And so with heavy hearts we depart Puerto Iguazu on a 17 hour bus to Buenos Aires. We decided to splash out on Semi-Cama this time, ten euro more expensive than the other bus I can´t remember ever getting ever (didnt happen, I swear). The differences aren´t that obvious, the chairs recline the same amount, more or less. The bus looks nicer for sure, and so do the other passangers.

As we drive out of Iguazu the scenery changes from what we have been used to. At first it is long stretches of road (very like the tramps heartache in Wexford), and with fir trees along the side of the road with very brown soil underneath. After a while the windows fog up because the driver has obviously not turned on the air conditioning. Another thing it is very obvious he hasn´t turned off, inspite of having a movie on with English sound and Spanish subtitles...... is the stereo. I think he is playing the album "cheesey south american crap volume 2". Its absolute rubbish, it keeps skipping and every now and again it will stop completely to sights of relief only to start up seconds later to giggles of sheer amusement from the group of passengers on the top floor where we are. Anyway, this ridiculousness at least lent itself to taking away from the utter boredom of being sat in a seat that long. While on the go, the driver, or maybe his buddy, came upstairs with some biscuits in a tray... then some sweets in another tray.... then a bottle of fanta and some cups (was this to be dinner????). The first movie ends (the changling.... seen it), and the second starts up. I had never watched this one before, for good reason. It was an absolute horrow show. I dont want to describe it, but you might have seen it, or can at least look it up (the happening). For a start Mark Whalberg is in it, and he is rubbish.... anyway...

About five hours into the journey we pull over and swap buses, there looks to be food on this one... We got a new movie on this bus (if I have remembered correctly the order of things), however I cant remember what it was, I know I watched the Karate kid in the morning though?!?!? We eventually get fed at 10, we hadnt eaten since about 12 for some reason (blame Regina I think). Nice bit of bread with ham and cheese, and some Ravioli with bolognese sauce, some fruit cocktail and two crackers. We also got an offer of coke or fanta again, and just after dinner first we were offered wine, and then a fancy cake biscuit, and then champagne!!!! Things are looking up for buses!!! Manaaged to get some sleep thanks to some quiet music in my headphones and woke up to see the sun had rose and I had missed it again.. oh well

Eventually we get to BA and get off the bus. We had directions to the hostel, and when someone wearing a hostel tshirt asked us if we had somewhere to stay and suggested a different way of getting to the place we told him we were staying anyway, we headed off for the metro. Got to the interchange station and made the change to the other line we were told. Got out on a lovely avenue full of nice people and nice shops, Regina is already drooling at the shopping prospects (even though she can fit nothing extra in her bag). We ask someone for directions towards the street our hostel is on and off we go. In BA (perhaps elsewhere also), the street signs have the house numbers too, we started at house number 3000, and were going to house number 497... a long grouchy walk insued. As we walked down the blocks the neighbourhood went down with us, thankfully not all the way down. We got to the hostel and naturally after the long crappy night we had, the booking had been lost and our private room given to someone else. After some discussion we decided to take the only room they had, and went out for food. Just like the first time we went for food in Rio, we end up getting ham and cheese pizza across the road, both tired cranky and hungry, it doesnt matter what we eat. Deciding to look on the bright side, and since its sunny (but suprisingly cold), we head for the Recoleta neighbourhood (its meant to be nice).

Nice long walk to get there and I come to the conclusion that BA is like Paris except without the things that make Paris a nice place to visit. We go to a church and get stung for a few quid for a tour of their poxy museum, and then into the famous Recoleta graveyard, where regina had promised me there was great symmetry.... I couldnt see it anyway!!! The graves or tombs would put many houses in South America, let alone Ireland to shame. They are massive and so intricit in their details. We walk around gasping each time we see another two storey colluseum sized tomb (I have some pictures to put up later). We stumble upon Evitas one (meh, average), and wander off for a stroll in the Parks of Palermo. Here we find a Japanese Garden, and Regina convinces me to go into it, its nice in there, but I wouldn´t want to be meditating in their everyday, it was noisey. They had massive coy fish in the pond, and plenty of amazing flowers (that werent in season of course). We made good use of the facilities and wandered off homeward via a couple of metros. After we get home, we chilll for a bit while I watch the end of the football match (city v utd) and head out for dinner

Along the nearest main street there are lots of nice shops and a really big shopping centre. We find a nice restaurant and head in. The waiter is very friendly and immediately gets that we dont speak spanish, but has no english so ploughs on as best he can. We manage to order some pasta for me and chicken and chips for Regina (it wasnt as easy as that). We ask for desert and he tells us the one Regina has ordered (banana split) would do us both, he is a big man, and he should have known better, but it tasted lovely. The gem of the night is our order of Tea and Coffee. We dont get any milk, so Regina, with the courage of a Lion calls the waiter over and with the intelligence of a Lamb says "eh... milk?" the waiter shrugs his shoulders and says something that I interpret as "I've no idea what you've said", so again Regina makes a jesture of pouring and repeats "Eh.... milk?" with the exact same tone as before. Remarkably he still doesn't get it even with the perfect gesture of pouring milk. Since I know what the word for milk is (I was about 80% sure anyway), I ask for some Leite, and the waiter, releaved to understand finally, walks off to get some.. and it turns out to be milk after all.... great work there!!!!

On the way home we take a walk around the shopping centre. For posterity sake I check the price of sporting goods in a Nike shop, they work out the same as Ireland, and off home we go for some reading, internetting, and sleeping.... Waiting for breakfast now and this is me up to date, right now, as I type, waiting, for breakfast, staaaaaaaarving as usual. Regina is just over there behind me, reading, waiting also. Not sure what we do today, apart from move house... Maybe something exciting, wait and see.... toodles