Well we have started our north eastern Argentine adventure, and it was a little rough at the beginning. We took the Via Barouche bus lines from Buenos Aires to Mercedes, a small town in the central portion of the north eastern province (like a state) in Argentina. It left at 7PM and the travel book I had said it would take 12 hours. The seats are roomy and allow you to lay down and elevate your feet, much better than an airline seat. So we thought we would be on it for the night. A nice meal (also better than airline food) was served at about 9:30 to 10, typical Argentine dinner time. then the movie began and it was very loud, couldn’t sleep, so about 11:30 or so we got to sleep. The next thing I know is that we are in Mercedes, and it is only 4:30 in the morning.
Mercedes is a very small town and there were no outward bound busses to Carlos Pelegrini shown until about 10:30 AM, so we sat and compared notes with a couple of traveling German girls, on a break after college, but now living in Chile. As the time approached and more offices were opened it became apparent that the bus we were waiting for would not go, it was broken. Several people with cars (called remises) came by to see if we wanted to go with them, but it was cost prohibitive, and in addition we found some of them greatly inflated the price when they saw John and I with our I pads!
So later we found a bus leaving from a different location at 12 PM, but our tiredness was compounded by the fact that we could find no open restaurants (at this time it was 11 AM and lunch in Argentina begins about 1PM). So we get on the bus which turns out to be a local milk run, driving all over town picking up people carrying packages (mostly food and things) to take to Carlos Pelegrini. Then the actual ride began, three hours on a bumpy dirt road. Oh my… hard on the bladder too.
But we saw a lot of wetlands, and some vaqueros and cattle (albeit they were ON the road)… see Johns “moving bus” pictures.
Boarding barca (boat) from Buenos Aires to Colonia del Sacramento, Uruguay.
By Judy Pinegar
Feb 13 &14, 2013
After a frustrating morning trying to make reservations in the north eastern part of Argentina, we decided to go to Uruguay. So a Subte ride downtown and a visit to the Barcobus (Ferry) Terminal and we had two tickets to travel on the ferry to Colonia del Sacramento in Uruguay.
On the way back we visited the park of San Martin, a beautiful park with wild trees and an equestrian monument in bronze on a base of polished granite that does honor to General Jose de San Martin and four major milestones related to South American independence.
The next day, Feb 14 we boarded the barca (ferry) named the Eladia Isabel to Uruguay and three very smooth hours later we were there. There was entertainment, food and beverages and views of islands and container ships. We found a much improved terminal on the Uruguayan side from our last visit, and a short taxi ride got us to the nice hotel.
It was located in a area we remembered from our last visit, and we were hoping the same restaurant down the calle (street) was open… it was and we had a wonderful meal of rack of lamb and a wonderful salad with fresh fruit (see pictures).
Colonia del Sacramento was founded in 1680 by the Portuguese. What still remains, stone houses, streets of cobblestones (sometimes slanted toward the middle so the rain can drain down), old walls that were formerly a fortress in the old part of town are enchanting. And the whole town is filled with trees, just like our Sacramento, California.
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Looking out the window at Lagurdia Airport after the "Blizzard" in New York.
By Judy Pinegar
What a trip… wake up at 9 AM in New York, outside temperature low 30’s… 6 inches of snow on the ground, taxi to the airport, wait 2 hours, flight to Houston, Texas, 4 hours, wait in Houston airport 4 hours, 10 hour flight to Argentina, arrive at 10:20 AM in Buenos Aires, 23 hours later (including a time change), outside temperature 84 degrees! Boy am I hot.. take off that winter stuff.
Next, in line at the customs in Buenos Aires. John as citizen could go through the short line, but he stays with me, and the rest of the “touristas.” That night we have a hard time finding an open restaurant, this is a Catholic city and it is Sunday.
Feeling much better, the next morning we are off to get reconnected to the city. But it turns out it is a holiday…what holiday we have no idea as of yet. Seems like a lot of the subte (subway) entrances are closed, not like before? Don’t know why? Also inflation has really hit, we had to pay 180 pesos for breakfast that is 36 dollars!!
We walked almost all the way to Plaza del Majio, then up Florida Street usually a huge shopping area but a lot of construction right now in the center of the street. walked into Pacifico the upscale shopping center We were looking for a hat for Judy, but a simple cotton one was 55 US dollars…way to upscale for us.
So we continue walking until we got to Cordoba, then within a few blocks on Maipu off Cordoba took pictures the apartment John used to live in with his mother (when he was born anyway, according to the birth certificate). Several more blocks right on Cordoba and we were at the fancier apartment that John’s father lived at – again according to our handwritten in Spanish birth certificate for John (actually Juan Santiago Mazzolani – I want him to go back to his real name!)
Walking back to the apartment we took a picture of a restaurant sporting an asada or barbecue grill typical of Argentina where they eat a lot of meat, this was an upscale one, we mostly seen them outside a restaurant. Then home to bed.
