Argentina - Buenos Aires

We loved Buenos Aires. More than any other city we´ve visited, this was a city where we felt we could stay for an extended period of time, or even live for a year or two. Its filled with a lively vibe that is hard to put into words - a mix of European and Latino cultures.

The older parts of the city are dotted with amazing Euro-Spanish architecture, the restaurants are filled with steaks and wine, the bars and clubs are lively with Latin music, Tango dancing and patrons who are always up for a good time. The city literally never sleeps. Whether it´s 4AM on a Saturday night, or 2AM on a Wednesday, there are people in the street and restaurants and clubs that are open.

We decided to stay in an older part of town called San Telmo, known for it´s Tango culture and historic architecture. In the course of a week, we got a small taste of the best of BA...and know for certain that this is a place we will return to. Here are some of our favorite experiences:

Spanish Class

Since we´d both learned some Spanish in the past, and since we are going to be in Spanish speaking countries for 3 months, we decided it was a priority to take some lessons to brush up on our basic skills and build a foundation for further learning as we travel. We signed up for a week of small group lessons (Mon-Fri from 9AM-1:30PM) at a local language school called IBL.

While the time commitment did eat up a lot of our "tourist" time during the day (and waking up every morning at 7:30AM was killer), we were both glad we did it. We reviewed grammar rules, increased our vocab and got some good speaking practice over the course of the week. We also met some really great people in our classes from Brazil, Holland, the UK, and the US. Eric´s classmate Jayme (from Brazil) became a quick friend and we toured around the city and went out with him throughout the week. Admittedly, we probably won´t be fluent by the time we get home, but we will certainly be "proficent" - or at least we hope!

The Food/Drink

While Argentina is not necessarily known for the most flavorful cuisine - they are famous for their steaks and wine - and for good reason! No doubt about it, these people are carnivores and love their red meat. There are parillas on every block serving up steaks, asado (traditional meat dish), chorizo, sausage and much more. The norm on the menu is a hunk of red meat with french fries or potatoes. And trust us, it´s very good. We found a number of great local places to get quality steak for between $5-10.

In addition to the steak joints, there are also a handful of other gourmet restaurants that have more variety on the menu and a nice touch of class. We splurged a couple times (spending $30-40 on a nice meal with wine) to treat ourselves to the finer things in life. Although, I think Eric ordered steak pretty much everywhere we went.

And of course, Argentina is known for their wine country near Cordoba and Mendoza in the central part of the country...producing many great wines. We shared quite a few bottles of red wine over the course of the week and each one was excellent.

The Bars/Clubs

Many a traveler has raved about the awesome night life in BA, but until you are here, you just can´t understand. Even I - a girl who likes her sleep and is more of a homebody - wanted to go out every night. There are so many cool places to go...from clubs pumping techno and pop music, to music venues with live bands, from funky cafes and pubs to swanky upscale bars. There is something for everyone...and some place for every mood every night of the week. While we were slightly strapped due to our early morning wake-ups, we still managed to get out most nights to see some great local bands, dance the night away, or sit chatting away in a local pub.

Two of our favorite evenings was a Saturday night spent listening to 3 local bands - all with a bit different sound. We met some locals there to support their friends in the bands and even bought a couple of the CDs. And a Friday night spent with our friends Cristian (from Chile) and Jose Luis (from Spain) at a Cuban restaurant/bar called Rey Castro. We had a great 3 course Cuban meal followed by live Cuban music and dancing. It was a blast!

Tango

One thing is very clear when you arrive to BA - Tango music and dancing are at the heart and soul of this city. Everywhere you turn...the street corner, restaurants, bars, live shows...Tango is present. We thoroughly enjoyed listening to live Tango music on the streets and seeing people dancing at local Milongas (essentially Tango joints) or pretty much any where there is music and space. To get a full Tango experience, we decided to attend a Tango dinner show with our friend Jayme from Spanish class. Complejo Tango offered a free Tango lesson the hour prior to the dinner show where we got to test our beginner skills...and we actually weren´t too terribly bad considering it was our first lesson. The actual show and live music were phenomenal and quite impressive. We sat there in awe watching the dancer´s feet as they performed many complex and graceful moves. It´s good to take the lesson beforehand because even though they make it look so darn easy, you realize how much talent and practice it takes!

