It felt a little strange setting off from Foz do Iguacu on a half empty truck now that 6 of our group had transferred to another one but the extra room was welcome for what would be the last leg of our tour from Rio to Buenos Aires. With a huge amount of ground to cover it meant we would have two full days on the road to Buenos Aires with a dreaded bush camp inbetween.
The morning had already gotten off to a bad start when we had to pack away our tents in a thunderstorm, and no sooner had we set off we were halted at the Argentinian border for over an hour due to complications with the trucks visas.. we still managed to entertain ourselves though as Ros from the other group led us through a yoga session in front of the traffic forming behind.
We were halted again later that morning for over an hour in a small Argentine town due to a teacher strike which blocked off the main road.
Behind schedule and a 12 hour or so stint down the road we arrived in a small town called La Cruz at our supposed bush camp by a lake.. but the bathroom facilities were locked up. So Duncan gave us the option of finding a cheap hotel or remain camping... Errrrrrrrrrm, now let me think about that one.. absolute no brainer, hotel!! After some resistance from a German fella called Eckhard, who by the way has the wildest eyebrows you're ever likely to see, we got the result most of us wanted.. hotel!! BOOM.. literally couldn't have been happier at that moment in time and I didn't hide it either. The hotel wasn't the Four Season's or anything but it was damn better than camping in the wild!
Yet another early but necessary start, we had our final long journey to Buenos Aires which would also be our last time boarding Amber. The massive drives we have endured has meant we've spent around 6 days in total travelling on the truck. Normally I would have dreaded such marathon journeys but they've been a doddle because of the company I had with me.
It was early evening when we made our final approach into the Argentinian capital.. the roads became bigger and busier, the buildings taller and wider, the lights brighter, the football stadiums more prestigious.. passing River Plate's as we entered into the city. This was the civilisation I'd been craving for again.
Centrally located, Hotel Mundial was our abode for the two remaining evenings of the Dragoman tour and we were free to do as we pleased. The majority of us met in a nearby restaurant for some food where I had red wine spilt all over me (not naming any names :-D ha) and yes I chose to wear white that night too! Most hit the sack relatively early after two long days on the road.. I fancied a bit of a session with it being our first night in the city but there were no takers.
What felt like a lie in after all the early starts and a breakfast in the hotel restaurant, Ria and I became the ultimate tourist d*** and jumped on an open-top bus tour of the city.. the shame! Not knowing a whole lot about Buenos Aires this seemed the best option to see where all the hotspots were located to re-visit them at a later date.
Needless to say we lasted about half the tour before we'd had enough, hopping off at Puerto Madero which was absolutely beautiful.. a neighbouring port to the cities main port of Ante Puerto. Cool bars and restaurants aligned either side of the water, a modern bridge, the Puente de la Mujer (Woman's Bridge) links the two together, the ARA Presidento Sarmiento ship sits proudly in the water under skyscrapers which climb high above in the backdrop.
I instantly fell in love with the place, it reminded me so much of where I lived at Salford Quays but with a baking hot sun to go with it. We had an awesome afternoon drinking in the sun by the water.. so much for sight-seeing, but who cares when you're already having a great time and the views are as good as this.
I'd settled immediately and felt completely at ease walking around the city which had a very European vibe to it.
We headed back to the hotel where we got ready for our final evening with the group and our tour leader Duncan before everyone went their separate ways the next day. A tango show was on the cards at the famous Gran Cafe Tortoni.. not usually my bag but I fancied getting involved in the culture and wanted to make the effort to say a final farewell to the group. I literally didn't have a clue what was going on though, and the compare was talking/singing in Spanish so it was a bit of a yawn fest for me but I'm told they were great.
After wishing the guys farewell Ria and I met up with Catherine, Sas and Hannah for a few drinks and a weird initiation they had planned for us in their room.. which will go no further!
Sunday signalled the end of the Dragoman tour, something which I really enjoyed despite being so unprepared for it, all the camping, chores and my many meltdowns.. it was some of the cool people I met which made it for me.
It was time to make our own plans again and not have everything organised for us. After spending the afternoon at the San Telmo markets with Chrissy and wishing her farewell, Ria and I made the short taxi journey over to Villa Crespo where we checked into a cool little Airbnb apartment. We had originally booked for 3 nights but as we loved Buenos Aires so much we added a fourth, and then a further 7 nights in an apartment across the road which was offered to us by the owners Cristian and Victor.
Our apartment in Villa Crespo was perfectly situated just a short taxi ride from the city centre on the outskirts of Palermo which would turn out to be my favourite place of all and where we would spend most of our time.
Palermo is the most popular and sought after places to live in Buenos Aires. It covers a large area and is ever expanding with the likes of Palermo Hollywood recently being added to the list. The whole place is littered with cool bars, quirky cafes, funky diners catering for all types of cuisines, swanky restaurants, an endless supply of the latest fashion, and a few high street shops thrown in for good measure. The leafy streets, fine street art, a very chilled out vibe and all the aforementioned draw similarities to that of Chelsea in London or Greenwich Village in New York.
Even though the group on Amber had split up and all gone our separate ways, the other group on the Gus 2 truck remained together as they were continuing their journey south to Patagonia the following day. Monday 20th was our last chance to see Saskia, Hannah and Catherine as well as Rich, Frank, Nathan, Lorna, Anette, Hannah, Ros, James, Ralf and Tom.
