Europe Trip, Part 2: What We Saw

The last update went into detail about what Belu and I did in Europe. Today will be largely photos, the prettiest ones I could scrounge up. Click on any photo to embiggen, and I think most of 'em are worth it. Please enjoy!

Puerta del Sol in Madrid


Getting ready to start the day in Plaza Real, Madrid


Roman viaduct in Segovia


Main plaza in Segovia


Segovian street, approaching the viaduct


Cathedral in Segovia


View of the Alhambra in Toledo


Park Güell in Barcelona


A Barcelonan woman awaiting her meat


The interior of La Sagrada Familia in Barcelona


Gracia neighborhood in Barcelona


Our last night in Barcelona featured a better view than we expected, at least for a little while.


Belu in a bustling market in Barcelona


Talking politics at a cafe in the middle of the market


Feeding the birds outside of Notre Dame


Le Trocadero as viewed from the Eiffel Tower


Hospital des Invalides and a lot more of Paris


Street dedicated to Edward VII in Paris


Paris from the Sacré-Cœur


Another bird aficionado in Paris


Geneva


Playing chess in Geneva


The Grand Canal in Venice


Piazza San Marco in Venice


Venice


More Venice


A different view from the gondola


Venice was overrun by short, Asian ladies with sharp elbows and quick camera trigger fingers. But these two seemed nice.


A small canal in Venice


The Arno in Florence


A hazy day in Florence


The cat guarding the staircase to Piazza Michaelangelo


Some amazing clouds rolled through during a stroll through the gardens at Palazio Pitti


St. Peter's Basilica in Rome


Some old friends in Pincio Park.


The Coliseum


The Roman Forum with Monumento a Vittorio Emanuele II in the background


A large-scale take on the Roman Forum


All those travels sure made us tired. This guy, too, apparently. Sweet dreams, everyone!

Catching Up: May

Geeez, I'm still so, so far behind in the blogging here. So we'll go though May as quickly as humanly possible. That will be difficult because there was much going on...

At the outset of May, we were lucky to have Emily and Stewart visiting from NYC. The first weekend they were in town, however, featured a great tragedy. I'm not sure if I have mentioned it on this blog before, but I have declared my futbol allegiance here in Argentina. Soy hincha del Club Atletico Independiente. That happens to be the same team as Belu. As Stewart is a sports journalist, we decided we should definitely take him and Emily to a soccer match. It just so happened that we were nearing the end of the season, and there was a hugely important game between our team and Argentinos Juniors. Argentinos were in first place, with Independiente in third. With only one remaining game, the winner would have an excellent chance of taking the title. So we decided to go. Independiente was easily ruling the day when the wheels fell off. Despite a 3-1 lead with 20 minutes go go, the Red Devils gave up three goals and lost the match with just seconds remaining. It was a remarkable collapse. We're talking a Dough Flutie Hail Mary times three with the championship in the balance. Stewart and Emily got to witness a treat, but Belu and I (especially Belu) were not happy campers.

Utterly painful.

But we eventually got over it thanks to some thick steak and sweet dulce de leche. At this point, we have the "hosting" thing down, so we were able to show our guests the best parilla, tango show, and ice cream parlors. Everything above that is gravy, but we had plenty of gravy, too. On the second weekend, we took an excursion to Estancia La Juanita in Chascomús. This was my first trip to an Argentine Estancia, and though it was a bit cold, the food was delicious, the air clean, and the surroundings peaceful. We usually only get one of those three in the city.

Stewart gives Mate a go. Emily looks on approvingly.

We made up our own names for these dogs. But I can't remember them now. The white one should have been called "crazy."

We had to keep the fire in the room burning all night. This meant sleep came in three hour stretches. It also meant we came home smelling like barbecue. Of course, if you gotta smell like something, there are worse odors out there.

We capped off a great visit with another trip to Tea Connection, I feared a bit for Stewart's return to New York as he became borderline dependent during the week - it just means he has to come back. By all accounts he is surviving just fine, but certainly misses the "Come to Papa."

After their departure, I began putting things in place for the big event in May. Not my 35th birthday, but it took place on the same day. For a long time, I felt that Belu was not just the right girl for me, but the best thing in my life. So I was ready to take the plunge. I knew I was dating my future wife, and it was time to let her know, too. With Emily's help, I was able to get the right ring here without the risk of getting scammed by an Argentine jeweler. The big problem would be the surprise. It wasn't like we hadn't discussed the future. Heck, we'd even discussed the type of ring.

It's not very often that we get dressed up to go out for a fancy dinner. So I decided my birthday would be perfect cover. My plan was set to have a drink at the very fancy Bibliotheque Bar in the Sofitel, make my proposal, and then follow with dinner. Unfortunately, when it was time to go, the rain was coming down in sheets. Belu said, "Well, we can skip the bar and just wait for rain to stop." I think I said, "No." We snagged a taxi and arrived relatively dry. But because of the weather the Bibliotheque was full of old, rich hotel guests who were afraid to brave the conditions. So instead we sat in the adjoining Cafe Arroyo. It's not quite as elegant, and there were people in there working on laptops and having casual conversations. But I couldn't deviate from the plan...

