FELIZ NAVIDAD

day 62: 25 december 2008 (navidad)

the flags goes down here in BA, because tomorrow i`m heading for Mendoza. where the finest wines of argentina are produced. also it is on the foot of the vulcan of aconagua, one of the higheest peak of South america. but first i want to share you some of my experience here in buenos aires.

mid- december is really not the best time to go to buenos aires. the humidity is very high and the heat is killing. and add some polution too and it`s a dreadful combination. although Buenos aires is really interesting to see, the different type of the barrios offer lot of attraction. and los porteños are nocturnal, so all activities started late in the evening.

pero heading for caminito in the evening isn´t really good idea. caminito is a placein the barrio of la boca. home of boca junior but also the poorest barrio in BA. so outside of caminito it`s a hell for las turistas. although the site it self is really nice to see. and it`s amazing how inventive people are and could make something out of nothing. it`s again some kind of reminder for me. to be inventive and find a solution for everything i will encountered.

and like now i`m choosing to smoke pipe tobacco above cigars because it`s mas economico.
but being so young and smoke pipe, it doesnt match really well. And the people i met on the street still thinks that i smoke marihuana or crack. no no no it`s pure tobacco. it`s something that give me strength instead of make me feel sleepy and dizzy. sometimes i wondered if i was borned at a wrong era. i still wondered if i can get my pipe through the border. on chilean border vegetables, fruits and diary products are not allowed to pass the border. and also coca leaves but i think that`s only for people coming from bolivia.

bueno, that`s much later for now i`m still in argentina. and now i`m thinking to go to the World`s End. the very south part of argentina, there is a city called Ushuaia and it`s the end of the continent. but i`m seeking Sponsors to be able to go to Ushuaia:D

Suerte

ch´

holy night..... and maybe a silent night too

day 53-61: 16 - 24 december 2008

battery of camera is on the lowest end. so i have nothing, nada photos to upload. i do have a picture of my "graduation". so now i`m a spanish speaker on basic level. bueno, the spanish course is finish but on the tango lessons i`ve never had a time for it. because i need to made my homework everyday and after that i went to activities with the rest of the folks in the hostel. like go to a percussion performance. packed with people and the beat is incredible. or we had a asado in the patio of the hostel. or i cooked my own dinner and after that tired to do anything... just studying and going out.. so sadly no tango. And for now there are no tangos because of the holidays. AND i`m going to Mendoza at the 26th of december. so no more buenos aires and no tango i think.

but, now i`m still here in BA although with christmas on the way and with no idea how to celebrate it. but there are 2 friends stuck here in BA aswell ;).

bueno. i also want to say feliz compluaños para mi tia Ketut. tambien para mi abuelo en Indonesia. i might be busy but i always remember.


and also:



suerte

Ch´

What day is it?.... it`s a school day

¡ir a la escuela!


day 47 - 52 = 10- 15 december 2009

the time seems to fly... and by this i also want to thanks again to mr. R. Van Den Berg, for the effort you have done to send my credit card to buenos aires. i`ve received it in one piece and promise to not lose it again (except if its got eaten by the machine).

yeah what day is it today?? for me it`s monday the 15 de diciembre and the start of a school day. After travelling so long i don´t use to be at school and so waking up so early in the morning is a little bit hard. the class start at 9.00 am. yep, i´m attending a spanish classes here in Buenos Aires, it´s 2 blocks walking and only 2 hours a day so from 9.00 till 11.00, which then i have the rest of the day free to fill in.

but i do got some home work, so that need to be done first, and because BA is so big i have lot of options where i want to sit and have it done. today i choose for San Telmo. it`s an old neighbourhood with one some places the street are still from cobbled stones. and also the old rails from the tram. on the plaza it`s a lot of restaurants where you could sit down unders the shadow of the trees and have a drink and/or eat something. also there were tango dancers permorming in the middle of the plaza so it´s indeed very nice place to see and be seen. although it´s a bit touristic in some way.

yesterday at 0.00 we had a party in hour hostel, it was great and i didn`t know that the party here goes till 8.00 in the morning. hehe i`m not used to it. it was also a nice moment to sharpen my espanol. although on some kind of way i still used some portuguese words (he he discovered it today). but i do hope that it`s fade after a week of spanish school. Bueno,last thursday i went to the bar along with other guys. it´s call milonga here in BA. it`s place where people are practising the dance of milonga (a variation of tango) and also there were local artists performing
folklore and musics that is a part of the tango scene.

