chose a chorizo sausage, two pork chops and

a huge piece of sirloin steak.  To accompany it we had papas fritas and ensalada (note how I am using Spanish like a native: it's just starting to slip in automatically).  We also tried a local red wine, Tannat, which was quite light and went beautifully with the meat.

We continued our walk in the afternoon sun and visited two very different museums: Museo de Carnaval (dedicated to the Montevideo Carnaval with lots of costumes) and the Museo de Arte Precolombina e Indigena.  This was in a building that was in the process of being restored and the before and after photographs were well worth seeing. There was also a section on weavings of famous people which were excellent.

PS: last night's meal was spent watching music DVDs of British hits from the Seventies: such well known acts as: The Bangles, Sheila (who sang Spacer - which if you heard it you would remember) and Sherbert!  What a trip down memory lane!

PS from RM

On my tour of Casa Gobierno this afternoon, I came across this photograh of the national football team.  I think I recognise some of the players from 1966!

In the Casa there was also a embalmed dog called Comquimbo, who because of the bad punctuation in the Rough Guide, appeared briefly to be the president from 1854 to 1855!

On to Montevideo



HJ in a piece of art at the Teatro - Colonia



This morning we moved from Colonia to the capital of Uruguay, Montevideo.  We had a driver, said to be Spanish speaking only, who kept us well informed in excellent English throughout the two hour journey of the landscape we were passing through (generally a rural area with lots of cows, Swiss people and cheese). 

We arrived just before lunch at the Plaza Hotel Fuerte which is amazing.  As you will see if you click the link, the room is on two floors: the ceilings are so high that a mezzanine floor has been created for the bed and bathroom.  There is a very precarious set of steps leading upwards and I'm sure the English Health and Safety Police would not approve of it and it is definitely not suitable for the elderly (RM is therefore sleeping on the sofa on the ground floor). However, it is full of character and very central for the bars and restaurants we hope to visit over the next few days.  The lift is a museum piece with a beautiful iron grill and then two glass doors.  RM is now enjoying himself on the roof top terrace bar on the fifth floor as I write.  Although we've had a brief orientation of the city this afternoon, we will start our sight seeing in earnest tomorrow.

The sun returns . . . .

 . . . and so apart from heading up the lighthouse this morning, we´ve done very little today.  We stocked up on a picnic for lunch of cheese, olives. mini tostados and the obligatory wine at the local supermarket and retired to the small, seculuded garden at the back of the hotel where we spent a very relaxing and peaceful afternoon.  We´ve also been reading up on Montevideo as we head off there tomorrow morning. RM is getting excited as it is the home of the National Football Stadium and there is a small museum dedicated to their prowess in the World Cup (according to RM Uruguay won the first two World Cups, but that will remain to be seen).  Still having IT problems and posting photographs is not an option, but the room in the next hotel promises thinner walls and wifi in the room.
HJ on Thursday 10 Feb

Showers and sunshine

The morning started with thick dark clouds and torrential rain. So, we had a leisurely breakfast and chat with fellow travellers whilst watching the green parakeets in the fig tree outside.  When we did venture out, it started to dry up and so we hit the five museums in Colonia.  They are very small and often only two rooms but the buildings they are in are old and date back to the Portugese era.  A light lunch and then a mooch around the area in and out of the tiny craft shops and along the river to the lovely theatre.  I was hoping to post a couple of photographs but we are having IT problems (where is the Manager of a team of IT engingeers when you need her?) ahd more importantly the weather is now gorgeous and dinner is calling.

First thoughts on Uruguay

Having caught the 8.45am hydrofoil (Buquebus) over to Uruguay, what are our first impressions of this new country?

HJs Report
We are staying at a small colononial mansion,
Posada Plaza Mayor, which is right in the centre of the historico barrio (I hope you like my new trick of inserting hyperlinks!).  As you will see it is a small hotel and the rooms are simple, but clean and with huge ceilings and stone walls.  For lunch we found a small restaurant and although it was slightly cool managed to sit outside.  The omelette was £6.62, the papas fritas £3.83 and the bottle of frizzante (which Frommers Guide recommended as it is a typical Uruguayan drink) £7.66.  So you can probably see how we'll be eating and drinking in Uruguay.  photographs will have to wait as there is no wi-fi in the room due to the thick stone walls and so, we just need to get a bit more organised.

