March 28th - April 7th
With an extra ten days to fill, due to the stolen passport and delay in being able to get home (see previous post), it seemed that the only thing to do was to put the incident behind me, and try and make the best of the extra time - in between visits to the Embassy. (Too bad I couldn't have spent that extra time in Bariloche, where I would have loved to have had more time with good weather!)
Photo: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mothers_of_the_Plaza_de_Mayo
Apart from the Thursday march, there is always something going on in Buenos Aires, be it demonstrations, car races, mass cycle rides through the streets. Observing people in the streets is always interesting, whether it is watching a cartoonist draw a caracature of a client, a group of five or more dogs being walked by one person, a man on a bike with 'balloons' of candy floss on strings, covered with plastic, and attached to the handlebars; or, bizarrely, a man carrying a golden life-sized 'human' mannequin under his arm, while walking with a big floppy-eared dog on the end of a lead! However, there is also evidence of extreme poverty in parts of the city, despite prices that even for a European are high: notably near the bus station at Retiro, and away from the tourist areas at Boca. As in some European cities, it is not unusual to see people rummaging through rubbish to find food, and other items.
The advantage of staying in a hostel is that there are normally plenty of other independent travellers to talk to - at breakfast, in particular. At Hostel Obelisc, among other people, I met Paola, a young doctor from Colombia, who was in Buenos Aires for a medical conference, and had a spare day before her flight home. She and I decided to go together on the Saturday to visit Tigre, the starting point for visiting the green Paraná Delta. To get there involved taking the underground (subte) train to Retiro, before transferring to an ordinary train to Tigre. From here, we jumped on the public ferry for about an hour, enabling us to get a good view of the delta, and to walk along the river for a little way, before taking the ferry back.
 |
| Tigre Delta (photo: Wikepedia) |
On Sunday, I had arranged to meet Jens, whom I'd last seen at Coyhaique, and who had just arrived in Buenos Aires. However, I did not have a working phone with me, and with the preparation for the Grand Prix event that was taking place in the city streets, the crowds were so thick that it was almost impossible to move, so we didn't make it. Instead, I ended up joining a tour around Casa Rosa on my own.
http://www.demotix.com/news/1135787/buenos-aires-prepares-super-tc-2000-car-race-buenos-aires
With anti-British demonstrations planned for the Monday (anniversary of the start of the Falklands War), it seemed wise to lie low, and keep right away from the part of the city near the Embassy: just as well, in the event. (See previous post.) With one spare day before leaving the city for a three-day stay at a smallholding a couple of hours away, I took the opportunity of going to the Puerto Madero area: a business area with its tall skyscrapers and interesting architecture, within reasonable walking distance of the Obelisc: but also with a peaceful green area with lots of birds, adjoining the river estuary.
http://www.virtualtourist.com/travel/South_America/Argentina/Distrito_Federal/Buenos_Aires-1541981/Things_To_Do-Buenos_Aires-Puerto_Madero_and_Catalinas-BR-1.html
The Puerto Madero streets are nameed after women, and a shapely white bridge (Puente de la Mujer), translated, means 'Woman's Bridge'. This being a public holiday (the first of three this week), the market was buzzing with local people, and there were any number of food stalls, selling steak, sausages and hamburgers.
For futher images: https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=Puerto+Madero+photo&hl=en&rlz=1C1RNPN_enGB406GB406&prmd=imvns&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=nTuRT6TbBMXY8gPvrdSWBA&ved=0CCsQsAQ&biw=1967&bih=960&sei=zzuRT7H7I4Sy8gOW4r25BA AND http://www.danheller.com/ba-puerto-madero.html
In contrast to the apparent wealth at Puerto Madero, there is extreme poverty in parts of Buenos Aires, despite prices that even for a European are high: notably near the bus station at Retiro, and away from the tourist areas at Boca. As in some European cities, it is not unusual to see people rummaging through rubbish to find food, and other items.
