Sat, Oct 28 – Buenos Aires, Argentina is the capital and most populous city of Argentina. Its name can be translated as "fair winds" or "good airs.  It shares its borders with Chile to the west, Bolivia and Paraguay to the north, Brazil to the northeast, Uruguay and the South Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Drake Passage to the south.  With a mainland area of 1,073,500 square miles, it is the eighth-largest country in the world, the second largest in Latin America, and the largest Spanish-speaking one.  

Argentina claims sovereignty over part of Antarctica, the Falkland Islands and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands. The country has its roots in Spanish colonization of the region during the 16th century. It rose as the successor state of the Spanish overseas viceroyalty founded in 1776. The fight for independence (1810–1818) was followed by an extended civil war that lasted until 1861, ending in the country's reorganization as a federation of provinces with Buenos Aires as its capital city. The country then enjoyed relative peace and stability, with massive European immigration reshaping its cultural and demographic outlook. The increase in prosperity led to Argentina becoming the seventh wealthiest developed nation in the world by the early 20th century, mainly when it began shipping its pampas-raised beef around the world. 

What a difference a day makes.  We arrived in this port with the sun shining and a nice 67 degree morning.  This again is a major cargo port and we are not allowed to walk around - we are shuttled to the cruise terminal, where we bought our bus tickets (cash only - Ouch!) for the City On/Off bus tour, and then we waited for our shuttle to take us downtown to pick up the tour.  It is the perfect day to do this tour.  We are being joined today by Graham and Wendy.  

The buses are double deckers like you find in England and we got up on top for a great view of the city.  Unfortunately the head phones we were provided were not working on the bus we were initially on; but I still enjoyed seeing the City.  I really am not sure why this place is called the Paris of the South, in that in Paris you do not have sky scrapers, even out in La Defense, which is the business section of Paris, they have stopped the growth of Skycrapers (I know that is a misspelling, but it fits, so I'm leaving the word in).  

The tour, if you do the red and blue lines only will take approximately three - four hours if you don't get off the bus.  Graham wants to stop at Eva Peron's grave.  He gave Russ and I a lot static because we had no idea who this woman was.  I don't recall ever learning about her in history classes, and if we did, I long forgot her.  Anyway it was a rags to riches story.  She grew up in the Pampas region of Argentina in the 20s and 30s and became a singer and actress where she me the future ruler of Argentina, Juan Peron.  They were married a year later and he became President of Argentina in 1946.  As first lady of the country she was very active in helping the under dogs and was a fierce fighter for women's rights.  At one point she ran for Vice President of the country, but her declining health caused her to drop out and she died at the age 33 in 1952. 

Anyway, we got off at the Cemetery stop and wandered into it.  We were there with the rest of the world.  It seems everyone wants to see Eva's grave.  We finally found it and took our pictures; but the monuments and tombs are awesome; as Wendy said, whole families could live in them.  We have been to New Orleans and done the graveyard tours and were quite impressed with the size of those graves and mausoleums, but this place put New Orleans to shame.  It was huge.  

Prior to getting off we passed an art museum and sculpture park.  Russ had read that there was a metal tulip, about the size of the metal orb in Chicago, and he wanted to go see it.  So, when we finished with the cemetery we wandered out and through a local craft market that was going on today; I was tempted to buy several pieces of art, but then where would we put it when we got home; so we just took pictures instead.  We had to cross a main intersection and didn't have a lot of time to do it in, so Russ and I ran ahead and got our pictures in the park while Graham and Wendy waited for us on the other side of the street.  The tulip was built in 2002, it is 75' tall, and about 105' wide when it is open.  It weighs 18 tons and is absolutely beautiful.  I really wish we had a couple of days so we could explore more slowly. I would have loved to go into the Art Museum.  

We got back on our bus and continued around the city.  Buenos Aires is known for the widest boulevard in the world; it was wide.  It is nine lanes wide, with a gardened median between the opposing flow of traffic. 9 de Julio Avenue is only .62 miles long but 360 feet wide.  It takes people crossing this street a few extra minutes and two to three traffic lights before they can make it the whole way across.  And trust me, this is one busy street.   

We would have loved to have gotten off the bus and do some real sight seeing, but as I said earlier, time was limited here and we still needed to get over to the La Boca district.  It is known for its colorful buildings, great art district and, of course, the struggling new Tango Dancers.  I seriously had my doubts about getting off the bus when we neared this area; it did not look real nice, but the guys thought we would be okay, and when we got closer to the stop it was a jammed pack area, so we figured we would be safe.  Our first stop was for something to eat and some beers (not me, the others did).  While we were waiting to be served a couple started dancing right in front of the restaurant.  Wow, this was much better than going to some show that had been put on for a shore excursion - these were young people just getting their start - and they were great; after the show they walked around with the hat asking for tips.  We obliged! 

We then wandered the craft market that appeared to be going on today.  Wow, I really wish we had more time.  This place is so active; it is just alive!  We were able to get some pictures of the colorful buildings, but it is hard to truly see the diversity with the market place happening and all the people wandering about.  What a blast.  We ran into Jacquie and Don with their local guide (she prearranged a tour with a local taxi company - and later said it was a great trip).  I wish we had done this, we would have gotten to see much more of the city.  Anyway, their guide told us we should get on the bus as soon as possible because it gets packed and we were about an hour back to the ship.  We took his advice, and it took us much more than an hour to get back to the shuttle.  The local tour guide called ahead and asked the shuttle to wait for us, and they did, and we got back a little late, but the ship was still there.

We did hear later that night that there had been a couple of robberies; one a guy was wearing a rolex watch and the other a lady was wearing some fancy earrings.  We have been warned over and over and over again to blend in.  This is something Russ and I do very well.  We just really wish we could have stayed here overnight.  We would have loved to see the tulip open and be lit up.  Maybe next time, and there will be a next time because we definitely want to go to Iguazu Falls.