The Allure of Eating In

Eating out -- even in Buenos Aires -- can get old! During our four days in Mendoza, we enjoyed eight consecutive meals of slow food at Estancia La Florencia: brochette de pollo y lomo, asparagus soup, French omelette, bife de chorizo, huge salads of hearts of palm, avocado, baby asparagus, and olives, among other delights. With each meal we split a Bonarda/Malbec from Crotta or a pequena vasija of white wine from La Rural (Rutini) and mineral water con gas. The meals ran on for hours, making it possible for us to befriend waiters Daniel, Patricio, and Roberto, who gave us his exquisite recipe for chimichuri sauce. With tips, the meals averaged about $30 ARS, about $10 per person.

Eating out in Mendoza wasn't a novelty. Since arriving in Buenos Aires in May, we had been eating almost every meal out. Places like Croque Madame, Florencio, Teodoro's, Battaglia, Los Molinos, Los Pinos . . . 

So on our first night back in Buenos Aires, we didn't feel like rushing out for dinner. Instead, Linda made garbanzos with chorizo estilo espanola, following Kurt's grandmothers' recipes to a T.

Last night we decided to try the "fabrica de pasta" we'd seen a couple of blocks from the apartment. We bought a half kilo of fresh fideos caseros to serve with the rattatoulie Linda had made earlier in the day, using black olives brought back from Mendoza and fresh vegetables from the produce stand down the block. We also picked up a pollo rostizado, much like the ones we used to get in Mexico but about twice the size, from a place called Traks. Rounding out the meal was a bottle of Syrah from Don Arturo's vineyard in Mendoza, also toted back on the plane in carry on luggage sans TSA issues. 

Because we still have no furniture beyond the mattress on the floor and a camping chair, we ate at the counter in the pantry, using our new Argentine dinnerware. 

Today the left-over chicken and pasta are being turned into an Argentine version of chicken noodle soup. Tomorrow, we may well be ready to try out Granda, a small French restaurant four blocks away known for its casserole cuisine.

Whether out or in, dining is good in Argentina. 

Art, Health, and Carbon Footprints

Almost 40 days now in Argentina and we can count on one hand the number of times we've been in an automobile. All of them were in taxis, mostly to and from the airport. Since the first one dropped us (and our nine pieces of luggage) off at the front door to the apartment building, our principal modes of transportation have been the subte (subway) and colectivos (buses), both with fares at 30 cents US, and shoe leather.

Mostly we walk because everything is within easy reach. Bull's Gym, where we work out twice a week, is exactly 500 paces from our apartment. Pretty much everything else necessary to sustain life -- from a world class hospital to grocery stores -- is closer. La Hormiguita, which does our laundry, is about 10 paces; the nearest fresh vegetable stand is maybe 20. Several news stands, Los Pinos and Los Molinas (two of our favorite restaurants), our banks, and a grand old-style movie theater with seating for several hundred, all are within a couple of blocks.

We got into the habit of hoofing it in Austin in January 2007 after we sold the last of the approximately 23 cars we had owned over the years. In BA, it's just easier to do without a vehicle. Plus walking and using public transportation both are great ways to soak up the architectural wonders of our new hometown. The photo above shows part of the murals at the Facultad de Medicina station, just one example of the 1930s tile work adorning many of the subte stops.

The Wonders of Water in Mendoza

Mendoza averages 220 mm of rainfall per year (under 9 inches), about the same as El Paso, Texas. The region's vineyards, olive groves, park vegetation, drinking water supplies all owe their existence to an elaborate system of irrigation that dates back to Incan times. Snowmelt from the Andes is collected and channeled into area rivers for transport and ultimate diversion to downstream acequias (ditches).

Mendocinos are proud of their man-made oasis in the desert. Cab drivers, waiters, and vendors pointed out to us the extensive diversity of vegetation. Throughout the city, acequias of all vintages water roadside trees that provide shade and beauty (look to the right of the trees in the photo). Just be careful coming home from a late night out!  

We spent our last full day in Mendoza yesterday soaking up the sun in the town's incredible Parque General San Martin (remember winter officially began down here in the southern hemisphere on June 21). Acequias, complete with gates, crisscross the 512-hectare park, apparently fed by the man-made lake that also serves the region's rowing enthusiasts. The fountain shown below is just one of the many other water features in the park. (Despite retirement from WaterPR, Linda's still fascinated with water works!)

