Uruguay

Terri and I traveled to Uruguay this weekend and visited two separate places: Colonia and Montevideo.

Colonia: This is an old fort town that is very quiet. The first night we were there, Terri and I were afraid to walk down the street because we are so accustomed to living in big cities that we thought quiet = "we are going to get hacked into tiny pieces by maniacs."

Of course, we were wrong. This town has an near zero crime rate and turns out to be a fantastic place to live. While there we saw ruins of an old fort that occupies one of the central sections of the town. Also, we visited a farm were we saw the Guinness World Record collection of pencils, pins, key chains, and other knick knackery. Pretty exciting stuff!! If you ever wanted find a guy who really knows his purpose in life, then look no further than the knick knack man living on a farm in Colonia, Uruguay.

Montevideo: Montevideo, the capital of Uruguay, is a very pretty city with great beaches along the mouth of the Rio De La Plata.

We spent one day hanging out on the beach and another day touring the sites and monuments around the city. We both really enjoyed the "Ciudad Vieja" or Old Town area. There was an incredible mausoleum built for a General Jose Artigas (basically the George Washington of Uruguay) located at the entrance to the Ciudad Vieja. This was a "must-see" site, however, the changing of the guard was a bit anticlimactic. You can see Terri way in the background of that picture walking around the mausoleum.

Teatro Solis - Gorgeous Theater in the heart of Ciudad Vieja










Terri didn't want me browsing the merchandise at this local Montevideo shop

Carnaval in Gualeguaychu

Throughout the months of January and February, Carnaval takes place all throughout South America. Paraguay, Uruguay, Argentina and, of course, Brazil are home to many celebrations, and a lot of half-clothed (más or menos) people.

When we arrived down in Argentina, Chuck and I both signed up to several Expat groups to get involved in different activities in the city. Through a Meetup group, we found out about Carnaval in Gualeguaychu.

Gualeguaychu is in the province of Entre Rios, about 230 km north of Buenos Aires. One of the main sources of income for the city is tourism. Unfortunately, Argentina has received above normal amounts of rain this year, so the river on which the city is situated, was flooded so much that the river had totally engulfed the beach. That must have been why everyone was so excited for Carnaval this year!

So believe it or not there is a point, and even a competition, involved in Carnaval. There are three teams who compete. I’m not sure exactly what they compete for other than the name of winner of Carnaval 2010, but it adds a certain element of competition to the event. The three themes and team names are listed below. I’ve included snapshots of each to see if they convey the theme they were trying to create.

Team O’Bahia
Comparsa del Club de Pescadores (Fisherman Club)

Team Ara Yevi
Espiritu de Naturaleza (Spirit of Nature)

Team Papelitos
Pan Y Circo(Literal translation: Bread and Circus. However, it is an expression used to describe the current practice of a government to keep people quiet or hide facts in issue.)




See below a few videos from the event. It’s hard to fully describe the enthusiasm during each “show” but the music is contagious and everyone is singing it…even though we didn’t know what words we were saying. Needless to say, we had a wonderful time and met a lot of fun people. We arrived back in Buenos Aires at 7:30am on Sunday.

Chile Earthquake

I just wanted to post a message to our blog to let everyone know that we are safe and sound here in Buenos Aires. Believe it or not, we felt none of the effects of the massive earthquake that hit southwest Chili in the cities of Talca, Valparaiso, Concepcion, and spread all the way to Santiago.

I have not yet heard if other parts of Argentina were affected but will be listening to the news (to the best of my ability) this evening for more updates. I know this is a short post, but just wanted to thank everyone for their well wishes and concerns. We pray for those in Chile that lost love ones and are faced with rebuilding their lives.

More to come soon – now that we have moved apartments and solidified our travel plans.

The Cranberries Concert

When we first arrived in Buenos Aires, the first advertisements we saw in the parks were for concerts. For anyone that has met me, you will know that I really don’t know squat about music. Chuck on the other hand, could give a dissertation on why the Rolling Stones are the best band of all time. As luck would have it there were really only three concerts to choose from, and Chuck was nice enough to allow us to go to the “Chick Rock” concert to see The Cranberries.

