Happy New Year

Foz do Iguazu

New Years Eve, the falls from the Brazilian side, by air. Surprised to find the Brazilian side modern and prosperous in comparison to Argentina.

Iguazu

Images of falling water appear a few moments after my eyes are closed, frothing white, churning, falling water; mists floating up as the steam is broken on the rocks. Rocks breaking water, water breaking rock.

Los Guarani

Ruins to the Jesuit Guarani settlements are scattered throughout Southern Brazil, Paraguay and the Argentine department of Misiones. The Guarani language is alive, and the more direct descendants exist in a marginalized condition. As well we met descendants of Guarani in La Plata who still had some base in the language.


The atmosphere among the ruins is beautiful, loud chiharra vibes filling the air, tranquil. 8 generations of Guarani lived under the protection of the Jesuits, until their expulsion, followed by the Portuguese slavers.

Santo Pipo

Open highway, Entre Rios starts in the desolate swampy expanse of the lower Rio Parana, and rises to stands of eucalyptus and pine, planted in straight endless rows, mile upon mile. At some point well south of Posadas, the truck traffic fell off, presumably crossing over to Brazil.













Entering the department of Misiones, the alternating expanses of pasture, timber stands and scrub yields to a lovely rolling verdant hills, a world apart.














Stopped by a Mate cooperative in Santo Pipo, to ask for a tour, but it is just at the shift change, and so the mill was down. This truck is loaded with cured mate, headed into the mill.

Route 14

Leaving Buenos Aires behind, the big smoke, for the open air of Entre Rios. Trucks, trailers and holiday travelers, standing up to the Argentine reputation as aggressive drivers.


Crossing over the Rio Parana, and following the Rio Uruguay, north through swamps, then opening to fields of sunflowers, then tall stands of plantation trees, like ranks of soldiers along the highway.



Overnight in Concordia, a busy place for a small town.



Coming out of Buenos Aires, there was almost no useful signs, back and forth, asking mostly the wrong people for directions until we hit the north highway Route 14, then clear sailing.

Navidad

Christmas lunch at the rose farm of Irene´s mother-in-law. Good food and interesting conversation all around. Later the kids got out the garden hose to cool down. In the evening, we visited friends at their weekend cottage along the Rio Plata, which looks more like a Great Lake than any river. Grey, choppy water, small breaker waves and to the horizon, water.

Noche Buena

Christmas eve dinner with a new extended family. Italians, Argentines, Paraguayans, Mexicans, Japanese and some representation from the USA...

Republica de los Ninos

Today Irene took us to the Republica de los Ninos, the Children’s Republic, a public facility built in the era of Peron, still free of admission fees today. There, a children’s Congress is held once a year, where legislation is proposed, debated and voted on, with the final slate of laws proposed by the children forwarded to the State legislature for formal consideration. In addition to the castles, playgrounds and trains, there is a health clinic, a children’s bank, a chapel, and a radio station. Disneyland was modeled on this project, of course with admission and without the Children´s Congress.

Subte

The we took the metro, called the Subte, back to the train station. The Subte is crowded and the trains fairly old.











Ana Maria was happy to meet up with Mafalda in the Subte tunnel...













The Plaza del Mayo is on the right, middle, where the purple, blue and green lines meet.

Plaza del Mayo

In Buenos Aires, we met up with friends Judy and Tobin from New Braunfels, who were just returning from a hiking trip way farther south, to Tierra del Fuego. We met the at the Plaza del Mayo, which stands before the Presidents house, the Casa Rosada. We had coffee, swapped stories and roamed the streets downtown together.