I am operating on about 1 hour of sleep right now, and I'm also ill. I'm quite astounded that I can function, however it was all worth it. :-D
I left Montevideo yesterday around 7pm on the Buquebus ferry. It was a nice city, but the other hostelites were not overly warm, so I was definitely ready to say goodbye. In line for check-in at the ferry terminal I met Marcel, originally from Germany but living in Chicago. We chatted most of the three hour ferry ride to Buenos Aires, then exchanged information in hopes of meeting up later. Unfortunately, Marcel was sicker than I am, so the rendezvous was not to be.
However, when I arrived at the hostel around 10, it was quite full of people. I made fast friends with a really great group of four Australians who were planning to got out. It being my last night, I didn't want to miss out, so we cabbed over to a place called Pacha around 130am (I will not miss the hours that Argentinians go out). The place is right on the coast and is enormous. It was packed, but the line moved fast and the alcohol was inexpensive. The biggest downside was the ladies room, where the line was always long and I had to pay for toilet paper. Wtf. We drank and danced and had a great time until about 6am and, with the sun coming up, we headed back to the hostel. Once there I think we talked until 9am or so, then I passed out until the maid came in to tell everyone it was time to check out. Ouch.
After a quick shower, I headed out to the San Telmo market to spend the rest of my pesos on some last minute shopping. I have no pictures from last night or today, but the past 14 hours were definitely some of the most memorable of this trip. Buenos Aires is a great city.
I exchanged Facebook information with most of the people I hit it off with, so I really hope to keep in touch, and perhaps visit them someday in their countries and vise versa.
My flight is at 11pm tonight, and I arrive home around noon on Monday. I can't wait to sleep in my own bed and start my new job!
I don't really have any profound reflections on the trip, but overall I had an excellent time and I'm very glad I decided to take the plunge into solo travel. Next, I hope to go to Ireland for an outdoorsy hiking trip. Anyone care to join? If not, no worries... I can mostly speak the language there :)
Sunday, December 2, 2012
Saturday, December 1, 2012
Just what the doctor ordered
Last night I ventured out alone for the first time after dark. I took a cab even though it was not a far walk, just to be safe. I didn't bring a purse, stuck some extra cash in my bra, and just kept my phone and other cash in my pockets (plus my passport copy and credit card in my cash belt). You can never be too careful!
Anyway, so I decided to try out the Irish Pub and I'm very happy that I did (no pictures because I didn't want to bring my camera). A band was playing American covers, mostly from the era of The Beatles. I don't think I've mentioned yet, but South America, or at least Argentina and Uruguay, absolutely LOVE them. You'll see a photo below of a bar called Los Beatles that I saw today. It's THAT popular.
The lead singer of the band was an older gentleman who came over and said hello. His English was decent and he explained that the band was him and his sons. He wrote down his information so I could become a fan on Facebook. I will :)
I also met a nice Uruguayan guy name Christian. He bought me a beer and we chatted for quite awhile. He does similar work to what I do, so we at least had a common topic to fall back on. The music was enjoyable, though made me chuckle occasionally because a Spanish accent on Norwegian Wood is a bit funny. As I was getting ready to leave, around 1am, a group of three Marines came in. They work at the American embassy, each at a different time on their year long tours. They were all very nice and we chatted briefly but my cold was really getting to me so I had to leave. Christian helped me find a cab and I made my way home to bed, where I took a healthy dose of drugs and slept my first 8 hours since I started this trip.
Today has been very mellow. I'm rather out of energy for wandering around taking pictures. I went back down toward the Mercado del Puerto, where I purchased an inexpensive mate cup and straw, to remind me of the experience, then walked a bit down by the harbor. I decided to take a taxi to the Palatio Legislavito (where government happens) because I had heard there were tours. I didn't however consider that it's Saturday, so the place was very empty. Turned out not to be the greatest area either, although there was a police officer stationed by the building. I simply did a lap of the building, took a bunch of photos, then hailed another cab and headed back to the hostel.
My plan now is to just hang here in the beautiful weather until about 5pm, when I will make my way to the harbor to catch my ferry back to Buenos Aires. If there are people around to go out with tonight, I may do one last hoorah, but if not I'll have no problem with heading to bed early. Tomorrow I will spend the remainder of my pesos at the San Telmo market, then head to the airport!
Anyway, so I decided to try out the Irish Pub and I'm very happy that I did (no pictures because I didn't want to bring my camera). A band was playing American covers, mostly from the era of The Beatles. I don't think I've mentioned yet, but South America, or at least Argentina and Uruguay, absolutely LOVE them. You'll see a photo below of a bar called Los Beatles that I saw today. It's THAT popular.
The lead singer of the band was an older gentleman who came over and said hello. His English was decent and he explained that the band was him and his sons. He wrote down his information so I could become a fan on Facebook. I will :)
I also met a nice Uruguayan guy name Christian. He bought me a beer and we chatted for quite awhile. He does similar work to what I do, so we at least had a common topic to fall back on. The music was enjoyable, though made me chuckle occasionally because a Spanish accent on Norwegian Wood is a bit funny. As I was getting ready to leave, around 1am, a group of three Marines came in. They work at the American embassy, each at a different time on their year long tours. They were all very nice and we chatted briefly but my cold was really getting to me so I had to leave. Christian helped me find a cab and I made my way home to bed, where I took a healthy dose of drugs and slept my first 8 hours since I started this trip.
Today has been very mellow. I'm rather out of energy for wandering around taking pictures. I went back down toward the Mercado del Puerto, where I purchased an inexpensive mate cup and straw, to remind me of the experience, then walked a bit down by the harbor. I decided to take a taxi to the Palatio Legislavito (where government happens) because I had heard there were tours. I didn't however consider that it's Saturday, so the place was very empty. Turned out not to be the greatest area either, although there was a police officer stationed by the building. I simply did a lap of the building, took a bunch of photos, then hailed another cab and headed back to the hostel.
My plan now is to just hang here in the beautiful weather until about 5pm, when I will make my way to the harbor to catch my ferry back to Buenos Aires. If there are people around to go out with tonight, I may do one last hoorah, but if not I'll have no problem with heading to bed early. Tomorrow I will spend the remainder of my pesos at the San Telmo market, then head to the airport!
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