I was really just excited to see a concert and visit one of the stadiums in Buenos Aires, but I was really impressed by the performance. Charles and I combine probably knew about one-third to a half of the songs played. Regardless, we enjoyed the show. We were very fortunate that it had rained the entire day before, and remained cool on Saturday, because the stadium had no AC. I don’t care how many fans you have blowing air around…if it’s not cold…it doesn’t help! As you can see from the picture, we were glowing not only because we were so excited and happy…but also because it was a little toasty in the stadium.

The show was great, and the Argentine crowd was very enthusiastic. I guess it’s from all the practice at soccer matches; there were many chants started before the concert to get the crowd ready. And that was only the warm-up for what followed as the fans begged for an encore. These people know how to make some noise.

For those of you who know and like The Cranberries, we’ve included a few snipets of the concert for your listening pleasure. Wish we could have seen Coldplay, but it was Coldplay or Carnaval. We opted for party in the street, instead of Coldplay. Maybe next time…

Weekend Whirlwind

Under the guise of getting to know the city, Chuck and I took advantage of our first weekend in Buenos Aires to do all the touristy things that this city has to offer. One of the Buenos Aires “must sees” is a Tango show. The traditional show offers dinner and “spectacular” (aka people dancing tango). So, I investigated our options and settled on a little place called El Querandí. I felt more confident about my decision after reading that Frommer’s also recommended this place. The show took you through the history of the Tango. The dance sprouted its roots in the late 19th century in Argentina brothels on the outskirts of Buenos Aires. Carlos Gardel, an Argentine singer, helped to turn the music of Tango from a lewd, ruffian’s dance to a dance with meaning and emotion. By the mid 1950’s the Tango was an accepted part of Argentine culture.

In a 180 degree turn, we decided on Saturday to go to the zoo to visit the animals. I’m sure by now you have seen and heard enough about this experience, so there is little left for me to say.

To finish off our weekend of pure tourism, we took the inevitable double-decker bus tour. While waiting for the bus to take us on our magical ride, we meandered into Plaza de Mayo and right into the Presidential Palace or Casa Rosada. From a balcony of this building, which looks out over the Plaza, Eva Perón (Evita) addressed adoring crowds of Argentines. The building was as beautiful on the inside as it is on the outside. After this visit, we wandered down to Puerto Madero. This once active port, is now the up and coming neighborhood in Buenos Aires. There are many fancy condos/apartments and the majority of the best steak restaurants reside in this area.

After this, we made our way back up towards Plaza de Mayo to hop on the bus. Our first stop was in San Telmo. This is area is known for its Tango and its antique markets. Our next stop was Palermo where we found another outdoor market with all kinds of shopping fun. Another reason to love BA, every day has Happy Hour and it lasts for three hours instead of two. So, we capped off our Sunday with happy hour on the terrace overlooking Plaza Francia in Palermo. It was a perfect end to a fantastic day!

Zoo Trip

Terri and I went on Saturday to visit the Jardin Zooilogical in Buenos Aires. Instead of writing about our Zoo Trip, I figured I'd just post the videos. It was kind of like the biggest petting zoo we've ever seen because you can pretty much feed everything. We had fun with it. Enjoy!

Zoo Trip: Male Peacock

Zoo Trip: Llamas #2

Zoo Trip: Llama's #1

Zoo Trip: Some Kinda' Chicken or Somthin'

Zoo Trip: Donkey

Zoo Trip: Animal

Zoo Trip: Brown Bear

Zoo Trip: Varmints #4

Zoo Trip: Meer Cats

Zoo Trip: Elephants

Zoo Trip: Varmints #3

Zoo Trip: Female Peacock

Zoo Trip: Monkeys #3

Zoo Trip: Monkeys #2

Zoo Trip: Monkey's #1

Zoo Trip: Varmints #2

Zoo Trip: Varmints #1

Zoo Trip: Kangaroo-Rabbit #3

Zoo Trip: Kangaroo-Rabbit #2

Zoo Trip: Kangaroo-Rabbit #1

Man Kisses and Other Cultural Musings

We are getting accustomed to the culture and people in Buenos Aires. I have been very pleasantly surprised since I’ve been here. I didn’t come with any expectations (bad or good) and I have been happy with everything. The people seem to have many similarities to the U.S. in terms of taste in music, personality, and their sense of humor. It has been very easy for us to relate to people quickly. I walked by a book store and saw in the display window anthologies of Led Zeppelin and The Rolling Stones, and I was like, “Alright, these people are probably pretty cool.” My team at work has been great also. The whole team is excited and ready to learn and work hard. I have been nothing but impressed with them and am really looking forward to what we can accomplish over the coming months.