RMs Report
I will come clean about my first encounter with Uruguay.  I first came across the country in the Summer of 1966 when their national football team stayed at a hotel opposite my school in Harlow for the duration of their world cup (they played England in their first game and drew nil nil).  We used to bunk off school and watch them train and get autographs! 

Colonia is a total contrast to BA with a laid back, almost horizontal air.  It is quiet and peaceful but with lots of bars and restaurants.  Generally people come for the day, so it will be interesting to see how lively it is when we go out tonight!

Change of weather, change of plan

Monday 7 February


Clouds for the first time and a chance to think about our itinerary. We were meant to stay here in BA until 11 Feb but saw an opportunity to move on to quieter pastures by swapping 3 nights here with the same number in Colonia del Sacramento, a beautiful town across the River Plate (call that a sea as it is the largest delta in the world) to start the Uruguay leg of our tour. A very helpful lady from Journey Latin America did the deeds at nil cost and we head out tomorrow at 7.15am. Due to the low clouds and eventual slight rain, a change from being ‘rained’ on by all the air-con machines, we had an in-door day visiting an iconic mall/store called Galerias Pacifico; lots of shops but with artwork, and frescos (no, not Tescos). After lunch we headed for a milonga and watched the locals partaking in excuse me Tango. Very entertaining and at 20 pesos each, a cheap show. Early meal tonight to then have our first re-pack for our change of venue. HJ is praying for a calm ferry crossing as our last one in the far east left her a little green. I can’t say too much as we have a lot of high mountains to come, which I hate and she loves.
RM

Bruce and Tess eat your heart out . . .

After the sucess of our tango at the Tortoni, we decided to have another attempt but this time in Bocca.  We hope that you like the photograph and our new clothes. As you'll see, my figure is starting to see the effect of too many empanadas!  We spent the morning of 5th Feb on the top of an open top bus and visited Bocca, the home of Bocca Juniors which for the unitiated is the home club of Maradonna.  It was a very lively area with lots of colourful buildings with statues on the balaconies and outdoor tango shows: it was a brilliant area although it is not one of the safest. The football theme was continued as David Beckham's photograph was on our tour bus ear phone packet.  It was a good tour and put lots of the places we'd walked into perspective.

We also managed to get into the Casa Rosada but disappointingly I was not allowed onto the balcony and was therefore unable to speak to the people and descamisados (shirtless ones) as Evita did.

In the evening we took up Brian J's recommendation and had dinner at La Iberia.  We enjoyed steak burgers, a bottle of wine and water for £15 so it was certainly a good advice.

Today, Sunday, has been spent at the Flea Market in San Telmo.  It was not pure tat and there were some interesting crafts and antiques.  We rounded the morning off with a lazy lunch at La Reya and sat enjoying the sunshine.

HJ

Strictly here we come . . .

H

Highs of the day!

It was RM's birthdaywhich we celebrated with our first bottle of duty free champagne!

Enjoyed Plaza de Mayo but see low ...

HJs PIN and card worked in HSBC and she was able to withdraw RMs weekly pension

We had a very nice lunch in Cafe Tortini (recommended by a certain Spanish speaking Welshman!) and this set us up for the evening's entertainment of a tango show in their salon where we had the next low . . . . 

Empanadas and papas fritas on the way home rounded off a lovely day

Lows of the day!

RM received his first birthday text at 3am! (but it was a very kind thought!)

 . . .  Casa Rosada was closed despite what it said in all the books and Cabildo (a very small museo) had Mr and Mrs Jobsworth on duty

 . . . . where a woman on our table tried to cause a fuss and get us moved because we had a better seat than she did

If I eat many more empanadas, I am going to start looking a pasty!

Hope you like the photograph of us taken after the show!  I am not sure it is quite the right position, but I am sure we will improve on it in tomorrow's photograph.

