Category: Locations

Off-the-beaten-path / South America / Wandering

Argentina Beyond Buenos Aires

Buenos Aires may be the largest city in Argentina and the most European in all of the Americas, but Argentina is a huge country and there is a whole lot more to it than just Buenos Aires. I can’t claim to have seen much of Argentina outside its principle city....

Modes of Transport / Sedate / South America

All Aboard the South American Chicken Bus

Travel by bus is quite common throughout South America. While I’m sure some have visions in mind of a “chicken bus”, the reality is the polar opposite. There are dozens of bus lines and most of them are quite luxurious. Far more so than in the US. I took a...

Dining / South America

Life Lived Outdoors in Buenos Aires

I don’t know what Buenos Aires is like in winter. I’m told it gets down to freezing but usually not lower. I don’t especially care to find out. What I do know is that it’s positively delightful in summer. Argentines live their lives outdoors. There are enough open air and...

Nature / South America

Esta es Buenos Aires también

This is Buenos Aires as well. Over by the waterfront is Buenos Aires’ business district. While the gleaming, modern chrome-and-glass skyscrapers don’t have the same charm as the old-world European architecture of the more residential areas, this district is very clean. It has wide, tree-lined boulevards. Every part I saw...

Dining / History / Logistics / South America

Buenos Aires: the most European city in the Americas

The first image in this set is the street I stayed on while I was in Buenos Aires. Throughout many of the neighborhoods of “old” Buenos Aires, the main arterial roads are all standard asphalt. But nearly all of the side streets are narrow cobblestone. Everywhere you look, there are...

Active / Activities / Bucket List / History / South America

Learning Tango in Buenos Aires, Argentina

I’ve read that dance is a conversation between body and soul. Sometimes that conversation comes in whispers, other times in shouts. Tango is like those passionate cries that make the neighbors blush. Tango is very much a conversation… and a sexy one, at that. The entire conversation takes place strictly with body...

Africa / Laid-back / Middle East / Off-the-beaten-path

Humongous market bazaar in downtown Cairo

As part of my off-the-beaten-path sightseeing tour, Islam and I (and José, an American we met along the way) all went wandering through a gigantic open-air market bazaar in downtown Cairo. Many parts of this place were just like in the movies. Especially after dark, when it took on a...

Africa / Bucket List / Middle East / Modes of Transport

Is THIS more like the Egypt you were expecting?

The desert has a certain beauty to it. Perhaps that’s because I grew up in New Mexico. So I know how to appreciate the desert. One of the things that surprises many visitors is the openness, friendliness, and tolerance of Egyptians. My new friend Islam showed me some of the...

Africa / Bucket List / Middle East

This is not the Egypt you’re looking for…

Many parts of Cairo defy Americans’ stereotypical expectations of what Egypt should look like. You don’t see pyramids, camels, the Sahara Desert. or any of the other stuff that comes so readily to mind. In fact, some parts of Cairo look downright tropical. The Cairo waterfront, on the banks of...