Around the Horn

Day 20 : Buenos Aires, Argentina

Another beautiful South American summer day as we sailed into the capital city of Buenos Aires. The skies have been bright and blue since we left the storm front behind off Brazil. W were an hour or so late arriving at the dock due to the presence of a freighter in the channel, which necessitated a delay in Captain Johnny navigating into port. The water in the Rio de Plata is very shallow and filled with silt, which gives it a distinctive brown color compared to the other South American ports.

My plan for the day was to take a ships' sightseeing tour around the city. Although the air-conditioned motor coach was comfortable, the tiny Argentinian lady accompanying us was lacking in second-language skills, and her English was barely passable. Our first stop was the beautiful Metropolitan Cathedral, the final resting place of San Martin. We were able to walk around and take photographs but received little in the way of information from our diminutive guide.

Upon exiting the Cathedral into the bright sunshine, I was met by my fellow Hornblowers who were on a separate private tour which was to last most of the day. One lady's husband had been ill that morning and was forced to cancel, so I was invited to take his place on the private tour, which I did after saying good-bye to the tour guide and assuring her that I  was no longer her responsibility. I joined the smaller private van and settled back to enjoy an excellent narrated tour. Many thanks to Pat for allowing me to take Roy's place.

This guide, Susannah, was a 180 degree switch from the earlier lady. Susannah was funny and informative and arranged the tour to suit the wishes of the clients. She gave us an extensive profile of the city, its history and its culture, and then delivered us to Tortoni's, a historic Tango hall refitted to be a quaint pub-like lunch spot, for a light meal of cold meats, cheese, bread and a drink.

After more touring and a shopping stop, we were delivered back to the ship in late afternoon to get ourselves refreshed and ready for the highlight of our city visit, the Tango show and dinner .
This was another private tour arranged by Hornblower Jane and her husband Doug. We departed by bus after 8:30 and were delivered to one of the premiere Tango shows in Buenos Aires.

The hall was magnificent and the meal likewise. An appetizer of meat turnovers in puff pastry was followed by a choice of entrees. I chose the baby beef, which arrived as a huge steak, cooked to perfection and fork-tender. (The beef in Argentina is incomparable, and I took the opportunity to sample it wherever I could). An excellent dessert and endless Cabernet Sauvignon, topped off by strong, dark Argentian coffee rounded out the meal and set the stage for the amazing Tango show.
The singing, dancing and costumes were all fabulous, and we left exhausted and thrilled with our first day in beautiful Buenos Aires.

Tomorrow : Buenos Aires Day 2