finito

the last day in buenos. I walked in an eco park. Ate a salmon salad, then immediately came across and barbeque sausage truck....ugh...i made the right choice...BUT IT WAS RIGHT THERE! Ate a cookie, had some coffee. Museum. Walked.
Up to the top of my hotel for a last look, then the airport.
I did ok. Lines not bad. Had a good seat from argentina to JFK.
JFK to LA. I had to piss 5 times. 5! What is that! Guy next to me got up once! Steel plated bladder mother fucker!

I like when unusual things happen so I can check them off my list.
Peed in the airplane toilet during turbulance. Check.
Long boat ride. Check.

During the plane ride from NY to LA I got to check off another curious event.
Watching the movie an alert came up....ANY LICENSED MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL ON BOARD PLEASE CONTACT A FLIGHT ATTENDANT. WE NEED YOUR ASSISTANCE. As this came up the flight attendants broke out the defibrillator. NICE! I thought we might divert or see some frontier medicine but nothing else happened. We disembarked with no other problems either so it might have just been gas. Whatever.

Home again. The airport ride pact has been completed once again and now will be renewed when my friend needs a ride and we renew the pact.

It's good to be home. I'm looking forward to going to work. The routine. Then soon enough....it will be time to plan next years journey.

The circle of life..sort of...

walking

Last night in buenos. This is what I found. Headed out to the jazz club.
This is the second run at posting.
Will try again with more about what happened today.

last day

This is my last full day in Buenos. So I walked.

Picked up laundry and headed to La Boca. Guidebook says say on the path, dangerous and not pretty off the path.

Not conventionally pretty. Torn up houses, dogs and dog shit everywhere, burned out bus on one street but I saw lots of things I liked. My favorite was two 60 year old men playing SLUGFEST and laughing in front of their dark old apartment building.

I walked, most everything was closed but I walked and people were just existing. Watching the sun move and the time pass.

I got hungry and I saw a McDonalds, and for about 3 seconds considered it BUT THEN! Divine intervention. SMOKE! Burning flesh! An hot old drum! It was another street BBQ guy in front of a club! NICE! I crossed a six lane highway to get to it but it was worth it! OH! OH! OH! They call it chorizo, a spicy sausage cooked, split over a french roll. I swear to god it surprised me again how good it was...11 pesos...just under 4 bucks.

I saw in the distance a orange bridge. I like architecture so I headed for it. I had no destination today. I got to the water and found a new, tall orange bridge and a brown rust metal truss with the road crossing removed. So how are people getting across the bridge. Rowboat. See the video.

I have to confess something. I don´t put everything in this blog. Sometimes I omit for interest or content but yesterday I did something I was embarrassed and ashamed of.

After I bought my fruit for the day, I waited at the corner for a break in traffic so I could cross. A kid, 20 or so, came near me, he said something in spanish and pointed at my bag.
Now in my defense, my spanish is poor. It takes me a second to process, decide and act when someone speaks to me and in this part of town my guard was up, and unfortunately living where I live, my default when anyone on the street asks for anything is no. And that was my response....Lo siento, no.
We both crossed and he disappeared into a building then it hit me, FUCK

last day

I leave tomorrow. So I walked.
Picked up my laundry and head to La Boca. Guidebook says dont stray from the path. La Boca can be dicey. So I went during the day, completely off the path and yes, I saw, smelled, heard...
Wandering dogs of all sizes
Cooked and cooking dog shit
An abuela yelling for a kid
A kid wilding scuffling home because abuela was calling
Corrogated metal buildings two stories high
Two sixty year old men playing ¨Slugfest¨ and laughing in front of a tenement
Bars
Cracked concrete
Laughter
Men dragging parts of a falled tree through the streets

I didn´t feel threatened. It could be considered ugly but I saw it as just another scene. I liked it. I would go back just to take more pictures and draw it.

To get to this part I had to take a ride. I walked toward a tall orange bridge while I was in town. I got to the end and there were in fact two bridges. One new, tall and orange and a brown metal wreck. Now that the bridge was out people still have to get across right? So it looks like some twenty year olds put up 2 small buildings, three row boats and for 80 cents argentinian they row you across. Check the video. I kept thinking, this would never happen in the US, or the trip would cost nine dollars and be sponsered by citibank. It was very very cool.

