Florianopolis

Roxana  finally enjoying the beach 

Florianopolis is the first seaside resort we came to in Brazil. Roxana is happy! It is on an island called Santa Catalina less than 500m away from the continent and linked to it by two bridges. The island, roughly the size of Mauritius has 43 beaches, most of them surf spots.

We were to spend 4 nights on the island and went to our first hostel (Tucano House) for the first 2 nights. It was really nice, with extremely friendly and helpful staff, great common areas and a small swimming pool. In Brazil so far many hostels also propose dinners at night for a small sum and we signed up for both nights there. Good Irish stew the first day and excellent BBQ (called Churrasco here) the second.

The breakfasts as well in Brazil are a marked improvement on Argentinian hostels. Here there are fresh fruits, fresh fruit juice, ham and cheese and all kinds of breads. In Argentina most hostels serve a “continental” breakfast of bread, butter, jam and seldom pastry.

That is a huge meal even to share

We spent a day on a beach called Açores. We had to take 3 buses to get there but it was worth it. It was a nice beach with much less people than on the beach we went to the first day. We rented a couple of chairs and a beach umbrella and settled down nicely. We dipped in the cool water whenever we felt too hot and had a wonderful lunch of shrimp in cream. It was accompanied by rice, salad and chips. It was supposed to be for 2 but could easily have served 4.

The hostels here in Florianopolis also organise loads of activities during the day such as outings to the beach or treks and in the evening, going out to bars and clubs. On one such organised outing we went to Ilha Campeche, supposed to be an amazing island (a bit like Ile aux Cerfs in Mauritius). We took a 1hr boat to the island and were happy to get there because a little boy had been sick all the way in.

Spending a quiet time on the beach

So far I had been unimpressed by the beaches and the sea. Rather coarse sand, rough seas open to the ocean, and dull milky colours. But I had seen only a dozen beaches thus far in a huge country blessed with 7500km of coastline. So I’m sure many of them must be breathtaking.

The best beach so far - (blue filter on)

And this island was nice, the best beach we had seen in Brazil. But it was only the one. A 500m stretch of fine sand which unfortunately was being blown in our faces by the strong wind. There is a time limit to stay on the island as well as a limit on the number of visitors per day. And there were in my opinion too many people on that beach. So  much for the peaceful deserted island beaches you see in movies. We nevertheless had a good time and took the boat back home mid-afternoon.

On the way back the sea was rougher and many more people were sick. About a quarter of the passengers threw up and the boat staff were constantly washing the deck. They did an okay job although I could still see on the floor pieces of apples, bananas, rice and other stuff those poor sea sick people had had for lunch! 

Reminds me of Mauritius

That evening we unfortunately had to change hostels because the Tucano House did not have availability. We went to another part of the island for the last two nights. This hostel (Share House) was really disappointing especially being equivalent in price. The staff did not have a clue and the place was dirty. As there were water shortages all the time, the toilets stunk and the bathroom floors were disgusting.

We were supposed to share a bathroom with about 10 other people but it turned out that we were the only bathroom linked to their water reserve tank, so we ended up sharing the bathroom with all 50 guests! The common area there was relatively ugly and again dirty. And the whole hostel was set on 6 or 7 levels which always made it look cloistered and small as opposed to if the total surface was on one level.

To add to the discomfort, we were not in tune with the crowd there either … they were mainly surfers, usually from the USA or Australia and they were, hmmm, how should I say that … way younger than us. They were really nice kids but all they were interested in was surfing during the day and getting drunk at night. And I must have heard the word “awesome” a hundred million times! We did feel like out of touch oldies there.

Only helping to get things done. 

Anyway we made the most of it and still signed up for the churrasco on Sunday evening. There was pork (expertly marinated and stuffed), chicken, sausages and beef. Now beef is very good in Brazil too. There was tender Picaña (Sirloin Cap) and Tim, from Australia and the owner’s son in law, was the main man. He was grilling away and I loved it. The BBQ was delicious and we had plenty to eat, again.

