"ARGENTINA" a Argentina Travel Page by swesn

ARGENTINA [1] 2002 >>
... +| Part of RTW 2002-2003 |+ ...

A gracious twirl, a sensual slide
Quivering voices from the cracking gramophone
Passion and nostalgia, that is tango
Musical poetry performed with tearful moans

Red-hot charcoal and that sizzling sound
Comes the smell of unmistakable asados
Yerba mate fills the gourd
The bitter the better, so prefer the gauchos

Relentless wind beats on the pampas
The majestic glacier, one swoons and faints
Amidst the mighty Andes, emerges Aconcagua
Seven colours on a mountain, swirls like paints

---

...written by trisha

---

From BRAZIL 2002 ...

After the extreme 'high' of the Iguacu Falls, I felt a little drained suddenly. I decided I needed a rest after six months of travelling.

And so, I stayed two months in Buenos Aires to study Spanish and simply, to get to know the city well. I could not have chosen a better place. I L-O-V-E this city!

This is really the city that never sleeps. The streets are always bustling, even at the small hours of the morning. There is a hive of activity everywhere, anytime. People show up for dinner at 11pm. Kiosks are opened 24 hours. There is an incredible variety of shops, you never needed to walk far to find a grocery store, a laundry, a telephone and internet cabin (Locutorio), a cafe, a pastry shop, a hair-dresser, a music store, a bookshop, etc...

There is a very obvious intellectual and cultured feel to this city. The architecture is distinctly European and gorgeous, but with the rubbish and graffiti, Buenos Aires still charmingly retained that Latino atmosphere.

After Christmas 2002, with a tinge of sadness, I left this wonderful city and flew south to Ushuaia to continue on my trip...

For more photos, please click :

PUERTO IGUAZU

BUENOS AIRES

USHUAIA

To CHILE [1] 2003 ...

---

ARGENTINA [2] 2003 >>

... +| Part of RTW 2002-2003 |+ ...

From CHILE [1] 2003 ...

I crossed back to Argentina from Chile briefly to visit the famous Patagonian landscapes on this side of the Andes.

Gosh, Fitzroy, Perito Moreno are astounding. How can you NOT LOVE this country!!

For more photos, please click :

FITZ ROY

EL CALAFATE

To CHILE [2] 2003 ...

---

ARGENTINA [3] 2003 >>

... +| Part of RTW 2002-2003 |+ ...

From CHILE [2] 2003 ...

After a month in Chile, I returned to my beloved Argentina through one of the most impressive border crossing through the Andes, from Santiago to Mendoza.

I then meandered up north passing various middle-northern cities of Argentina, baking in the summer heat and seeing a variety of amazing sceneries, from Aconcagua (the highest mountain in The Americas) to alpine hills to valleys studded with thousands of candalabra cacti (called cardones) in various amusing poses to red, ochre, terracotta, yellow, purple swirls of colours on awe-inspiring Quebradas (canyons) to altiplano salt-pans, Salinas Grande.

Argentina can only outdo itself in fantastic landscapes.

For more photos, please click :

MENDOZA

TAFI DEL VALLE

CAFAYATE

CACHI

SALTA

PURMAMARCA

To CHILE [3] 2003 ...

---

ARGENTINA [4] 2003 >>

... +| Part of RTW 2002-2003 |+ ...

From PERU 2003 ...

This time, I had a chance to experience another side of Argentina.

The north-western end of Argentina had a distinct Bolivian flavour. The charming towns are lined along more amazingly colourful quebradas and populated by Argentinians with Indian features. I had a terrific time exploring these tranquil towns of Humahuaca, Iruya and Tilcara, hidden from most public view.

I then returned to Buenos Aires, my second 'home'. I caught up with friends and re-visited the places I loved about this city.

For more photos, please click :

HUMAHUACA

TILCARA

IRUYA

To MEXICO 2003 ...

---

Also, please travel with my articles at :

TANGO AND NOT ENOUGH CASH
( .. Buenos Aires .. )

MUCH ADO ABOUT BUENOS AIRES
( .. Buenos Aires .. )

THE GREAT STAIN ROBBERY
( .. Buenos Aires .. )

WHERE THE PENGUINS ROAM
( .. Ushuaia .. Punta Arenas .. Puerto Natales .. El Chalten .. El Calafate .. Puerto Natales .. )

PLANET OF THE ASADOS
( .. Mendoza .. Puente del Inca .. La Rioja .. Tucuman .. Tafi del Valle .. )

RUN LLAMA RUN
( .. Cafayate .. Angastaco .. Cachi .. Salta .. San Pedro de Atacama .. Arica .. )

FAREWELL, MY AMIGOS
( .. Jujuy .. Humahuaca .. Tilcara .. Salta .. Buenos Aires .. )

---

ARGENTINA 2005 >>
... +| Part of SA 2005 |+ ...

In 2005, I returned again to Mi Buenos Aires Querido to visit my old friends and meet new ones. I thoroughly love it here, great literary culture, tonnes of activities happening in the city, highly creative handicraft fairs... I felt absolutely at home. Only when I forced myself to leave Buenos Aires did I feel my journey actually begin

01) IMAGINING ARGENTINA
( .. Buenos Aires .. )

ARGENTINA 2005 >>
... +| Part of SA 2005 |+ ...

Towards the end of 2005, after travelling for nearly 7 months, I completed my circle around South America and headed back to Buenos Aires via Mendoza and Cordoba, and later made side trips to Villa Elisa and Mar del Plata. I once again spent Christmas and New Year in Buenos Aires, the place I call my second home.

11) ARGENTINA AGAIN.
( .. Mendoza .. Cordoba .. Buenos Aires .. Villa Elisa .. Mar del Plata .. Buenos Aires .. )