I have a confession to make. Yesterday I did something that I did not write about in the blog because I was embarrassed and ashamed of. I bought some fruit yesterday as I did say but as I walked out of the store and down the street a kid about 20 came up to me as I was waiting for an opening in the traffic to cross the street. In my defense, my spanish is bad and it takes some time for me to compute, decide and respond when someone talks to me. This kid was fine, a little odd and uncomfortable so my guard was up and this was not a great part of town. He said something to me in spanish, pointed and I picked out the word, UNO.

Living where I live, I feel bad but my default setting when someone asks for anything in the street, is no. And that was my response, Lo seinto, no.

We crossed the street and he disappeared into a building then it hit me...this guy was hungry and asked for a piece of fruit. Damn. This kid looked uncomfortable asking and I thought he would feel even worse if I chased him so I could give him that stupid bag with a peach and pear in it.

I tried to minimize it but it stuck with me. It doesn´t seem like a big thing but really someone asks for some fruit and what kind of asshole says no. Fortunately, whatever forces at work yesterday were at work again today because coming back after my second boat ride across the water I walked through the park and up a hill. I was feeling pretty good because I thought I was really seeing and feeling everything around me. Taking it all in for those times when I´m at work or in line at DMV when it´s nice to go somewhere else in your head for a couple of minutes.

And I heard some very faint words. I almost kept going but I stopped and turned and there was an old man that looked like he was 6 foot squashed to 5 foot at the top of a grassy patch of hill. "Joven, Joven..." He was pointing at the ground and half smiling. I was quietly racing through every word this man said and I picked out "dame su manito por favor" So I walked up and gave him my hand and steadied him as he shuffled slowly across the grass, exposed roots from a tree and an uneven patch of concrete. He talked to me like my grandmother used to talk to me when I couldn´t understand and I was to stupid to listen then but I listened today.

He was smiling and made it to the path. He patted my back and told me thank you. I don´t even remember what I said I was just grateful to have that moment.

over and around

My last hotel was nice. New and a little sterile. Modern. I needed to change so with the internet ...tap tap tap....new hotel, cheaper. Not a chain and great!
Both hotels have very annoying security software that makes every program and website very very slow. This wasn^t a problem at my first hotel but it seems to be an issue now. Oh well. I have old hardwood floors and a big window. Fuck it.

Change of venue is nice so I took a walk. I only brought three shirts and one pair of shorts on this trip...and a pair of pants extra. My antartica clothes were throwaways, dumped in Ushuaia to save weight but now I have smelly hold overs so I walked. I found two old ladies with five washing machines. My spanish sucks so I^m hoping I get clean clothes tomorrow.

While searching for laundromat I stumbled across a 114 year old cafe. Art on the walls and plaques everywhere from the city. I went in for lunch and it was nice. Just the kind of place I like. Old, filled with furniture not quite as young as the waiters. I sat and do what I do when my mood turned. I tried to figure out what happened and the sound of rumbling conversation was clearer...and in english...I looked around more closely and half the people had camera straps on their back and sitting ass forward in their chairs. Ugh....this place was a douchefest. The women at the table next to me spoke so her conversation was clear above even the clatter from the kitchen and the table across from her was talking lawyer this and movement that, FUCK! I had to get out. Check, cash, street. Pissed off again. Fuck.

So I walked. I^ve been pretty good with my diet and excercise on this trip so I picked up a pear and a peach from another local guy. He seemed happy. So was I. Keep the little guys in business.

I try and walk on a new street every time I go out. This time I was a block over but on the other side of town. Sidewalks seemed tight, dark, dirty. Buildings were the same size but sunlight seemed to be a weak yellow. This is where I bought my fruit. I didn{t feel threatened but I was aware of what was going on around me. I usually am when I travel but sometimes you have to move the defcon up a hair.

This city is full of fantastic old buildings with balconies and cafes pressed into facades. You have to see it. So different than back home and I don^t know why it has to be that way.

The fruit worked by the way. All systems clear.

