Knight G8 to F6: Buenos Aires to San Carlos de Bariloche

After nearly a week, my blistered step has finally fallen into the city rhythm. I successfully reduced the labryrinth of streets into a more manageable crossword configuration. This increased familiarity has eased my previous tension and I find myself smiling more. A loose routine has emerged. After rising and showering, I head to a nearby cafe for lunch. I have decided to treat myself to a nice meal once a day. Lunch, being my favorite meal of the day, is my time to indulge. I love the service here. After ordering my meal, the waiter returns to the table and places a table setting before me. Then after setting down a glass and small tin bucket of ice on the table, he opens an old fashioned bottle of coca-cola before me, and like a fine wine pours a small amount into my glass and leaves me the bottle. Having risen up the ranks of the service industry, I appreciate these little things. The food is delightful. Sometimes, however, I wonder if my blissful satisfaction is partly due to the modest amount I eat each day.

I am still very taken by the Argentine people. Their quaint manner seems to subdue the bedlam of screaming car horns and shouting vendors. Argentines seem blessed with a benign practicality. For instance, yesterday I watched a disheveled homeless man approach the door of a posh resturant. The man was met by the resturant´s highly kempt host. Raising a ragged old water bottle, the homeless man asked ¨Agua.¨ Without a moments hesitation the host took the bottle and had the man come in and escape from the heat of the street while he filled the bottle. This is not an instance of extravagant charity, and maybe I only recognized it because of my enhanced level of observation lately, but it stood out as a highly human moment amidst the mechanical drone of the city.

On a more comical note, dogs here are given more liberties and luxories then most people in the world. Many Argentines make their livings as professional dog walkers. Each day, I come across men and women being led by a pack of up to twelve dogs! Dogs are groomed with delicate care in pet store windows. Meanwhile the dogs seem to be fully aware of their spot in the Argentine heart. Today I watched a raggedy mutt saunter into the middle of the street. Stopping traffic, he squatted and relieved himself before the horde of beeping cars. He payed them little mind as he leisurely finished up and went about pawing at the cement as if to bury his booty.

Satisfied with my days in Buenos Aires , I sense it is time for my next move. Today I purchased a ticket on a luxory bus. Tommorow night I will make the 10 hour journey southwest from Retiro Bus Station, Beunos Aires to San Carlos de Bariloche. I booked a bed in a hostel run by a group of New Zealand kiwis. Having had excellent experiences with kiwis throughout my life, I could not pass up the chance to meet some more. With strong European roots reflected in its alpine architecture and set along the beautiful Nahuel Huapi Lake, Bariloche seems an ideal place to spend my first Christmas away from home.