200 years of Argentina

My last full week in Argentina, and I was lucky to be able to engage in Argentina’s Bicentennial celebrations!! 25 de Mayo an important national holiday each year commemorates the Revolución de Mayo in 1810 - or the May Revolution, which initiated the creation of the Argentine state and the denial on the part of this first of the authority of Spain. It is not the Independence Day -- which came later on July 9. This year May 25, 2010 was extra special because it marked 200 years since the the revolution. This resulted in lotssss of celebrations of all that is Argentine and lots of baby blue (Celeste!!) and white around (colors of Argentine flag).



In La Plata and In Buenos Aires, celebrations commenced the Thursday before the 25th. In Buenos Aires that had been preparing for weeks at a time, and even closed down one of the main avenues in the city - 9 de Julio - the site of most of the celebrations. In Buenos Aires, the very famous and beautiful Teatro Colon was reopened Monday the 24th after three years of renovation. Monday the 24th and Tuesday the 25th were considered holidays. You could see flags being sold all around La Plata, the main plaza Plaza Moreno was decorated with tons of flags, there were parades, musical performances, and a tent with stands representing the culture (food and crafts) of countries from which people have immigrated to Argentina. There was a stage with cultural dance performances.

Plaza Moreno in La Plata

We received a new group of 5 interns on Saturday the 22nd, and decided to take them to Buenos Aires on the 25th. It was great to be in the center of the action, but logistically very challenging with a group of 9 people among what we found out was a crowd of over 2 million people! In the morning we checked out a parade around Plaza Moreno, and then waited a whileeeeeee to get on the bus to Buenos Aires, and headed there. We took the kiddos to the famous Plaza de Mayo, talked to them about the importance of the revolution, explained the importance of the Casa Rosada (governmental palace) and the Cabildo (first city hall), and then headed to 9 de Julio, the heart of the action. All along 9 de Julio they had set up these cool stands/little houses for each province in the country with information, images, and on the other side stands that contained food from the different provinces.. However, in typical Argentine fashion, it seems as if there was little planning - really small stands in the heart of the action, free entrance, and lots of long line waiting. Thus, because of the huge numbers of people there, you had to wait hours in life to enter the stands, which we really weren’t going to do. . It was madness trying to keep tabs on everyone, so once we actually found a restaurant that was open to serve “lunch” at 4 and didn’t require a long wait. Then we headed to Diagonal Norte, a street off of Plaza de Mayo where we waited to see what was said to be an amazing parade with 19 floats that portrayed Argentine history.

lots of people along 9 de Julio

immigrant boat in parade

Of course...it was difficult for us to get close, and the parade, which was set to start at 7PM only started at 8:40 --- an hour and a half later. It was difficult to see much because of all the people around, and it was tiring having to stand for hours and wait for something to happen, and deal with pushing and shoving. But, alas, the parade DID happen, and it was amazing and very well done with lots of acrobatic dancers, etc. It started with floats on the native groups that once inhabited these lands, some fake snow which signified the crossing of the Andes of Argentina’s liberator General San Martin, a large boat commemorating the immigrants that came to Argentina, a cool tango orchestra on the roofs of Buenos Aires’ taxis with tango dancers sitting inside that would come out and dance, etc, etc. Because I couldn’t see that well, when the floats were closer to the ground, or on the street, I would film them with my camera, and then watch. Also because of logistical challenges, the floats went by quiteee slowly, and some would be in front of us for like 20-30m.

I had wondered the whole time how they would reflect what occurred during the military dictatorship, and thankfully we got to see it right before we left, and they really did an incredible job with it. It was a huge thing, with dark metal cut outs of - the Argentine constitution, a man with his hands in shackles, and the peace dove -- they lit it on fire, and then had water (signifiying rain/tears). Then came a float with women walking in a circle to signify the madres de plaza de mayo, with the white headscarves (but they were lit up) and then more rain/tears, etc. It was very well done. Unfortunately, because we had to get to La Plata, and surely had to wait a longgggg time for the bus (which we did), we had to leave before the end of the parade. There were also lots of concerts programmed for after the parade. If only it had started on time...we could have seen it all...but that is often the statement here. Oh well!

