We went to the grocery store yesterday to get some breakfast items. It is best to eat a small breakfast at home before we start out. We have a coffee pot, toaster oven and a stove. On our first morning we had scrambled eggs for breakfast. Today we had cereal, yogurt and juice.
We are still trying to make decisions about day trips to take from BA. We were told that Colonia in Uruguay is a wonderful small, old city, easy to get to and a great contrast from the hustle and bustle of BA but it has been challenging to understand the cost. Argentine residents get better rates than foreigners and when looking things up online you sometimes lose meaning in translation. So our first stop today we went to BuqueBus, the transit station in the Puerto Madero area where the ferry tickets are sold, to ask for costs.
Today was a national holiday, Día de la Raza so many shops were closed so we spent the day seeing the many gardens in the city and we were really fortunate to have a wonderful weather for it. It was sunny and about 72 degrees!
The Japanese Garden was packed with people, school groups, families and adolescent kids. There was lots of kids in costumes, dressed as their favorite Anime character. It was pretty strange to me but Katie said there is a significant sub culture of kids that are into Manga and Anime. She shot the photo to the right.
The Rose Walk
This was by far my favorite garden. All of these roses were in full bloom and the colors were amazing. Again, the garden was full of people, families having picnics. It was really great to see.
We also walked around the Plaza de San Martín which is a very nice green space. While there, we saw a memorial to those who have fallen in the struggle to obtain the Falkland Islands. Argentineans feel these islands belong to Argentina, not Great Britain, and they call them Las Malvinas.
We visited the Basilica del Santísimo Sacramento in the Plaza de San Martín. It was tucked into the back of the square behind other building and you could easily miss it!
We walked all the way back to apartment via Santa Fe, a main street with lots of shops and restaurants. We stopped at a book store that had been built in an old theater. The inside was pretty amazing, really wonderful decor.
For dinner we ate our best meal yet. It was at a place called the Tea Connection. The girls had a mixed fruit drink that came in a glass bottle with a cork. It is definitely fresh squeezed. We had Pad Thai and some mushroom / salmon / brie crostinis. It was pretty amazing, and certainly a departure from the traditional Argentinian food we've had thus far.
To my sisters and Deb: I spotted a Tupperware store! It looks like there is even a company car on the outside!