Night & Day in Buenos Aires (Part II)

La Boca, probably one of Buenos Aire's biggest touristic attractions, has more than just colourful buildings offering live tango and a local snack. Many of these buildings are cheap housing where several families share a bedroom (sleeping in shifts throughout the day), and where up to 30 people would share the cooking, washing and bathroom facilities. I'm not talking about a hundred years ago - this is still the case today.

When I arrived to La Boca, the area was packed with tourists - there was no single place available in any of the terraces. Me and my friend were hungry, and thirsty - and just wanted to sit down, relax and enjoy the view. While walking along the main streets you can observe a strange mix of tourism and poverty. We adventured into a secondary street with a small little cafe with just a few tables outside and decided it was time to rest. When our empanadas arrived on the table, we were delighted with a whole collection of dipping sauces (I'm not sure If they did this to have reasons for conversation or because they were confused about what my indian friend might eat, but it was really charming!).

It was a perfect saturday afternoon. Until we heard a loud noise coming from behind me and I pictured my friend with a pale look. The friendly bar keeper quickly asked us to run inside. I got to take a quick look to what was happening: a street fight with nothing else but harmless stones and bottles flying all over the next intersection just 20 meters from our lovely terrace! We quickly ran inside looking for some shelter while the bar keeper, his wife and his friends left their mobile phones and wallets on our table inside and ran out shutting the door (with a key) behind them.

Ok, there we were. Stuck inside of a small bar while outside the apocalypses was taking place. I must admit, I somehow felt safe - whatever was happening, it wasn't anything against us, but against the lovely people from La Boca, who seemed to be well used to these kind of fights.

After a while, things calmed down and everyone who just an hour before was chilling at the bar sipping a beer, came back inside and back to their position as if nothing had happened. I was astonished. Nobody had a single scratch! I was told this was the usual saturday afternoon event, every time La Boca plays against Racing. When I was back in Uruguay I was corrected - this happens any time any argentinian football club has any kind of match, but specially when La Boca vs. Racing.

Good to know for the next time!

(I would still return...)

Night & Day in Buenos Aires (Part I)

I had to take my time to write this post as I only spent a weekend in Buenos Aires and it has been already a few months ago - time goes by, so quickly!

While I was over in Uruguay for my training, I took a weekend to fly over to Buenos Aires - it's only about an hour flight from Montevideo and there are thousands of connections every day. I wasn't going to discover the city alone, though - I had two fellow trainees rotating in our argentinian offices (one of them is argentinian himself and the other had been in Buenos Aires for the last 2 months or so), so I was really looking forward to discovering some nice boliches.

We met in The Kilkenny's Irish Pup (ironic, right?) in Reconquista - which is quite touristic and always crowded. To end the night we went to a rather local area, called Las cañitas (this is the unofficial name of a few blocks within the area of Palermo). Bars, pubs and restaurants are located around the Báez, Arce, Arguibel and Ortegy y Gasset. Every bar and restaurant in this area looked great! We decided to settle down at Van Koning Bar - a dutch bar with modest lights, two floors and a nice terrace to enjoy late summer nights. They have a long list of beer, both national and international (I remember that, because they actually had one of my favorites: Franziskaner!).

The next morning, I decided to discover the city on my own way - by asking a cab driver to drive me to a nice place. Well, we did drive me to Palermo (duh!), but this was a different part - this was the artistic, alternative and rather retro part, called Palermo Soho. Let me tell you something: you will never have seen so many nice restaurants, bars and shops at once and so many beautiful people sipping their coffee and having their snacks. It felt like being far away from the city and the traffic!

I didn't want to leave - I would have easily quit my job and moved into Palermo - its streets are cleaner than Switzerland, bars are open every day and have happy hours that last from 7 to 12 pm (and besides, happy hour really means happy hour - mixed drinks for 1.3 euro - are you kidding me?).

It was about 4pm when I officially had to say goodbye to Palermo. I still had a lot of places to visit, and the next one in my list was La Boca....

When in Switzerland... do as the Swiss do?

It's funny how countries that are geographically near, like Spain and Switzerland, can have such a strong cultural impact over me. Seriously, it's not as if I've moved to Ittoqqortoormiitt in Greenland (just checked the spelling twice - I swear this place exists!), it shouldn't be difficult to get used to this.

But it is.

