A fly/drive roadie around Northern Argentina and Buenos Aires

Who said the Argies were poor drivers… we survived a 10 day roadie!

Dogs rule small town Argentina. They cavort on the streets (unpaved rutted mud and sand streets that they are) and bark incessantly throughout the night. Come day break, the cacophony is joined by crowing roosters and the sounds of weed whackers attempting to beat back the enormous overgrown grassy parks scattered throughout town.  In the morning, they rest, strewn across doorways and narrow raised paths, turning a hopefully belly forward for a scratch as people step over and around them.

It is 8.30am and we are currently waiting for our 8.00am pick up to explore the Parco Nacional Ibera - a large wetland in the north of Argentina heaving with capybaras and the jaguars that eat them. The rain yesterday has washed out the road, so the trip has been delayed for a couple of hours -- at this stage. The hotel we are staying at is typico of Argentina. It all looks good on the surface, but things just don't quite work properly: at breakfast, the toaster is positioned so that if someone is waiting for the toast to cook, no-one can get to the rest of the food; the evening restaurant loo access is a step down, right into the path of wait-staff barreling through doors laden with heavy platters; hot and cold taps are mislabeled, and the stairways are not evenly spaced, leaving one with a sudden unexpected short step that jars the old knees. It is the same 'not quite right' issue when driving. One-way streets may have no indication that they are one-way, other than some chap with a loud whistle waving you off, and there are no apparent give-way rules at intersections - including those on the main highways carrying large and fast moving trucks (which also may or may not be paved).

We have driven thousands of km in the last couple of weeks, and seen some amazing scenery. (Tony's overly regular 'input' on my driving abilities is received with warmth and a genuine desire to learn.) The variety of landscapes is impressive, from the dry eroding bad-lands around Salta, to the mountains where the largest flying bird in the world -the giant condor- soars on the rising thermals. We've visited transplanted German villages in the hilly areas of Cordoba, where one can sit in a cafe eating kukën and hearing German spoken. (forgetting that we should be speaking Spanish, Tony mistakenly told the cafe owner the slice of cake was grosse (German = big, Spanish = disgusting. She was mortified!). A true reminder that you are not in Germany however, is that the Glockenspeil in the centre of town rings randomly, with no apparent pattern to the timing.

Hundreds of thousands of Germans came to South America pre WWII, however the most notorious arrived as the war was ending. Nazis fled to Argentina, helped by the then fascist-sympathiser Argentina's President Perón (and the Vatican!). Some of the best known included Eichmann*, architect of the "Final Solution", and Joseph Mengele, the doctor famous for his macabre human experiments at Auschwitz.  It was the very same President Perón's second wife Evita, who was loved by the people for her (somewhat surprising) humanitarian stance. And yes of course we burst into song when we stood in front of the famous balcony....

The food is repetitive to say the least -we are so sick of meat and potatoes that we fantasize about fresh vegetables. In larger towns it is possible to find some variety, but here in the tiny towns, where no one speaks English, we are challenged to find anything open during our normal waking hours, let alone something more than Hamberguesas or pasta. We have both suffered a bit from dodgy tummies - dirty Argie bastards. The locals eat at around 9.30pm and again at 7.00am. Lord knows what they do the rest of the time!

 2nd Installment
We did manage to get to the park, albeit having to drive around fallen power lines laying across the 'road'. Stunning numbers and varieties of bird life (350 species) including Rhea (looks like an emu), bright red cardinals, egrets, herons, storks and giant kingfishers. We were slightly amused at our guides excitement at seeing what looked to us like a runty, shy Pukeko, but there you go. The park protects deer, otter, giant anteater, caimans (alligator) and of course the star of the show -- the world's largest rodent, the ever cute, ever in water capybara!!! They were everywhere, just being amazingly cute  - see photos. I am so glad to live in a world where 65 kilo guinea pigs exist. It just brings such joy.

Now it is back to the old lady grandeur of Buenos Aires to explore the antique markets, stunning grave yards, fine art collections (stolen WWII booty perhaps??) and highly variable barrios (neighbourhoods).

You know you are in South America when:

·        taxi driver's telephones make endless, repetitive and highly obnoxious noises

·        in the cities, Happy Hour runs from 3:00pm - 8:00pm. In the small towns, there is no Happy Hour as nothing is ever f#%ken open

·        you get ads for padded knickers appearing on your Instagram feed -- need a bit 'o that  South American booty!

Next, Falkland Islands, South Georgia, South Shetlands and the Antarctic Peninsula…

S & T
xxx

*subject of a really good movie, 'Operation Finale' where Mossad agents track him down. Ben Kingsley as Eichmann.