May 19, 2011 taking the Metro now, as it seems to have better hours than the commuter train; we arrive in DC on Thursday 5/19/2011, and walk to the United States Botanical Garden (near the Capitol). This garden was first established in 1820, by George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and James Madison!! It moved to its present location in 1850. After a stroll in the outside garden with mostly native plants we enter the big glass walled garden. Here there are different sections devoted to almost any environment imaginable, from the desert to the jungle and everything in between. One area explores the use of plants as medicines, proving that the original medicine men and women really knew what they were talking about. There are some truly amazing orchid plants and dozens of other amazing flowers.
Then, basically across the street we find the National Museum of American Indian, the 18th Smithsonian museum, opened in 2004, with a beautiful exterior design, reminding me of rock formations in the southwest of America, and even inside, everything is rounded, I don’t think there was a straight wall in the whole place.
Photo courtesy of Wikipedia
And what really surprised me, was, this museum covered Indians from Antarctica to the Arctic, the whole of the “Americas”, South, Central and North, even Hawaii… and I had no idea that there were so many different tribes, customs and foods. Speaking of food, we went to the renowned native inspired Mitsitam cafeteria for lunch, trying foods from South America, Central America, and the Northeast. All were quite good, so we ventured on, learning of each tribe, their customs, beliefs, and lifestyles. The overwhelming sense was how badly most of the indigenous population of the Americas have been treated by the “conquering” Europeans, really, continuing to the present day. A very sad side of our growth as a nation.
In the afternoon, we went to the National Air and Space Museum, just up the street, but knowing that we would have to come back the next day to “finish.” We spent most of our time in an IMAX presentation about the Hubble Telescope, how it has been repaired multiple times in space, and what it has taught us about our universe, and millions of other universes. It is a truly amazing film, including the sensation of actually being in space with the astronauts, if you ever have the chance, please go see this IMAX film, the stars will virtually come to dance on your face.
May 20, 2011, returning to the National Air and Space Museum on Friday, we viewed many other historical aircraft and stories, from the Wright Brothers, delivery of the US Mail, WW I, WW II and the current day. The museum is quite complete, having full size airplanes, unmanned drones, and a replica of the first space craft on the moon. There were TONS of excited children there, and many interactive sites, one of the most child friendly museums we have seen. And the “cafeteria” was only McDonald’s!
Photo courtesy of the National Archives
Moving on, we went to the National Archives for a peek at the founding documents of our nation, and a tour of the importance of the archives in recording the truth, researching the past, and even righting some of the wrongs that we have made as a nation. The National Archives and Records Administration is our national record keeper, created in 1034. Anyone is allowed to access the records, researching family trees, citizenship records, and any other research you are interested in. Through its records proof was found of the money the Nazis stole from Jewish families, resulting in a return of that money to relatives of the victims.
Photo courtesy of Spy Museum
From there we went to the private International Spy Museum, with some chilling looks at the past, present and future of the damage that is possible to be caused by spies. There were truly some interesting stories of people in the past who were spies, including famous actors and actresses, I would have never thought it was possible.
There was a chilling glimpse of spy tactics and terrorism in the future that might be ahead for us, using the internet. It was a very scary ending. Thinking back over our trip, one day we were at cafeteria where the computers had gone down, and we witnessed the mass confusion that that caused, people with no cash, huge lines etc. …Just think what would happen if we had no electricity for an extended period of time, and it was a deliberate action, with no rapid repairs on the way??? Or any number of mass scale interventions in our country.
Judy J. Pinegar is a writer
She has written for numerous web sites and magazines
May 18, 2011, Pat, John’s daughter’s husband’s mother, had arranged a Bus trip to the National Museum of Natural History, and it was perfect timing. Both John and I were very tired, with sore feet from the day before! Arriving we saw a performance of Tahitian and Hawaiian dance (although only a few of the dancers were actually Tahitians!).
We then spent the rest of the day in this wonderful museum. One of my favorite areas was following the beginning of life, from the “big bang” to present day, tracking both the plants and animals who lived in the seas, and those who adapted to live on land. Seeing that huge timeline, where mammals have only come to occupy the earth in the last few centuries, it really gives you a sense of how tiny we are in the whole scope of things, and what the future might hold. So many things have become extinct, we might even be next!
costa-rica-coast
Image 1 of 9
Costa Rica Shoreline
We also saw an IMAX presentation on the Dinosaurs and actual relic research and reconstruction in Argentina today. The big screen and the 3-D really make an impressive viewing, Once, I had a dinosaur step on my face, and I definitely ducked when a prehistoric bird flew right at me!
The section on Mammals was very interesting, we certainly have some strange cousins, all with the three things that mammals all must have (1. Hair, 2. Milk for the young, and 3. An inner ear). We even saw a display of the first mammal, a little mouse like creature who lived in the time of the dinosaur, but actually survived that time to mutate and change over centuries to become the mammals of today.
Another area I loved was the Butterfly Viewing Rooms, although a little humid and warm to keep the butterflies in good condition, it was filled with beautiful plants and thousands of butterflies. Many types I have never seen, who actually come and land on your arm, or clothing, or the floor beneath your feet. You had to really watch where you were stepping in that area, and when you left they checked all your clothing for castaways!
This is one museum that really takes more than one visit to view, at least for us, but the bus soon left returning us to an early relaxing evening and sleep.
Judy J. Pinegar is a writer
She has written for many different websites and magazines