Swiss make a habit of converting their customs into rules. And these rules sometimes seem difficult to follow for someone used to the spanish mentality. Here are some of the funniest "rules" I've recently came across with:

• No toilet flushing or showering after 10pm permitted
• You are not allowed to leave your shoes in front of your door
• If you walk home drunk, you can loose your driving license, because, as a pedestrian, you are a road user too
• No mowing your lawn or washing your car on sundays
• Newspapers that ought to be recycled have to be folded A4

But then, each canton has different rules and each neighborhood has different customs. I've been told that in Bern, you have to classify each of your rubbish in different containers (which is ok), that are emptied on different days (ok) and have to be wrapped up in different plastic bags that you can only buy once a week from some official shop (the bags are government-standardized - what the hell?).

Swiss love recycling - which I admire. But the act of recycling is not practical for people that have a full-time job or just can't afford a house assistant. The same happens with food shopping: when are regular workers supposed to stock up their food reserves? Well, this, as well as most of the shopping is meant to take place only on saturdays (once more, for mortals - celestial creatures can shop and allow themselves the home delivery whenever they feel for it, since supermarket deliver services usually give you a convenient time frame from 9 to 2 or from 2 to 6 - wow, thanks!).

Don't get me wrong - herewith, I'm not complaining about swiss customs which (in some cases) I think are quite logical and objective. But the next time you think about how easy life would be in the swiss Alp go through the simplicity of living in a city - with its night buses or late trains, its 24 hour shops, its shopping street that opens until later(er) and if you're lucky, even open on sundays (if it was at least the cafes and restaurants!) - and balance the trade.

Being spanish-raised, you can imagine what I would choose...

A Girls' Dresscode to a Speedboat Business Event ( Part II)

So you migh be wondering how the speedboat event in the Port of Rotterdam went a few days ago - it was a disaster. I got half an hour late because my train go delayed, so I was there, dealing with some impatient bankers which made me slip into a bright red plastic overall size dutch L, which is, by the way, far away from the spanish - italian - french L. I know, I know - why did I even bother wondering for so many hours what to wear? Well, I guess I was kind of idealistic: I thought that it would be nice weather (it rained), that I would get a lifejacket (not a whole overall) and that our speedboat would look something like this (after all, I was told we would be discussing some major points of the project during the boat ride):

Image Source

I was so wrong - or at least someone was obviously wrong and confused me too, because the actual plan was to spend 3 hours on something similar to this:

Image Source

Despite common beliefs, these red-orange plastic overalls do not mantain yourself dry - they are just there to make you look ridiculous. Ok - also to be used as a windbreaker, I guess (but their first use is definitely to make you look like a fool). This I found out after 2 hours speeding around the port: I started feeling wet and cold on my seat and instantly turned to my left to shout out to the company's financial controller "Are you feeling kind of wet too?". When we arriving to the end of the trip, I realized that my skirt was soaked (there went the well-planned-outfit).

Still, I had my fun - afterall, I'm quite flexible when it comes to socializing events. I guess I'll be wiser for the next time.

A Girls' Dresscode to a Speedboat Business Event

You know that I'm proud of my packing efficiency, but this only applies to normal situations: bank meetings in their offices, dinners or lunches - what I had never expected is that my meeting this thursday would take place on a speed boat in Holland! It sounds like a fun idea to be taking turns to steer the boat in the north of Holland with a a bunch of men, but I'm seriously wondering how professional I can keep in this type of situation. I can't help picturing myself rolling on the floor of the boat, or even worse - falling over into the sea. Dress code says "business casual" - yeah, sure, that's easy for men, but since I'm the only woman on this whole event, what am I expected to do?

After a few hours of over-thinking and trying on everything my wardrobe is hiding, I got to the following conclusions about a girls dress code to a speedboat event (just in case you sometime get caught up in something along these lines...):

• Forget about heels. No way I can even manage to get on to that speed boat without loosing one shoe in the water or falling over the director. Flat boots are a good alternative, I guess. If you dare to, take your wellies (I'm still considering this option) and another pair of classy boots (at least you can change for the cocktail and dinner). If there's not enough space in your bag for all these shoes, probably the next best option is to stick to simple black/brown flat boots from last year (or the year before).

• No jeans. Firstly, because the invitation says business casual, and secondly, because jeans are probably one of the most unpleasant clothes to wear when they're wet and, according to the email received "as we're speeding around, some of the water will probably make it on to the boat" (believe me - that means the water will make it particularly on me). Instead, I've chosen to stick to a new skirt I recently bought: long enough, stretch, no pleats and stiff (wind won't be playing with my clothes this time).

