1. Sleeping. We stayed at Caserón Porteño, a B&B and Tango Studio, www.caseronporteno.com. Our rates were very reasonable and we enjoyed a nice breakfast of medialunas, fruit and cafe con leche or tea as well as friendly conversation with the other guests. Here's Rod in the sunny courtyard, with the dance hall in the background.
2. Walking Palermo. We did a lot of walking around the neighborhood of Palermo. It's a very hip section of town with many good restaurants, beautiful architecture and good shopping. Here's an example of the architecture, typifying the rich european heritage and the charming cobblestone streets.
3. Walking the MicroCentro. Here's me in front of Argentina's equivalent of the White House or in their case, 'Casa Roja'. Supposedly the reddish hue comes from mixing the plaster with Ox's blood.
4. Feria de San Telmo. Every sunday, there is a terrific street fair and antique market on Avenue Defensa in San Telmo. Not only is there great shopping, but also lots of entertainers about such as these performers above.
5. The Recoleta Cemetary. Something not to be missed is the famous, above ground cemetary dedicated to Argentina's rich and famous leaders. Though once inside, we made a beeline for Evita's grave.
6. Salta. We decided to visit the city of Salta in the northwestern region, situated in the Andes Mountains. This small colonial town was much more traditional that Buenos Aires. Shown above is an elaborately painted church, a replacement for the original, which had been destroyed in a fire. Also shown is the town plaza, where many café's and shops lined the center park. Reminded us of Oaxaca, Mexico.
7. Lost in Translation. We found that fluent english was less common in Salta. Many signs and posted translations were a little off. We found this on our gondola ride up to the San Bernardo Hill overlooking the city.
8. Driving through the Andes. We rented a car in Salta and drove south towards the wine town of Cafayate. The distance between Salta and Cafayate is about 3 hours on a winding highway, that also cuts through many small towns along the way. We got to see some amazing landforms, such as the Garganta del Diablo ( behind me) and beautiful, jagged red rocks like those of the Southwestern USA, (behind Rod).
If you enjoy our photos and want to see more - you can check out our flickr set here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/32459511@N03/
