Sometime ago
cruising friends of ours had spoken of these fancy buses in South America with
special chairs that fold down flat to a decent bed in which you can sleep .
This sounded quite appealing so we made enquiries about travelling in one to
Buenos Aires from Puerto Iguazu which is an 18 hour trip . It turned out that
these particular buses are super luxury and are called Super Cama’s and with
only around 25 seats available on two decks they are about as spacious as a bus
can get . We booked on the upper deck to improve our view of the surrounding
countryside and were really impressed with how comfortable these chairs/beds
are and with meals and drinks served on route and an entertainment system on
each chair which included music and movies , this was neat . I managed to catch
up on some 70’s rock while reclining in this comfy chair and there is something
quite cool about listening to Pink Floyd while Argentina flashes by at 100kph .The
following morning after a good night’s sleep we arrived at the Retiro Bus
Terminus in Buenos Aires and caught a taxi to our hotel.
With this
post being written now at the end of our two week stay in this city , let me
say up-front that we have enjoyed every minute of our time spent in Buenos
Aires . What is different about this city is that the pace is much slower on
the streets , meaning there is not that frenetic scurrying around with people
rushing about with stern looks on their faces . For a country with a failed
economy people look remarkably happy under these circumstances and being social
is a big part of their city life with the many plazas ( parks ) full of people
chatting and enjoying themselves .
Buenos Aires
is often referred to as the “ Paris “ of Latin America and with the city being
the birthplace of the Tango there is a nightlife second to none with dance clubs
referred to as “ Milongas “ where our good friend Sarah introduced us to the
world of Tango . I have always wanted to go to a proper dance venue , not one
where tourists are taken to watch shows but one where the locals dance. We met
Sarah in Salvador and being an avid dancer herself she promised to take us to these
places and she did not disappoint starting out with an evening in Plaza Dorrego
, the second oldest plaza in Buenos Aires . This milonga is set up and staged
in the square . We have discovered that Tango is not just a dance but a
complete lifestyle and those who love it refer to it as being almost like an
addiction in that your life revolves around visiting milongas and dancing at
every opportunity . We have met people who have given up their jobs to enable
them to focus fully on their dancing , one lady even packed up lock , stock and
barrel to move here from the States to devote her life to her dancing . Tango
culture has a unique etiquette and specific social rules are applied at the
milongas something that intrigued us at every milonga we visited. Watching the
Tango being danced particularly when the dancers are good is quite something
and the Buenos Aires Club , the only milonga in the city with its own orchestra
is what l had in mind when l first asked Sarah to show us around.
One of the
many places that we visited was the famous cemetery La Recoleta which is listed
among the top ten most beautiful cemeteries in the world . It is the top
attraction for tourists visiting the city as it holds almost 5000 tombs
(mausoleums) with the who’s who of notable deceased Argentinians . Past
presidents including their late beloved First Lady Eva Peron , Nobel Prize winners
and even Napoleon’s illegitimate granddaughter Isabel Colonna are buried here .
The scale of some of these tombs are enormous with statues and features that
must have cost those families a fortune . What is sad is that amongst these
grandiose memorials are some that have been long forgotten by the family of the
deceased and are in serious need of repair .
Live music
venues are also in abundance and one in particular that we really enjoyed was
the Bebop Club which has featured bands playing every night until the early
hours of the morning although things rarely don't start happening before midnight .
Whatever your taste in music be it Jazz , Blues , Rock or Latin American you
will find the venue in and around the city . We had many mornings where getting
up early was not an option . Fortunately the hotel we stayed in served
breakfast until late in the morning .
We also had
an opportunity to learn about Argentina’s dark side , when the military ruled
the land . We visited the ESMA campus , originally used as a housing and
training facility for junior officers in the Navy , but while the Military
Dictatorship governed the country it became the biggest centre of detention and
torture in the country and thousands of Argentinians lost their lives in this “
House of Horrors “ as l would like to call it . For me it was a stark reminder
of how brutal mankind can be against his own and my poor little wife who is particularly
sensitive about issues like this eventually had to sit outside the facility to
regain her composure . The atrocities that these so-called leaders of the land committed
against their own people is absolutely shocking and l have no doubt that many
of them still justify their cause .
The campus
also houses the Memorial Museum of the Falklands War which was really
interesting especially that right now the current government is promoting the
call to take these islands as their own . Reading the finer details of this war
and what went on is fascinating stuff although in the museum it is very much an Argentinian perspective .
Moving on to
far more pleasant subjects like boats , my little wife was subjected to our
usual tour of marinas and harbours where even she enjoyed going onboard the
Corbeta Uruguay and the Fragata Sarmiento , two historic vessels now berthed at
the recently restored old harbour named Puerto Madero . Both vessels are well
maintained and really interesting depicting a time when true seamanship was the
order of the day .
During our
two week stay in Buenos Aires we walked this city flat . The historic buildings
and huge plazas dotted all over the city make it one of the most beautiful
cities that we have ever visited and with its numerous museums and
entertainment venues we could have been kept busy for a long time .
But it is
time to pack and head home to our family and friends and that we are really
excited about . It has been one amazing year of great sailing and great
experiences all along the Brazilian Coast right up to Cabedelo where our
faithful little ship lies waiting for our return to sail for the Caribbean .
