Feliz Navidad!

What an incredible day! Not only was I in beautiful Buenos Aires, but it was the first Christmas Sterling and I had ever spent together alone. Well, that being the case, we were keen on doing things a little differently. Let´s face it, egg nog by the fire just wasn´t going to work here.

To start things off, we had a leisurly morning in bed, amused by spanish christmas cartoons before heading to our balcony for a cup of dark roast coffee and a whole lot of sunshine. Today was a particularly beautiful summer day, so after a cold shower we decided to grab a little brunch on a patio just down the street. Considering how quiet the streets were, this place was packed. We sipped on freshly squeezed lemonade with soda and munched on a couple of omelettes. This was followed by a scoop of gelato at one of the many gourmet parlours in town as well a stroll through our neighbourhood to pick up some flowers as well as a few last ingredients for our Christmas dinner.

The afternoon was spent listening to music of all varieties and connecting with family and friends by phone and email. We also enjoyed a brief gift exchange around our 2 foot tall semi-tropical Christmas tree. (that´s right, plastic bananas. Tried to find red chilies too!) Around four o´clock we started to prepare a delicious roast from a recipe in our new cook book! (thanks Dad...it was delicious!) A pretty simple day I suppose, but highly highly enjoyable.

In order to properly recap Christmas though, I really ought to include a few other details...

When my father was here a few days prior, he and I had our own celebration of Christmas together by attending Bach´s Christmas Oratorio at the beautiful San Benito Abado Cathedral in Belgrano. It was performed by the Buenos Aires Filharmonic and included an eighty person choir as well as four soloists. All I can say is wow! Check out the photo below.

Also....

Argentines traditionally host Christmas dinner on the 24th and Sterling and I had heard that fireworks were a great tradition on Christmas eve. So wouldn´t you know it, at 12 o´clock sharp, the whole city came alive. From our balcony, we could see all sorts of colours in the sky as families convened on the rooftops of apartment buildings to light them afire. Meanwhile people rejoiced at the top of their lungs with the words Felices Fiestas and Feliz Navidad. We decided to go for a stroll in the hopes that we would experience some of this energy first hand. We were delighted to find all varieties of extended families gathered on the streets, celebrating with sparklers and noisemakers while children danced around, grinning from ear to ear.

All in all, an incredible Christmas.

Wishing you all the very same back home. Happy holidays!

A taste of Patagonia

December 17, 2006

Puerto Madryn was incredible. To my surprise, despite an 18 hour drive south, the terrain was not as lush and green as I had imagined. It was in fact very arid but beautiful none-the-less. My Dad, Sterling and I stayed at the Hotel Posadyn, an absolute oasis in the desert. The grounds were lush and serene and the service was impeccable. Below is a picture of my dad and I enjoying the garden prior to a scrumptious seafood dinner in town.

The next day, we went on a tour of the Valdez Peninsula, home to elephant seals, right whales, penquins, ostriches, lamas, sea lions and other interesting animals whose names have escaped me. Pretty incredible sights. Well worth the trip. Check out the pics below.

Taking a moment to reflect on what we had just seen

The next couple of days were spent on the beach. Unfortunately we didn´t luck out in the weather department which included overcast and a pretty impressive sandstorm, but we still had a great time reading, chatting and eating a whole lot of seafood and ice cream. The beaches go on for miles and would highly recommend them in good weather.

Picture of sand storm

Ster and I at site of elephant seals

Visit from Dad
December 12, 2006

A couple of weeks ago, my dad phoned me up out of the blue to say that he would be coming to visit. What a nice surprise! Well, he arrived on Sunday and we´ve been going non-stop ever since. Despite the two hour time difference and the cultural adjustment, my dad eased right into the swing of things. We´ve been walking the streets, taking in the architecture, eating decadent food and sipping Argentine wine and good cognac till the wee hours of the morning ever since. We even squeezed in a private tango lesson, all in the last 48 hours.

Tonight, the three of us will be taking an 18 hour ¨cama bus¨ south along the coast to Puerto Madryn. I´m told a cama bus far surpasses business class on a commercial airline, offering huge seats that recline 170 degrees and serving hot meals and bar service along the way. Puerto Madryn is a small beach town close to the Valdez Peninsula where elephant seals, whales, sea lions, penguins and other oceanic wildlife live. We plan to explore the reserve and enjoy the beautiful beaches in the surrounding areas for the next 4 days. Will be sure to post pictures and share our adventures when we return this Sunday.

Sunday in San Telmo
December 3, 2006

Today was another gorgeous day in Buenos Aires. It being a Sunday, our options were parks, markets or cafes. We decided to do all three in a neat part of town called San Telmo. Sunday is the busiest day in this area by far as it hosts a large market of artisans, musicians and antique dealers. I´m not quite sure how many square blocks are dedicated to the market, but it kept Sterling and I walking all afternoon. After a couple hours of wondering, we stopped for lunch and enjoyed some of Buenos Aires renowned barbeque and a cold beer. With our batteries charged once more, we enjoyed the performances of many local musicians before heading home.

Below are a small selection of photos from our visit to San Telmo today.

Thinking of you all back home.
Bye for now!

Sam