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

Catching Up: February

Time was of the essence. I told the cabbie to step on it while I changed into more presentable clothes in his backseat. I almost forgot how to tell him this because it was the first English-speaking taxi driver I´d dealt with in a very long time. Wait. Let me back up and start from the beginning.

I never envisioned my first trip to India would be so fraught with bother. Due to recently added rules, I was not able to obtain a visa in Argentina. The only way for me to make this trip happen was to fly to Chicago and get a visa there. Time was incredibly tight. I packed in 20 minutes after work on Wednesday, scooted out to Ezeiza, and boarded a flight to Miami. I arrived in Chicago on Thursday morning at 10am. If I couldn´t make it to the Indian Consulate by 11:00, it would have been impossible to get the visa in time.

I wasn't expecting to see camels, but there were a whole lot of 'em. The photo I am missing is of cows wandering the streets, acting like they own the place, which they kind of do.

The cabbie wasn't in the mood to chat, but he did me the favor of zooming downtown. Fate or luck or Jebus also did me the solid of presenting a Kennedy Expressway generally free of traffic. Long story short, I finished my submission with 20 minutes to spare and time to do some work in the Chicago office. By 6pm, I was collecting my freshly updated passport and was soon on my way to my parents´ house for the evening.

A relaxing visit with the family passed all too briefly before I was back in the sky. Light snowfall delayed the Chicago to Dallas connection, but I made it in time. As luck would have it, Belu was in Dallas working and we returned to Ezeiza together. We shared a relaxing breakfast Saturday morning at an airport café before I started the security process all over again. From Buenos Aires, I flew to Sao Paulo where a torrential downpour delayed us for two hours. Finally, we departed for London. What was originally a nearly 3 hour transfer was now compressed to 40 minutes. Despite having just spent three of four nights on airplanes, I found the strength to OJ Simpson my way through Heathrow and barely make the flight to Mumbai. After three hours sleep in a dingy airport hotel, my colleagues and I made our last connection, Baroda. Of course, the suitcase wasn´t so fortunate and was "probably somewhere in London." Needless to say, I arrived exhausted, but I can certainly declare that Ryan Bingham ain't got shit on me. Seriously, I´m the lunatic who drove all over the US for four months, but I never want to do anything like this again. Four out of five nights on the move is simply too much.

Traffic was only 25% more insane than in Buenos Aires, but I suppose we're talking about a pretty high baseline. The major difference - drivers are expected to honk to indicate where they are. All the trucks have this same phrase written on them, and they mean it (the "please" too).

I was in India for a very busy week of work, which you don´t care about. Unfortunately that left little time for sight-seeing. Coworkers who had been there previously warned me that the traffic was bonkers and the level of poverty was shocking. But I have to say that neither really put me off. I suppose after trips to Brazil and enough traveling around Argentina, I am prepared for such experiences. Many people had told me that I would be greeted with a level of poverty far beyond what exists in South America. Yes, it was another level, but the fact that I took it so easily in stride indicates that things aren't so different. After all, the Indians take it in stride. I suppose I´m Argentine enough (but that's a topic for another day).

From the gondola on the way to the base of the mountain.

People often ask what I miss in Buenos Aires. While family and friends clearly top the list, the only tangible yearning I have is for the wide variety of food we take for granted in the US. The most glaring hole in Argentine cuisine could be summed as "anything spicy." I admit I could do a better job seeking out more ethnic joints, but I have tried the Indian food and it simply doesn´t measure up. Near the end of the week in Baroda, our hosts questioned whether we had gotten tired of Indian food. Hells no. I was aprovechando. I never came across old my favorite mattar paneer, but what started with a dosa lunch on the first day continued throughout the week was pure heaven for me and my palate. I can´t begin to name all the dishes we had, but it was all fantastic. And I´m proud to report that my time in Argentina has not weakened my ability to take on the heat. Every runny nose was well worth it. Any prior concerns about food cleanliness or other digestive issues were irrelevant for me (though my friend Madison battled through a nasty case of the Delhi Belly on our last day).

This pond was way up near the top of the mountain atop which sits the temple. Give it a click and you can see on that little staircase there are some people either washing clothes or at the very least going into the water.

While he suffered back at the hotel, the rest of us visited a temple dedicated to Kali. This was an experience unlike any I´d had before. Atop a small mountain, the temple is relatively small and simple. Shoes are not allowed, and the entrance area is more crowded than a mosh pit, with people pressed up against one another. But there was not even a hint of pushing, and the throng moved peacefully in order. Most were carrying coconuts or other treats so the food can be blessed and then shared with family or coworkers.

OK, so I did get a cow picture. This was in the area surrounding the temple. She was all dressed up with nowhere to go. I'm not sure I was supposed to be snapping this photo without a donation, but there was nobody nearby and I had no local currency on me.

There were various obvious rituals, but I was unsure if it was more insulting for me to foolishly participate in them or to ignore them as a curious tourist. My friend Stephane and I split the difference, doing our best to go through the motions without drawing too much attention to ourselves. But that didn´t stop us from receiving funny looks. Many locals eyed us with curious stares. This wasn´t the Taj Mahal, so nobody was expecting our kind. Our hosts told us later that it was likely that outside of movies and TV, many of the people visiting Kali's temple had never seen a white person. I found the attention, well, cool. A few of the bolder ones asked us where we were from. The answer of “France, Germany, England, and the United States (by way of Argentina)” did nothing to quell the curiosity.