Madres

symbolizing dictatorship

It is funny, when these huge events occur and you are sitting at home watching it on TV, you wish you were there, in the action, but then when you are there in the middle of the action, you wish you were comfortable at home, and able to watch everything that was going on!

This was the first time such a large scale event was done in Argentina, and I was definitely glad I got to see it, although it took me a few weeks to recover from the exhaustion. But the good (or bad) thing is another similar event will only occur in 100 years! And...300 years of Independence in the U.S. will only occur when I’m 90 years old!!

Workin it out at the ... Gimnasio

I’ve mentioned that I would write a blog entry about my gym experiences here, and haven’t...until now!

In terms of fitness - it is very easy to stay in shape here in La Plata. Not only is the city very walkable, but it is also full of parks and plazas that you can easily run/walk in. I walk at least one hour a day (30 m each way to work), and then more time to go to the gym, errands, etc. I also ran a 4k that they had here in the city just a few months ago!

There are also TONS of gyms everywhere that offer the usual - treadmills, weights, stationary bikes, etc...and also spinning, pilates, yoga, kickboxing, zumba. Also lots of places to take dance lessons - salsa, tango, etc. I took 1 whole Salsa class, and decided it was a little too advanced for me. lol

My gym - Punto G is conveniently located two blocks from my house. I find it to be a bit pricey (which of course have gone up since I started - good old Argentine inflation) I pay $70 pesos or like $18 dollars to go three times a week to use the treadmill, weights, etc - what they call “musculación”. Unlimited use is about $90 pesos. If you want to take classes (like spinning which I do for awhile and loved) you pay about $40 pesos a class or like 120 pesos ($30 dollars) for unlimited classes.



The equipment the gym isn’t too great -- it seems like it is equipment from the 80s from the U.S. or Brasil - a lot of it is in English and Portuguese. Many times it is out of use, and not working. Unfortunately they have no elliptical/arc trainer...but the treadmill and bikes do the job. They also have lots of free weights, and old weight machines. There are two TVs on the wall, usually on soccer, but there is no way to listen to the sounds. The locker room is nice, normal with showers and such. The outside and inside are painted red - which I like. It is funny - all of the advertisements for the gym that I’ve seen around the city include images of people in gyms and on equipment that aren’t at Punto G. haha Definitely no AC - but there are fans and heaters. I’ve taken a peek into some of the nicer gyms and they are as nice as the nicest gyms in the U.S. -- but probably cost you just as much as well.

one such picture


Something that is very different from the U.S. is that the trainer working there can work with you on your circuit everytime. No need to pay for trainer sessions! I am not sure how effective this is because I see that people only do about 5 minutes of cardio and like 30 of strength. Not sure those 5 of cardio will help. Anyway...When I first got there they kept trying to show me how to use the machines, and try to help me with the circuit. It was like they were surprised that I knew how to work the machines (seeing most of the other girls there - I can see why they thought that).

What are the people like? Everyone is nice enough, and as many gyms - it is mostly men that go there. They great each other with a kiss. They drink mate -- which is crazy, in between reps they go and chat with the trainer and drink mate. The water machine has the hot water for the mate. Many of the women wear their long hair down as they do their 3 minutes of cardio, and then do their weights. My view is that if you are wearing your hair down, you’re not working out hard enough! One old man insists on talking to me in English, and mentioning that I am from the U.S. I have seen some pretty interesting things there - little kids playing with weights (definitely not safe!!). The most interestiing was a little white poodle with a blue tee-shirt, who just sat by the treadmill watching his owner walk. I have seen a few other dogs in there as well.

Well - there’s a bit about my gym. Haven’t felt sufficiently stalker enough to take a picture on the inside...but I will see if I can do this before I leave!

