Buenos Aires, Argentina

Noah and I sprung up out of bed today, eager to get to the airport to await the arrival of the ladies. We commented on just how hard it was to imagine that they had been traveling southward towards us since yesterday morning. Much different from the last time that we saw them in Costa Rica, when they caught up to us and our month worth of driving with a mere six hour flight. We were giddy with excitement knowing that they would be here with us within a few hours. After an initial delay, their plane was on the ground, and Shelly and Heidi walked out of customs, loaded down with not only their gear for two weeks, but all the extra items we had them bring for us. They were carrying all new fishing equipment, nice clothes for Buenos Aires, jars of peanut butter, and more spare parts for the van… Shelly even surprised me with a new guitar, replacing the one which was taken out of the van back in Colombia!

After the reunion, we were off to Hotel Babel, an upscale boutique hotel in the San Telmo neighborhood. We were warmly welcomed by the staff, had some breakfast and then headed off for the San Telmo antique market. A amazing amount of antiques are crammed into a couple of blocks of shops, where you can find everything from old china and silverware, to comic books and matchbooks. From there we split up and Shelly and I headed to Florida Street, a shopping district in the central downtown of Buenos Aires. Florida St. made for great people watching, with everyone busily popping in and out of all the shops. Noah and Heidi went down to Puerto Madero, the newest neighborhood in Buenos Aires that sits along the river.

When we met back up, Heidi was sporting some new hardware on her finger! Noah had crafted a plan that involved Shelly bringing the ring down to B.A., where he then proposed in one of the nicest areas of B.A., standing on the architectural centerpiece of Puerto Madero, a bridge that translates to ‘The Woman’s Bridge.’

Next up was our first dinner with the girls in town, and now we needed to celebrate! We headed over to Gran Bar Danzon, and were immediately impressed with the ambiance as we entered. We were seated next to a window, and then treated to wonderful food and wine. Everyone tried each other’s dish and it was all good! It was the perfect way to end our first day in Buenos Aires…

It was somewhat surreal waking up today in Buenos Aires, knowing about all the festivities that our family would be having back home. While Shelly and I have spent Christmas away from family in Colorado a few times, this was the first time that we spent it in a warm climate. Christmas and New Year’s are the height of summer for the Argentineans and it was kind of nice to not have the same commercial feel that you get in the U.S.

Since most things were closed for Christmas Eve and we were leaving tomorrow, we had to try to fit in everything today. We got going right away and headed towards the Recoleta Cemetery, which is where many of Argentina’s famous political, military, and historic figures are buried, including Evita. As you enter the gates, you immediately engulfed in a tight maze of ornate sarcophagi, most of which are carved out of stone.

By two we were in another square, meeting up with a bike tour that would take us through the sights on the south end of the city. We saw many of the different plazas and historic statues, and got to learn about some of the barrio’s and historic periods for the city. The weather was nice and it was a great way to see the city. After the four hour tour, we had to book it back to the hotel so we could get ready for dinner, because we had a reservation for a tango show at 10. Our first couple of restaurant choices were closed for Christmas, so the guys at Hotel Babel graciously set us up with another restaurant in the area. It was good, but still didn’t meet the high standard set from the first night. We ate fairly quickly and jumped back in a taxi and headed back to the other side of town to make the show. As we entered, I was asked if I was Erik, almost as if they were holding the start of the show just for us. We were seated right up front and after a glass of champagne was delivered, the show started. We were treated to a traditional show that included not only tango dancing, but singing, traditional flutes and accordions.

While it was a very busy and full day, it was definitely the most unique Christmas we have had together so far.