After those 4 days in Florianopolis we headed out to Paraty and where we hoped to enjoy less crowded beaches.

For more pictures of Florianopolis

Again I leave you with a funny message this time in the street : A lady who has been robbed sending a message to the robber : "Mr Robber, on the 4/1/12 you robbed 4 suitcases from a car. We can negociate! I am not going to call the Police because they are not going to do anything anyway. Sabrina (tel no ...)"

Lusophones will appreciate the message!

Iguazu Falls and Itaipu Dam

A part of the huge complex of waterfalls in Iguazu

After Buenos Aires we headed to the north of the country, to Iguazu where Argentina shares a border with Brazil and Paraguay.  The 18hr bus was 3 hours late and when we arrived there we were broken. The Argentinian side is called Puerto Iguazu and it is a small town living on the tourism that the mighty Iguazu Falls (Wikipedia Iguazu Falls) attracts.

With 275 falls, the Iguazu complex has the widest cumulated curtain of water in the world, although Victoria Falls between Zambia and Zimbabwe has the widest single curtain of water in the world. It has the second average water flow rate in the world after the Niagara falls although the maximum water flow rate ever recorded in the world was here in Iguazu.

We're going to go under the falls on the left

We took a bus to the National Park and started walking. The Argentinian side holds about 80% of the waterfalls of the Iguazu complex. They were amazing and we went down to a quay where we boarded a RHIB (Rigid Hulled Inflatable Boat). That boat with its powerful outboard motors brought us all the way up to one of the big falls. Then the captain asked us to put our cameras, bags and anything else we wanted to keep dry in heavy duty watertight bags. He was going to bring the RHIB under the waterfall.

As we came even closer, the noise was deafening and you could even feel the vibrations created by the tons of water falling in your chest. Then we actually went under the falling water and we were completely soaked. It was nothing like I thought, it was so much better!

Then we walked through the park along the footpaths where you could admire at very close range some of the biggest falls in the world. We made it to the “Garganta Del Diablo” (the Devil’s Throat). This is a gaping hole about 150 metres in diameter in which the raging torrents just fall. It is amazing and frightening at the same time.

That afternoon when we came back we got our stuff and took a local bus to Brazil – just like that! The bus took 15 minutes to take us to the border and I was let into Brazil without a hitch (muito obrigado!).

Brazil is going to be the most expensive country in our trip by far. But coming to Brazil the same week the Credit Rating Agencies degraded several Euro zone countries is butchery. We have to face 6^th largest economy in the world with a Euro that just lost 17% of its value against the all too powerful Brazilian Real.

The border town on the Brazilian side is called Foz do Iguazu and is more developed than its Argentinian counterpart. In the streets you can find tour buses, cars and taxis from Brazil, Argentina and Paraguay.  After a short bus ride we arrive at the park and buy our entrance tickets.

From the Brazilian side a full panoramic view of the waterfalls may be enjoyed as opposed to be directly on or under them in Argentina. And the spectacle is grandiose. We walked a few kilometres taking pictures from every possible angle.

We then rushed back to the city to be able to squeeze in a visit of the Itaipu Dam. This dam is a bi-national project between Brazil and Paraguay. The total length of the dam is 8km and the retention lake it created is enormous : 145km long, 8km wide and 160 metres at it’s deepest.

Some fun facts about the dam (source Wikipedia) :

• ·         The course of the 7th biggest river in the world was shifted, as were 50 million tons of earth and rock.
• ·        The amount of concrete used to build the Itaipu Power Plant would be enough to build 210 football stadiums the size of Maracanã (for those who don't know, 200.000 paying spectators were crammed in to watch the 1950 World Cup Final).
• ·         The iron and steel used would allow for the construction of 380 Eiffel Towers.
• ·         The volume of excavation of earth and rock in Itaipu is 8.5 times greater than that of the Channel Tunnel and the volume of concrete is 15 times greater.