• Layered. Layers and more layers - one over the other, starting with a shirt, then a pullover, a jacket (and, over all, a coat). Excessive? Maybe - But hey, I'm coming from the Canary Islands and cold is not my favorite status, at all. To this, I'll add one of my favorite scarves and voilá, I'm ready for speedboating!

Wait. There's something missing: the handbag! Well this was an easy choice for me (and girls, I really recommend you to take hold of one of them): my fake-leather shoulder bag. This way, my hands will be free to hold on to every corner of the boat.

Now that at least my wardrobe won't play against me, I'll only have to take care of my clumsiness - Everything else is under control.

*gulp*

Soul Mates for One Night

Source

Before Sunrise - probably my favorite love story ever. Forget about Titanic, Pearl Harbor and all these other bombastic Hollywood movies that invade theaters cashing in millions of dollars in record time.

Celine and Jesse meet on a train across Europe. She's going back to Paris, where she will start her classes in la Sorbonne, while his destination is Vienna, from where he has to take a flight back to the US. From the first eye contact, they are drawn to each other. They feel a strong connection, so when the train arrives in Vienna, she decides to get off the train with him to spend a perfect night together walking the streets and getting to know each others hopes and dreams.

Besides from the story, something that really caught me is how natural and real everything seems to be - you can feel the attraction between them, the tension; the little gestures, the way they look at each other (and then look away), their attitude towards each other... it's all in the details. It's movie about love and romance, about living a simple perfect day that you know you'll always remember.

Eery time I watch the movie, I wish this happened to me. Is there anything more romantic than discovering Vienna (or, well, any other city...) in 14 hours with your soul mate for one night?

Around the World IV

Lutry, Switzerland

Geneva, Switzerland

Geneva, Switzerland

Geneva Lake, Switzerland

Lake Geneva, Switzerland

NZ Road Trip #8: Glowworm Caves & Fiordland

After spending some time in Queenstown, we moved on to our last stop: Fiordland (we did go back to Queenstown, to party two more days, though).

Even though the Fiords and Queenstown seem to be next to each other in a map, there's no road that directly connects both locations: you have to go all the way through Te Anau (aprox. 2 and a half or 3 hours) and from there to the Fiords its another 2 hours drive.

We spent the night in Te Anau, which is the last little town you'll come across with when driving to the Fiords. Since we arrived in Te Anau quite early, we decided to visit the Glowworm caves that evening. The excursion beginns with a boat trip across the Lake Te Anau. Then, once you arrive to the other side of the lake, you are divided into smaller groups to start discovering the caves. Unfortunately, no pictures were allowed. But I managed to find some nice ones on the internet! (Thanks, google!).

Once deep inside the caves, you will be taken on a small boat into a hidden grotto where the only light you have is the one given by thousands of glowworms. The hungrier these little worms are, the more they glow! The glittering effect is memorable - you feel as if you were floating next to a thousand stars!

On the next day, we took the ride to the National Park. Since it was already May (that is, the beginning of the real winter was just around the corner), our boat trip around the Fiords is the coldest memory of our trip (you can see this from the pictures!). The boat takes you through the Fiords over until you reach the Tasman Sea, where the wind is the strongest - I don't remember the speed the captain mentioned on the microphone, but I do remember the feeling of having to hold myself to the cruise and sometimes letting it go to find out how it feels to lean against the wind (awesome!). This is what we got to see:

I can't believe this is the end of my posts about New Zealand... There are so many places I didn't manage to see - damn, 2 weeks - 1 country - two islands is really not enough! I'll find some other time to go, probably not far from now... since the whole asia-pacific region is the most attractive for me.

I remember that, when I was a kid, I used to have this huge map of the World hanging above my bed. I knew so many countries and capitals! Now I forgot most of them - I like to think that my brain is now full, and having pushed in all the finance stuff, there was no space left for countries and capitals (the unofficial version is that 3 years of live-fast, party-hard have their secondary brain effects). On that map, I had 2 needles (one on the Canary Islands and another one on Australia) and one red thread that connected these needles. I was 9 years old, and obsessed with visiting the other side of the World.

Getting to the point: I'm sure I'll go back soon. For a longer time. For whatever reason. And hopefully I'll come back with that beautiful english accent.