Layed in the tub. May go to the jazz spot again.

more pics on flickr.

two days till the plane...
more later...

sour

I got up pissed off. I didn't sleep very well and just have too much energy. Every year, I say I won't be gone for more than three weeks and week three comes and I'm pissed off. What a shock.
Walking in city I reminded myself, in less than a week I'll be shackled in a cubicle, ass deep in paperwork and emails so drink in any atmosphere I can because a lot of people aren't getting what I'm getting.
Walking I found another cafe. Old. You know I really like a restaurant with old chairs. Finish worn, chipped. Tables rubbed smooth by elbows from the hundreds of people, many now gone, sitting where I was. I sat by the window. The soccer game was on so about a dozen guys were sitting... watching...then GOOOOOOOOOLLLLLLL!!!!!!!
Everyone stood and pumped fist and puffed their chests. It was great. I was outside the thing but an interesting thing to experience none the less.
I had some odd coffee and a small cookie. They serve coffee with a shot of water to chase it, I think its a great idea and we should do it at home.
Before I got to the cafe, I bought a peach and pear from a man in a nearly empty shop. He seemed happy I was buying fruit that needed to be consumed probably by midnight. I've been eating fruit everyday.
The last night on the ship we had a huge steak and I've been trying to get the parade started ever since.
I got to the hotel about an hour ago. Ate the fruit. Nothing.
Jazz club tonight. Just down the street from the hotel.
Sleep.
New hotel tomorrow.
I hear that plane a' comin' coming round the bend...

back to the beginning

it seems like a lifetime ago i was in buenos. it´s like a whole new vacation.

my hotel is in a different area and the vibe in completely different.

today is a national holiday. honoring the dead from the military coup twenty ...thirty years ago...i´m not to sure.

my puncutation is spotty because the keyboards here have a different set up. I hate reading text that has bad punctuation and formatting but under these circumstances everyone will have to bear with me.

I may forgo Montevideo. So much of this city I have yet to see and rather than spend more time in transit I may just settle and wait go a little deeper here.

Sun was out today. Very very nice.

Before I caught the plane in Ushuaia, on the way to the airport the sky was so clear you could see for miles and miles. During one of the zodiac cruises one of the guides told us to look down range at the continent and told us at the tip where we could see was about 100 miles...!!!! Imagine! Living in LA and seeing that far in the bluest sky you could imagine.

Landing here in the afternoon. Smog, heat but city. People. Traffic and motion. This is what I know. I¨m happy. A little dinner. Open the book . Talk to the concierge and see what they recommend tomorrow. Today is shot. Holiday.

But not totally. I was in a coffee house just now. Seemed from the 40´s. Antique wood cabinets. Tile worn at the edges. Every tile worn in deep blacks and burnt yellows you couldn´t find in a home depot if you had all the time in the world.

Anyway. I¨m going for a walk .

more later.

hope everyone is well.

I am.

Very.

seven

back in ushuaia. computers are terrible here so no pics or vid until I get back to buenos.

On my birthday. We landed at hanna bay. Off the boat, after 2 days (yes I get sea sick and was miserable but better by this time) I dont remember ever being in a zodiac, so i was nervous. The boat bounced and rocked over the water. Cold but not life threatening like I was preparing myself for.
We got closer to the beach and first it was land, then land with spots then penguins. Hundreds of them. Everywhere.
I swung my legs over the side of the zodiac, into the water and up the rocks.

And I sat. On a hill, with the penguins.

You might think they would be curious about us but they could care less and we were instructed not to block them or agitate them. Let them come to you.

They were calm, gentle and very easy going. Hopping. Wadling. Thudding along around me.

We spent a few hours here. I walked down the beach and saw three kinds of penguins. A herd of elephant seals laying on the beach and fur seals playing on the beach.

It was amazing.

The next day. The sixteenth we landed at paradise bay on the continent. I carried my camera in my mouth out of the boat. About six of us were completing the continents on this trip.

I know I didnt cure cancer or beat the time in the mile but I did feel a sense of accomplishment. Ive seen parts of the world not a lot of people do and its changed me. I travelled with people that can share what its like to take an over night train where you dont speak the language, to haggle for nickels in an alley for a statue.

I wrote and drew and drank in as much as I could.