Land of colorful landscapes...continued

My third excursion was to the lovely little town of Cachi in the beginning of the Calchaquí Valley via the awesome Parque Nacional de los Cardones. It was quite a windy road, up and down the mountains. The cardón is a candelabra type of cactus…many of them were hugeeee, meaning that they were hundreds of years old. It was a pretty incredible landscape to look at, cactuses with mountains and snow in the background. Cachi was a lovely little town with colonial architecture, cobblestone streets, and a striking backdrop of snowcapped mountains. A little town on the outskirts of Cachi is full of red pepper farms, and you could see them all laying out to dry in the sun. The smell was delicious!

what a tall cactus!




charming Cachi

look at those peppers

After spending one last night in Salta, I headed to the lovely town of Cafayate. On the way to Cafayate, we drove by the incredible Quebrada de Cafayate, a landscape of rich red sandstone, and rock formations that look like trains, castles, etc. Cafayate is a lovely town/city famous for its wines, ceramics, and proximity to the Quebrada de Cafayate. Although I saw the Quebrada de Cafayate on the drive there, I want to see it up close, and I went on a tour of it in the afternoon, when the colors are most vivid. It was absolutely amazing to see up close, the redness of the rocks, and the different formations. We got to do some climbing and got some great views of the surrounding rock. One particular rock formation had some amazing colors, greens, reds, etc.




a train!

just jumping around on a mountain!

Two impressive rockforms were the Garganta del Diablo (a huge hollow space created by rain and mother nature herself) and the Anfiteatro – where you could hear lotsss of echoooingg. . I was able to tour some of the wineries my second day there, and found the white wine Torrontés that Cafayate is famous for to be delicious. It was a lovely season to be traveling up there because the weather was nice, and the leaves where changing colors on the vines. There is an ice-cream place that has wine-flavored ice cream, and I tried a scoop of the Torrontés and a scoop of Cabernet Sauvigon – it was okay, kind of weird to have wine flavored ice cream, but I'm glad I tried it I guess.

Miranda's famous wine ice cream



With its indigenous influences, the region has a cuisine unlike what is found in the rest of the country. Locro is a popular dish – a spicy stew with meats, lots of corn (I ate some yummy mote – a large corn), humitas and tamales, potatoes (I bought some little Andean papas) and empanadas. The empanadas are different in the north – they are smaller and use ingredients found in the region. I had the best empanadas I have tried in Argentina at a place called La Casa de Las Empanadas en Cafayate – at two price a pop, they were delicious, and I had them for lunch and dinner :)



Argentines are pretty phobic of spicy foods, but here in the north there were some good spicy sauces. Quinoa, a very powerful grain, was found everywhere, and I took advantage of this, eating empanadas with quinoa, and quinoa veggie burgers, etc. Coca tea, and chewing coca leaves is also popular; most of the leaves come from Bolivia, just a few hours to the North. I love coca tea, but supposedly it is illegal to transport it in Argentina, so I kept to consuming while I was up there!

My last full day and afternoon were spent in the of Tafí del Valle and the large city of Tucuman. Tafí, named after an indigenous group that inhabited the region, was a chilly hilltown with nice little craft shops and lovely mountain views. Everyone was so friendly and easy to talk to, and I had a nice time chatting with the woman who sold me some artensal cheese, and the owner of my hostel. The last afternoon I spent in Tucuman, the capital of the province by the same name before catching the bus to Buenos Aires. Tucuman had some nice restaurants and things, but it is most well known for being the place where Argentina’s independence was declared. I went to the house where the declaration was written; it was reconstructed as a museum, but the hall where it was signed is still standing as it originally was. Pretty great to see :) I ate some pizza for lunch, had some ice cream, and headed back to Buenos Aires!

cute Tafí

Tucumán

Well, this was my last trip, probably for awhileee :( But I am glad I was able to see this amazing region, and it made me realize once again just how diverse Argentina is geographically and culturally.

Just a few weeks left here in Argentina! I will try to get a few more posts in for your reading enjoyment (if it is that anyone actually reads this blog!) :)

Land of colorful landscapes

It’s hard to believe that I only have a couple of weeks left here in Argentina…well actually not that hard to believe…it’s been a long year for me! But it will definitely be bittersweet and I will miss lots about Argentina/being in Latin America. When I first arrived I flipped through my Argentina guidebook and jotted down the places I wanted to see in Argentina before I left. Luckily, I have been able to see most of them, but what was left was the Northwest of Argentina, a region with an Andean feel and amazing and diverse landscapes. Taking advantage of my last week of vacation, I was lucky to be able to visit last week!