One of the three spillways letting excess water out

The project is a true 50-50 between Brazil and Paraguay in terms of investment, manpower and energy production. There are 20 turbines (10 for Brazil, 10 for Paraguay) and it is the largest operating hydroelectric facility in terms of annual generating capacity, even ahead of Three Gorges Dam in China.

With a small population of only 6 million people, Paraguay only needs 2 of its 10 turbines to sustain almost its whole energy consumption. So it sells the electricity produced by the other 8 turbines to Brazil. And the 18 turbines feeding Brazil (population 192 million) cover 16% of its energy needs.

The huge tube in which water falls to the turbines

The whole tour of the dam is made in a bus and part of it is actually on Paraguayan soil! Imagine, after making it sooooo hard for me to get in South American countries with a valid passport and visa, now they just drive me into Paraguay! WTF man!!! Anyway I got two countries for the price of one!

For all Iguazu Falls and Itaipu Dam

And finally an amusing note posted in our hostel in Foz do Iguazu. Pay particular attention to the order of reasons for not doing drugs! 

They have a sense of humour in Brazil

Buenos Aires - Part II

Day 7: Second Free walking tour and Japanese Restaurant   

That Tuesday was again a very hot day. They were announcing temperature of 38°C in the middle of the afternoon. We stayed in for a bit but then went out to San Telmo where Roxana had seen some things on Sunday that she would like to buy. We went in those antique stores and sure enough she found the hand bags that had caught her attention. We left the store with three of those leather bags, each of a different size.

Then we sat down in a very old bar to quench our thirst and have a bite. The bar was left untouched since several decades and had a “belle époque” style to it.

Itadakimasu! 

We joined our second free walking tour that afternoon and went through some of the most exclusive areas of Buenos Aires. The city was one of the wealthiest in the world in the early 20^th century and a few very rich families started building private residences, some of which 10.000m² they called palaces. They wanted the city to look like Paris. They even built streets and squares to that purpose and imported building material directly from Europe. It was both entertaining and eye opening.

That evening we fancied something a bit different and we went to a Japanese restaurant. We had some great Sashimis, Niguiri Sushis and Makis. After that great dinner we lazily strolled back home.

Day 8 : La Boca!

That day was going to be a relaxed one. We took a bus to the (in)famous neighbourhood of La Boca. This was the first port of Buenos Aires (BA has three ports nowadays) and it has a bit of a bad reputation. But there are a couple of very touristy streets where all the houses and stores are painted in bright colours and where there are tango dancers all day long.

Obviously we could not be at La Boca without going to the Boca Juniors football club. This is one of the clubs in the world that has won the most titles, at national, continental (Copa Libertadores) and world level (Intercontinental Cup). 

"God" is never too far

La Bombonera - Boca Jr stadium

Legends like Maradona, Batistuta and nowadays Riquelme have worn the famous Blue and Yellow shirt. The story of this jersey is actually interesting: when they had to choose its colours, they said that they would adopt the colours of the flag of the first boat that would come through the port. The first boat that came in the port that day was a Swedish boat! The colours of Boca have been Blue and Yellow ever since ... 

Day 9 : Puerto Madero and BBQ

Cheers to a great evening

We went to the newly refurbished Puerto Madero to see how one of the oldest part of town has been transformed into an ultra modern jet set kind of “place-to-be”. Unfortunately we had to rush back home when I realised that I had been pick-pocketed. So after making all the phone calls to cancel the credit cards we were in no mood to do some more sight seeing.

Fortunately that evening we were invited to Will and Archanna’s place for a BBQ and that was just what we needed to get our minds off that bad experience. The BBQ, which was prepared by Tiago, was excellent. We were on the roof of the building and Will insisted that we should finish a bottle of vodka and obviously some of us ended up in the pool.    

Day 10 : Shopping and Milonga

They glide effortlessly across the dance floor

I decided not to do much that day and Roxana went out to do some shopping. She got quite a few of the things she was looking for. She came back home with quite a few shopping items and a big smile on her face.