The boat was terrific and terrible. The last few days we had relatively bad weather and a woman became ill.

Im used to access to communication anywhere but on the ship I was cut off. I didnt anticipate how important being connected is to me. Now I know.

anyway. Im back. Off the ship and in ushuaia for a day then buenos.

Im hungry.
more later.

I can see my ship from here

woke up this morning. All night the wind was blasting like a mother! I´m glad I wasn´t out in it. The neighborhood dogs were howling but I was warm under the covers.

I looked out of the window this morning and there it was at the dock. My ship. Holy fuck this is going to happen!

The hotel has several paintings from local artists so I asked the owner if the picture in my room was for sale. I´ve been in the room for two days and am comfortable with it so it couldn´t hurt to ask. He told me he would ask and let me know. I had a little breakfast and I heard a bit of the call and the manager told me he would be at the hotel in five minutes. Cool!

I checked out and went to the guy´s studio and saw some of his work. Water colors, acylics and drawings. Nice but out of my range. We talked about painting, drawing and learning how to paint and draw. He gave me some recommendations of books and stuff and encouraged me to keep pursing it.

It was a lot of fun.

I´m waiting. in about 6 hours I´ll be on the boat.

No internet or phone. In an emergency you can get me but I´m not banking on an emergency. my life is usually pretty good that way.

Next post, I´ll be 45. Happy birthday to me.
P

action

ok, today It was raining. A little cold but i had better get used to it. I went to the end of the world museum, the yamana indian museum, coffee, bad lunch at a chinese argentian restaurant then back home. Checked mail, relaxed.

Thats what I did.

But in the back of my head.

The voice.

I determined on the way here the voice in the back of my head is sometimes Beavis. I know, it´s a little off but it makes sense...doesn´t it.


Anyway, Beavis kept going....all yesterday and all today. ¨crap table opens at 10pm¨ ¨you´re going right¨ ¨you gotta go¨ ¨whose going to play if you don´t¨

about 930 I got hungry. I put on my jacket and down the road. I found a shop selling empanandas. For 2 USD I got a ground beef and a something that tasted like seaweed pair of empanadas, crust warmed, inside cold.

I walked and ate one and a half.

I was close....2 blocks max. The casino.

I had been to the bank earlier so I was good. Nothing crazy but enough to roll and have fun. Yesterday I was crimped today I´d be looser.

I got to the door and no one was at the table. Two dealers standing there, the box laid out waiting to go to work. So I cashed in and went to the far end of the table. Then put the box up and dropped the dice. They looked surprised, like they weren´t sure what to do. This wasn´t the same crew as yesterday.

I knew the routine so I was smoother. Bet, dice, throw.

8

backed my bet up.

4
6
5
8. winner

Every throw. I listened closely. This is the best part. The call. ¨Juego Juego Juego¨ then stuff I couldn´t understand until I threw again then ¨Juego Juego Juego¨ again. All the dealers chatter.

6, place the 9
10
2
9, pays 24 on 20
What? Vegas pays 28 on a 20 dollar bet. Whatever. I like the action.
5
8
9, pays 24
6 Winnner.
The pit boss was at the far end of the table. He eyed me. I mean He LOCKED eyes on me while I rolled. I looked at him and locked eyes with him and he seemed unsure about me. I rolled ..and I won.
8 winner
9 winner
7 winner.
I made money on the numbers too. When I had made three more points after we had our eye crossing moment, He moved, across the table.....next to me. Fuck him...9 winner
Place the six, winner 20 pays 22. (vegas pays 24...don´t roll the dice at the end of the world, money is better in vegas)
I crapped out some and won some more.
I bet 30 on 6 and 8 and won. They pay 33 for 30...booooooo....
I was up and down but I rolled for half an hour, IN SPANISH! I called bets, asked odds, colored up in spanish.
End result.
After tipping the crew. I lost 2 argentinian pesos but I rolled, the way I knew I could.

I get on the boat tomorrow.
This was a good day.

rain

I was beat yesterday. The plane rides are starting to drain me. It used to be off the plane and right in to it but now I get to the hotel, shower and nap. Getting old.