As I’ve mentioned previously Argentina is a massive country, and traveling by bus is usually more inexpensive than by plane. Thus, I took a long 22 hour bus ride from Buenos Aires to Salta. Most of it was uneventful, however, during a traffic jam near the city of Rosario, a bunch of passagenrs started banging on the windows saying “Abrí la puerta!” or "Open the door!" I was scared at first, thinking that the bus was going to explode or something, but then discovered that a few men had come up to the bus, and robbed a few suitcases out of the bottom storage, and ran away so fast, that no one could see where they had went. Luckily no one was hurt or anything, but some people lost all of their luggage, and it was just another example of the growing insecurity in Argentina. Robberies happen on a daily basis, and one needs to be cautious at all times. With an increase in poverty comes an increase in delinquency. It’s not an easy problem to solve.

My home base for a few days was the Salta, the capital city of the province. Known as “Salta la Linda” it is an amazing city with lots of colonial architecture surrounded by green mountains. It definitely is a very Catholic city, with a gorgeous pink (!) cathedral, and lots of churches, crosses, and such. I did a quick chairlift/hike down Cerro Bernardo to capture some great views of the city. The city boasts some pretty impressive museums, and I got to check out the contemporary art museum, an anthropological museum with artifacts and information on the way of life of local indigenous groups (Calchaquies, Inca, Diaguita, Quilmes, etc), and the MAAM (Museo de Arqueología de Alta Montaña). The MAAM was pretty cool, it has exhibitions on the Inca culture, focusing on what some see as controversial child sacrifices they left on Andean peaks. The craziest thing about the museum was that it displays three mummified bodies of children found on the Llullaillaco peak in 1999. The children are rotated on exhibition every six months; I was able to see the 6 year old boy mummy. It was crazyyyyy how well preserved his body was, like the skin, clothes, hair everything. Supposedly the conditions at the top of the mountain were perfect for bodily preservation. In the museum they conserve the mummies in oxygen capsules, and at the correct temperatures – the exhibition room was quite chilly. I checked out some artisan fairs and craftwares in the city. There are lots of peñas to listen/watch live folkloric music performances popular in the region, and I was able to check one out one night with some folks from my hostel.

Salta's lovely cathedral

peña in Salta

Because there is so much to see, and I only had a week, and obviously no vehicle, I went on a few excursions to get to see the amazing little towns and impressive rock landscapes. My first excursion was to the Salinas Grandes – salt flats. Although I heard that the salt flats in Bolivia are much larger, I don’t know when I willl be able to get there, and as a lover of salt (hehe) I wanted to see them! On the way to the flats we were able to see many different landscapes, including some jungle-like greenery, and the puna (3,200 - 3,500 m elevation). To get to the salt flats you cross the province of Jujuy (where many of the attractions are, but Salta seems to get most of the tourist money because of the attractiveness of the city of Salta vs the city of Jujuy). We stopped off to see the Cerro de Siete colors, a cool mountain of seven colors located in the World Heritage Site Quebrada de Humahuaca. Quebrada literally means broken, but translates as a deep valley or ravine, and this Quebrada is renown for the impressive colors and beauty of the mountains. I learned that the differing colorings can be attributed to the age of the minerals in the rock…the green color is the oldest (like hundreds and hundreds of years old) and is copper or something, the red iron. We got to see some cute vicuñas (type of camelids that produce some really fine wool.) We finally arrived at the salt flats after reaching some pretty high altitudes – almost 4,000 m or 9,000 or so feet. They are incredible to see, and kind of blinding. What was once a lake hollowed out to a crust of salt. You sort of lose all perspective and can take some pretty creative pictures like the ones below. ;)