I also want to try a tango class.... so Yvonne if you read this, I know a great place to learn some tango :) cheers. oh yeah, and if you want some great ice cream, got Dylan in Perú 1400+ i don`t know the exact adress but the ice cream is amazing. I also went to watch the movie of Che (el argentino) by benicio del toro. amazing movie.

bastante en este momento

abrazo

Ch´

Nubes ...o nubes

The LightTower of Cabo Polonio



day 40 - 46 = 3 - 9 december 2008

I`m struck with a lot of bad karma at this moment. I really hope that the wave of bad karma is ended now, other wise i might not be able to bare it anymore...
well on the other end of the scale there are a lot of very nice things happened last week. so it`s actually balanced everything in some way or another. every particle in this universe strived to it outmost streched position where it has the best configuration to be in balance. so yeah that`s about where i`m at this moment.

Well let`s move to the better moments shall we, from 3 till 6 december i`ve spent a really fun and good time in Cabo Polonio. it really is something else. I`ve never seen such strech kilometers of beaches, dunes similar to the deserts and of course the sea lions whoms dominated the rocky end of the beach. I will miss the lights from the Al Faro illuminated the village with only 80 inhabitants (besides tourists and sea lions). spent my days walking around the playas, observing the sea lions and of course searching for fossils. But the most fun part was the nights, I`ve brought grappamiel to cheers things up, where we (the people in the cabo polonio hostel) preparing our food together. The first night was tortillas, that`s tasted really good and the second night was rice mixed with vegetables, and some fresh fish from Pablo. All tasted very good. but the ultimate night was the one that breaked my heart. (I`m trying to hold my tears now). I kinda orchestrated everything but the one who made such beautiful meals are you guys = Ana, Pepe, Yvonne and Monica. you have prepared the ingredients very well I just gave you the directions. yeah the ultimate night we had INDONESIAN food. we have made the corn cookies / bakwan and gado - gado. hehe you will thought how did i got the peanut sauce. we improvised it. here, in Cabo polonio there is a little supply of everything but we made the sauce from peanuts and cream (for whip cream). which actually turned out to have some similar taste.

It was really fun guys ...


but of course it`s not similar as one that mamita always made. Being here facing such of hard time made me realised how much I`ve missed home. Bueno.. let`s move on. the night ended up with lot of grappamiel (the nights are cold here in Cabo). had really really good time.

the next day went back to montevideo to catch the ferry on the next day.

7 december - present

Ferry... ehh lets`s skipped that saved it for another time. the next day is 8th of december. it`s the holy day of virgin mary all around the world. I`ve told you about this couple of time now. so I think you already now it. so I went to Lujan to see the image of the Virgin and to take a part in the ceremony, but before that i called mamita.. vos sabes todo no, mamichita. but in Lujan it`s the place that I realised that it was similar when Jesus met his mother on his way to golgota... well I do not want to used the name of god idly, but the situation is similar. On the road, faced a lot of hard time but the result would be something nice. som Mamicita be strong okay.. I am strong enough to bare this burden. the image of The Virgin of Lujan is very small, Something so small but though so strong. Although faced lot of hard time my faith is actually grew stronger and stronger since i`m here in SA. same to bear Grylls, his faith is what he only have when he is outhe there surviving in wilderness. that and his knife. also something that I`ve been using lot of time my swiss army knife, the small one though.