I waited until our drinks had arrived to ensure that there would be no interruption from the waiter. I told Belu what she means to me, and how happy I am with her. More importantly, we talked about the future and how many great things we have awaiting us. At this point I probably went off script a bit. I'm not sure if I ended up asking her the question directly or not. But once she saw the ring, she was all smiles.

A few minutes after Belu said "Yes!"

Belu said, "I want to call my Mom." The other surprise was that I had already called to tell her my intentions (and ask her permission), and that she would be meeting us for dinner. I think I wasn't the only one whose face hurt from smiling all night. So my life took a very big step forward. I don't feel old for 35, but I feel more mature. More importantly, I'm ready to begin a new chapter. Pretty soon it will become official.

Wedding plans are rolling along and you can read all about them here.

Other writing from May:
A to B Back and Forth Movie Review: Iron Man II
Top 50 Albums #24: The Flaming Lips - Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots

Catching Up: March/April

Once again I find myself behind in catching up, let alone blogging along. So once again, it's mostly pictures and captions today. On Easter weekend, Belu and I headed north to Misiones to visit the famous Iguazu Falls. Despite being ridiculously crowded, it did not disappoint. Here are the photos! Click on any to embiggen (many are worth the click!).

The day we arrived, our first excursion was on the Rios Paraná, and Iguazu, the rivers that divide Argentina, Paraguay, and Brazil. An easygoing journey with really lousy pizza.

The only real destination of this river journey was pretty darn heartbreaking. The boat stopped near a sandy embankment and some natives played primitive music and danced. It was a meager show for the tourists. Belu and I would have rather just not seen it. All these people were watching and taking pictures, and clapped politely when it was over, but the whole thing just had a freakshow feel to it.

At least the ride home was peaceful. We talked with one of the boat's workers as the sun set behind the trees. Well, Belu talked to him. I did my best to understand his accent.

OK, enough river cruises. THIS is what we came for. The view from above La Garganta del Diablo (Devil's Throat).

Me and Bels above La Garganta. No water pours on you here, but everyone gets a fresh shower every time the wind picks up.

So we jumped in a boat and cruised around the river. But this time we had a real purpose. We're going to follow that boat in front of us - right under the falls.

The boat after ours. I don't believe the boat actually went directly under the water flow, but I have never been more wet in my life - even that Stevie Wonder concert in Detroit was a desert compared to this.

Belu - post shower.

And me, post shower. People have asked me if this picture is fake. It is not.

Another place to get soaked. These cascades have names but I can't remember them now. I think it's like the three sisters or something.

When standing above, the water races calmly by, and it seems like it would be a good idea to jump in and go for a ride. But the deafening noise is a reminder that there are violent collisions below.

The place couldn't have been more crowded. Finding space to get a picture of just us was nearly impossible. No wonder we look so happy!

There were gorgeous butterflies everywhere. Many were freaking huge. We named this guy Ralphie. He did us the favor of sitting still for a bit.

I thought that Ralphie was chewing on a piece of grass or something. But now I believe that green line reaching from his mouth is his butterfly tongue. He must have been digging for critters.

The photo doesn't do justice to how cool these birds were. They looked like cartoons.

Speaking of cartoons, these Coati come right up to you hoping to be fed. They are practically domesticated by now. Also seen, enormous spiders, toucans, walking sticks, and various other critters.

Can you see it? There's a butterfly in the sunlight just over this waterfall. Give it a click. I love how he is just fluttering along, meanwhile this water is raging..

They say that the best falls are on the Argentine side, but Brazil has the best views. Obviously the lady here is gorgeous (she's an Argentine on the Brazilian side -not sure how the math works on that one). They're not lying about the view. We could have stood here all day.

Just one small part of the view from Brazil.

Because it was Semana Santa, the whole world was here on vacation. Getting through customs to get to the Brazil side took us well over an hour. That unfortunately really cut into our time in the park. But even with that headache, the journey was well worth it.

Now on the other side, the Devil's Throat is behind this wall of water.

We had to race through this part. Kind of a bummer.

On the way back, we stopped in Iguazu Forest for some adventure. Here, Belu steels herself for some rappelling. After that and some decent hiking, we finished with a series of zip-lines strung between trees 70 feet off the ground. That was unnerving AND a blast.

Belu, taking the express elevator and only a couple nicks to show for it.

Posing at tres fronteras.

Tres fronteras. On the left you see Paraguay, on the right Brazil, and under your feet, Argentina (hence the white and sky-blue obelisk). We had an excellent dinner just around the corner from here as the sun set on our trip. Then it was off to the airport to wait for a severely delayed flight. This may be the last time we go away on Semana Santa as it's always insane. When you move to Argentina, people ask if you are going to visit Iguazu. Obviously it was on the list of "to dos." Waiting to have the Brazilian visa was a good idea. We will surely be going back, just not the busiest week of the year.

Other writings from March/April:
Top 50 Albums - #25 Tapes 'n Tapes
Top 50 Albums - #26 Kings of Leon
Top 50 Albums - #27 Idlewild
Top 50 Albums - #28 Common
Top 50 Albums - #29 The Futureheads
Top 50 Albums - #30 The Black Keys
Top 50 Albums - #31 Wolfmother