Los últimos días en Buenos Aires

What a difference weather makes when traveling. And in life!

Upon my return to BA after Iguazu, the heat had broken and the city had a lovely breeze and topped out at 72°F. So lovely! But it’s still a big city. I made further attempts to like it, but to no avail. Still, I bagged a few more “musts” and “shoulds” while in BA:

Tango show: a “dinner and a show” combo. I was seated between Americans, ate a big ole chunk of beef, and sampled more Argentinian wine. Dinner and conversation were good, show was cheesy but worth going.
Palacio Barolo: did a tour of this, ummm…, historic building? It was built in the ‘20s by a famous Italian guy and his famous Italian architect, to represent the levels of hell, purgatory, and paradise of Dante’s Divine Comedy. But really, it is an office building. In 1923, it was the tallest building in all of Latin America. That was a long time ago. The tour was fine. The views from the top were awesome.
Botanical garden: meh, but free.
Evita Museum: I’ve never seen the musical or the movie. The museum definitely puts Eva and her husband in a good light. I later read that Juan probably gave her HPV, which caused the cervical cancer that killed her. PSA for getting the vaccine.

Random observations:

“Simple English”: Nearly all English speakers I’ve met are non-native speakers. That I speak the “lingua franca” (don’t get me started on the irony of that expression) certainly makes meeting people from all over the world easier, but I also know I need to adapt my English for these conversations. I speak slower and enunciate carefully; I avoid less-common English words and use cognates whenever possible; I avoid slang, idioms, and cultural references. It just makes conversing easier. And I always wish for/hope for/appreciate Spanish speakers who do the same for me! But I have also found myself craving talking to an American just for the English. To be able to say “I lacked the guts” instead of “I did not have the confidence” or “weird creature” instead of “strange animal,” or “partied hard” instead of “went to a loud festival.” (I can’t think of a reason I would say “partied hard,” but I did meet 4 people who had just been in Rio for Carnival; they had been partying hard). Wherever I end up settling, I’ll have to seek out other American ex-pats just so I don’t forget how to speak.

Bus system in BA: The buses here are amazing, and with my refillable Sube card and Google Maps set to “public transit,” it has been so easy!! And it costs +/- 50 cents a ride! (If only Google Maps would do walking directions as well as it does public transit directions.)

How the hell did I travel before the Internet/smart phone era: Just how the fuck did we do that? I honestly can’t remember. Constantly asking for paper maps? Bringing my “Let’s Go” pages? Does anyone even remember “Let’s Go”??? On this trip, all I need is my phone: my tickets are on my phone; maps are on my phone; my boarding pass is on my phone. Every fucking thing is on my phone!! I bought the tickets to the Tango show on my phone while in line at the airport. And they were delivered … to my phone! And that doesn’t even mention Google Translate. For the record: I’ve been a hard-core traveler since 1986. I remember on more than one backpacking trip through Europe I started calling ahead to hostels and low-budget hotels to guarantee I’d have a bed to sleep in — calling from pay phones! I guess that’s how I learned to say “Do you speak English?” and “How much does it cost?” and to count from 1 to 10 in 5 different European languages. Were there even fax machines then?

Some photos (click to enlarge):