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Book 2: Chapter 1b: Buenos Aires Book 2: The Journey

Buenos Aires

BUENOS AIRES. I would like to start with pointing out I got a new favorite city in Latin America. I am sorry Bogotá, but you got still a lot to learn (like placing a metro system, for starters). This city is great! One of the best, in my opinion! Without any knowledge and being completely lost with knowing nothing at all about Buenos Aires (BA for short), I arrived with José in BA (we were on the same plane to BA)! The second friend from Auckland from ‘the list to visit in Latin America’ was the one and only Vicky. Back in the days she was the mother of the Red Monkey. The Red Monkey was the name of my home in Auckland.

Damn, this city is great. I know, but I say it again. I did a free walking tour (obviously haha) to learn more about the city. Apparently, for many years already, every single day there are around two protests. Wow. Every day. 2 protests. Today there was one as well.

“The París of Latin America” is probably one of many nicknames BA has. It has all rights to be called like that. With the French and Italian style of buildings in the city centre, but as well out of the city centre, makes it really feel like ‘home’ for me. There are cafes and shopping streets. However the weather did also most of the work making this the best Latin American city to live in (for me hahaha). I had sun every day with around 12-15 degrees. I realized I like this weather the most. Don’t give me a 25 degrees location with sun year around. I rather spent my time in a place, with sun and 15 degrees, no wind, on s terrace with a beer and a book. Mmmmhhh I can already feel it. Maybe Iceland isn’t that bad of a place in terms of weather, or Sweden? Markus, here I come! (Markus is a Swedish friend)

Let’s stop dreaming for a moment, as I am still a student (thus poor), and I should finish my studies (finishing studies when climate is changing, shouldn’t we just stop doing the status quo and try to make a change before it is too late? Like Greta Thunberg?) So, maybe somewhere in the future, why not going to Sweden?! Doing your master in Sweden as an European is free, hehe.

Vicky! Yes! That has almost been 4 years actually. But she is still the same haha. Vicky showed me around in her city. We talked about our time in the Red Monkey and who we are still in contact with. Vicky showed me ‘La boca.’ the ‘old town’ of BA. Here the immigrants lived.

Look at that Asian guy’s eye brows on the photo, they are located so high.

We walked through the city centre and visited this fancy mall ‘Galerias Pacífico.’

As Harry would describe it: I went off the “gringo trail” and did something completely different. Vicky invited me over to go to a play. A play? Yeah, you know. Where actual persons are performing a scene, only then with a lot of scenes! It was interesting to see. But I couldn’t understand a lot: Spanish from BA is still too dificult for me…

Who is Harry you asked yourself? I met Harry in Montevideo, my destination after Buenos Aires. So more on that later on.

So, again, Buenos Aires is awesome. I definitely come back. I understood that the political situation in Argentina is shit. Almost literally. So, when the situation changes, and cannabis (industrial hemp) will be legal, I will live in Buenos Aires and change BA with cannabis. Is industrial hemp already legal in Argentina?

Next stop: Montevideo. As I went with ferry, I had to get out of the country. But instead of getting a stamp in Uruguay, if went like this. There were two women sitting next to each other at the customs. I was called to the first one to leave Argentina. I didn’t know why there was this second one, I thought to help other people getting out of the country. With my expectation to ‘go into Uruguay but getting a stamp,’ like on airports, I suddenly was directed to the woman next to the first woman. I had this surprised wtf moment. She got me a stamp from Uruguay. She said bienvenidos and here I was, a border consisting of two women talking with each other, giving out stamps. Surprised, I was officially in Uruguay…

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