It´s cold here, not bad thought. 50´s 40´s something like that. I´m wearing my jacket and today i have on my thermals. Wind was blowing hard this morning so I could feel the building move. Now that´s wind!

No pictures, i tried to upload last night and the computer in the hotel crashed my camera so I´m not doing that again. I´ll try again when I´m off the boat.

So yesterday, I went to dinner. Casa de los Mariscos. I figured, I´m in a port, sea food must be good. I had arroz con mariscos and it was great! My waiter was some depressed goth kid made me uncomfortable to talk to but the owner came by later and brought me bread and more water so it evened out.

They call Ushuaia the end of the world. It´s on a lot fo the tshirts. Well on the way home from dinner I went to the casino. Yes, at the end of the world there is a casino and.....there is a crap table there.

The table opened at 10pm so I waited. Cashed in and took the dice. Now I usually pound the table grab the dice and roll. Holy fuck ! they did not like that at all. I was instructed with blistering eye contact and furious attention (in spanish) to recieve the dice, in my hand and throw. No other movement or contact. WTF?

Hey, whatever, I¨m a the end of the world and there is a crap table. I¨m happy.

I rolled for about 15 minutes and wasn´t feeling it. They´re chips are like funky kids buttons. shiny purples and pinks and rounded at the edges. Like little space ships. Weird.

I lost 88 ARS which is like 22 dollars US. Not bad. It was interesting. I didn´t really have that much fun...but I want to try again. I¨m sick that way.

It´s been raining and the wind has been a mother all morning but i´m going to run out again for a bit. See more of the town.

Tomorrow is the boat. 11 days.

I´ll post again before I leave...
later.

ushuaia

I made it.
two days to the boat.
Colder here but not freezing.
Hotel nice but a little uneven.
More later.
Feel good.
This is the view from my room.

wood

I didn´t want to let this pass so I´m posting twice so i can put a picture with it. I rode in a subway car today, twice actually, that was outfitted in wood. It was very cool. Windows had wooden frames, each seat was made of slats and the light fixtures looked like they were from the 40´s too.
I´m not sure how old these cars are but they seem like a real piece of history.

heat

Nose is better, chest is still clogged but nose stopped running. Keeping the heat on and drinking a lot of water yesterday helped. But i´m spent. Did more walking today. Museum, hard rock, train station.
One thing I´ve noticed about this city is that were ever you go, even in a dense city spot I´ve seen butterflies at random. It´s kind of cool. Buses, motorcycles, cars drowning out any sense of quiet but a butterfly will pass you by or land on a window then leave.
I´ve also noticed the people here are fast movers. Everyone seems to be headed somewhere quickly but they are still polite and relaxed. Maybe I´m not as sensitive to people at home but here it seems people are more considerate.

ugggggghhhhh....

I¨m sick. I´ve been fighting it but this morning. Headache, fever, runny nose, dense green flem, and my eyes hurt.
If i were at home I would lay in bed or on the couch making low gutteral noises and wait for the cat to try and bury me, but on vacation....fuck that!

I put on a thick cotton shirt and walked. Trying to get my temperature up to kill this thing. Maybe myself too but it´s worked in the past.

Regardless, I got some coffee at mc donalds, drew, caught the subway to try and get to the art museum and got lost.

I was on a subway line for 5 stops. The masses surrounded me. Now normally I hate people but when i travel this is one of the things i love. Strangers from another country just getting from a to b. Businesssmen, housewives, students, workers. Everyone, just riding together. We all know the rules and we are all getting along. Pretty nice.

So I¨m getting off the train. My head full of flem when i hear...¨dum dah dum dum dum DUM....dum dah dum dum dum DUM...´´ from a tinny guitar. Single strings, elementary but there...Happy birthday. Now i understand if you are busking and get a crowd of more than 30 people Happy Birthday is a statistical lock to make some money. I took it as a small bit of karma routed my way.

Anyway, on my way to the museum i saw this sign. My spanish is bad so I didnt even ask...WTF?

Went to the post office and picked up stamps. Post guy told me the post office down the block had nicer ones if i wanted something for my book. Now he told me it would be easier to take the subway, but I heard its too far to walk. If you really know me you know what coming...

