January 2013. What a way to start the New Year. I put my last winter month off to good use by headin’ south for a new adventure and a taste of summer. My mom and I decided to take a trip to Buenos Aries, Iguazu Falls, and Rio de Janeiro.
The News Years Day hangovers has subsided and the packing began.. oh it was so nice not to be packing pants, coats, and boots. Thankfully the snow gods were aware of our itinerary, and allowed no snow delays in either direction! Easy flight there and back.
BUENOS ARIES
The first leg of the journey began in Argentina. After the long 10 hour flight, we were happy to get off the plane and onto land. Once we arrived, we rested for a few minutes and took to exploring the city. On this first day, we didn’t venture too far – still had to get our bearings. But we strolled on down to Casa Rosado, or the Pink House, where the Argentinian President works. I was surprised by how close we were able to stand to the house.. not nearly as many fences as the White House. My mom kept talking about Evita.. She did have a famous speech on the balcony. From there we wandered around a little more, and had an early dinner and called it night so we could get an early start.
The next morning started with a small tour of the city. It was great just to get an understanding of the city and help with navigating the city. Among the highlights of this tour were Recoleta Cemetary, where Eva Peron is buried and La Boca, where Italian immigrants settled and painted their homes bright colors. Even though it was definitely a tourist trap, it was fun to see! After the tour, we went to the Modern Art museum, which was pretty interesting – there were some great pieces, and with a focus on Latin/Souther American artists. Following lunch at the museum, we headed up to the neighborhood of Recolta (Buenos Aries’ Upper East Side). As we walked to the neighborhood, someone along the way started asking us where the supermarket was in Spanish.. I guess we blended in pretty well. More so my mom than me, but hey, she has more Italian blood than me. Once in the neighborhood, there was a great market where we picked up some jewelry and crafts. I still have my purple wire tree on my tv stand! To cool off, we indulged in some duche de leche ice cream, and oh my goodness, was it delicious. While sat and enjoyed the ice cream, a couple of street performers started doing the tango. I was not used to that kind of street performances… I’m more used to the ones on the L train when I fear that I’m going to get kicked in the face.. but it was great. That night, after touring, we enjoyed an excellent Italian dinner at Piegari – you could tell the pasta was homemade because it was so fresh and delicious!
The following day was our last day in BA. Time just flew… We started the day by enjoying the morning in BA’s central park. It was gorgeous; gardens galore! After wandering around there, we headed to the Evita museum in the Palermo neighborhood. It was a fascinating overview of her life and career (and showcased some of her gorgeous outfits.) This definitely appealed to my inner history and fashion nerd. From there, we wandered around some of Palermo’s trendy shops. I had found a great shirt, but lo and behold, credit cards were not accepted :( why do we still use cash as a society? ah, well it was still nice to explore. I love just getting lost in a city (even New York!) because it truly allows me to absorb everything. I love seeing major sites, but only doing that won’t give you a true impression of city. (Yes, there is way more to New York than Times Square as an example…) As you can imagine, I was extremely hungry by this point in the day.. Breakfast fullness can only last for so long… so we (I) scarfed down some amazing empanadas for lunch. Empanada shops are as frequent as pizza shops in New York. It was wonderful. (Not that I don’t love my pizza, do not fear!) We rested up and showered to go to dinner and a tango show at this fancy schmancy hotel! In all seriousness, my Uncle Pat treated us to an excellent dinner and sultry tango show – it was so thoughtful of him. The food was lovely, and the show was great. I wish I could tango like that… The moves were so intricate and detailed, I loved watching it! Although, I was surprised to see many kids under the age of 10 there… seems like they’re a little too young.. but hey, who cares when you’re on vacation!
The next day we woke up to head to the airport to go to Iguazu Falls!
IGUAZU FALLS
There is one word for the domestic airport in Buenos Aries: dysfunctional. There was no order to any of the lines, flights were delayed across the board, and finding our gate and flight was more challenging than expected. Despite those frustrations, we were able to get to Iguazu. This was the shortest part of the trip – one and half days, but that was all we needed.
We landed in the middle of the rainforest on a small tarmac that had a few inches of rain.. too bad I hadn’t brought my wellies. We made our way to the hotel which was in the jungle! There were pathways to cabins from the main entrance where the rooms were located. Unfortunately, it poured the rest of the afternoon and we weren’t really able to explore or sit by the pool, which would have been much more pleasant. Always good to have a rest day to regroup.