Highlights for both of us - 3 Feb

HJ in Evita's restaurant

HJ - the highlight of the day for me has got to be Museo Evita, a museum dedicated to the life of Eva Peron.  There was lots of black and white film clips with english subtitles and a great selection of her outfits, hats and shoes.  It was all housed in a beautiful building which was formerly a lodge for Argentinian women who moved to Buenos Aires to find work. We then had a bottle of wine in the leafy, shady outdoor terrace and restaurant before heading out for RMs highlight.  The second highlight was navigating the Subte (tube) successfully and not paying as a kind man seemed to think it was easier to let us through the barrier than to sell me tickets using my limited Spanish.  However, if I had bought a ticket it would have been 1 peso (17p)!

RM after the 'official' wine tasting

RM - my highlight was an evening wine tasting at Anuva Wines in the Rendezvous Hotel in Palermo Hollywood.  We arrived for 6pm and were guided through five wines: a supmante, a white Torrentes, and Marirena, Syrah and Malbec reds.  Each was paired with a different food, ranging from roquefort cheese through to spicy salami and chocolate.  To soak up the generous portions we were also served empanadas.  There were only four of us on the tasting which was faciliated by a couple of young Americans who really knew their stuff.  The evening was rounded off by a bottle of the Torrentes in a nearby wine bar and followed by a taxi home where a very rude taxi driver tried to metaphorically take us for a ride!

Tune in tomorrow for tales of tango . . . .

A Graveyard and a Gallery

We started our cultural day by walking to the Cementario de la Recoleta and then armed with a map on which we'd marked the top ten, we wandered around the avenues of magnificent tombs until we reached the highlight for HJ: the tomb of Eva Duarte (better known as Peron and Evita). We had a beer stop at La Biela (with connections to the  racing driver Fangio) and as again, the weather was beautiful we sat out on the large terrace filling the time before our next stop.  This was the Museo Nacional de Bella Artes.  It didn’t quite deliver the array of European artists described in the book and although there was a piece in English about Reubens and Rembrandt, we didn’t see any of their paintings.  There was an ’interesting’ selection of native art and sculpture and in lots of cases it would have been interesting to talk to the artists to understand their thoughts!  As by now it was 2pm a late lunch was called for and so we headed down Avenue Presidente M Quintana and found a small side walk bar where we had a light lunch of a shared jamon and queso quiche for a reasonable 45 peso. Carre Four provided us with a bottle of Argentinian champagne for around £4 which provided us with a most acceptable pre-dinner apertif before heading off for Green Chicken Curry and Beef and Brocolli in Oyster Sauce at The Empire. 

Here at last!

We arrived here in Buenos Aires yesterday (Monday 1st Feb) after two fairly uneventful flights on Air France.  The Hotel Tanguero is a small, boutique hotel in the area known as the micro centre i.e. right in the heart of the city. After unpacking it was time for a drink to re-hydrate ourselves after the long flight and so we picked a cafe recommended by our transfer guide and had a couple of rather expensive beers.  It was then time for lunch and we headed for a Lonely Planet recommendation Broccolino (in fact one of their top 5), where in the world's steak capital we opted for two half portions of vegetarian pastas  We were pleased to find that a bottle of Sauuvignon Blanc was around £8.  So having fortified ourselves we thought we'd start to aclimatise ourselves with the area and had a lovely walk through the Plaza de Mayo and the pedestrianised shopping Calle Florida.  The evening meal on night 85 or 1 (depending on whether you're counting up or down) was more traditional than lunch and we opted for another LP recommendation La Estancia. The signs were good when we entered with huge BBQ areas on both sides of the entrance where you could see whole animals strung up over an open fire.  After complimentary empandas (similar to small Cornish pasties) we settled on a steak for RM and a half portion of suckling pig for HJ.  Both were absolutely huge and arrived with a simple salad of peppers, tomatoes and onions. Nightcaps were a half bottle of what we thought would be the same wine as we'd had in the restaurant but RM described it as 'early Egyptian' (Mr and Mrs B will fully understand this remark).  Some of you are probably starting to think this blog is starting to resemble a buenos aires summer eating fest: do not worry, culture starts tomorrow.  RM.

PS from HJ: you will be pleased to hear that the weather is sunny and warm but with a light breeze.