So it took me about 20 minutes to walk to the next post office and the chairs were full. I pulled number 95 and they were on....I shit you not....22....it was like being at In and Out.

My feet were killing me and i needed to relax so I waited. I slept some and about an hour later I got another stamp for myself.

I got back to the hotel late and showered...then thought fuck...I need more than this...so I ran the tub and layed out. Before slipping into a coma I thought I would update the blog.

Tired now...

Museum tomorrow.
later

in the sun

I had an indication this would be a good day when I woke in the middle of the night to find a documentary on the RAMONES on argentine TV.

I walked about a block from my hotel to find the San Telmo flea market in full force. Block after block, mostly junk, but some interesting art, photos, old watches and music. Music was everywhere. Guitars, drums. As one would trail off another would surge.

Here is a lesson. I stopped at a cafe so I could see an indian performer. I was hungry so I ordered a small cheese and egg thing. A place where the waiter has a napkin on his arm is a bad sign for me and it was. It was bad. The salad was ok and you can´t screw up a coke so that went as planned.

I walked about and after awhile I got hungry. Really hungry. Where am I going to find food? Looking at the restaurants, checking menus and prices. Weighing options. Then I was at the same corner I was earlier. In fact, across the street. Smoke. Good smoke. The smell of meat on a grill was coming from a vacant lot turned into a cafe by three guys with oil drums cut in half and turned into grills.

I¨m convinced no bad food has come out of a oil drum grill.

For a quarter of the price I paid at the brasserie I got a chorizo split in two with fresh tomato slice in a chili sauce and a coke from a trash can filled with ice.

I sat in the shade on a hand made chair at a hand made wooden table and ate. This is living.

Earlier, walking down Defensia the market street was ending but I went a little further and found an old man playing tango guitar and a couple dancing. There are a lot of street tango dancers but this is the only one I found with a live guitar.

Watch the video. The moment was great.



Back at the hotel.

Feet are killing me. I walked all day. Resting a bit until tonight.

We´ll see whats open on a sunday.

later....

buenos

I slept in lima airport last night. 6 hours. and with earplugs and mask it wasn´t as bad as you might think. Fuck those pussies in the airport lounge. Warm towels and internet. About three hours before my plane a family did move into the seats across from me and two shrieking kids made me move but I made my plane and no problems.

Off the plane, I did puss out. I was going to wait for the city bus. 2 Argentine pesos and 2 hours. But it was 80 plus degrees. in the shade I could feel the chocolate bar (submlime extreme from Nestle, terrible chocolate by the way) turning into chocolate sauce, so I jumped on the shuttle 50 argentine pesos. Air conditioned and 40 minutes to the city. I¨m comfortable with the compromise since I was sweating into my shoes.

A quick ride on the subway and I made it to the hotel. Hotel Moreno in the San Telmo part of town. Tomorrow is supposed to be a flea market. Should be cool.

I checked in and slept for 9 hours.

hungry.

Its 2am.

We´ll see what happens.

more later.

lima

midnight. I got here. There was a plane to buenos at 125AM But there was an earthquake last week in Chile, 8.8, that jacked up all the schedules so I´m here until 730am. Five hours from now.
I´ve been through the duty frees. Snacked on free chocolate covered fruits. Sipped short cups of complementary coffee in the shops. I sacked out on the floor and listed to some locals in front of a shop in the airport, and I just had a 20 minute massage for ten USD. NICE! but I still have five hours to kill before i´m moving on.

I could go to the vip lounge. They have a few. One is 50 USD and seems nice but somehow to me, it´s cheating. Part of the fun of these trips are the inconviences, annoyances and bullshit I have to go through to get from a to b.

The last few years I´ve been getting soft. Fewer hostels, less street food. Last year I had a suite on my birthday. C´mon! So I´m drawing the line at the aiport lounge, at least at this point. I swiped the plane pillow and blanket and í´ll camp in behind a kiosk and wait it out.

It´s a little sick but it´s fun. The airport is still kind of happening even at 2am here. Music. People. Shit I´m blogging and there are still plenty of people up here.

I´m beat.

a small bottle of diet coke and free chocolate is not a great way to fuel up.

Great. 4.5 hours left.

Next stop . buenos.
later...