Home

Well, Glen and I are home and enjoying a holiday Monday.  We sure needed the extra day to get caught up on sleep.  Right now I am working my way through three large loads of laundry.

Our last day in Buenos Aires was spent packing and doing last minute shopping.  I had seen some lovely jewelry made with Argentina's pink stone called Inca Rose, also known as Rodochrosite, a rare mineral of Manganese Carbonate.  George knew of some shops where they sold pieces at reasonable prices but they were closed Friday morning so we ploughed through the throngs of people shopping on Florida Street, a pedestrian-only street.  We hit every jewelry store for 3 blocks until we found one tucked away in a small shopping mall branching off the main street.  There Glen found the necklace I wanted. We had seen pendant necklaces with earrings and beaded ones but this necklace was different with beads and silver bars.  It definitely was what I had been looking for.  

We headed to the airport at 12:45 despite the fact our plane didn't leave until 5pm.  We arrived about 15 minutes before Air Canada opened their wickets and were through in jig time as they thought the old Elite tag Glen has on one of his bags meant we deserved better service.  George even got his airport tax paid because they thought he was the one who had the Elite status.  Security was done quickly and unlike Mexico, they didn't search our checked bags.  We'd go through security two more times before the trip home ended.

The plane took off on time but landed in Chile 2.5 hours later.  We had to disembark, go through security and wait to get back on what I think was the same plane.  We had seats in an exit row so they did not recline which meant we slept sitting straight up.  Again we were glad we had our neck pillows although Glen used the seat's neck cushions.  They fed us well and since booze was free, I had an extra beer to put me to sleep.

We arrived in Toronto, went through customs and security.  We arrived at the gate for our Calgary flight just as they began boarding.  The poster tube which George had checked did not appear with his bags so we wrote it off as lost in transit.  The flight home seemed short when compared to the 11 hours we spent on the plane from Chile to Toronto.

In true Calgary fashion, it took forever to get our luggage and while we waited, George's name was called.  They had the poster tube in Toronto and would deliver it to the lab on Tuesday.  We piled into the car and headed home.  Unfortunately, we hit a road block so had to double back and take a different route home.  In the end, it took us 26 hours to go from our hotel in Buenos Aires to home.

After a quick lunch, I unpacked then had a two hour nap.  I was craving vegetables since meat is the focus of most Argentinian meals so made a stir-fry for supper.  We think we went to bed at 8:30 but were so tired, it could have been anytime.

In reading over my last blog, I noticed I made a mistake in the name of the cemetery which was really a necropolis.  It is called La Recoleta.  I also made some spelling mistakes--cemetery is not spelled with an 'a'.  I was exhausted when I wrote the post so that is my excuse.  I hope to get my photographs mounted over the next few days so watch for them.

Buenos Aires - day 4

Today was our last full day in Buenos Aires. The meeting is over so Glen was able to join me on the tour of the Tigre River. We thought it was 3 hours long but ended up being 5. George and Tom had not booked the tour but the bus had room for them. The Rio de la Plata is the widest river in the world being over 200 kms wide. A delta feeds it and it is through this delta that the Tigre river flows. We took the bus to a quaint train station near the Presidential Palace. We rode that to a tiny village celebrating its 300th anniversary (I can't remember its name right now). We had an hour to explore the area and we took in the local church and park. There were parrots nesting in the palm trees which was neat.

The bus then took us to Tigre where we boarded a boat and took a circle route around an island. The houses were fascinating as they were up on stilts because of the river flooding. The river was very high and the boat's wake washed over many of the docks. The rivers in this area are brown because of the silt in the water but the Tigre is also polluted.

On the way back to the city, our guide asked if we wanted to be left off at the Rigoletta cemetary. We had planned on doing the cemetary this afternoon so said yes. After lunch in a brew pub, we were walking toward the cemetary when I saw and hugged my Peruvian friend. Glen said I was pulling the same trick his Dad used to by meeting someone I knew in a foreign country.

Eva Peron's grave was the reason for the cemetary visit but the place was fascinating and creepy at the same time. I became enamoured with the statuary so have hundreds of pictures. The cats are also a famous aspect of the cemetary. They are well fed and love posing for pictures. Unfortunately, Glen's laptop can't upload any more of my pictures so I wasn't able to include one in this post.

George, Glen and I walked back to the hotel and Glen is now asleep. It was an exhausting day.

Buenos Aires - day 3

Yesterday was an incredible day spent in the countryside. The province is called Pampas and so is the landscape. Here the gauchos heard cattle and farmers work the land. I (Glen had meetings) went to the San Susana ranch to experience an Argentinian barbeque.

