Antarctica's White Wilderness Day 2

DAY 2 - Friday, January 15, 2016 - Arrive Buenos Aires; Trip Briefing; Neighborhood Walk; Welcome Dinner

Delta took very good care of us on our overnight flight. We left Atlanta on time and arrived about fifteen minutes early in Buenos Aires, the capital of Argentina. It was a great experience all around.

After going through immigration and showing our Reciprocity Form and the receipt confirming that we each had paid the $160 US dollar fee, we located our bags. Several flights came in at the same time so our lines were long but when they opened several more kiosks, things moved more quickly.

All bags including backpacks had to be x-rayed. However, the officials at the computers were so busy talking that they did not even check our belongings nor did they collect our customs declarations.

In the great entry hall, we met our Grand Circle representative, Adrian who welcomed 11 of us who were all on the Atlanta flight. After a short wait, José, our driver took us to the hotel in a minivan.

Traffic was light as we moved through the suburbs and into the city center. Adrian explained that school was out for the summer and many people were gone on vacations.

Our Tour Director, Sebastian, (Seba) met us at the hotel and welcomed us to Buenos Aires and this great adventure. There are going to be 98 people in the whole group traveling to Antarctica on the Corinthian Ship. We have been divided into four groups of 25 or less.

After finding our room and adjusting the air conditioning, we organized our bags and Gennie did a little hand laundry. We will be here in this hotel for two nights and as is our custom; we clean our travel clothes and then repack them at the bottom of our bags.

Vic went out to explore and take a few photos of the neighborhood. We are only a block away from the center of the city and the 16th-century Plaza de Mayo, and the Casa Rosada, the pink stone presidential palace.

This is our fourth time to enjoy the city and it is always a pleasure to see and hear the hustle and bustle of a great colonial metropolis. At 92 degrees and 40% humidity, Vic did not stay out long, but came back to the cool room. Coming from the past month’s frigid temperatures in “Coolerful Colorado”, this heat and humidity was a pleasant shock.

We had until 4:00 to relax and then we met the whole small group in the lobby. Seba presented a short orientation and also gave us a demonstration of how to fold our big red parkas for easy packing.

We met again at 5:45 and walked to the Cabana Villegas Restaurant on the Puerto Madero. There were many people out on the streets enjoying the summer breeze coming off of the water.

The Cabana Villegas is a traditional Argentinean steakhouse but eating at 6:30 in the evening is far from traditional in Argentina. Where people regularly eat their evening meal at 9:00 to 10:00, we were the only group in the restaurant.

After eating the appetizer, a huge empanada, we saw the main course. The steaks were huge and getting smarter in our old age, Vic and I shared one piece of meat and also a few French fries and salad.

A bus was at the corner waiting to take us back to the hotel but there was a political demonstrations and peaceful festivities at the Plaza de Mayo. The police had cordoned off the side streets so the bus let us out.

Seba walked with us through the thick of the crowds. It seems the recently elected President had eliminated some government jobs and protesters who had been in the plaza earlier in the day and more people were out in full force this evening.

It was 8:30 when we arrived back at the hotel and finished sorting photos and completing the journal. Our first day in Argentina was a lively one but we are more than ready for tomorrow’s learning and discoveries!

Accommodations: NH City Hotel - Meals: D