El nombre es Bond, James Bond

Well the 18 hour coach journey was better than expected, with great seats that almost reclined fully, a fine selection and drinks and snacks and Hollywood blockbusters dubbed into Spanish. James Bond speaking Spanish is somehow not quite right!

We are now staying in a small seaside town called Puerto Madryn, close to the Valdes Peninsula. The area is famous for wildlife watching and tomorrow we hope to see whales, elephant seals and sea lions on the peninsula. Fingers crossed. Our base is a nice hostel in the centre of town. As with most hostels it has a kitchen that guests can use, so tonight I am planning to cook for myself which will make a nice change. Fresh pasta with a nice Argentinean Malbec, should be good.

Still no news on the truck, but hopefully it should catch us up in the next couple of days. We are in Puerto Madryn until Monday, so it should be a fairly relaxing weekend by the sea ahead.

Where’s our truck?

Not the best start to the trip as our truck is currently stuck in Montevideo, but we will press on regardless. Apparently there are still some shipping issues in Latin America following Hurricane Sandy, which has caused the delay. Tomorrow I therefore have the joys of an overnight coach to Puerto Madryn, about 700 miles or so down the coast. On the plus side I have been led to believe that long distances Argentinean coaches are a lot better than National Express, so I am hoping for Champaign and oysters all the way!

It was good to finally meet everyone last night and as expected we have a good mix of nationalities. Mainly Brits, but we also have Ozzies, Irish, South African, French and Danes aboard. They seem a friendly bunch and I look forward to getting to know everyone better (and remembering all 24 names) over the coming days.   

The last couple of days have been spent exploring the numerous parks and wetlands of Buenos Aires. A very green city with some lovely gardens and nature reserves. The Botanical Gardens are especially nice and home to a large number of very friendly (and rude) cats.

I hope it has finally stopped raining back in the UK. I will not say what the weather has been like out here, as it will just make you all jealous!

Anthony

One Big Flower!

Don't cry for me Argentina

I am not sure about the Paris of South America, but Buenos Aires is certainly a very nice city and well worth a visit. Today I have seen a giant 23m flower made out of metal and weighting 18 tons, visited the grave of Evita and been to the Falklands War memorial which is next to Torre Monumental, a large clock tower gifted to Argentina by Britain in 1910?

Luckily it was a public holiday today so the roads were a lot quieter than usual. A combination of some strange road layouts and erratic driving does not make it that easy on a bike, but at least the city is pancake flat. A much better way to see a city than on your usual open air tour bus.

Tomorrow I get to meet the travelling companions I will be spending the next 6 months or so with. Meeting at 17:00 and than some bonding over dinner. The rest of the week will be spent heading South along the Atlantic coast. I asked my guide Maria today what the roads in Argentina are generally like and apparently they are good in the North. I think it could be a bumpy few weeks!

Anthony

Buenos Aires

Sorry to everyone back home in wet and windy Britain, but the weather in Buenos Aires is gorgeous! Sunshine and in the low twenties, just right. One thing that travel does do is make you realise that the weather in the UK is usually pants for about 8 months of the year (or 11 this year). I know it may be a bit dull to have sunshine most days, but better than rain most days!

For those of you thinking of coming out to Brazil for the World Cup or Rio Olympics, TAM is a good airline to fly with, but good luck navigating Sau Paulo Airport. I was not quite name checked on the tannoy system, but a two hour transfer turned into a mad 15 minute dash to find gate 04b after the joys of security and the obligatory delayed flight from Heathrow. Can someone also please explain the film ‘Prometheus’ to me. I know it is probably not best watched on a tiny screen and with tinny sound, but It made no sense! Ridley Scott, please stick to making top quality road bikes as used by the Lotto Belisol team.

For someone use to travelling in developing countries, Buenos Aires has a much more developed, European feel about it, which is probably why they call it the South American Paris (it says so on my KLM sponsored map, so it must be true). The driving is certainly very Parisian and there are also lots of clapped out Renaults! I have also spotted a few fantastically named VW CrossFox. A fox crossed with a cheap Brazillian made supermini?

Tomorrow I am planning to go on a guided tour of the city by bike, which should be interesting.

Anthony

4 days to go!

4 days to go until I fly to Argentina. Considering the current weather in the UK, roll on sunshine! The packing has been started and I cannot wait to get on the plane.

Countdown

Less than two weeks to go and still lots to do before I fly out.