There are also many differences that are a lot of fun. Part of/most of the fun of going to another culture is to experience those differences. At work, the people are very friendly in that they go out of their way to introduce themselves to you and start up a conversation. I feel like there is more emphasis on that here, and I appreciate it. Also, kissing on the cheek is the way most friends greet each other. I knew this coming down and was ok with it. I’m not so concerned with the weirdness of doing it, I am more just worried I’m going to do something wrong and freak people out. My first experience with it was with a dude, which was kind of like jumping into the deep end at swimming lessons, but I pulled it off ok. You don’t actually kiss, just kind of touch cheeks and make a kissing noise. It is different, but interesting to become a part of different cultural norms than I am used to. I’m sure my “man-kisses” will become better with time and practice.

We’ve only been here a little over a week, so we’ll see how we feel when the “honeymoon” with Argentina is over. However, right now we really love the culture, people, exploring the city, and are looking forward to continuing this experience. It has been so great for Terri and I to go somewhere and be able to focus totally on a new culture and each other.

In the Land of “Cervezas Gigantes y Cafes Pequenos”

Giant beers and tiny coffees. Terri and I went to eat out for the first time, and I ordered a Stella for about $5-$6 USD. About the same price at a restaurant in Chicago. When the guy brought it out, it was the size of my head. Terri was pretty amused by the whole thing. I think I’m going to like this country. I feel like I fit in pretty well in a country where it’s ok to go to an upscale restaurant and order yourself a 40. Admittedly, it’s not wrapped in a paper bag, and you don’t drink directly out of the bottle while sitting on a curb. When we stopped by a supermarket later, I found out you can buy the same size Stella bottle for about $1.30 USD. Now I realize that I am gonna really like this country.

Now the coffee is something else I need to get used to. I remember from when I was in India, other countries like smaller coffees. I like that, because I get to pretend I’m a giant robot. Here, however, the coffees are tiny AND super strong. Terri had her first attempt at making coffee the other day, and it was like motor oil. I had a full cup and sprinted all the way to work like Ussain Bolt. We have since figured out how to make coffee at the strength that we have been accustomed to.

Argentina Here We Come

Leaving our friends in the US was difficult, but fortunately since Terri and I had about 17 separate events which we said goodbyes at, I think we managed to see just about every friend, acquaintance, and well wisher before leaving. Thanks to all of our great friends for giving us such a great send off over the period of about 4 months.

Thanks to Jon Gilman for hooking Terri and I up with business class upgrades for our flight. Terri and I got to ride in style and were about as well rested as a person can be after a 10 ½ hour flight when we touched down in Buenos Aires. When we got off the plane and out of the terminal we were greeted by 80 degree weather and sunshine. After coming in from the Chicago winter, it felt like we were 19 years old on our first college Spring Break.

Driving into the city I noticed a few things. This country is futbol (soccer) crazy. Futbol was on 75 % of the billboards and we must have passed a dozen fields on the way into the city. I am excited to watch the World Cup in a country that is so excited over this game. We also noticed that the highway infrastructure seemed relatively good around the city. However, our comparison is Chicago, so that might not be saying much. I knew my office was next to a McDonalds and as we were driving in, every time I saw a McDonalds I would remark to Terri “Hey, I think that’s where my office is, maybe we’re close” and then we would go whizzing by. After the 5th or 6th time this happened, Terri proposed the theory to me that maybe there are multiple McDonalds in this city, which got me to pipe down. McDonalds seems to be like the Starbuck’s of Buenos Aires, with locations almost every 2 – 3 blocks.

The architecture of the city is interesting. It reminds me of European cities. It has lot of old buildings with gorgeous architecture. However, it seems that many of them stand empty, which is sad. Seems like many of them are too beautiful to tear down, yet it is often too expensive to renovate them into something useable. I’m not sure that is the case, but I suspect it is. In general, the city is very different from Chicago, yet there appear to be enough similarities to make for an easy transition. We are really excited and have been nothing but smiles as we look forward to our adventure.