Due to the rain, my tour bus was late. Apparently those who usually walk or take the subway to work drive on wet days so traffic was snarled. So I waited in the lobby for an hour not knowing when they would show up. There were two English-speaking people, a couple from Columbia and one from Peru on the tour. The Peruvian worked in Miami so we chatted with her. Elke was from Germany so we were quite an international group.

Because of the delay, we missed riding the horses which was something I had decided not to do anyway so it was no great loss. I was able to photograph others doing the ride. I also got pictures of all the meat cooking. We had lunch in a big restaurant-like room with a stage. The gauchos served us from platters of meat after we ate a light salad. We had sausage, blood sausage, beef, ribs, and chicken. It was served with wine but Elke saw someone drinking beer so asked for a bottle. It was 2 litres so I shared with her.

The show featured the tango but not as polished or modern as the show we had seen the night before. We also saw several folk dances. Afterwards we watched the horse demonstration. I have never seen men control so many horses with just a whistle or a word. It was like watching the RCMP musical ride without riders. The gauchos then raced toward hanging rings and caught them on pencil-like pieces of wood. They gave these rings to the women in the crowd and I was lucky enough to get one. Of course, they expected a kiss on each cheek in return. Some of the younger girls then rode around the compound behind the gauchos.

Buenos Aires-day 2

My feet are starting to complain about all the walking I've been doing so I am taking this afternoon off. The banquet tonight promises to go to midnight so I want to nap after I post this. Glen's sessions don't finish until 7 so I'll have plenty of time to snooze without interruption.

This morning I headed back to the Office of the President so I could get a better photo of the famous balcony. The lighting yesterday was difficult but good this morning. I then walked up to the wide boulevard where the obelisk stands to get a better picture. I took my life into my hands crossing the roads for as you can see from the picture, no car obeys the rules. No one obeys the pedestrian crossing signs either so it is best to cross with a buddy. He who hesitates is lost.

I passed the Colon Opera House which is the largest in South America (I think). It looked like the Phantom would have been right at home there. I then headed down Santa Fe street, a name I remembered from our taxi drive. I knew it would take me to a statue I wanted to photograph. I also walked along Florida Street which has all the shops. It was a bit overwhelming so I'll return with Glen. So far I haven't been inspired to buy souvenirs although I almost bought a leather purse yesterday.

I met Glen for lunch but ended up talking to George as a woman wanted to talk to Glen about his research. By the time she finished, the sessions had begun so I went downstairs to the mall part of the conference complex. I guess if you are into high-end shopping like Hugo Boss, Versace, Dior etc, it was the place to be. I laughed when I saw that part of the food court had tables with white tableclothes. This was definitely too much for my pocketbook although I did find one store that had stuff that interested me.

Glen said the talks today were good and he was pretty excited about the science being done in the field. Apparently yesterday's stuff was 5 years old so people were a little peeved with the presentations.

So far I've taken over 200 pictures so you can see I've been busy. Tomorrow I must be out the door by 9:00 and will spend the day on a bus tour. Time will tell whether I have the energy to blog or not.

Buenos Aires

Since we missed a whole day in Buenos Aires (which means Fair Winds or Good Air), we checked into the hotel then went to the opening reception at the VTECH 2009 conference. We were treated to an evening of music. A famous Argentinian guitarist entertained us with everything from tango and flamenco to popular folk music. A violinist and tenor joined him on various pieces. We dined at 9:00 which is early for most in this city. It was nice to spend the night sleeping on a bed.

Yesterday morning we tried to get a refund on the city tour we missed with no luck but could book a spot on the accompanying person's city tour. Who knew I could have had these tours for nothing?

While Glen attended the presentations, I headed down to the canals that join the Rio de la Plata to the sea. Buenos Aires was first called City of Our Lady Saint Mary of the Fair Winds and was founded by Pedro de Mendoza in 1536. Although these days the air of the city is pretty polluted, one can feel respite by walking along the newly refurbished canal walkway. It is clean and has a big security presence. I enjoyed seeing the city from afar and getting an idea of what it was like. The mix of old European-style architecture and modern steel and glass buildings is unique.

I had lunch with Glen at the conference and it was neat eating flat sandwiches (it was like the bread had been flattened with a rolling pin) made much like British 'tea' sandwiches. As we learned later on our tour, the Argentinian people love the British and regret that their government started the Falklands War. Many young men died needlessly.

Glen and George took the afternoon off to join me on a tour of the city (Tom had to man his poster). It took 3 hours and we viewed the most popular sites. We saw the famous Eva Peron balcony and stood in the square as many did during her speeches. We also saw where she is buried but the cemetary was closed so we couldn't see her actual mausolem. Glen wants to go return to the cemetary on Friday so we can go inside.