The next morning we woke up early to explore Iguzau Falls. We arrived probably around 9ish and were there until 3 or 4. It was a huge national park on the border of Argentina and Brasil. We could see Brasil from the park (I guess that’s not as cool as seeing Russia from your house…) As we wandered, getting closer to actual waterfalls, we saw all kinds of animals and nature.. The most exciting sighting: monkeys! They disappeared quickly but we got a good look! Although it was a cloudy day, the falls were absolutely stunning. I kept staring and snapping pictures from any angle I could. At the main part of the fall, we almost got soaked because of the water coming off! As we continued on the walk, we saw rows and rows of waterfalls – it was incredible. I do believe a picture is worth 1000 words, so:
After enjoying a full day of exploring nature at its finest, we headed back to the hotel, and the sun made a nice appearance. We walked a little bit on the paths absorbing the mini rainforest around us, and to end the day, we sat by the pool and enjoyed the sun with a beer. It was a relaxing way to end the day and get to bed early since we were leaving at the crack of dawn for Rio!
RIO DE JANEIRO
The crack of dawn came quickly, so we met the car that was going to take us to airport in Brasil, to fly to Rio. But it was too small, and couldn’t fit us. Great… After freaking out, the hotel got us a cab. We knew it would be 40 minute trip or so, but it seemed like we were getting lost on the way to the airport… and we did – the taxi driver tried to drop us off a bus station, and now we started to worry about missing the flight… Argggg. But thankfully he got us to the airport, and we had time to catch flight, which ended up being delayed two hours.. we weren’t happy about losing time, but what can you do? We eventually got on the plane, and flying into Rio was gorgeous. And the driver from the airport to the hotel told my Mom she looked Brazilian, not me though, because I’m a little paler..
It was bright and sunny when we landed, and unfortunately the only sun we would see while we were there. Once we settled into the hotel, we went to the rooftop where there was bar and pool overlooking the city.. We needed a bite of food (traveling does make you hungry). We looked at the mountains and then the ocean, the views were just stunning. Towards the mountains, you could see the favelas that sit over the city. It was interesting social divide. I couldn’t wait to explore.. We walked down to the beach, which was beautiful, just looking around at the mountains while on the beach was beautiful. We then wandered around the neighborhood of Ipanema, a trendy Rio neighborhood, similar to the Williamsburg or West Village… cute shops and restaurants galore. You could see the Portuguese influence in the architecture as well, which was gorgeous. After enjoying a nice dinner, we called it an early night.
The next day we got up fairly early and went on a half day trip (in the pouring rain) to Corcovado National Park, which is the location of the Christ the Redeemer Statue. We drove up in a jeep from the city into the mountains, it was a nice way to see the city, since we didn’t have endless amounts of time to explore every facet. But just the trip up to the mountain, even in the rain, was absolutely gorgeous. Once we arrived we went up to see Christ the Redeemer, and it was one of the powerful sights I’ve ever seen. Even though there was cloud cover at some points, once they cleared, it was stunning. I could have looked at the statue for days. From there we went and explored more the jungle. It was beautiful – there were waterfalls, animals, and beautiful views. (The clouds blocked some of the views, but it was still great.) After that, we went back to the hotel to dry off.. They don’t call it a rain forest for nothing… That afternoon we off to downtown Rio to do some exploring the city, landmarks, and churches. It was still raining but we continued on.. how often were we in Rio? Not often enough. We saw the public library, which was stunning, and had the Portuguese influence in the design. From there we saw the Cathedral, which was a modern circular building, with stain glass windows up to the ceiling. The designs and color of the stain glass was beautiful. It was nice to wander around and see the old architecture against the new. We tried to find an old Church to see, but as we wandered for about 40 minutes, until we discovered it was under construction… what a bummer!! I’m sure we stood out as tourists, looking lost.. But, hey it gave us more of a chance to see different parts of the city. It was a long day, but exciting! We had a nice dinner, it was definitely a local place because we didn’t hear any english!
The next day was our last day in Rio and in South America. I couldn’t believe how fast our trip had gone – it had been so exciting. Our flight wasn’t until 10pm, so we still had a whole day which was nice. That morning we had another tour – the highlight was a visit to Sugarloaf mountain! As we were on our way, we made a stop along the way at the Sambadrome – it is a long pathway with stands along side. So during Carnival, the samba schools parade down the pathway. I would love to see the parades during Carnival – and one day, I will. From there we were on our way to Sugarloaf. We piled off the tour bus, and onto the cable cars to take us to the top of the mountain! As we ascended we had stunning views of the entire city; from the beach to the mountains, and yes, you could see Christ the Redeemer. At the top, was a little park, so we walked around. (I was looking for tucans, which are supposed to be native to the park, but alas, I didn’t get to see them.) We looked at all of the different views, and soaked up the surroundings. After the tour, we had a lovely lunch at a restaurant,Gula Gula in Leblon, a neighborhood near Ipanema. It was our last delicious Brazilian meal. From there we walked around Leblon and Ipanema. We did a little shopping; we got some havianas, (sold in grocery stores at half the price), stopped in some little boutiques, and took one last walk around the beach. When we came back to the hotel to pack, in the lobby, someone was creating a samba outfit. It was bold, bright, and colorful – I took multiple pictures of it!