Image of Virgin of Lujan


Passion of christ. jesus encountered his mother


so yeah .. now I`m in Buenos Aires, Argentina and going to spend here A LOT of days maybe till next year. Buenos Aires is really nice spot to stay for a while. you know..
¡ yo queiro descansarrrr!

bueno.. till next digital pages

muchas suertes y abrazo grande

Ch´

Another great day

day 39: 2 december 2009

I could add another great day in my trip. although I have been encountered lot of hardship, there is nothing that could beat some warm abrazo from some really nice people i`ve met here. although we knew each other only for a short time but Melisa and Felipe had gave me something that no money in te world could buy. So thank you very much for the really great culinair tour round montevideo, especially today i have felt to be a local gente. and also thank you for the present, it was muy rico.

ahora, esta muy difficile para mi por escribir mi emocionnes. primera ves a de viaje, yo encontro del ¨writers block¨. No se porque, tambles los emocionnes son mas fuerte. Pero, esta una experensia muy muy linda. ta, mucas muchas gracias por todo, Melisa y Felipe. y ahora yo puedo dicer. ´yo tengo amigos en Uruguay. el pais nada personas connosar. ´bueno, uno mas mi apreciada, muchas muchas gracias.

So i think not many of you could understand what i have wrotten (i have wrotten it by heart, so it`s not that correct). but yeah,today is one of the day that i will always remember.

tomorrow, i `m going to cabo polonio. there suppose to be no electricity or streamig water. So i do not know if there are any internet. so I ´m leaving for anoter adventure, wish me luck.

PS: i added some footer with the Birthday of the people I know, but I don`t know itbyheart so plese send me your birthday if it`s in the period from now till 3 may 2009. also had another gadget on the side., the best food of each country.

muchas amores y grande abrazo

Ch´

Wonders of montevideo

¿ Burj Al Arab clone ?


day 38: 1 december 2008

its still the same day but now i`ve walked through the city of montevideo and did some sightseeing. Montevideo has a very relax atmosphere. it`s kinda similar with Rio because of the waterfronts. but I must say it has more similarity to Helsinki, Finland. the city is a combination of new and old and it doesn`t breath a capital city at all. It has something of a provincial town feel. today I have bought my ferry ticket to Buenos Aires. I just want to secure a place so I will be in time in Lujan next week.

I have been in a mass yesterday, at the local church of Nuestra Senora de sacrada corazon. I must said it was very energizing experience to be a part of the pueblo. the mass is really different with the one i have been before. it was really intense. the words that i do understand were really touching and I like especially the sentence caminho de la vida (life path) , or `how we walk through the life´ it really reminds me of my travel so far.



the city of montevideo is really touching. to be here was a wise decision, it doesnt feel touristy at all and it really is charming. From the cathedral metropolitana till the mercado del puerto. the cathedral is maybe the most artsy and the most warm cathedral i`ve ever seen. and the mercado with the eat establishments ( all are top class and really cheap) is really kitschy. i have eaten a verry good fish drank medio y medio and have a dessert and cappucino and that`s for lesser than 30 €


maybe because Uruguay felt really European, that`s why not many european are visiting but it is really worth to take a look for a day or two.

abrazo

Ch´

Thank you for all your attention!!

Yay today it`s my birthday. so i have a reason to smoke my romeo y julieta.
although i do not feel that today is a special day. it feel like any other day.
maybe the downside of travelling.. anyway i`m going to check the city of montevideo
and rush to Cabo Polonio. because I want to be in Lujan, buenos Aires at 8 of december
because it`s the holy day of Mary and Lujan like Lourdes is a pilgrimage spot of South America

But first some special attention for Liselot Van den Berg. happy Birthday too and I wish you all the best and all the good things in the world. May this day be a special one for you too.


Good, for all of you that sent me a e-mail or comments. thank you very much for the attention.
for one who didn`t, no thank :D.. hehe brigadeiro just joking. I know you all wish me the best and followed my journey, and I know you don`t forgot it. So I also want to thank you for all of your attention., as well.

Bueno, I´m going now and will give some update about the wonders of Uruguay mas tarde

abrazo

Ch´