East Eats West

Disintegrating glacier and icebergs at Perito Moreno

Picture: The awe-inspiring Perito Moreno Glacier near El Calafate, Patagonia.  

Among the most awe-inspiring sights in nature are glaciers. On my travels from New Zealand to Alaska, Canada and Switzerland I have come across a few amazing glaciers and every time I am startled anew. This time in Patagonia at Perito Moreno Glacier it was not different. After a 90 minute bus ride from El Calafate we first saw the 5km wide end of this over 30km long glacier. The attraction of this mighty, still growing glacier is that it spills into Lago Argentino, a massive lake. I took a boat ride up close to the mighty glacier wall and saw a few huge bits of the icebergs crackling and falling thunderously into the milky-blue water. What a sight! After the boat-ride I was able to walk to a vantage point where one could see the whole dimension of this mighty glacier with its blue shine. The air was full of crackling and bursting sounds as small and bigger chunks of ice fell into the water and sent icebergs swimming down the lake.

For more information click here: http://www.enjoy-patagonia.org/calafate-destinations-calafate-perito-moreno-glacier.php

 
 
 

Magellan penguins, sea elephants and blue-whales in Porto Madryn

Picture: Magellan penguins on Peninsula Valdes in Patagonia. 

Peninsula Valdes in Patagonia is a UNESCO certified wildlife reserve that offers close range access to all sorts of wild animals. A day trip of 400kms takes you for example to a big Magellan penguin colony where I saw penguins attending to their chicks in little holes underneath thorny bushes. At an extensive beach numerous sea elephants and sea lions rested peacefully under the sun, soaking up the warmth. I also saw some small wild ostriches running fast in a herd as well as wild guanacos, a type of Lama. But the highlight of Peninsula Valdes is whale-watching. Boats leave from Porto Pyramides and take you out to sea where you can sea massive blue-whales and orcas (unfortunately I was one week too late and the baleen whales had already left).

PS: I can highly recommend one to eat at the estancia, or farm, called San Lorenzo where you not only see the penguins but also can sample some barbecued tender and juicy lamb meat, savory beef sausages and over-sized empanadas, a sort of filled dough-bread.

 
 
 

Offroad sightseeing in El Calafate

Picture: Sightseeing by 4x4 truck in El Calafate. 

In the south of Argentina, on the shore of majestic Lago Argentino, one finds the rapidly growing tourist village of El Calafate. Like Queenstown in New Zealand or Whistler in Canada, it is the base camp for all outdoor-seekers, back-packers and tourists with likings for great sceneries. A half-a-day tour by all-wheel-drive truck takes you up the mountains towering above El Calafate. The tour is called “Balcòn de El Calafate” and is absolutely breathtaking as the dirt-road offers some hair-raising descents (I buckled-up voluntarily). In three hours one gets a good view of the Lago Argentino, stops at an outlandish moonscape and gets surprised by cannonball-like inclusions in boulders. Just bring some warm clothes as also in summer snow might be waiting around the corner!

http://www.welcomeargentina.com/puertopiramides/san-lorenzo-magellanic-penguin.html

 

What and where to eat in Argentina

Picture: A typical Argentinean starter with sausages made from beef (no pork in Argentina) with empanadas in the background.  

You need three things to get the best of Argentinean food: prime local beef or lamb grilled to perfection on a barbecue, a herb-based slightly spicy sauce by the name of chimichuri to go along with it and a desert based on “dulce de leche”, a milk-based type of caramel that is used in custards, crème brulée and other “dulces” (deserts). Most restaurants will offer all three delicacies. For beef either go for chorizo (tenderloin), lomo (prime cut fillet) or any other parts you feel brave enough to master because portions are always extra large (do not order starters or too many side-orders). Regarding restaurant choices I highly recommend “La Cabrera” in Buenos Aires, the ranch (estancia) San Lorenzo on Peninsula Valdes or “Casimiro Bigua” in El Calafate. It is also worthwhile trying the local tea variety by the name of “maté”: it comes in a cute cup with a silver straw but tends to be very strong, more like coffee. Here are the links:

http://www.parrillalacabrera.com.ar/

http://www.casimirobigua.com/

http://www.welcomeargentina.com/puertopiramides/san-lorenzo-magellanic-penguin.html

Picture: The famous Patagonia lamb. 

 

Outstanding Argentinean sculptures

Picture: A stone sculpture on the floor by Argentinean artist Jorge Gamarra in the lobby of the Park Hyatt Hotel. 

While Asian and in particular Chinese art has been rising meteorically in the recent years, and other market for “developing art”, Latin America, has been languishing. I recently visited the Daros Museum in Zurich that specializes in Latin American art and I was disappointed. However, upon visiting the Rubbers Art Gallery in Buenos Aires, I had to correct my preconceptions regarding Latin American art. The manager of the gallery, Enrique Mitjans, gave me a brief tour-de-horizon and I was startled to see what quality only Argentina has to offer. My favorite artist, from whom I bought a sculpture, is Jorge Gamarra. He is an accomplished artist who is 70 years of age and specializes in wood and stone sculptures. His motifs range from simple and clean to startling. I fell in love with a sculpture and shall have it shipped home. His larger sculptures are currently on display in the Park Hyatt Hotel. The Rubbers Gallery is right next to the Park Hyatt Hotel in La Recoleta: http://www.rubbers.com.ar/

Oldtimers in Buenos Aires

 Picture: A small collection of cars I encountered in Buenos Aires.  