NZ Road Trip #7: Queenstown

Following the previous posts on my 3 weeks road trip from the north to the south of New Zealand, after leaving the awesome glaciers behind us, we moved on to the party town, Queenstown. We needed a break of so much nature and healthiness!

Queenstown is built on the Lake Wakatipu and is an ideal place to stay for adventure tourism as you can go skiing, jet boating, bungy jumping, mountain biking, skateboarding... which, by the way, we didn't do. I'm not a big adventurer, specially when it comes to cold climates. We were there for one main reason: partying (so what? we wanted to have a good healthy-unhealthy mix on our trip).

The town definitely the biggest party place I came across with in the country (although I was told that Dunedin is a strong competitor). Most of the people we knew were not locals, but it had a great ambience every night of the week - similar to a year-long Erasmus! During our stay (which was extended from 2 to 4 nights), the town was invaded with teens and twenty-ish people (mainly from the UK) on their working holiday (I guess that's why there so much nightlife). The famous place to go out is called World Bar, although we actually liked more the one next to it, which was a bit smaller and cozier (and had more people around the mid-late-twenties).

But young people and drinks is not everything this resort town in Otago offers to its not-so-adventurous visitors. When the weather is nice and the sky is clear, the Skyline Gondola is a great option. This lift is reputed to be the steepest in the Southern Hemisphere with an incline angle of 37.1º.

After rising 450m, you'll be rewarded with the best views in the region of Coronet Peak, The Remarkables mountain range and across Lake Wakatipu to Cecil and Walter Peaks.

After our (still-too-short) stay in Queenstown, we carried on to our last big stop of our trip: the Fiordland - the furthest south of the Globe I had ever been.

10 Reasons Why I Need Vacations (NOW)

1. I'm tracking flight price fluctuations instead of checking the euro/dollar exchange rate
2. I wake up at 9am on weekends to enjoy the sun on my terrace as long as its still possible (even if this means sitting there with a pullover)
3. I'm usually late to work
4. I spend the weekend with a bikini underneath my clothes - you never know when the sun is back out!
5. My recent iTunes purchases include reggae (Runaway, Los Pericos) and latin music ( Matador, Fabulosos Cadillacs)
6. I keep on checking the last sales in every clothes shop hoping to find the type of tunic I've been longing for the whole summer
7. I'm addicted to travel blogs
8. Whenever I leave work, I feel like drinking a fruity cocktail (I'm still dreaming of the watermelon mojito I had in Madrid...)
9. At work, I write down on post-its whatever I have to do, and then, by the next morning, I've can't find them anymore (how is THAT possible?)
10. I'm daydreaming... a lot (probably this is the reason for point 9)

Wine Tasting in Lavaux, Switzerland

September is the month in which the harvesting of the grapes takes place. During this time of the year, little villages in canton Vaud are filled with people enjoying open air festivals, such as the Fête des Vendages de Lutry taking place the weekend of the 24th to the 26th of September.

Since 2007, Lavaux wine-growing region next to Lake Leman has been recognized as a world heritage site by Unesco. It lies between Lausanne and Vevey and extends over 830 hectares of picturesque vineyards.

Over the last two weekends, I had friends visiting me here and, since the one thing that all my friends have in common is the passion for good food and drinks, the idea of going wine tasting in the area seemed like a perfect afternoon-evening plan! There are plenty of caveaux across the different small villages: Epesses, Cully, Lutry, Chexbres... each of them just a few minutes drive apart.

(View Large Map)

For those of you who are responsible, there's a great alternative to driving to each of the caveaux. Its what I've been told to be the "train of happiness", officially called Lavaux Express. For only 20 CHF you take a nice ride along the vineyards, enjoy the incredible views and end in one of the many caves of the area sipping some of their wines. These rides only take place during summer, starting the 1st of May and ending the 19th of September (I guess this is basically due to the better weather conditions during this time).

From the list of caves available in the area, I've only been in two of them: Caveau Corto, in Grandvaux and Caveau des Vignerons in Epesses. Each of them had their own charm: while Caveau des Vignerons is rather a traditional wine cave, Caveau Corto is modern, fresh and has probably one of the best views ever from its terrace:

To join the wine, I recommend to order a portion of tomme fleurette (regional cheese made of raw cow milk) and an assiette froid, that includes a variety of hams. Simply a perfect evening in Switzerland!