Tag Archives: travel

My wife warned me before we got to Argentina. “Guys are shameless when they see a pretty girl on the street.” Carolina told me some stories of their bravery – of whistling and pick-up lines she heard on the street. I didn’t quite believe her until we got here.

But as we walked down the street, guys would stare at her. They didn’t just glance, they did the full, up and down, stare that a pervert does when he thinks no one is watching. But there was no shame.

There were even times when I wasn’t holding her hand that guys would walk by and whisper things in her ear. I had the “pleasure” of overhearing this once. This time I heard it:

Estas re linda, boluda (an offensive word). Read more…

The other night we were invited to eat at someone’s house. We didn’t know the fellow but figured…free food…why not! We showed up…delicious by the way. I was so impressed by this guy’s house. It was enormous and gorgeous.

But he didn’t always live in such a plush house.

Behind the pool was a tiny pool house. It was a pretty modest pool house…but not a great house. His family of four used to live there. Read more…

I normally try to bring everything I write back to creativity. But I don’t really know how to do that with this. Iguazú Falls is simply inspiring on its own…so I figured I’d just post some pictures. These are unfiltered photos taken with my iPhone. Enjoy the majesty.

Note to my Canadian and US friends: Upon seeing Iguazú Falls, Eleanor Roosevelt exclaimed, “Poor Niagara!” These falls are awesome.

Read more…

Argentina is known for tango. True tango originated in Argentina and Uruguay. It’s a flirtatious dance – almost violent. It’s exciting to watch.

But there’s a dance far more dangerous and exciting than tango. It’s the dance of the auto. Driving.

Who needs lanes? Who needs stop signs? A three-lane road quickly turns into five (if there are “lanes”). An intersection rarely has stop signs. I still haven’t quite figured out how driving in Argentina works. Read more…

Right now I’m in a world between worlds. I’m on an overnight bus traveling between states in Argentina. While we’re here, our home base is an apartment in downtown Buenos Aires. Then we packed smaller bags and headed to a suburb. Then we packed even smaller bags and got on this bus to the state of Misiones. Finally, we packed even smaller bags to visit Iguazú Falls near the borders of Brazil and Paraguay.

It’s like I’m in a dream within a dream within a dream. Read more…

Let me introduce you to another of my wife’s cousins. Her name is Julia (second from the right). She’s studying English in school. She’s doing great.

But sometimes she can’t remember some of the English words. But she’s smart. She’s noticed that many English words become Spanish words by adding an -a or -o to the end. And many Spanish words become English words by changing their suffix to -ation.

For instance:

• Globe becomes globo Read more…

Mate (pronounced máh-tay) is a very typical drink for Argentinians. They drink it almost every day. You might have seen it at a hipster coffee shop. It usually drunk from a fancy cup or gourd (usually metal or with cowhide) filled with green herbs and a metal straw sticking out of it. You typically pour hot water (and sugar, if you want) over the top and sip tea (actually an infusion) from the straw. The special straw helps you keep from getting a mouth full of the herb.

It’s actually quite curious to see. In Brazil I saw people drinking mate while waiting for the flight to Argentina. When I visited clothing stores I saw the clerks drinking it behind the counter. You can go to gas stations to get hot water for your thermos to drink it on the go. As I type this my bus driver is drinking mate. Read more…

I’ve had a blast playing with my new cousins and aunts/uncles. I’ve found the language barrier doesn’t exist when it comes to boys and toy cars. Hours passed before I realized how long I’d been playing with my wife’s cousin Mateo. Cute kid.

But even in all the fun…I didn’t realize how much I needed a break. Carolina and I retired to an apartment in the city last night for some much needed rest. I woke up rejuvenated and ready to play some more. Read more…