mikeShriver

I have been keeping this journal poorly so far on this trip. Now that I have a chance to sit in a B.A. Cafe, a few moments, I will scribble a few words. The basic overview of the last few days goes thus:

Three nights in a Mendoza hostel, we managed many cafe hours, a winery tour by bicycle, a directionless walk in an endless park, and countless conversations with strangers that never seem to go anywhere.

The days in Mendoza felt different from most of the other international trips I have taken so far. They were more relaxed, for certain, than the days I spent in India. Probably a lot of it has to do with hostel culture- which is inherently laid-back and friendly.

Since coming to Buenos Aires, though, it has gotten more frantic. There is much to see here, and so far we have spent much of our time walking or riding the bus.

Yesterday we stumbled upon a passover festival in Palermo, the neighborhood where Cash and Kristen’s apartment is located. There was a live demonstration of B.A.’s prominent street artists. B.A. is known for its street art scene, and I am going to try to take a tour of the street art here on Wednesday.

I realized in my last entry that I was boring myself, so I stopped writing. Since then I have found it difficult to pick my pen back up, and my journal has thinned out.

Tags: South America, Travel Journal.

Joe’s parents opened up their house and his mom made us a corned beef meal. Here I slept in the most comfortable bed of this trip so far.

Joe’s friend from high school threw a birthday party and it ended up being a lot less of a drunk fest than I was anticipating. We drank homebrews, talked food and gardening and completely blew my initial perception of Joe’s hometown friends into another plane.

Sunday was a day of close deadlines. we missed one Metra train into the city and that put me in a rush to catch my flight. I ended up alone halfway across town with 2 hours to my flight and only a vague working knowledge of the Chicago transit system. With a nearly constant sprint, I ended up making the flight with a few minutes to spare.

Once in Mexico City, I found that my connecting flight was delayed 7 hours and had to spend an uncomfortable night in that airport. I arrived in Buenos Aires after dark, and got a very limited idea of what the looked like only from the shuttle that took me from the airport. When I arrived at the shuttle terminal, I was immediately rushed to the bus terminal where Cash, Kristen and I boarded a 14 hour bus to the Argentine city of Mendoza.

Argentina is a beautiful country. It is more laid back, less hectic than India was. It is nearing Autumn here, and the weather is temperate and pleasant, with lot’s of sun. Once our bus had reached Mendoza in the morning, we settled into our hostel and spent a nice lazy day wandering the city square, drinking coffee and hanging around in the lovely cafes here.

Tags: South America, Travel Journal.

Yesterday we purchased used bikes and we have spent the last few days cycling around the fictional city of Chicago. It’s great to be on a bike, I’ve got to get as much quality cycle time in as I can before the 5 week bicycle famine of South America.

The weather has been unseasonably warm here. The last few days and today made it up into the 60′s, perfect for leisurely two-wheel tours of the city. So far we have hit a few of the major tourist spots, and Today we took the yellow line out to Skokee to check out a violin making school that Joe is interested in attending.

Cornelius’ sister lives in an apartment int he shadow of Wrigley field, directly on the Brown line. L trains roll directly past the windows all night long, casting every shifting geometric shapes on the plaster walls. It’s like something of a great American working-man’s play.

St. Patty’s day was relatively mild. We did get some green beer, but the expected partying never materializes as the major celebrations this city is famous for happened last weekend, just before my arrival here. The streets in this area contain a large number of Irish bars, though, and the streets at night have been pretty rowdy. Usually this happens after we have turned into bed, and is mostly drowned out by the trains.

Tags: South America, Travel Journal.

Joe got in today. We spent a few hours in old town. I picked up a chai spice mix, walked to the Ukrainian village section of town for dinner/lunch.

Tags: South America, Travel Journal.

The first leg of my trip is domestic. I fly to Chicago to spend a week in that city in celebration of St Patty’s day. This portion has been planned for several months, since Cornelius and Shauna left Seattle late last year.

I’ll meet with them today and stay the week at Cornelius’ Sister’s flat in Wrigleyville. I haven’t seen either of them for several months and I expect to spend most of this week in a drunken haze. Joseph Arrives tomorrow, and will serve as my party tour guide for the week. I expect there is no preparing for this.

I don’t feel as if I am traveling internationally and this leaves me worrying about whether I should feel more unprepared for the Journey ahead. It’s also my first time traveling semi-solo. I feel as if I don’t yet know what I am missing for this trip. I’m also starting to think that is a normal part of traveling.

Tags: South America, Travel Journal.