An American, an Englishman, a Frenchman, an Indian and a German walk into Kali's temple... Oh, you've heard that one already?

That day at the temple is what I will take away most from this journey (well, that and a heckuva lot of frequent flyer miles). There was a certain tranquility to the people we encountered, a tranquility that matches my professional experiences with the Baroda team as well. How the crowd of people that felt so comfortable pressed against each other is something I won´t soon forget. I know there´s a lot I can learn from them. To journey from BA-to-Chicago-to-BA-to-London-to-India and only have one day to explore is really a shame. But since I have a visa, it just means that I get to come back again. My taste buds only one small part of me that is eagerly looking forward to it. I saddled up for the 40+hour trip back to Buenos Aires with no doubt that all the hassle was worth it.

Also: look! monkeys!



Other writing from February:
A to B Back and Forth: Avatar
Best Foreign Oscar Predictions (I was right!)
Top 50 Albums #33 - Bad Religion - The New America
Death of a Terminator
Top 50 Albums #32 - Juno - A Future Lived in Past Tense
A to B Back and Forth: Sherlock Holmes

What's for dinner?

This is everyone's current favorite ad here in Argentina. I thought I would share it with you because it's just too to be missed.

For those who don't speak Castellano, here's the primer:

"Hoy hice arroz" = Today I made rice
"Lo hice para vos" = I made it for you

Enjoy responsibly!

Catching Up: January, Part II

As I am sure you are now accustomed, I'm going with mainly photographs for the time being. I promise, though, that February will have more words than pictures. Well, I dunno. Maybe you like the pictures better.

When we last left our heroes, they were traipsing across glaciers in the Patagonia. From there, we headed even further south, to Tierra del Fuego. Our home base for the last three days of the trip was the town of Ushuaia, the southernmost city in the world. Once again, click on any photo to embiggen. Here's what happened!

Old school photoshop. Just kidding. This was taken at the jail in Ushuaia. Originally there were nothing but natives, but the white folk, smallpox, and measles made quick work of that. Of course, given the harsh winter, nobody wanted to settle here, so the government decided the best thing would be to build a prison. Repeat offenders and harsh criminals were sent here. More importantly, people arrived to work at the prison, which built up the town at the southern end of the country.

We took the "Train at the end of the world," which had some nice sights along the way, but mostly got us from here to there. This picture was taken at the only (brief) stop along the way. Incidentally, the prisoners were the ones who built the railroad to begin with, often times in extremely harsh winter conditions.

The Wild Horses at the End of the World

The entire area is surrounded by the end of the Andes. This is the only part of Argentina on the other side of the mountain range. That led to spectacular views like this one.

Pan de Indio - literally translates to Indian Bread because the natives used to eat it. It's a fungus that attacks trees. The forest was loaded with them. Every few minutes we heard a "thunk", as another Pan de Indio fell from its perch. Not wanting to miss an opportunity, we tasted them. My two word summary of the flavor: malty watery.

Andrew and Belu at the End of the World!

The stream at the End of the World!

The entire city of Ushuaia. I know it's hard to see. Click to make it bigger. This would be an amazing place to live.* Just so peaceful and picturesque. (*only in the summer because in winter it would just be dark and cold all the time)

We ate loads of fresh crab. Heavenly.

Then we played with our food.

You can't tell by the picture, but these sea lions are hanging out on a big rock way out in the middle of the Beagle Channel.

I think I took about 23 pictures of Les Eclaireurs Lighthouse. This is the one you get to see.

The Birds at the end of the world!

I promised you penguins...

...and so penguins you have! Unfortunately, we didn't book the tour where you can get off the boat and walk around with them. We're not sure if that's even legal, but some lucky tourists got the up-close-and-personal view.

Lago Escondido. Well named because it pretty much just appeared out of nowhere.

An older couple on their dream vacation...

...and a younger one with many more in their future.

Belu shows off the latest in trans-lago fashion.

Natalia shows off... well, it's basically the same concept.

...which leaves Brad at a loss for creativity.

Note the Austrians on the left. They made fine companions.

What are these people laughing at?

This guy! A crazy dog who repeatedly jumped into the lake before returning to shed water on all nearby. We named him Blackie because we weren't feeling creative. But he was hilarious.

On board with Luciana, our fantastic tour guide. After taking this outboard across the lake, we hiked through the woods, saw a beaver dam (but no damn beavers). The next phase was canoeing on Lago Escondido. That would have been a blast except it rained the entire time - hard. But it made the asado that followed all the more fulfilling.

We finished up the tour at the serene Lago Fagnano.

Across the lake, you can see Chile (which boasts the southernmost village in the world, but don't tell the Argentines that!).

No, we didn't leave Ushuaia this way, but wouldn't it have been cool if we did?

I don't think I've given enough words to the sublime town of Ushuaia. While El Calafate boasted natural wonder, this was a place where you really wanted to be. Sure, there were still plenty of people looking to take money from the tourists, but you can see that there is a real town with real life here. I don't know if I'll return to El Calafate. Someone will probably want to see the glaciers, definitely a sight to behold. So I'll surely go along. But if I were to pick a summer home in the south of Argentina, there's no question that Ushuaia is the clear front-runner. Of course, I still have to check out Bariloche and Rio Negro and probably sixteen other places. Good thing this country is so wonderfully huge.