That evening we went to a Milonga place that had been recommended by the Danish friends we met on Easter Islands. It was a big dance ballroom filled with locals. People came to have a good time and dance all night long. We enjoyed that a lot.  

Day 11: The Pink House, Japanese garden and MALBA museum

One of the Salons of the Pink House

On our penultimate day in Buenos Aires we went to visit the Presidential Palace which is this pink building on Plaza de Mayo. The visit was really interesting and we could visit the rooms where the presidents have their meetings and make their speeches. We saw the balcony from which Eva Peron addressed the crowd and the other balcony where Maradonna and his world champion team saluted the joy drunken crowds in 1986.

A stark contrast with the surroundings

Then that we went to the Japanese Garden close by. It was a neat beautiful garden with little ponds, fish and bonsais and everything. It was very refreshing to get away for a short time from this very busy metropolis.  

After that we went to the MALBA (Museo de Arte Latinoamericano de Buenos Aires) museum. It was a great modern art museum showing the evolution of Latin American Art since early 20^th century. We really enjoyed the vivid colours and patterns in the temporary exhibition.

The MALBA Museum was a pleasant surprise

That evening Roxana found a great restaurant for our last dinner in town. It was very cosy and the food was wonderful. We had what might be our last steaks in Argentina and we thoroughly enjoyed them!

A very well hidden venue with live music

After that we went to a live music concert close to our place. This bar was really in a residential area and would be impossible to simply stumble upon. The place was quite small but looked very nice. We were the only foreigners in there and really enjoyed the concert.  

Day 12: Last Day

We woke up on our last day a little bit depressed. We really loved Buenos Aires. This is the longest we had stayed in the same place and we had done so much. We enjoyed everything: the culture, the music, the sightseeing, the food, the friends, everything really.

So on that last day we simply went into town a little bit to a couple of places we wanted to see one last time and then headed back home. We packed our bags and headed to the bus station in Retiro. 

Pictures of Buenos Aires

Buenos Aires - Part I

Day 1: Settling in and Book Store

Libreria Ateneo set in an early 20th century theatre

After the great year end in San Martin de los Andes we arrived in Buenos Aires. We had planned to stay in the country’s capital for just under two weeks and we were very much looking forward to it.

On our first day there we got ourselves some grocery to enjoy a quiet relaxing time in Cecilia’s family apartment. The area was very nice with a lot of small bars and restaurants and a little park. We had a nice lunch at the corner snack and went to look for a book in one of the most beautiful book store I’ve ever seen. It is actually a converted theatre with books everywhere from the ground floor to the second level. They kept the whole interior completely untouched and it was beautiful.

Day 2: Free Walking Tour

Café Tortoni downtown

On our second day in Buenos Aires we took one of the two free walking tours of the city. It was great and our guide Virginia explained the history and politics of this relatively young country with a very fresh youthful view. She is herself a Porteña, that is a native from Buenos Aires, and she keenly made us discover her city.

After the tour we actually went back to one of the cafés we had seen earlier. A huge queue of people was waiting to get in. It looked like the front door of a busy nightclub a Saturday night. The Café Tortoni is the oldest in Buenos Aires and it has a special status of “Recognized Cultural Establishments of Buenos Aires” by the Argentinian government.

After that we went to the Cathedral where the body of the great liberator, José de San Martin rests.  (Wikipedia San Martin). Later that day we met up with Will and Archanna who were also staying in Buenos Aires for a 6 weeks break. We had a few close in a very nice neighbourhood and then parted company around 1a.m. as we had an early rise the next day.

The Mausoleum of José de San Martin

Day 3 : Kevin Johansen Concert in Mar del Plata

Kevin Johansen and his illustrator friend

We have been trying to go to a concert of Kevin Johansen ever since we came to South America. We have been fans of his music for years now and this American born Argentinian singer was on our “to-do” list. The problem is that we’ve missed him by a few days on two occasions already in Lima and in Buenos Aires. We had even considered taking flights and changing our itinerary just to go to one of his concerts.