We stopped at a very colourful street designed for tourists and saw a couple dancing flamenco. It was neat to see. When we tried to return to the bus, we took a turn that got us out of our comfort zone. Turns out we only had to walk a few more feet and we would have been back where we were to meet our bus. However, our guide had been careful to tell us not to wander away from the area as we were in a poor section of town so it was a wise move to turn around.

Our guide did not try and gloss over Argentina's less than stellar past. She mentioned the Lost Children and the many people who have gone missing. It reminded me of my friend, Alida, who escaped Argentina in the late 70's to make a new life for herself in Canada. Her son had escaped with her but got homesick so returned. She never saw him again.

The poverty we saw as we drove through the poor districts was heart-wrenching but our guide was pragmatic about it. Apparently the government pays these people a wage until they get work and some just never find work. She said many Argentinians are lazy and that immigrants work harder than the native population.

Glen had to man his poster for an hour after the tour but no one came to see it (they had it on a back wall so perhaps no one couldn't find him). He ended up talking to a gentleman who was visiting Argentina to take tango lessons. Apparently this was his incentive to travel. There is a tango school in the complex that houses the conference. It also has a high-end shopping mall complete with food court so I guess you can't avoid places like this, even in Argentina. The interesting thing about this place is the original architecture has been preserved with additions of modern glass and steel which I think typifies the new Buenos Aires.

The weather has changed so I am thinking I should have brought warmer clothes. It rained yesterday and it looks like this pattern will continue.

We had dinner with one of Glen's old friends at a local pub. When we asked for the bill, we got another round of drinks so I'll have to dig out my Spanish for Dummies book. Thanks, Melissa, for providing us with communication tools. We'll have to take Spanish lessons in the fall if we are to continue travelling in Latin America.

Niagara Falls

Thanks to Air Canada, Glen and I visited Niagara Falls 35 years after the first visit we did so as a couple to the falls. This time we had two of Glen's labbies with us.

How did this happen? Well, I blame Glen because he said as the plane taxied to the runway that it was great that we were leaving on time. Mintues later, one of the crew said the toilets weren't flushing so they'd have to fix them. It would take 10 minutes. The maintenance men came on board and sure enough 10 minutes later, the toilets flushed. Then for reasons known only to the man himself, one worker opened the rear emergency door. There was a whoosh then a loud hissing noise. The evacuation shute had deployed.

We returned to the terminal and deplaned. Three hours later, we took off from Calgary knowing we would miss our connection to Buenos Aires. We arrived 20 minutes after the flight to Argentina had left.

Air Canada put us up at the airport Hilton (2 nights) and gave us meal vouchers for the day (but who can get a breakfast for $10 when a glass of orange juice is $5?). It was 2:00am when we finally tumbled into bed. After sleeping in, we got a rental car and headed for Niagara Falls. It has changed over the intervening years but the falls are still the same. We ate in the restaurant overlooking them because it was 3 pm and the restaurant was empty. Just as we paid our bill, the power in the district died. Glen felt it was ironic considering the falls are a major source of power. He gave Tom and George his Tesla vs Edison lecture then we headed toward Queenston Heights.

We saw the huge dams that generate some of the power as well as Brock's Monument. We had to tell the tale of the War of 1812 and who Issac Brock was and what he did on Queenston Heights (died fighting the Americans). Then we passed through Niagara wine country and saw the Inniskillin and Jackson-Tiggs wineries. Niagara-on-the-Lake is still quaint and we saw Laura Secord's house (but not her cow--and no, her original claim-to-fame was not chocolates).

We got back to Toronto and headed to the airport about 10pm. Good thing we did as planes to Tel Aviv, London, and Frankfurt were leaving at the same time. Our plane was not full so we had a seat between us to spread out. Just as well as Glen's TV wasn't working. After a second supper at 12:30am, they dimmed the lights and we used the neck pillows I had bought and fell asleep.

Packing

Today I begin packing for my trip to Buenos Aires.  It will be a brutal flight.  We leave tomorrow at 4pm and arrive in Buenos Aires at 10:30am on Saturday.  The city falls in the eastern time zone which is 3 hours ahead of us.

We have nothing planned for Saturday except settling into our hotel and perhaps napping.  We have three tours organized through the meeting and hope to explore the area around the hotel.  Glen wants to see Eva Peron's gravesite so that is a must do.  Our first tour is Sunday where we take a bus trip around the city.  That will show us what we can explore later.

I hope to blog about what I see.