Before heading to an excursion to see more of the Quebrada de Humahuaca I spent the night in Purmamurca, which is a lovely little town, with lots of buildings/houses constructed with adobe mud bricks, and lots of places to buy traditional woven wares, and the typical industrial sweaters and hats with llamas on them, etc. In Purmamarca you can climb a little hill to get some good views of the Cerro de Siete Colores and surrounding mountains. I stayed in a nice restaurant/hostel and was able to see a folklore performance of typical jujeña songs. The next day, we headed further down the Quebrada, to some ruins (& cactuses) in the small town of Tilcara, stopped off at the Tropic of Capricorn, and ended up in the small highland town of Humahuaca. I felt the altitude a bit in Humahuaca (fast beating heart!). It was a lovely little town with some colonial architecture, and an impressive stone monument, exemplifying the virture of native cultures that were overwhelmed by colonialism. We got to see some amazing coloring in the mountains, including “the painter’s palette” what looks like brushstrokes on a mountain next to the town of Maimara.

Cerro Siete Colores

mountain view from climb in purmamarca

A bit closer to the end of the Earth - Part 2

After two days in Bariloche, I headed to the small town of Villa La Angostura. We got there via the Ruta de los Seite Lagos -- a famous drive past seven Alpine lakes. It was wonderful. Villa La Angostura was lovely, cozy, and very green with lots of pine trees. Again, the wood chalet type architecture. I arrived early in the morning, and was a bit sleepy when I got off the bus...and I left my Mamuschka chocolates above the seat :( :( I was pretty devastated when I realized it. My main reason for going to Villa La Angostura was to check out the Parque Nacional Arrayanes, which includes same amazing cinnamon-barketd arrayán trees. It was a chilly three hour hike along a really well marked trail, with some amazing lake views, and a grand finale of the part of the forest with the arrayánes, which were of an incredible color, and spectacular to see. It was pretttyyyy cold by the time I finished, and I had to wait awhileee for the ferry to get back to town...but it was worth it. The region is famous for its berries and fish, and I was happy to try both, and bought homemade berry jams and ate delicious trout for dinner that night.

Villa La Angostura

cool Arrayanes



My last stop was San Martín de los Andes, which I absolutely loved, and where I was lucky enough to spend two full days. San Martín is similar to Bariloche in its architecture, and feel, but I found it to be a lot less touristy, and a lot more charming. I loved the little wood shops, and the small town feel of it. I spent like two hours sitting in a park taking pictures of beautiful roses; all the places I had been had roses, but none as beautiful as those in San Martín! It is also a bit more green than Bariloche. I spent Easter getting to know the city, ate some pasta stuffed with trout (delicious!, and eating some more chocolate. San Martín de los Andes is located in the Parque Nacional Lanin. So, the next day I decided to go on an excursion - I usually don’t like to do excursions and rather explore on my own, but I wanted to see the Volcano Lanín. It was beautiful out, and I had a lovely time. We first headed to Junín de los Andes, capital of trout in the province; all the street signs had trouts on them. We also got to visit the cathedral in the city, which has was interesting with both Christian and Mapuche influences. We stopped for many spectacular views of the volcano and lakes. We drank pure pure water from a stream, and were able to see where the indigenous Mapuche settlements, and ate at one of their restaurants.

a lovely rose

my favorite rose picture -- quite proud of it :)

Junin church with Mapuche Influence

Volcan Lanin

love this little idylic scene!

Traveling in Argentina has gotten me used to long bus rides, thankfully they provide you with meals, and if you buy a cama bed the seat reclines so I can actually sleep. I read an entire book, watched a movie, and slept..and in (just) 20 hours I was back in Buenos Aires.

I really had a lovely trip and definitely hold that it was one of the most beautiful landscapes I have ever seen. This was the longest trip I had ever taken alone (aside from moving to Argentina and interning in Peru & Nicaragua alone - haha), and it actually wasn’t that bad. The pros of traveling alone are that you get to do what you want when you want, you have the opportunity to meet some cool people, and have a very personal experience the cons - the awkwardness of eating dinner alone, having to figure things out yourself, and it can be lonely sometimes.