Beyond Buenos Aires

With all important matters taken care of or in process in Buenos Aires, we've headed to Mendoza. Today we took a half-day tour of a small olive orchard and processing plant and two vineyards: Baudron, a large concern, and Cavas de Don Arturo, a small organic enterprise that exports only to Kentucky (of all places). The latter is particularly gorgeous; the current owners have preserved the original French-style buildings from the early 20th century (see photo by Kurt).

Of course, we wound up buying all sorts of bargains: extra virgin olive oil, olive paste (both black and green), Greek-style black olives, and several bottles of wonderful wine: Malbec, Syrah, Merlot, and Tempranillo.

Plus we've found a great place to eat: Estancia La Florencia.

Several thumbs up for food AND service.

Music to Celebrate With

Last night we had the pleasure of attending yet another free concert at the University of Buenos Aires Law School. The National Symphony Orchestra, with guest piano soloist Boris Giltburg, performed Rachmaninoff's Concert for Piano and Orchestra No. 2. The audience went wild at the end, so much so that Giltburg came back with a solo piece as an encore. Much more sombre, almost dirge-like (the piece unfortunately was not identified), successfully defusing the general mania so that Giltburg could leave the stage.

The second offering was Shostakovich's Symphony #12 ("1917"), a virtual war within the orchestra, led by the percussion and wind sections. As Kurt put it, both pieces were extremely physical; the orchestra (not to mention the director) was put through the wringer!

The Law School, we are told, was originally the site of the Eva Peron Foundation. The building looks a monolithic supreme court from the outside: massive columns devoid of decoration. But inside the "Salon de Actos" (assembly hall), where many of the performances are held, the austerity gives way to red velvet seats and a massive painting depicting the founding of the University of Buenos Aires in 1821. (Photo by Kurt)

What a great way to celebrate our new residency status. 

And We're Legit

We're golden! Today we picked up our signed and sealed "temporary" residency papers, good for one year and renewable for two more. After that, we are eligible for permanent residency and, two years later, citizenship. The process requires quite a bit of paper collection: apostilled and notarized birth and marriage certificates, criminal records (or evidence of lack thereof), proof of pension, etc. The last item is the one that greases the skids. Thank you to the Newspaper Guild, AFL-CIO, for Kurt's monthly pension check.

Those residency papers already have come in handy. Tickets on Aerolineas Argentinas are about half the price for residents. We picked up round-trip tickets from BA to Mendoza (capital of the wine country, as everyone knows) for $300 US for the two of us. Charge to non-residents would have been $750 US. Life is good.

Sunday we head to Mendoza for a quick reconnaissance (and break from waiting for the furniture to arrive). Back on Thursday to continue the process of setting up the bank account here. More paperwork, but it's worth it.

We're Home!

On May 19, 2008, Kurt and I moved into our apartment in Buenos Aires. 88 square meters of 1928 French-style architecture in an eight-floor building in Barrio Norte, part of the greater Recoleta neighborhood.

We had bought the apartment almost two years' previous, and begun the renovation process (long distance from Austin, Texas) in July 2007. A long punch list remained, but the critical elements were done: new wiring and plumbing installed, all woodwork stripped and refinished, original parquet floors polished, walls plastered and painted, kitchen and bath gutted and new fixtures and accessories installed.

Our first month here has been a mix of paperwork and housework. Finalizing the residency papers, delivering required documents to the customs broker for our modest shipment of mainly photo albums and personal effects, ordering new furniture, overseeing installation of the heating and cooling device, cleaning up excess grout and similar renovation detritus, polishing doorknobs and plates that some said were beyond such attention, and much more.

But we've also had time to enjoy some of the many amenities of Buenos Aires. Free concerts by the national symphony at the Law School, a 20-minute walk away, and by guitar and organ maestros at the metropolitan cathedral, a short subway ride from the apartment. Not to mention great food, marvelous and inexpensive wines, and the architectural richness that abounds. We are more convinced than ever that the decision to escape to Buenos Aires was a good one.