Football (i.e., Soccer)

For those of you who don´t know, Argentineans are football fanatics! One of their most popular teams in Boca Juniors representing the BA barrio of La Boca. There is one group of fans that is so dedicated to this team (and present at every game) that they call the cheering section the "twelfth player." We were lucky enough to get to go to one of the games to experience the fanaticism ourselves. Standing in the public cheering section (across the stadium from the even crazier twelfth player), we joined in the singing, stomping, jumping, hollering, swaying, etc. The energy in that stadium was enough to fly you to the moon. I have been at some great USC football games where the fans go wild, but never have I been to a game where the entire stadium - literally - is singing and jumping/swaying together in complete unison making so much noise you can´t hear anything. And, the Boca Juniors won 3-0 against the Mexican team Atlas, so it was a great close to the night.

Sightseeing/Shopping

While we didn´t get as much time as we wanted to see all the sights around BA, we did get a chance to visit a few of the major "must sees," including: the Recoleta cemetery filled with crypts and large tombs of the rich and famous (including Evita); the famous street of Caminito lined with rainbow colored houses and shop fronts, Tango dancers and artisans selling crafts and paintings; the Playa del Mayo where social activists gather; in addition to a few other spots.

But the touristy day we enjoyed the most was right at our hostel´s front door in San Telmo. Every Sunday, there is a huge antiques and handicraft market in the streets and plaza of San Telmo. There were dozens of street performers, of course lots of Tango music and dancing, and hundreds of booths selling souvenirs we couldn´t resist. We decided to buy a boxful of goodies to ship home - telling ourselves that it´s worth it because, seriously, how often are we in Argentina? :) We are such suckers!

What´s Next...

So after about a week of non-stop fun and activity, we flew to Patagonia to begin our hiking and outdoor adventures in the most Southerly city in the world, Ushuaia. I have a feeling we will need a couple days of R&R - with a couple day hikes to get in shape again - to recover from last week. Then from here, we will be working our way up North through Argentina, Chile and finally to Peru. We plan to return to BA for a few days near the end of our trip because it turns out it´s the cheapest city to fly home from. So we figured we´d spend a few more days in BA (without early mornings for Spanish classes) to see some other parts of the city we didn´t have time to explore. More adventures to come...

Impressions of the South Pacific Islands

All in all, we spent a couple months in the South Pacific Islands - Cook Islands, Samoa and Tonga. Before we start our S. America entries, we wanted to highlight some of our impressions of this region (as we have done with the other major regions we have visited on our trip).

While we were ready to get a move on by March, we thoroughly enjoyed the time we had to relax on beautiful beaches, explore the islands, rummage through the local markets, get to interact with tourists and locals alike, and of course get married. :) While each island was unique, there were a number of similarities between them. Below are some of the things that stood out to us about the island lifestyle...

Religion: The evidence of 20th century missions by every major Christian sect was very apparent in the islands. In addition to the presence of many Christian Churches, there were several others - most notably the Mormons. Most islanders are avid church going people who take Sundays (or Saturdays if they are Seventh Day Adventists) very seriously. It´s a day for worship, family time, feasting and rest...and virtually everything closes down. People dress up in their best outfits (white if in Samoa) and head to church. Religion is a major part of village life and a staple in the community. Religious symbols can been seen everywhere - from buses, to markets, people´s homes and even by the road side. While most islanders are devout in their faith, we did also encounter those who shared that a number of people (especially elders) do still hang on very quietly to their ancestral beliefs and superstitions, regardless of the faith they claim. However, as the generations progress, this is becoming less common. And there were also those who admitted that choice of religion depended on what the particular church was offering up in terms of education for their children and other side benefits. It was an interesting part of their society to observe considering how much the presence of Western religions have impacted their societies, beliefs and customs in the last century.

Burial Practices: Each country´s burial traditions are slightly different, but what they have in common is that you can´t miss them. In the Cook Islands, family members are usually buried on family land...so as you drive by everyone´s front yard you can see large concrete tombs often decorated with photos and kind words from loved ones. Samoa was similar to the Cooks Islands, but on the volcanic island of Savaii tombs were also often covered by an arrangement of lava rocks. In Tonga, small cemeteries were more the norm. Here, concrete burials were covered with sand and gravel, then fake flowers were stuck into the sand for decoration...but the most important aspect, were the colorful and lavishly decorated quilts they hang behind the mound. The more ornate the quilt and the more fake flowers...the more the person is respected and loved.