Stay on a Smallholding: and the worst electrical storm in 100 years!
With the emergency passport now in my possession, and the demonstrations over, I was free to get out of the city for three or four days. And so it was that on Tuesday morning, I made my way to the 'Family Farm Hostel' at Las Malvinas, just outside the city, where I had arranged to spend three days staying in their Hobbit House accommodation.
The arrangement is that you pay a nominal charge to stay there (similar to price to city hostels), but you help out for a few hours on the smallholding, and get fed in return. The smallholding is run by Mark from Derby (ex Bangor University!), and his Colombian wife Sol: a vegetarian who is an absolutely fantastic cook http://familyfarmhostel.blogspot.co.uk/ , and who goes out of her way to make everyone feel welcome. Gus, an electrician from north of California had already been there a week, when I arrived. And Ted from Texas, who had recently graduated in geology, arrived just an hour after me.
The smallholding was not very big, consisting mainly of a vegetable garden that had recently suffered damage not only from the wind, but also from their two rather beautiful Jersey steer who had broken loose and caused havoc. Ted and I did some work on it next day, in the warm sunshine. When early that evening a few spots of rain fell, we could hardly have imagined that 10 minutes later the rain would be torrential, the wind, swirling round in circles, would gain momentum to an extent that huge trees would be ripped out of the ground, and that we would be right at the epicentre of an electrical storm, the likes of which had not been seen for about 100 years! (See link below: though the death toll later rose further to at least .)
http://www.buenosairesherald.com/article/97462/death-toll-rises-to-15-as-buenos-aires-recovers-from-heavy-storm
. . . . the districts that were affected the most were: Moreno, Ituzaingó, Ensenada, General Rodríguez, Lanús, Morón, La Matanza, Florencio Varela and Suipacha. Besides, the storm also affected Malvinas Argentinas, San Miguel, La Plata, Lezama, Pergamino, 25 de Mayo, Pilar, Brandsen, Chascomús, San Isidro, Navarro, Villa Gesell, General Viamonte, General La Madrid, Coronel Dorrego, Ramallo, Carlos Tejedor and Castelli.
. . . . the massive storm hit the metropolitan and Greater Buenos Aires last Wednesday. Over 30,000 people remain in the dark." De Vido provided a state-of-situation balance of the government efforts to reestablish normality after the meteorological phenomenon. . . . . rescue and relief efforts after the storm left water and power shortages. . . official also confirmed the deaths of seventeen people as he thanked relief teams . . .“ . . . We realized it was a tornado after seeing some footage,” De Vido concluded. . . .Security Secretary Sergio Berni : "We haven't had a storm of such proportions in the past one hundred years. Thousands of families were affected by it . . .
http://www.demotix.com/news/1135787/buenos-aires-prepares-super-tc-2000-car-race-buenos-aires
 |
| With the streets being crowded, people climb on anything they can for a better view: see link above for photo acknowledgement |
In the evening, with the races over, the cars were being loaded onto lorries, and now it was the turn of the bicycles: not for racing, but to ride through the otherwise empty streets: there were literally hundreds of them, of literally all shapes and sizes.
With anti-British demonstrations planned for the Monday (anniversary of the start of the Falklands War), it seemed wise to lie low, and keep right away from the part of the city near the Embassy: just as well, in the event. (See previous post.) With one spare day before leaving the city for a three-day stay at a smallholding a couple of hours away, I took the opportunity of going to the Puerto Madero area: a business area with its tall skyscrapers and interesting architecture, within reasonable walking distance of the Obelisc: but also with a peaceful green area with lots of birds, adjoining the river estuary.
 |
| Puente de la Mujer: photo, Virtual Tourist (follow link below) |
The Puerto Madero streets are nameed after women, and a shapely white bridge (Puente de la Mujer), translated, means 'Woman's Bridge'. This being a public holiday (the first of three this week), the market was buzzing with local people, and there were any number of food stalls, selling steak, sausages and hamburgers.
 |
| Photo: Betancourt Zuluaga - follow link below http://www.mondoexplorer.com/buenosaires/neighborhoods/puerto-madero.php# |
In contrast to the apparent wealth at Puerto Madero, there is extreme poverty in parts of Buenos Aires, despite prices that even for a European are high: notably near the bus station at Retiro, and away from the tourist areas at Boca. As in some European cities, it is not unusual to see people rummaging through rubbish to find food, and other items.
