Road trip!

Despite our best efforts to get an early start on our road trip today, at least 11 was still on the AM side of noon. After packing an amazing amount of stuff into the rental car, we said goodbye to Alejandra and Bahia Blanca. We headed south...or so we thought!

There are times where the GPS helps. There are times when it needs to be thrown out the window. I heard someone once say 'it's a GPS, not a co-pilot'. Fair enough. In this case, however, we discovered that we were on highway 22 east, not highway 3 south. Don't ask! In any case, when it kept telling us to turn left we needed to reassess!

We stopped once for a break from the car, excluding the mandatory 'fluid adjustment' stops. If we only got the chance to stop in one town, Las Grutas was the perfect choice. It's a beachy, summery town with young kids prancing around in next to nothing accessorized only by raging hormones. Too funny. It was cute, pretty, clean and very popular. The beach was FULL. The umbrellas were so pretty and colourful and it made for a fascinating view. Did I capture he essence?

It was a long day of driving. Nearly 11 hours from when we left to when we pitched a tent. It would have been longer but the 81km from highway 3 into Puerto Piramides were in fact paved despite what we'd heard. Thank goodness. At the end of the day, the odometer read 775 km more than it had that morning.

We made sure to fill the car with gas as we pulled into town, one of my new travel tips. Here we are on a road trip that's going to take us about 2500km and there's a gas shortage!!! Seriously! Guille didn't mention it before. Well...we've committed now. Boy did I witness the effect as we passed stations with line-ups dozens of cars long. We managed to find a station that had fuel (after passing several that were effectively closed) but it was only premium fuel and cash only. Ugh! We'll need to be very mindful of this as we go!!!

Scenes from a nationwide gas shortage:

Pitching a tent in the dark of a make and model we'd never seen assembled before took a couple of attempts and a dose of humour-shall-overcome-fatigue.

Pampero and quinoa

We left El Encuentro today after lunch. The morning was spent willing my clothes back into their bags. Where's Mary Poppins when you need her?

We also spent time tidying the house and staring out the window at the sudden and strong wind followed by heavy bouts of rain, a result of a phenomenon called 'El viento Pampero'. As we were washing dishes there was a round the rains and I had to chuckle at the neighbours running out to get their laundry off the line in a hurry. Some experiences are shared across borders and languages!

We got into Guille's apartment building around 17:30 in time to have more pastellitas and cafe con leche. So good. We needed the energy to make it through all the errands we had to run to get ready for the camping trip.

We sorted out the car rental. We picked things up at friends' who were generous enough to contribute to our adventure. We went shopping at the health food store where we stocked up on yummy and strange items I'd never seen before. I was holding my breath when the bill came given all that caught our fancy. Only 110$!!! (about $25) We would have easily paid about $50 at a north american health food store. Score!

The photo below shows a collection of some of what we bought. I included it here because the word 'fideo' (meaning noodle) is on the label. Fideo is the nickname I gave a dear friend of mine and couldn't resist snapping a photo of his name in print! (quando seran los fideos juntitos otra vez?)

It was amazing to run these errands with Guille and her mom because I quickly discovered that Bahia Blanca is a small town. Cochrane used to be like this; a town where it takes fifteen minutes to make a five minute trip. They know so many people and Guille and her mom are very extraverted and chatty. Her mom hosts a local TV show here too so she's quite well known. It was interesting to watch them light up when they turned around to see someone else they knew followed by big hugs and kisses on the cheek, a warm Argentinian way of greeting people. In my mind, Canadians have a lot to learn.

The last shop before dinner in town with Oscar (Ale's boyfriend) was the local Walmart! That was trippy! Aside from signs and announcements in spanish, oh and almost half an aisle dedicated to the Yerba herb used for mate, I could have been anywhere in Calgary or North America! Sometimes it's nice to be somewhere where you feel comfortable when so far away from home. I just never expected that place to be a Walmart!!!

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Not too many pictures today so I thought I'd include a photo from the other day that I really liked. I've been trying to stick to a limit of four photos per day, max. This is a great opportunity to stick in one that didn't make it on a previous day. It's of some of the flowers in the neighbour's garden in Sierra de la Ventana.

Don't should on yourself.

Rain today. Our grand plans of going for a hike near Villa Ventana were put on hold as a result of some heavy rain. It was great! Not only was it a warm summer rain but it was a great excuse to be lazy. Both Guille and I were glad of the opportunity to justify doing nothing.