Family: Islanders generally have large families and everyone looks after each other. As we found in Palau and Yap, aunts and uncles are pretty much like another set of parents, and everyone shares the responsibilities of raising children. Cousins are like brothers and sisters and grandparents are respected elders. Everyone helps out the other in matters of land, food, housing, money, or anything else. Family reunions are major affairs when everyone gathers together annually, or every few years. Weddings and funerals are also big events where everyone comes and must be invited...a small wedding is not an option, and funerals are more celebrations of life rather than dwelling only on the mourning. Those who go abroad to work in Australia, New Zealand or elsewhere (which is quite common) generally send money home to help their families in the islands. They also come home as often as possible for the holidays. We quite admired how immediate and extended families look after each other and stick together through thick and thin.

Island Traditions - Music, Dance, Dress and Food: There is certainly a feeling of "island" traditions and lifestyle when you arrive to each country. Again, each is distinct, but all are similar in that they highly value their traditions. We heard the same sorts of music in all the islands we visited. It was either traditional, which generally included a lot of drum beats, ukulele and singing...or, modern island style - laid back, happy, hip-hoppy beats. Traditional dance is a point of pride for these countries with many men´s and women´s dances often set to drum beats or gentle singing. Island food was also similar and a mix of taro root and leaves, tapioca, fish, coconut, papaya, and then the canned stuff like corned beef that´s imported (and generally quite unhealthly). In terms of traditional dress, lava lavas (large, colorful pieces of cloth) were highly popular in the Cook Islands and Samoa. In Tonga, it´s a bit different...they wrap woven mats around their waists and tie them with string or a belt. Of course the modern world has crept in and many of the traditions are mixed in with Western styles of dress, music, food, etc. However, they are not lost and you can still see many traditional aspects played out in daily island life. Or, you can be a tourist (like we were a number of times) and pay for a traditional island "night" where you get to eat a tasty island buffet and watch a traditional dance show set to their music all in a matter of a few hours.

Village Life: As we observed in Micronesia, village lifestyle is still very much a part of how things work. Each village has a chief or chiefs (in Samoa there are chiefs for different purposes) who determines and enforces village rules. The chiefs and the elders must be respected and hold a lot of power in governance of the village (and often play a large role in the larger government). In Tonga, this is of course different because it is a monarchy (see Tonga blog). While many people commute into the bigger city/town on the island for work, they return to their villages at night and live their weekend lives there.

People: Islanders tend to be quite laid back and very friendly. We had many nice conversations and hospitable offers throughout our time on the islands. In fact, in the Cook Islands we were virtually adopted by a local family for a couple weeks, which was wonderful. Islanders may not be the most highly motivated and driven people you´ve ever met, but they are certainly pleasant to hang out with and very welcoming. We are grateful to all the wonderful people we met while in the South Pacific...for their tourist advice, their assistance and hospitality.

Of course, there are many more aspects of the islands we could highlight from our time in Polynesia, but this is a good flavor of a few things that made an impression on us about the culture and the lifestyle. As we always say with these kinds of entries, bear in mind this is only one perspective from a traveling couple who breezed through quickly. As always, we are happy to discuss our impressions on this region further if you feel inclined to ask us. :)

Tonga

Tonga....well, to put it lightly, we felt that Tonga was more of a transition period for us than a memorable part of the trip. We were only in the island group for 6 days (due to changes in our plans to increase our time in S. America) and, therefore, didn´t really have the opportunity to enjoy the country´s most prized tourist sites. Tonga is most known for its outer island groups of Vava´u and Ha´apai, which have beautiful, rustic beaches and opportunites for close encounters with whales during the right season. But it wasn´t whale season when we visited, and we unfortunately didn´t have the time or money to visit the outer islands. As a result, we spent most our time on the main island, which does not have as much to offer. Here´s a brief synopsis of our time in Tonga...

Culture

In terms of culture, we found that Tonga - like many other islands we visited - has a relatively lazy and sedate lifestyle. Due to hot weather and abundant sources of food (e.g., taro root, coconuts, tapioca), Tongans don´t necessarily have a strong work ethic. And since building a tourist infrastructure and culture of customer service takes work, Tongans have not exactly thrived in the tourism industry as of yet.

It´s not exactly that tourists are un-welcome, but you certainly don´t feel welcomed with open arms. The "resorts" on the main island are simple and rustic, and for the money you pay, are not exactly great value. The people are friendly enough, but in our experience, did not go out of their way to say hello or help you like we found in Samoa.