Overall, it was a an amazing trip, and I can’t wait to go back!
The News Years Day hangovers has subsided and the packing began.. oh it was so nice not to be packing pants, coats, and boots. Thankfully the snow gods were aware of our itinerary, and allowed no snow delays in either direction! Easy flight there and back.
BUENOS ARIES
The first leg of the journey began in Argentina. After the long 10 hour flight, we were happy to get off the plane and onto land. Once we arrived, we rested for a few minutes and took to exploring the city. On this first day, we didn’t venture too far – still had to get our bearings. But we strolled on down to Casa Rosado, or the Pink House, where the Argentinian President works. I was surprised by how close we were able to stand to the house.. not nearly as many fences as the White House. My mom kept talking about Evita.. She did have a famous speech on the balcony. From there we wandered around a little more, and had an early dinner and called it night so we could get an early start.
The next morning started with a small tour of the city. It was great just to get an understanding of the city and help with navigating the city. Among the highlights of this tour were Recoleta Cemetary, where Eva Peron is buried and La Boca, where Italian immigrants settled and painted their homes bright colors. Even though it was definitely a tourist trap, it was fun to see! After the tour, we went to the Modern Art museum, which was pretty interesting – there were some great pieces, and with a focus on Latin/Souther American artists. Following lunch at the museum, we headed up to the neighborhood of Recolta (Buenos Aries’ Upper East Side). As we walked to the neighborhood, someone along the way started asking us where the supermarket was in Spanish.. I guess we blended in pretty well. More so my mom than me, but hey, she has more Italian blood than me. Once in the neighborhood, there was a great market where we picked up some jewelry and crafts. I still have my purple wire tree on my tv stand! To cool off, we indulged in some duche de leche ice cream, and oh my goodness, was it delicious. While sat and enjoyed the ice cream, a couple of street performers started doing the tango. I was not used to that kind of street performances… I’m more used to the ones on the L train when I fear that I’m going to get kicked in the face.. but it was great. That night, after touring, we enjoyed an excellent Italian dinner at Piegari – you could tell the pasta was homemade because it was so fresh and delicious!
The following day was our last day in BA. Time just flew… We started the day by enjoying the morning in BA’s central park. It was gorgeous; gardens galore! After wandering around there, we headed to the Evita museum in the Palermo neighborhood. It was a fascinating overview of her life and career (and showcased some of her gorgeous outfits.) This definitely appealed to my inner history and fashion nerd. From there, we wandered around some of Palermo’s trendy shops. I had found a great shirt, but lo and behold, credit cards were not accepted :( why do we still use cash as a society? ah, well it was still nice to explore. I love just getting lost in a city (even New York!) because it truly allows me to absorb everything. I love seeing major sites, but only doing that won’t give you a true impression of city. (Yes, there is way more to New York than Times Square as an example…) As you can imagine, I was extremely hungry by this point in the day.. Breakfast fullness can only last for so long… so we (I) scarfed down some amazing empanadas for lunch. Empanada shops are as frequent as pizza shops in New York. It was wonderful. (Not that I don’t love my pizza, do not fear!) We rested up and showered to go to dinner and a tango show at this fancy schmancy hotel! In all seriousness, my Uncle Pat treated us to an excellent dinner and sultry tango show – it was so thoughtful of him. The food was lovely, and the show was great. I wish I could tango like that… The moves were so intricate and detailed, I loved watching it! Although, I was surprised to see many kids under the age of 10 there… seems like they’re a little too young.. but hey, who cares when you’re on vacation!
The next day we woke up to head to the airport to go to Iguazu Falls!
IGUAZU FALLS
There is one word for the domestic airport in Buenos Aries: dysfunctional. There was no order to any of the lines, flights were delayed across the board, and finding our gate and flight was more challenging than expected. Despite those frustrations, we were able to get to Iguazu. This was the shortest part of the trip – one and half days, but that was all we needed.
We landed in the middle of the rainforest on a small tarmac that had a few inches of rain.. too bad I hadn’t brought my wellies. We made our way to the hotel which was in the jungle! There were pathways to cabins from the main entrance where the rooms were located. Unfortunately, it poured the rest of the afternoon and we weren’t really able to explore or sit by the pool, which would have been much more pleasant. Always good to have a rest day to regroup.