We're both on sabbaticals right now. We don't have to work but we have this inherent drive in us to keep busy, to DO. I noticed I was feeling guilty as she and her mom worked on their house. I felt I should help. As a good guest I should have but I was told early on that my job was to relax. Why is that do hard for me?

I think I'm just gearing down. If this is an issue after four months, I'm in big trouble. As it is, in these early days I find myself 'shoulding' on myself a fair bit. I should read, I should do Pilates, I should go for a walk, I should stop eating, I should study more spanish. Bah! I SHOULD relax and give my busy mind a sabbatical too!

As it was, I did study a little Spanish. Today was fruits and vegetables day! I sometimes feel like I'm about three years old spouting off my brand new words with the pride of a child figuring out how to tie her shoes! 'yo quiero cebollas y zanahorias!' The trick, however, was that every time I'd look up a word on my translator app, I'd have to check with Guille if that was the argentinian version. Corn is known as mais in mexico but here they call it choclo.

With the effort put in to that exercise and a head full of spanish words in the shapes of nectarines and eggplant, I enjoyed a well earned siesta mid afternoon. Bliss.

We had facturas and pastelitos for afternoon coffee around five. It seems to be a nice part of their day though my guess is that it's partly intended to bridge the gap between lunch around 13:00 and dinner around 22:00. Guille's mom went into town expressly to grab some of the membrillo pastries they described to me last night as an Argentinian delicacy. In terms of typical Argentinian dishes, I'm doing quite well given that I've been here less than a week.

We then went driving around the little nearby town of Villa Ventana before heading up to the Bodega Dunguaray, the local vinyard. It was a beautiful setting and we got some great photos but my God the wine was bitter. It's a new vinyard and they probably need a few more vintages before it matures properly. Still, it was a great field trip and we got some great sunset shots!

The neighbours Nestor and Bimpi were over for dinner tonight. They are lovely people, I can tell. I just can't really communicate with them. It's so odd sitting at the table understanding only a handful of words and barely grasping the flow of a conversation. I'm a talker. I love lively conversations. This whole language barrier has me feeling a bit socially awkward and verbally paralyzed. It's quite the challenge.

Given how spoiled I was in Holland with all of the English spoken, it's important for me to be put into this position to appreciate how others sometimes feel. I genuinely believe that everyone should experience this challenge at some point in their lives.

Guille did a great job of bridging the two worlds but I know it's exhausting so I was fine to sit back and practice tuning my ear and trying really hard to follow. But that too is exhausting so after a while I would give up and accept being lost. Sometimes it's fun to be lost!

Villa Ventana and a food-athon!

I will be in serious trouble if I continue to eat as much as I have been.

Today I had my first parilla - an Argentinian barbecue with several chunks of meat known as asados. So much for being a 'boutique vegetarian'! Our lunch table at the Mirador near Sierra de la Ventana was full with fries, salad, wine and then meat, meat and more meat. In addition to helping Guille and her mom with some of their asado, I had a milenesa (like a wiener schnitzel) with lots of lemons, yummy!

The day started at ten again for me. Hey! I'm on vacation! After breakfast we got ourselves sorted to head over to Villa Ventana and the BBQ restaurant. That was followed by a drive around Villa Ventana where we all picked out a favourite little cabins. It's a gorgeous little town and I was reminded of a long-standing dream of mine to own land somewhere and build a cabin. This town is a bit too far from Calgary but boy was I impressed! Oddly enough, what I loved most was the smell of pine trees.

As if we hadn't eaten enough, we then stopped for tea and cakes with their neighbours at 17:30. It was delicious but I felt the need to go for a long walk...only it was really hot and we had other things to do such as stopping in at some local craft stores to snoop, stop at some good photo spots at sunset (it seems to be hitting the peaks of the Sierras around 20:20) and then driving back.

While I could have easily gone to bed, we couldn't go to bed without dinner! Fortunately we were all on the same page and ate lightly. Still, this Argentinian way of life of eating late and then rolling into bed is definitely not according to my natural rhythm. I'm curious to see how well I adapt before heading home though. Four months is a long enough time to potentially get re-programmed!

El Encuentro

It rained last night! It's a nice relief from the heat and it smells so fresh and clean!

Guille's place in Sierra de la Ventana is called El Encuentro. It's a fabulous little casa in a quaint little town that I will get to know shortly. Here I can relax and really feel like I'm on vacation. We'll be here until Tuesday which suits me fine!

Looks like it's going to take me a little bit of time to get used to the mate in Argentina. This drink is loved by most Argentinians and is meant to be shared among friends. Perhaps I will learn to love it before I go?