The downside to traveling in the South is that it was expensiveeeee in comparison to what I have seen in Argentina. It was as if things were being charged in U.S. Dollars, but said Pesos. I found myself flinching everytime I was told a price. The National Parks and meals were quite expensive.

Stay tuned for another trip post...coming soon :)

A bit closer to the end of the Earth - Bariloche

A few weeks ago during Semana Santa (week before Easter, including Holy Thursday and Good Friday) I decided to head South for a few days, to the beginning part of the Argentine Patagonia. Many Argentines (and travelers) had told me that the South, with its mountains and lakes is one of the most beautiful regions of Argentina. My roommate is also from this region, and raves about her home, so I just had to check it out!

Because its over 20 hours away from here, I took a flight down and then took the bus back. I flew to Bariloche, in the province of Rio Negro, one of the most well known destinations in this region, and the place where almost all Argentine students go for their senior class trip. It is one of the largest cities in the less populated South, but nothing compared to the size of Buenos Aires, or even La Plata. Of course, I never go prepared weatherwise, and it ended up being really winddyy and freezing, and I was forced to layer the pieces of light clothing I had brought. Bariloche is a charming city, although now quite touristy, located in the Parque Nacional Nahuel Huapi (the name of the lake that surrounds the city). Bariloche is famous for the breathtaking landscapes that surround it, chocolate (yum), northern european influences especially in the architecture with sloped roofs, etc. Many Swiss, German, and other Northern Europeans immigrated/live to/in Bariloche which explains the architecture and chocolate, they came from a snowy climate to another, and brought their culture. You can also see gnomes everywhere, not quite sure why!

The city is nice, though touristy and I spent my time wandering around, taking in the views, eating chocolate, looking around at shops, and people watching. My hostel was on the 10th floor, so there were great views of the lake. The central plaza is nice, but also a bit disturbing. There are lots of St. Bernard dogs around, which are known for being useful as snow dogs. However, now people just use them as a way to make money from tourists, and I felt sad seeing them being dragged around, grabbed by kids, and set on peoples laps and around their arms for photos. Poor St. B’s :( They were cute though. Being a lover of chocolate, I definitely tried a few types, including chocolate from Mamuschka, arguably the best chocolate in Bariloche, I didn’t try all the types of chocolate available in Bariloche, but it was definitely the most delicious. The place is themed on those little Russian ... dolls, not quite sure why. I asked if the founders were Russian, and they told me no. It was Easter weekend, so there where tons of people around, and lots of chocolate eggs :) I also went to a chocolate museum located in the factory of Fenoglio, a well-known chocolate company. It was interesting, they traced the evolution of chocolate and its use from the Mayans to present day with pictures, timelines, artifacts, etc. I learned a lot about the differences between types of chocolates. I also got to drink some delicious hot chocolate there.

Mamuschka - delicious!

the good stuff

poor St B :(

Central Plaza

chocolate museum

early morning view from the hostel

I went on a short hike up one of the mountains (Cerro Campanaria) in the surrounding countryside, where I saw amazingggg views of the mountains and lake. Each step I took, I kept thinking “This is the best view”. The blueness of the water is what is most incredible. It’s one of those things that looks amazing in the pictures, but still the pictures don’t capture the beauty that one sees with their own eyes. I went up to another mountain, Cerro Otto, on an enclosed chair lift thing, which was fun. At the top of Cerro Otto is a cafe that has a slowly rotating floor - so people eating can get a full 360 degree view. The cafe is ridiculously expensive, so I just took a peek to see the floor slowwwwwllly moving. The views from Cerro Otto were absoutely incredible. I can’t even describe it! It was unreal. See a taste in these pictures:

Cerro Campanario

my transport up to Cerro Otto

cafe at Cerro Otto with rotating floor

great views Cerro Otto

Soap on a Stick

I went to the Museum of Fine Arts in Buenos Aires awhile back, and I saw this in the bathroom. I've seen it in quite a few bathrooms here in Argentina, and I think it is so funny, and a good idea to not lose your soap, Obviously liquid soap is probably more sanitary, but this is a good alternative, and probably cheaper.