[Tomeck]

Buenos Aires and Uruguay

With the arrival of airport, I travelled by a special bus to go to the hotel. I entered the same hotel as three years ago. The room cost 50 USD per night, that is to say a little more twice expensive than in 2004, that showed that Argentina was much better. I remained three days to visit Buenos Aires and Uruguay.

In the hotel room, I looked with the wash-hand basin, in which direction water turned, it turned in clockwise.

I took one day to visit a historical city Colonia in Uruguay from Buenos Aires by fast boat. In the fast boat, there was an unknown which sounded my mobile phone and I wondered whether it were my tour operator for Antarctica, because I gave to my number of the portable only my friends and one tour operator. With this ringing, I imagined that it could have a serious problem for Antarctica. During the way, I saw beautiful girl with the black hair and the particular nose.

With arrived on Colonia, I decided to leave immediately by bus to Colonia Suzie which I had seen since 10 000 meters (33 000 feet) in height in 2004. In the bus, I observed the flat landscape with cows and sometimes of the palm trees. Environment in Uruguay was very quiet, people were calm, and it was a small country of three million inhabitants to more than 95 percent of European origin "unknown" for Europeans. At the beginning, I had difficulty to feel the difference between Argentina and Uruguay, because the customs were very simple and discrete.

With arrived of Colonia Suiza, I often saw escutcheons of the Swiss cantons stuck beside the door of entry of the houses. On the outlet side of the bus, I entered the large court with a statue of the founder of Colonia Suiza. I saw sometimes inhabitants who resembled Swiss in Switzerland. I often heard Spanish, except a Germanic dialect. I lunched at the restaurant, a pizza with much of cheese was been useful. I saw beautiful girl with the black hair and with the particular nose that I had seen in boat, it was on the scooter. Ah, I did not know that it was "Swiss". After the visit of the city of the Swiss colonists, I go back to Colonia.

Entering the old town of Colonia, one saw old houses with ceramics under the radiant sun built at the XVII century by the Portuguese colonists. It was a pleasant walk, one saw Uruguayans who drank tea with a South American typical cup and a straw in the shaded garden by high trees. Always also quiet, I saw very European Uruguayans physically, but they did not have any more the same way of life as in Europe, they are now South-Americans that made me feel in another mode. Uruguay was an enthralling country for me. It was called Switzerland of South America by low criminality and the high social standing.

Going back to Buenos Aires, on bay, the color was brown of tropical origin come from north to come in the moderate area. I imagined that the visibility with the diving would be catastrophic.

I could see the district very colored and very tourist La Boca which I had not been able to see in 2004. In this district, one could see the Tango in the streets.

I reserved Tango Night before leaving for Ushuaia as in 2004. I was on the table close to the spectacle. I ate beef beside Brazilian, they spoke English difficulty, but a Brazilian doctor knew French and it answered me in French. After the dinner, there was a spectacle of Tango dance very close to me. I had never seen also close to Tango, it was very impressive.

My ticket indicated that I was to travel by a plane with Aeroparque close to the downtown area. With the arrival of this airport, I did not see Ushuaia on the departure screen, I thought that they forgot and I continued towards check-in. With check-in, he said to me that I was to go in Ezeiza. The international airport of Ezeiza was to 50 km of me and I had that one hour and half to take the plane. I was very nervous and my head turned, I required a taxi driver to go very quickly in Ezeiza, "rapido! ". The taxi driver had difficultly to believe, I answered him nervously that I was sure of going in Ezeiza. During the race, I was afraid of the stoppers and there were sometimes small stoppers, the taxi driver zigzagged. After one hour of nervous crossing, I arrived at the airport of Ezeiza, a guard asked me where I go, I answered him nervously "I don' t have time! ", then" Ushuaia ", he indicated to me that it was necessary to go over there. I arrived in time at check-in by repeating "Ushuaia, Ushuaia...". Under my polar sailing ship jacket, I was much perspired. It did not have a tax of surplus, in spite of the important going beyond of the weight for the domestic flight, max 15 kg (33 lb) for a luggage and 5 kg (11 lb) for a hand luggage.


Ushuaia

The flight lasted three hours and half. With the arrival, I re-saw environment tundra. I was glad to find me in Ushuaia for three days and I walked.

Suddenly, I saw a boat Grigoriy Mikheev which was on bay of Ushuaia, normally, it should not be there. I looked at the departure list for Antarctica with the office for Antarctica, my ship was not on the list, I smelled myself again very badly at ease. I asked the authority of the port, is Grigoriy Mikheev well? He answered me "No problem! "," Are you sure? "," Yes! ", but I doubted credibility. I consulted at the no-official travel agency, he answered me that it was true that it was with quay, but he did not know why. I turned over to the port, he saw me very nervous and he invited me to his office to calm me while explaining very slowly and very clearly that Mikheev was broken down and now, it was repaired and it was ready for the departure. I calmed myself a little. I wrote to my tour operator for Antarctica by e-mail. Two days later, he assured me that the departure will take place. With this history, I was traumatized. The unknown call when I was on the fast boat for Uruguay had become reality. In spite of my second voyage, the voyage in Antarctica will be to never become ordinary.

To tranquillize me, I went in the sunny national park and it was very pleasant to feel in nature with natural noises. I directed to foot towards the Chilean border on a little tortuous marked out path. At the border, I saw a three meters (10 feet) heights orange obelisk which marked the border between Argentina and Chile. The panel indicated that one could not pass the border, but I crossed nevertheless and I moved away to thirty meters (100 feet) before returning quickly. The other tourists joked with the border while playing clandestine and proposing to further move the panel being able to go further.