The next morning we woke up early to explore Iguzau Falls. We arrived probably around 9ish and were there until 3 or 4. It was a huge national park on the border of Argentina and Brasil. We could see Brasil from the park (I guess that’s not as cool as seeing Russia from your house…) As we wandered, getting closer to actual waterfalls, we saw all kinds of animals and nature.. The most exciting sighting: monkeys! They disappeared quickly but we got a good look! Although it was a cloudy day, the falls were absolutely stunning. I kept staring and snapping pictures from any angle I could. At the main part of the fall, we almost got soaked because of the water coming off! As we continued on the walk, we saw rows and rows of waterfalls – it was incredible. I do believe a picture is worth 1000 words, so:
RIO DE JANEIRO
The crack of dawn came quickly, so we met the car that was going to take us to airport in Brasil, to fly to Rio. But it was too small, and couldn’t fit us. Great… After freaking out, the hotel got us a cab. We knew it would be 40 minute trip or so, but it seemed like we were getting lost on the way to the airport… and we did – the taxi driver tried to drop us off a bus station, and now we started to worry about missing the flight… Argggg. But thankfully he got us to the airport, and we had time to catch flight, which ended up being delayed two hours.. we weren’t happy about losing time, but what can you do? We eventually got on the plane, and flying into Rio was gorgeous. And the driver from the airport to the hotel told my Mom she looked Brazilian, not me though, because I’m a little paler..
It was bright and sunny when we landed, and unfortunately the only sun we would see while we were there. Once we settled into the hotel, we went to the rooftop where there was bar and pool overlooking the city.. We needed a bite of food (traveling does make you hungry). We looked at the mountains and then the ocean, the views were just stunning. Towards the mountains, you could see the favelas that sit over the city. It was interesting social divide. I couldn’t wait to explore.. We walked down to the beach, which was beautiful, just looking around at the mountains while on the beach was beautiful. We then wandered around the neighborhood of Ipanema, a trendy Rio neighborhood, similar to the Williamsburg or West Village… cute shops and restaurants galore. You could see the Portuguese influence in the architecture as well, which was gorgeous. After enjoying a nice dinner, we called it an early night.
The next day we got up fairly early and went on a half day trip (in the pouring rain) to Corcovado National Park, which is the location of the Christ the Redeemer Statue. We drove up in a jeep from the city into the mountains, it was a nice way to see the city, since we didn’t have endless amounts of time to explore every facet. But just the trip up to the mountain, even in the rain, was absolutely gorgeous. Once we arrived we went up to see Christ the Redeemer, and it was one of the powerful sights I’ve ever seen. Even though there was cloud cover at some points, once they cleared, it was stunning. I could have looked at the statue for days. From there we went and explored more the jungle. It was beautiful – there were waterfalls, animals, and beautiful views. (The clouds blocked some of the views, but it was still great.) After that, we went back to the hotel to dry off.. They don’t call it a rain forest for nothing… That afternoon we off to downtown Rio to do some exploring the city, landmarks, and churches. It was still raining but we continued on.. how often were we in Rio? Not often enough. We saw the public library, which was stunning, and had the Portuguese influence in the design. From there we saw the Cathedral, which was a modern circular building, with stain glass windows up to the ceiling. The designs and color of the stain glass was beautiful. It was nice to wander around and see the old architecture against the new. We tried to find an old Church to see, but as we wandered for about 40 minutes, until we discovered it was under construction… what a bummer!! I’m sure we stood out as tourists, looking lost.. But, hey it gave us more of a chance to see different parts of the city. It was a long day, but exciting! We had a nice dinner, it was definitely a local place because we didn’t hear any english!
The next day was our last day in Rio and in South America. I couldn’t believe how fast our trip had gone – it had been so exciting. Our flight wasn’t until 10pm, so we still had a whole day which was nice. That morning we had another tour – the highlight was a visit to Sugarloaf mountain! As we were on our way, we made a stop along the way at the Sambadrome – it is a long pathway with stands along side. So during Carnival, the samba schools parade down the pathway. I would love to see the parades during Carnival – and one day, I will. From there we were on our way to Sugarloaf. We piled off the tour bus, and onto the cable cars to take us to the top of the mountain! As we ascended we had stunning views of the entire city; from the beach to the mountains, and yes, you could see Christ the Redeemer. At the top, was a little park, so we walked around. (I was looking for tucans, which are supposed to be native to the park, but alas, I didn’t get to see them.) We looked at all of the different views, and soaked up the surroundings. After the tour, we had a lovely lunch at a restaurant,Gula Gula in Leblon, a neighborhood near Ipanema. It was our last delicious Brazilian meal. From there we walked around Leblon and Ipanema. We did a little shopping; we got some havianas, (sold in grocery stores at half the price), stopped in some little boutiques, and took one last walk around the beach. When we came back to the hotel to pack, in the lobby, someone was creating a samba outfit. It was bold, bright, and colorful – I took multiple pictures of it!
Overall, it was a an amazing trip, and I can’t wait to go back!