Argentina was briefly in the 20^th century one of the wealthiest countries in the world. But a military dictatorship and two financial crisis left the country trailing behind other developing countries. In certain areas in Buenos Aires like La Boca crime is a problem and I got told not to display any wealth (e.g. Swiss watches). All Portenos, as the inhabitants of Buenos Aires are called, are careful about not appearing wealthy. Wealth attracts crimes and expensive cars kidnappers. Therefore Mercedes and BMW are very rare and most cars in the streets are old Renaults, Peugeots or Fords. Above you see a collection of such time-tested vehicles. 

 
 
 

Argentinean shirts with stripes

Picture: The amazing Balthazar shop in Buenos Aires (picture courtesy of www.businessoffashion.com). 

 Argentina is mostly famous for silver-ware and leather-goods. However one can also purchase wonderful locally made formal shirts with an Argentinean touch. Just look for the two beautiful stores of Balthazar in Buenos Aires (the interior of the boutiques are a work of art themselves).

http://www.balthazarshop.com/

Latin American museum airline

Picture: Inside the business class cabin of Aerolineas Argentinas. 

I spent Christmas and New Year celebration in a warm and humid Argentina. To get there I took a flight from Madrid to Buenos Aires on the national carrier Aerolineas Argentinas. It was a twelve hour flight back in time as the plane, a very well-travelled Boeing 747-400 Jumbo, was ancient (telling from the stickers on the food trolleys it probably belonged to Air Canada before). The seats in business class reminded me more of a sleazy hotel lobby, nevertheless they were soft, roomy and comfortable. Underneath the seats loose wiring was visible and retracting the footrest involved some manual labour. However, I had a good night's sleep as the seats were as comfy as in an old pink Cadillac. During the flight the board computer couldn't make up its mind about the correct flight time and the information on the screen was hardly visible as the ancient tube television had lost most of its display colors (only green, blue and any mixed of those colors were available). The flight staff were middle-aged, friendly but could not speak English. And lastly the announcement to stow away the tables and upright the backrest were largely ignored and no staff bothered to check (in fact during landing kids were running around and an elderly couple were clinging on to their suitcases that were placed in front of them and not in the overhead compartment). I did feel like a flight back in time and I was glad we landed safely.

Picture: Wiring dangling from the airline seats. 

  

Cosmopolitan Latin living in Buenos Aires

Picture: Film shooting at the Avenida Alvear in Buenos Aires. 

Wherever one goes in Buenos Aires, the city feels European: from the far-reaching and incredibly wide boulevards to the many green parks littered with monuments and pleasant cafeterias and restaurants, Buenos Aires definitely feels more like Paris or Rome than Rio! But in comparison to sprawling European cities, Buenos Aires, home of over 3m people in the city center and 10m in the metropolitan area, has been able to keep its neighborhoods intact. I have not come across one mega-sized shopping malls like the ones littering Bangkok or Singapore but across lively streets where permanent street vendors sell flowers and grocery stores offer home-delivery. I stayed at a friend's place in the up-market neighborhood of La Recoleta and was amazed by the number of small shops selling locally made leather shoes, home-made pasta or Argentinean beef. Buenos Aires is definitely a city made for people who want more than massive shopping malls. And already $100 000 buys you a nice apartment (top condominiums with three bed rooms go up to $500 000, which is still good value in comparison to Zurich, Paris or London). Just be aware not to stay out late in San Telmo or La Boca neighborhood as crime is still a problem here.

PS: An extra bonus are the reliable, cheap, mostly clean and modern taxis.

 

 

Handmade leather-goods in Buenos Aires

Picture: The Polo gear section at Rossi & Caruso in Buenos Aires.

Buenos Aires is a city of over ten million people that mostly have European ancestors. Combine the European background with cattle-farming, a love for polo and riding gear and what you get are world-class leather-goods. Therefore Buenos Aires is a prime location for bags, shoes and jackets made out of leather. At least as long as you stick to the top-line brands and not the cheap leather shops on Florida street. A good place to start with is the up-market neighborhood of Recoleta that looks more like Paris than Latin America. Two of my favorite shops are Lopez Taibo and Rossi & Caruso. Both sell well-made leather-goods made in Argentina. The shops are very classy and a big weekender bag will set you back not more than 350 USD (due to a very favorable exchange rate and tax-refund), which is hard to beat for value! You find the websites here:

http://www.rossicaruso.com/

http://www.lopeztaibo.com/

 Picture: My new Lopez Taibo weekend bag.