We had pretty much given up when Roxana found out that he was performing in Mar del Plata early January when we would be in Buenos Aires. As Mar del Plata is “only” a 5-hour bus trip away we got on the bus and went there. This seaside resort is a very popular destination catering mainly for the Buenos Aires crowd. When we got there we went straight to the ticket office to procure ourselves the holy grail. We had some dinner in a very nice place and went to the concert.

Live illustrations of the songs

The venue was a very nice and cosy bar-club-concert hall called Abbey Road in honour of the Beatles. It was very intimate as only 400 people could attend the concert. Kevin Johansen is a great performer and he constantly interacted with the public. His partner on stage was a comic strip illustrator and he was drawing away as Kevin was playing the guitar and singing.

It was very original, especially when they made paper planes with the drawings and threw them in the crowd. After the concert we went back to the bus station and got on the 2.30a.m. bus back to Buenos Aires. We got there and 8 in the morning and were in bed for 9.

Day 4: Cemetery and Tango Show

When we woke up at in the afternoon we took it easy and had a lazy breakfast. Then we left home to go to the Cemetery where most of the great names of Argentinian history are buried. It is the Argentinian “Père Lachaise” if you will. We went there like most tourists to see the Mausoleum of Eva Peron (Evita). (Wikipedia Evita).

After this we walked through the small artisans market that was set up around the cemetery and we bumped into Will and Archanna. We had a look at the stalls. There were some nice things although most of these were generic stuff we had come across all over South America, only it was more expensive here!

Spectacular tango show

We agreed to meet up with them the following day at the huge San Telmo Sunday market. That evening we booked the Tango show that Will and Archanna had been to. It was the Homero Manzi show and it was breathtaking. They even had a pick up and drop off chauffeur service which made it even better.

The show was excellent and we had a very good table. The venue was probably 90% full of tourists. Out of those my guess is that about half of them were Brazilians! You could eat during the show that started at 10.30pm but we opted not to as we had already had a bite at home. The dancers were very talented and the choreography was exquisite. We had a great evening out.

Day 5 : San Telmo market

A sea of locals and tourists alike

It was again one of those extremely hot days in Buenos Aires. The mercury had stayed around 30°C through the night and at 9am it was already 33°C. We went to the San Telmo market to meet up with Will and Archanna and their Portuguese friends Tiago and Livia. There also was a girl from Barcelona, Marta, who was living in Buenos Aires for 6 months.

We met around a very busy square where we had a few cold beers and lunch. The food was plentiful and the chips were actually very good. There was a tango demonstration going on in the bar while we were enjoying our food. It was fun to watch but too hot inside.

We then browsed the streets in search of a few items to buy. We did not have anything in particular in mind but enjoyed the atmosphere there. It was very packed. Thousands of tourists and locals gather at this Sunday market to find the rare piece of decoration or vintage clothing.

Tiago haggling over the price of this rare piece

Tiago and Livia were looking for something in particular: a glass Syphon. Those things are really hard to come by in Europe. They were very popular at the beginning of the 20^th century but very few remain today as during the great depression that hit Argentina hard, people were selling the glass and the metal to get some money. One of those in good condition would fetch about 30€ here and might be 4 to 5 times more expensive in Europe.

That evening we wanted to go to the Planetarium in one of the big parks in town. They have this open door every Sunday to promote Astronomy amongst members of the public. The moon was full and bright and we were relishing the prospect of seeing its seas and craters through the telescopes. But then, only 2 minutes before it was our turn, they stopped looking at the moon as it had risen behind the planetarium and out of sight. They had turned it towards Jupiter which we had seen with much better telescopes in San Pedro de Atacama. It was a bit of a disappointment. After that we went back to Will and Archanna’s apartment on their bikes and had a very nice dinner there.

Beautiful evening to be star gazing at the planetarium

Day 6: Shopping and dinner in nice meat restaurant

Ready to attack!

