Travel Blog

Brazil'n Yet Again

7/17/2017

Brazil was of course, amazing as it always is - this last trip was my 3rd!

Brazil is experiencing an economic crisis at the moment, there is a lack of employment and the people are really feeling the effects. I found it interesting that more than a few people I met were actually driving for Uber full-time because they were unable to find work in their respective fields.

There are currently lots of protests going on, largely because the people don't like what the government is doing and are fed up with corruption. I actually had to reschedule a flight due to the threat of a nationwide strike.

Onto the amazing beaches: Rio de Janerio of course has many of those! I stayed with my Brazilian family down there (my friend's family who have basically become my own) and had an amazing time as usual! I also visited Recife, Natal and Fortaleza, all of which are along the Northeast Coast and have their own respective incredible beaches!

Salvador, the capital of the state of Bahia has a particular charm and is the epicenter of Afro-Brazilian culture. It houses Pelhourinho (the old town), and that place is amazing (though it can be a bit dodgy at night so I wouldn't recommend choosing an accommodation in that area).

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My Epic Return To Argentina!

7/13/2017

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Argentina...after years of being bereft of breathing the air in the country where I studied abroad, I finally made an epic return!

I remembered the taste of the coffee, and that it was served with 2 medialunas (crescent-shaped croissants, served either sweet or not). I remembered all of the Argentine smells - the buildings, the city of Buenos Aires, and so on. I remembered oldschool, huge, bulky Argentine building and door keys! I remembered seeing all of the same topics on the news: Messi & soccer, inflation & corruption, and robberies & crime, yet this time around there was more of a focus on women's rights/the women's movement. I remembered that agua (water) is available "con gas" (with bubbles) or "sin gas" (without bubbles), which always made me smile :) I found the strawberry yogurt-filled chocolate which Cadbury offers in this region again, and remembered how delicious it is and how much I used to enjoy it! I remembered dulce de leche (similar to caramel), and alfajores (sweet bakery-like sandwiches with a filling (often dulce de leche or chocolate), covered in chocolate. I remembered the slow pace of life, which in restaurants can be construed by those not from Argentina as bad service.

Argentina is famous for a few things: 1) Gauchos, or Argentine cowboys. 2) Tango, the classic Argentine dance. 3) Late night everything - Argentinians eat dinner late...very late...we are talking after 8pm late, and they go out even later. You might start at a bar/restaurant anywhere from 10pm-12am (eating may continue until 1am or 2am), and if a nightclub is included in the plan for the evening, expect to be there anytime between 3am and 7am. I believe that Buenos Aires deserves the title "The City That Never Sleeps" much more than New York does.

I was lucky enough to be able to visit my host families from when I had studied abroad on this journey, and even luckier to have had the opportunity to take a 12-day road trip down to Bariloche and Puerto Madryn with my host father, what an incredible experience! We saw some stunning scenery and lakes in Bariloche, made a lot of animal friends of all sorts in Puerto Madryn, and met some wonderful people along the way! Puerto Madryn is the place to be if you want to see penguins, marine life, guanacos (like llamas), pink flamingos, ñandus (like ostriches), and much more! I was so lucky to have my host father, a seasoned Argentina expert, with me for the journey because he knew exactly where to go. Having a vehicle to transport us made all the difference in the world!

In a city called Salta in the north of Argentina, I tried some amazing (vegetarian) food! Hotel de la Linda offers an incredible selection from their own kitchen, and if you venture out of the hotel, only a block or two away you will find a place called Doña Salta. This joint has some of the most incredible food to be found in Salta - they are known for their incredible empanadas! You can find empanadas filled with all types of ingredients there, along with something called humitas, which consist of corn pudee and cheese wrapped in corn husks.

A couple of other random tidbits I noticed:

- At a grocery store, there was a shortage of coins, so instead of giving me back my change in coins, I was given candy!

- Argentinians often shorten the word "facebook" to "face".

- PDA (public display of affection) happens...it happens a lot...and it is excessive, so be warned. You'll be sure to see couples who appear to be in dire need of a hotel room in parks and other public areas.

- "Gauchito Gil" is the name of some small, red memorials consisting of flags and small man-made structures alongside many roads in Argentina. These were allegedly created by Gauchos/poor people in memory of the famous Gaucho named Hill.

- Many Venezuelan immigrants are in Buenos Aires working or looking for work. They fled to Argentina to escape the situation back at home, which is quite rough at the moment (especially in Caracas).

- Fernet (mint-flavored liquor) is an extremely popular drink and is often mixed with a form of soda and consumed in social settings.

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The World's Largest Natural Mirror

7/6/2017

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La Paz was my first exposure to Bolivia and I suffered quite extensively from altitude sickness. I believe that this was mainly because I went from a low altitude to a very high one without any adjustment period. I realized that everything from going up the stairs to changing clothes becomes challenging because the air is thinner! In order to combat the effect of the altitude, people drink coca tea (coca leaves in water) or chew on the coca leaves to achieve the same effect. The coca plant also provides the body with energy and alleviates hunger. A pill called sorojpil is available at drug stores for people suffering from altitude sickness, and may be taken in cases where the coca leaves do not provide enough relief. Aside from the altitude sickness issues I experienced, I found the city to be charming and enjoyed my time there!

La Paz has 3 forms of taxis available: taxis, trufis (shared taxis), and minibuses. All of which, most travelers would find to be very inexpensive! People are happy to cram into vehicles and roam through traffic without fear of being hit by a car.

I found chulitas to be interesting. "What are chulitas?" you may ask. Chulitas are Bolivian women who are dressed in traditional attire and can be identified by their extremely colorful clothing with a circus-style (awkward-looking and also brown) top hat. I estimated about 5-10% of the visible population to be chulitas.

Perhaps the coolest part of my Bolivian experience was the Salt Flats; this was my main reason for visiting Bolivia! I had an amazing tour with Salty Desert Aventours for just $150 Bolivianos, which is just over $20 USD. We had an awesome and patient guide, were able to take incredible perspective and reflection pictures, and even had sunset on the flats and vegetarian food included in the package! It was surreal to experience how the the sky and the ground become the same entity. Words can't do it justice, and they don't have to. Pictures do, so check them out at the end of the post :)

After getting horribly burned at the salt flats, I learned some local sunburn alleviation tactics which may initially sound as ridiculous to you as they did to me when I first heard them - covering myself with slices of banana, using milk on the sunburned spots, and covering the affected the skin with slices of tomato - however all seemed to do the trick.

A few cool and different drinks I tried:

- api (a [purple] drink): made from fermented corn. Interesting taste but definitely not my favorite..nauseating after drinking too much

- mocochinchi - dried peaches left in water overnight, boiled with cinnamon and sugar, served cold.

Other random unhygienic tidbits:

- As I have found in other countries which don't necessarily have the best plumbing, paying to use the bathroom is the norm and TP goes in the trash, not in the toilet.

- Dogs are not treated particularly well - they are usually kicked out of their homes at night and forced to roam the streets until morning.

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Brazil'n Yet Again

My Epic Return To Argentina!

The World's Largest Natural Mirror

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