Tonga is also a unique country in that it is still a traditional monarchy ruled by the King of Tonga. The King - and a ruling class of nobles - have virtually absolute power and there are major issues with nepotism and greed. As a result, the lower class of Tongans are hungry for change and a more democratic society. There have been some uprisings and riots in the recent past, and when you drive around the island you can see banners posted by citizens calling for change in the new government.

That being said, our experience in Tonga is only one view and of course was colored by the fact that we were not able to visit the parts of the country that are most raved about. In addition, we were a bit tired of the sedate island lifestyle and ready to head to South America. This is not to say that the country doesn´t have many amazing attributes, but from what we heard, your best experiences will be found off the main island.

Island Tour

On our second day in Tonga, we took a tour of the main island Tongatapu guided by our slightly disenchanted, incredibly sarcastic, British-expat hostel owner named Toni. In a matter of 6 hours we took in the major tourist sights of the island, including: the small captial of Nuku´alofa, the supposed landing sites of explorers Captain Cook and Abel Tasman, the Trillithon (which marks the rough location of the international date line), a few cool beaches, and a coastline of impressive blow holes. We also got a lesson and commentary from Toni on the island´s agriculture, the plethora of Mormon churches popping up (which he opposses, along with the many other churches outnumbering villages 3 to 1), and his general frustrations about the Tongan government and people. However, we might add that despite his negative view on Tongans, he is married to a Tongan woman 30 yrs his junior and has chosen to live here the last 20 years. Overall, our trip around the main island was interesting and we enjoyed taking in the sights and rolling our eyes with our tour-mates at some of Toni´s pessimistic commentary.

Friends

The most enjoyable aspect of our time in Tonga was the people we met while there...

Keith (from Canada) was a faithful companion in Samoa and also joined us traveling around the main island of Tonga and to a small island 20 mins away called Pongamotu. After spending so much time together, it felt like he was part of the "family" - he brought a light hearted party vibe to the group and we truly enjoyed his company. He is also at the begining of a year plus trip around the world, so we found ourselves giving lots of tips and recommendations. (Sorry Keith if we badgered you too much, we are jealous of the many great adventures you have ahead!)

Our first two days in Tonga were spent at Toni´s Guesthouse (Toni being our very vocal tour guide) where we encountered fellow backpackers from all around the world. While at Toni´s, we did the island tour, went to see an "Island Night" dance show, spent some time in town checking out the local handicraft market and dining at the quaint Friend´s Cafe.

Martin & Petya (from Bulgaria) where a young married couple who joined us on our tour and town outings. They had also been traveling for quite awhile and we had fun sharing stories and exploring together.

We spent the next two of our six days in Tonga at a "resort" on the tiny island of Pongamotu just off the main island. In the couple windy/rainy days we spent at Mama´s Yaht Club, we met several other great people and spent the hours of the day sharing stories of travel and life, playing cards, a marathon poker game, darts and pool.

Keith & Kathleen (from Idaho) provided excellent conversation and were great card partners. Keith had just finished 4 months working in Antarctica at a remote outpost operating heavy machinery. He works for the National Parks Service back home, so sometimes spends his winters off duty working elsewhere. Kathleen flew out to meet him for a short tropical vacation before they return home to their children and the daily grind.

Charin & Annemieke (from New Zealand) were on short holiday from work and instegated games of pool and a cultural Kava drinking session with the Tongan owners of the resort and the relatives present (Kava is a popular local beverage that tastes like dirty socks and provides slight sedation).

Steve & Sandra (from England) arrived the second day of our stay, but were quite keen to jump into the fun and compete in the marathon poker game we had going. Our buddy Keith ended up taking home the pot, but we still managed to cash out with some money.

After two days in Pongamotu, we moved back to the main island for our remaining two days and splurged on a bit nicer place called Heilala Garden Inn, where breakfast and free (slow) internet were included. This little retreat provided a nice environment to relax and prepare for the next leg of our journey in South America.

Julian and Sandra (from Scotland) provided nice company during our days at Heilala Resort. They are newlyweds like us and got married Dec 31 in Fiji. They chose to keep the ceremony more private so it was just the two of them. They had some funny stories about wedding drama (e.g., Sandra´s dress was mailed and never arrived, it rained on the big day, the make-up lady almost cancelled last minute), but also had some really heartwarming moments to share. It was fun to talk with them because they had also been together many years before marrying and had lots of similar experiences we could relate to.

Finally, after six days of "killing time," we departed Tonga for South America. We are looking forward to South America and the adventrues that lay ahead...

Eric + Mariah