Stay on a Smallholding: and the worst electrical storm in 100 years!
With the emergency passport now in my possession, and the demonstrations over, I was free to get out of the city for three or four days. And so it was that on Tuesday morning, I made my way to the 'Family Farm Hostel' at Las Malvinas, just outside the city, where I had arranged to spend three days staying in their Hobbit House accommodation.
 |
| Family Farm Hostel: photo from website (see below) |
The arrangement is that you pay a nominal charge to stay there (similar to price to city hostels), but you help out for a few hours on the smallholding, and get fed in return. The smallholding is run by Mark from Derby (ex Bangor University!), and his Colombian wife Sol: a vegetarian who is an absolutely fantastic cook http://familyfarmhostel.blogspot.co.uk/ , and who goes out of her way to make everyone feel welcome. Gus, an electrician from north of California had already been there a week, when I arrived. And Ted from Texas, who had recently graduated in geology, arrived just an hour after me.
The smallholding was not very big, consisting mainly of a vegetable garden that had recently suffered damage not only from the wind, but also from their two rather beautiful Jersey steer who had broken loose and caused havoc. Ted and I did some work on it next day, in the warm sunshine. When early that evening a few spots of rain fell, we could hardly have imagined that 10 minutes later the rain would be torrential, the wind, swirling round in circles, would gain momentum to an extent that huge trees would be ripped out of the ground, and that we would be right at the epicentre of an electrical storm, the likes of which had not been seen for about 100 years! (See link below: though the death toll later rose further to at least .)
http://www.buenosairesherald.com/article/97462/death-toll-rises-to-15-as-buenos-aires-recovers-from-heavy-storm
. . . . the districts that were affected the most were: Moreno, Ituzaingó, Ensenada, General Rodríguez, Lanús, Morón, La Matanza, Florencio Varela and Suipacha. Besides, the storm also affected Malvinas Argentinas, San Miguel, La Plata, Lezama, Pergamino, 25 de Mayo, Pilar, Brandsen, Chascomús, San Isidro, Navarro, Villa Gesell, General Viamonte, General La Madrid, Coronel Dorrego, Ramallo, Carlos Tejedor and Castelli.
. . . . the massive storm hit the metropolitan and Greater Buenos Aires last Wednesday. Over 30,000 people remain in the dark." De Vido provided a state-of-situation balance of the government efforts to reestablish normality after the meteorological phenomenon. . . . . rescue and relief efforts after the storm left water and power shortages. . . official also confirmed the deaths of seventeen people as he thanked relief teams . . .“ . . . We realized it was a tornado after seeing some footage,” De Vido concluded. . . .Security Secretary Sergio Berni : "We haven't had a storm of such proportions in the past one hundred years. Thousands of families were affected by it . . .
Squall Line, Bow-Echo, Tornado, or just a Severe Storm?
The jury's still out, it seems. See http://www.tornadovideos.net/forum?id=54788&catid=13&func=fb_pdf
See also http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HXrm1KoCI_Q
Fortunately for our hosts, they had very little damage to their own property. Yes, there were some trees down, and we spent some time clearing what we could the next day; but unlike those of some of the neighbours, the roof stayed on the house, the Hobbit building did not flood as Mark had feared, and most important, the tree behind the house did not fall on the roof. Mark had had us all out on the veranda during the storm, in the hope that if the worst happened, we could all run. (So he told us the next day.) Ted from Texas was used to bad storms, but not even he had seen anything like it, he told us; and I certainly hadn't. We lit candles for light that night, and next morning filled buckets from the pond, for flushing the loo: the storm had not only ripped dozens of trees down, it had also ripped down electricity and telephone wires, and the area would be without power and water for some time.
