Buenos Aires

The day i resigned from the yacht I called my parents to inform them of the decision I had made. My mom's first response was: "Oh great, now you can join us in Argentina".
I had never travelled abroad with them before, so I thought it would be quite an experience!

After my backpacking in France, I flew back to South Africa and a week later we flew to Buenos Aires.  Dad, Mom, Ouma and I - this should be interesting!

We flew Malaysian Airways, which was a first for me. My gran and I played musical chairs on the plane, because the girl next to me gave off a horrible odour and the man sitting next to her was spitting into a plastic bag every 15 minutes. We were so disgusted that Ouma and I started hitting the Gin and Tonics to forget about the fumes and noises annoying us!

After the 9 hour flight of torture we arrived in Buenos Aries. A taxi collected us at the airport and took us to our hotel where we were welcomed with friendly smiles. The first thing I did was to take my parents to Starbucks...oooh and did they love it! 

Mix together a beautiful European-like city with attractive residents, the tastiest steak you will ever eat, awesome leather shopping, full-bodied Malbec wine and the seductive dolce de leche and you get Buenos Aires, a cosmopolitan metropolis with both slick neighborhoods and equally downtrodden areas – but that’s part of the appeal. It’s an elegant, seductive place with a ragged edge, laced with old-world languor and yet full of contemporary attitude. Buenos Aires is somehow strangely familiar, but unlike any other city in the world.

Very colourful and unique, La Boca is known as the birthplace of the tango, this one-time shipyard has a famous walkway, the Caminito, where tango dancers perform and artists exhibit their work.

                                     

Absorbing the culture at La Boca was truly amazing! We had empanadas and watched the street tango's.

A walk through Recoleta Cemetery...

Recoleta Cemetery, in the upscale Recoleta Barrio of Buenos Aires, is the final resting place of many of Argentina's wealthiest and most famous families and personages, such as Evita Peron.

San Telmo Antique Market...

Cafes, tango parlors and antique shops line the cobblestone streets, which are often filled with artists and dancers. Everybody sips on Mate tea (traditional South-American tea prepared from steeping dried leaves in hot water). South Americans are so fond of their tea that most of them have a hot-water system built in their vehicles, providing them with endless Mate - and I thought I liked tea!!

We had lunch at a divine canape restaurant. There are a dozen of different platters of snacks. You pick whatever you want to eat and the amount of cocktail sticks will determine your bill. 

Delicious accompanied by a large glass of Malbec.

Tango Show and Dinner...

We watched a lovely tango show while we devoured a delicious Argentinean dinner. I had a Caprese salad, steak and creme caramel. 

I hardly ever eat red meat, but this time it was truly an exception. I believe this is what real meat should taste like!  Not one of us could finish our steak and the servers were under the impression we did not like it, but it was great, just too much food!

I am not sure if this lady was praying or shouting at God, but she was very entertaining!                                                  

 Santa Maria Gaucho Farm...

Located a few miles from the city is a farm where we enjoyed the traditional Gaucho culture of the Argentineans.  Each of us had a Empanada on arrival. My dad and I went on a horse back ride while my mom and gran chose to go on the wagon ride. I was so keen to gallop but we were only allowed to walk, too boring for my dad and I! We then enjoyed a lovely lunch also known as Parrillada (grill/barbeque) braai for us, accompanied by great wines such as Vasco Viejo. We enjoyed typical music and folkoric dances like the zamba, tango and chacareras while we were eating! For dessert we had a traditional deep-fried apple pastry soaked in syrup with espresso. 

We all purchased beautiful leather items and I definitely got my protein boost on this trip! This was much different to traveling alone, but I had a great time and was fantastic spending time with the family!