Guille and I went for a walk around the 'barrio' at sunset and we both played with our cameras. I got a couple of good ones. This one of the owls (buos) is my favourite.

Making empanadas! I did a good job of rolling the edges, aka repulgue.

Tengo calor!!!

I could have skipped breakfast and slept ALL day. The snooze on my iTouch is only for 5 minutes (I gotta fix that!) and between each of the many times I hit it, I fell right back to sleep and even carried on with my dreams. I'm on vacant dammit! However...breakfast was only until 10:30. Sidenote: it starts at 6:30...seriously. We got home at 2AM, most people are up really late...who the hell is up for breakfast at that hour?!

Given that I needed to be at the domestic airport for my flight to Bahia Blanca at about 15:30, therefore leaving the hotel around 14:30 (way earlier than necessary as it turns out), I had about 2 1/2 hours to wander around this afternoon by the time I got myself sorted.

I wandered down Calle Florida, a busy pedestrian mall near my hotel taking me south to San Telmo. After about 5 minutes in the heat I knew I was going to melt. I knew I should have put sunscreen on my neck. I knew I should buy an umbrella. I didn't do any of those, so I walked in the shade and drank a lot of water. I walked to the point where I wanted to stop but didn't see anywhere to sit so I carried on in a daze until I got to the Plaza de Mayo (pronounced majo!) and found a seat in the shade by a fountain near the Casa Rosada. 35'C takes some getting used to but I was grateful for the breeze!

I carried on a little while later up Diagonale Norte to the obelisk on Avenue 9 Julio and stopped in at a funky restaurant for a bite. It's quite a pretty city and the architecture in this part is a great mix of old and new. The old colonial buildings are absolutely stunning. I understand why is place is called the Paris of the South.

My flight to Bahia Blanca was quick though I managed one of those power naps where you don't know how long your head has been kinked in that awkward position and you know it's going to hurt to right it!

Guille was there to meet me and somehow she even managed to say hello before I'd retrieved my bags by sweet-talking the guard to let her in to say hi! I got weepy when I saw her as it's been such a long journey to get here and I knew that now I got to relax a bit, that I'd be taken care of in the company of a dear friend. They were tears of happiness for sure!

It was an hour drive to Sierra De La Ventana where she has recently built a gorgeous little home. The drive started out in fairly flat, boring plains and then the hills and popped out and we headed towards them.

I'm looking forward to exploring a bit more tomorrow. All I had the energy for was a shower and dinner...and some cherry-pit spitting under the stars!

Bienvenidos!

Normally when I get to a new town, I give myself the first day to just do nothing. Dinner at a nearby restaurant, assuming I don't opt for room service, and a short walk around to get my bearings for the next day.

I don't buy the "don't go anywhere by yourself at night as a single, female traveller" line outright-you have to be smart and use common sense. When I just arrive somewhere new though and am tired and don't know my way around, I lean towards being a bit more cautious.

No need last night! Zach, of the Indian rickshaw rally fame, is in town about to start a 20,000km run around south America to celebrate his 30th birthday and raise some money for a charity he founded...as you do! He sent me an email just as I was leaving Toronto to say that he was going for dinner with friends and they had an extra spot. I toyed with pulling the lame "I'll be tired" card but I wasn't sure when and where we'd have the opportunity to meet up again, and honestly...why not go and have some fun?!

He was kind enough to come and get me at the hotel. Within minutes I was taking my first ride on the 'subte', the underground system in Buenos Aires. It's so much easier being shown around. Sometimes it's fun to explore on your own but I was okay that that lesson was being taught vs. learned.

Once we got to the flat he's renting, two of his friends, Lily and Nancy, joined. We had a mini happy hour with champagne and cherries on the patio before heading out to Chez Felix. At this point it was about 21:45. Yup - those crazy Argentinians really do eat late. That will take some getting used to but fortunately I was still on Calgary time which is four hours behind and therefore right about time for dinner!

There's a 'movement', for lack of a better term, of what's called 'closed door dining'. Chez Felix isn't a restaurant so much as Señor Felix's house. Some of these closed-door places only have a communal table. We were seated at our own and there were three other tables there too.

They started by giving us a pre-dinner drink in their back garden which was perfumed with jasmine. We could smell it all night-it's intoxicating. There were about 5 courses plus an 'intermedia' and they were all amazing! Local recipes, fruit, vegetables, flowers and spices from their garden, amazing flavour combinations. Did I ever luck out! With two bottles of wine thrown in, the cost was 250$, about $60...but really worth it! Granted I won't be able to indulge like that very often, it made for a wonderful welcome to Argentina!