All three of us volunteers slept like babies, that night. Poor Sol was kept awake by mosquitoes, that seemed to prefer the main house to the Hobbit, as well as by worrying about Andrea, her 15-year-old daughter, who had been staying overnight with friends, and who she had been able to contact, since neither landlines nor mobile phones were working; and Mark could not sleep for worrying about damage that he could not really check properly for until the morning.
There was great relief when Andrea got home next morning, with her friend's mother. It seemed that they had lost the roof of the house, but had stayed overnight with neighbours. We spent the day clearing up what we could of fallen trees, with the aid of limited tools. That night, we lit the woodburning stove in the Hobbit, and then one by one, every one of us snoozed off!
And so came Friday: time to get back to Buenos Aires, in time for my flight home. The weather was still hot and sunny, and the storm damage that could be seen on the way back to the city, quite sobering. There had been damage on the train line, but already I had decided to take the bus back from Moreno to Palermo. The intention had been to spend some time looking around that area of the city, before heading back to the centre: but in the event, after a little wander around Plaza Italia, I decided that really now I'd had enough. I had not seen everything, but then again, you can't.
Happy to report that my journey to the airport next day was uneventful. OK, so at the airport itself there was a lot of to-ing and fro-ing because of the emergency passport. ("What's this? Why doesn't it have a stamp on for entry? Take it to the migration office." ) At the migration office, more questions, before a form was produced, to authorize check-in. At check-in, same questions, phone calls to the migration office - and again, at security. But finally I was through, on the plane, off at Madrid, and in due course, back onto another for Gatwick, where we arrived on time. Here my emergency passport was duly handed in, and at last I was on the bus that (following just one more change) was to get me home. And so, my trip was at an end.
Fortunately for our hosts, they had very little damage to their own property. Yes, there were some trees down, and we spent some time clearing what we could the next day; but unlike those of some of the neighbours, the roof stayed on the house, the Hobbit building did not flood as Mark had feared, and most important, the tree behind the house did not fall on the roof. Mark had had us all out on the veranda during the storm, in the hope that if the worst happened, we could all run. (So he told us the next day.) Ted from Texas was used to bad storms, but not even he had seen anything like it, he told us; and I certainly hadn't. We lit candles for light that night, and next morning filled buckets from the pond, for flushing the loo: the storm had not only ripped dozens of trees down, it had also ripped down electricity and telephone wires, and the area would be without power and water for some time.
All three of us volunteers slept like babies, that night. Poor Sol was kept awake by mosquitoes, that seemed to prefer the main house to the Hobbit, as well as by worrying about Andrea, her 15-year-old daughter, who had been staying overnight with friends, and who she had been able to contact, since neither landlines nor mobile phones were working; and Mark could not sleep for worrying about damage that he could not really check properly for until the morning.
There was great relief when Andrea got home next morning, with her friend's mother. It seemed that they had lost the roof of the house, but had stayed overnight with neighbours. We spent the day clearing up what we could of fallen trees, with the aid of limited tools. That night, we lit the woodburning stove in the Hobbit, and then one by one, every one of us snoozed off!
 |
| The Hobbit Photo: http://familyfarmhostel.blogspot.co.uk/ |
Happy to report that my journey to the airport next day was uneventful. OK, so at the airport itself there was a lot of to-ing and fro-ing because of the emergency passport. ("What's this? Why doesn't it have a stamp on for entry? Take it to the migration office." ) At the migration office, more questions, before a form was produced, to authorize check-in. At check-in, same questions, phone calls to the migration office - and again, at security. But finally I was through, on the plane, off at Madrid, and in due course, back onto another for Gatwick, where we arrived on time. Here my emergency passport was duly handed in, and at last I was on the bus that (following just one more change) was to get me home. And so, my trip was at an end.