We met at the Ciudad Cultural Konex which is a cool outdoor courtyard for a popular drumming show called La Bomba de Tiempo that took place every Monday evening. We'd been warned about the particular area where it was situated beforehand but we weren't expecting to see two men trying to knife another in the middle of a busy intersection by the entrance causing long tailbacks before the police finally intervened.
The show was pretty cool and it created a samba style atmosphere in the crowd. After the show had finished the party spilled out into the streets where the drummers led a 'bloco' style parade down the road to a nearby club. After an hour or so Ria and I said our sad goodbyes to Sas, Hannah and Catherine and headed back to the apartment.
We met with Ria's Argentinian friends one evening for a late steak dinner, who she had previously met on her travels in Central America. Flor and Nico lived in Buenos Aires and showed us the ropes when it came to dining the Argentinian way.. the steak was unreal!
We were also reunited with Ollie and Emma after they finally made it here following their detour into Uruguay.. was fantastic to catch up with them again and get on the sesh in Palermo.
As well as the endless supply of great food and drinks, a visit to the cinema to watch Trainspotting 2, and the aimless afternoon walks around Palermo, we did visit some other cool areas and experienced some very memorable things.
The Recoleta Cemetery was unusually beautiful. The tombs were very grand in size and design.. also home to the grave of Eva Peron (Evita) among other rich and famous Argentinians. Again, not the sort of thing you'd usually catch me doing but it was pretty interesting.
Avenido 9 De Julio is a huge avenue running straight through the heart of the city that goes on for as far as the eye can see and spreads around 70 metres in width making it the widest avenue in the world. Slap bang in the middle of the avenue is the tall, white Obelisco monument which commemorates the fourth centenary of the first foundation of the city.
Florida Street is at the heart of everything and is a cool place to shop. It is home to a Harrod's and the Galerias Pacifico, a 3-storey shopping mall.
A highlight for me was walking around the raw streets of La Boca and finding La Bombonera (Alberto J. Armando Stadium), the home of the world famous Boca Juniors where we did a tour of the ground. I felt like I was a kid all over again.. I literally couldn't wipe the smile off my face. Not the most modern of stadiums by any means but steeped in history with a proper old school character.. I could easily imagine the whole place going right off!
It meant a lot to me as my late dad taught me about Boca, Diego Maradona and Argentinian football when I was a young boy.. he'd give me videos and tell me to go and play like that. If he could have seen me at that moment in time he would have been gobsmacked and ecstatic!
I have to thank Ria as well for being amazing and incredibly kind for giving up her day to come with me so I could see 'The Chocolate Box'. The steak sandwich afterwards from across the road in the Boca Cafe went down an absolute treat.. without doubt the best I've had!
The other highlight, if not the highlight of my whole trip so far, was the Fuerza Bruta show at Centro Cultural in Recoleta. We had heard great reviews about it from a couple of people so we decided to check it out for ourselves. And what we witnessed was absolutely mind blowing.. we came away pumping with adrenaline and pure happiness written all over our faces. It was phenomenal from start to finish!
After a pre-show drink in an open-air courtyard we entered a room slightly smaller than a basketball court with maybe a few hundred others.. in complete darkness. Then all of a sudden huge drums at a high tempo came thundering out from the stage, ticker-tape fell from the high ceilings and gusts of wind blew from every angle. In the meantime, from out of nowhere, several people attached to one another flew down amidst the absolute mayhem swinging back and forth above the crowd. Bonkers.. and that was just the start! The drums got tougher, the music more intoxicating.. for the first time on my travels I got a dose of the kind of club music I know and love.. I was buzzing! The acts got wilder and weirder.. I mean when have you ever had four women swimming above your head then start jumping up, diving and slapping their bodies into the shallow water pool that you're holding up with your own hands.. so bizarre!
The craziness continued when the performers entered the crowd and started smashing polystyrene over people's heads. Many more weirdly wonderful acts followed but the ending was something I'll never forget. During the uplifting finale.. it began to rain, indoors! Care free, happy and full of emotion we danced in the rain.
It was an incredible night.. a night we felt obliged to continue with, so a few cocktails and beers in a bar nearby helped to bring us down off cloud 9. The streets and bars were bustling as the Argentinian National side were playing in a World Cup Qualifying match that evening beating Chile 1-0 so the vibe around Recoleta was buzzing.
It was great to splurge, eat and drink well, and generally enjoy a bit of normality again, rather than being constantly on the road travelling from place to place. By the second week it felt like we were residents, completely settled and enjoying the Buenos Aires way of life.
I'm a city boy at heart, it's where I'm at my happiest, where I'm stimulated the most. And this is one of the best cities I've ever been to so needless to say I'm very sad to be leaving but I hope to return one day in the future.
Today has been really tough, easily the hardest I've had on my trip so far. After living in each other's pockets every day for a whole month I had to say a sad goodbye to Ria who left for Australia. She's a great girl and I've had the most amazing 2 weeks with her in Buenos Aires.
I'm currently sat on a bus making a massive 20 hour overnight journey south west to the picturesque town of Bariloche which couldn't be any further from the life I've been enjoying for the past 2 weeks.
Adiós xx