2013: Buenas Aires, Argentina

Day 36

Buenas Aires, Argentina

At 0830 we had backed in to a slip, port side to a pier packed with containers stacked 7 high giving us a view of …...containers, gantry cranes and the deck houses of container ships. Cranes were beeping their backup alarms and go-forward alarms as well. Thunking of containers being set on others gave a base affect to the symphony of commerce. No walking ashore here either. We had an early lunch on deck and watched containers being unloaded on both sides. Not a welcoming place to tie up.

our slip

view from our cabin

With this being the first time in the city we opted for an organized tour for the afternoon. We rode out of Buenas Aires proper into the surrounding area to the San Isidro area. The square was filled with stalls from which artists and vendors sold their wool products, paintings, jewelery, antiques and all sorts of other things. Old style architecture buildings lined 3 sides and a church dominated in at a corner. Trees lined the square.

That done we rode through lined streets in residential areas until we came to the Rio de la Plata boat terminal which called for leaving the bus, wading through throngs of families waiting for a boat then onto a wooden tour boat. Families were going on tours or catching water taxis to another part of the delta. Everyone seemed to be on holiday and the weather was cooperating. The next hour was spent on the river branches and canals motoring past vacation homes and cabins, rowing clubs, derelict riverboats, small boats, people rowing, other tour boats, water taxis, water police, amusement parks, campgrounds, people swimming and people enjoying the shade. This was very reminiscent of the waterways of Bangkok but without so much pollution. The people here enjoy their leisure time and love the river delta.