Roxana went out to do some shopping while I stayed in the apartment. I was not tempted to go out at all because of the heat. I caught up with some admin work and waited for Javier who was coming back from Cipolletti. When he arrived, we had a quick lunch together.

In the evening we met up again with the gang of friends and went out to Las Cholas, a steak restaurant in San Telmo where the portions are huge and the bill very small. We had a Bife de Chorizo with chips and veggies to share between Roxana and I and it was plenty!

Trendy bar downtown

All photos of Buenos Aires

San Martin de los Andes

The beautiful lake calls for water sports 

We went to San Martin de los Andes to spend the New Year’s Eve. Juane’s family invited us to their traditional family gathering to welcome the new year. San Martin is a beautiful little town bordering a magnificent lake and green mountains.  

We packed three cars and got their after driving for 5hrs. I must say it was a rather easy trip for me as I slept most of the way. I was “out-slept” only by Pedrito, Cecilia’s 45 day old baby boy! When we got there and unloaded the cars it became pretty obvious what we were going to do during the four days: eat and drink!

Roxana and Marcelo by the pool

Two fridges were soon filled with kilos of beef, pork, sausage, a lamb, beers, wines and all kinds of beverages. We admired the view from our chalets and some of us hit the swimming pool immediately. Sadly it was covered because this region also has been badly hit by the volcanic ashes from the Chilean volcano.

During the course of the following 4 we had a great time sitting around the table while Juane’s dad would grill us some meat while his boys would prepare the “entrée” of cheese, smoked ham and beer. Juane’s dad takes his BBQ very seriously and he makes an amazing asado. This meat was juicy and delicious.

It's difficult to put into words how good the meat is here!

Around the table enjoying the aperitivo

Beautiful clear water

We also went to a couple of extraordinary places by the lake side where we swam and chatted. We sat down on the beach and shared maté and cakes. The atmosphere was excellent and I could really relate to this as it was just like in Mauritius at this time of the year. Surrounded by family and simple pleasures.

The two little girls who were the nieces of Juane, Valentina and Lucy, were so cute too. They were really  having a ball with the grown ups and it was fun listening to them converse.

Diving in!

Home made pizza - Pablo on the left and Marcos on the right 

New Year’s eve was spent at home. Marcos, Juane’s brother in law who’s taken a liking to cooking bread and pizzas had us buy all the ingredients at the supermarket. He slaved around the kitchen all day long making the pizza paste. In the evening he expertly prepared the different ingredients and with the help of Pablo started baking these delicious home made pizzas.

When midnight arrived we simply raised our glasses and toasted to the new year. It was a very nice feeling of family that prevailed as we all embraced each other. We were indeed very fortunate to be spending this special moment with such loving people.

The town put on a great fireworks show

At around 1.30am some of us hopped into the cars to go to the lake side to watch the great fireworks show. It looked like the whole town had gathered to watch this spectacle. The show started soon afterwards and we all, big and small, marveled at the beauty of these fireworks. 

Pedrito is happy! 

The girls are enjoying themselves

Juan El Asador "Juan the Griller"

The following day was the first day of 2012. Juane’s dad was on deck as he was preparing the 10kg lamb. The back, ribs and filet were on the BBQ. We sat down in the little dependency as he explained how best to prepare the lamb. When it was time to eat I was taken aback by how good it was. Later that day Gonzalo and Santiago, two brothers of Cecilia also came to pay us a visit and they stayed for dinner.

The Cordero Patagonico was exquisite

When it came time to leave we were sad and did not really know what to say. We had spent a wonderful time in the company of all these people and now it was time to hit the road again. Destination Buenos Aires.

More pictures of San Martin De Los Andes

Mensaje a todos en Cipolletti :

Hola amigos de Cipolletti! Queriamos decirles muchas gracias a todos por su hospitalidad y su amabilidad. Fue un gran placer conocerles a todos y pasar las fiestas con vosotros. Nos sentimos como en casa, parteneciendo a la familia. 

Un abrazo grande, Roxana y Kevin