We have arrived in Buenos Aires, Argentina!!

After our first meal (which, randomly, was in some goth bar with pictures of the Cure and Freddy Mercury all over the walls), we were approached by a young man on the street who asked if we were looking for accommodation. (I think the backpacks, the map, and the confused looks gave us away.)

A Fistful of Pigeons and 37 Liters of Beer

Afterwards, we went to a local bar where we drank liters and liters and liters of beer, shared embarrassing stories, and generally had a fantastic time.

In brief…

There´s a lot we need to update about, but we´re leaving to catch a boat in a few minutes. So for now, here´s the short, short version…

Catching Up: Happy Easter, Everyone!

Yes, friends, we returned to hated Montevideo. We really didn’t have much of a choice: virtually every bus route to the west went through it. And it was getting late, so we resigned ourselves to doing something we’d promised we’d never do again: spend the night in Montevideo.

French Toast, Good Friends, and a Spectacular View

The first thing you should know about this cottage is that the photo at the top of the entry is the view from the front window. It’s in a spectacular setting, surrounded by mountains and forest and rolling hills.

First-class Seats in a Submarine

But our driver was tougher than that. Some would argue that he was certifiable. Me, for instance. We were driving through this temporary lake so fast that long waves were coming diagonally off of the front of the bus.

Remembering

So, you see, this is why the little notebook is quickly becoming the most valuable thing Tim and I own. This little notebook is capturing our memories.

Spanish Lessons and a Place Called Home

We’re back in Buenos Aires now, so that Jessica can take Spanish classes and pass on to me everything that she learns (or so goes our plan). Each day, she has two hours of lessons (which she is loving), and then she spends the next two hours teaching me.

Thirteen of my Favorite Photos

Within the next few days we’ll be done uploading more than 700 new photos. If that sounds like an obscene number, it should be noted that in these first several weeks of our trip, we’ve already taken over 3,600 photos!

Cheesesteaks and Ketchup

For the past three days, we have diligently uploaded, sorted, and captioned 738 photos for the Photo Gallery. And these photos cover everything from the last few months prior to our departure up to our stay in El Bolsón, Argentina.

The Orcas of Peninsula Valdés

There’s a place in Argentina called Peninsula Valdés. The killer whales there do something that they don’t do anywhere else.

Five Days in Puerto Madryn

The penguins were as amazing as we’d hoped. There were over one hundred thousand of them at Punta Tombo (being the largest colony outside of Antarctica), walking all around us. They were molting, and it seemed that some of them were allergic to their feathers: everywhere we were surrounded by the sounds of penguins sneezing. It was adorable.

Patagonian Anecdotes

Among the wildlife you can see on the peninsula is the armadillo: they’re everywhere, absolutely adorable and a lot hairier than you might expect. One of them had evidently run across Stuart’s path, so he had fired up his camera and chased after it.

Two Sick Hedgehogs

Although one might deduce Buenos Aires has caused all of our illnesses, in doing so, one would also fail miserably in the section of the SAT where they test syllogisms. (Remember those? X leads to A, so A must lead to X? Yeah, I don’t remember them either.)

Little Things

Let’s say you’ve been dreaming of this trip for years. More than that, actually. Let’s say that whether you knew it or not, you’ve been dreaming of this trip for most of your life.

On Friendships

Every new place, it’s the same feeling. It feels like the first day of school. But once you stick out your hand and introduce yourself, you discover that the question “So, how long have you been travelling?” will usually turn into a two-hour conversation.

Fast Forward

We’ve decided to fast-forward the website back to present (or nearly present) day. So rather than telling tales from several weeks ago, we’re going to start telling tales about what’s happening now. (And by “now” I totally mean “now, plus or minus a week or so.”)

Iguazú Falls

We had the boat almost to ourselves: it was just us, the driver, the guide, and one other couple. After taking us thrillingly close to several of the cascades, the boat was launched, as promised, directly into some of them. We were drenched from head to toe. It was wonderful.

Happy Accidents, Part 1

Happy Accidents are those, well, accidents that happen without warning or without intention, but that which bring about a better result, a happier result, than you may have even imagined possible. It’s the “if that hadn’t happened then this wouldn’t have happened and I would have missed out” sort of thing.

Happy Accidents, Part 2

We were about half-way there when we started to hear it: music, quiet and distant, floating to us from somewhere up ahead. As we walked, it got nearer, louder, and more familiar. We were mystified, trying to figure out what it could be.

They Have a Song For That

Jessica and I are squeezed into the back seat of the cab with our new friends Paul and Caroline, who days earlier had invited us to come with them on this cultural pilgrimage to the heart and soul of the Argentinean identity: a football game. (That’s “soccer” for those of you playing along at home in the US.)