arrival im buenos aires

Unfortunately no disasters to report, the flights and exit from the airport were relatively straightforward. Unusually for this part of the world there were no touts in the airport lounge offering taxis: the authorities have cleared them out.

As for the city itself nm first impressions are pretty positive: its nothing like as intimidating as Mexico City by that I mean as feral. It´s like a huge and less wealthy version of Barcelona: a lot less wealthy. The population is made up of every nationality under the sun,  the people are helpful, there are great old buildings and the roads are perpetually jammed. Oh and the public transport system works.

Right thats the lonely Planet shit out of the road, like every other place on the planet they want to part tourists from their money: 200 quid for a ticket for Boca vs River Plate and a hundred for a tango lesson. Tango lesson? I here you ask; well from the outside it appears to be the opportunity for some sweaty old goat to rub up against some nubile young latino for an extended period of time, and it appears to be an honour for a young woman to be asked to dance by an older man. Is this right up my street or what? Unfortunately I am torn: the sweaty old goat part of me is straining at the leash, the Scottish part of me doesn´t want to pay for it. I will report back on the resolution of this quandary later. As for the football, I am hunting for a cheaper ticket.

I know that some of the people who may eventually read this will be wondering why hasn´t he mentioned beer yet? Well give me time, despite being jet lagged out of my box I have located six brew pubs in the last 24 hours, including one that sells an 8 per cent IPA and a ten per cent stout. I will visit these premises over the next few days. Still on the subject of beer I tried a bottle of the local beer Quimes. Drinking this can only be described as a metaphysical experience: there is a bottle, there is liquid in it, it pours into a glass, you can see the liquid being discharged from the glass into your mouth but you don´t taste or feel anything. ( I was going to say sense anything but no doubt some smart bastard would comment that sight is a sense).

Right I am signing off this latin keyboard is driving me nuts nothing is where it is supposed to be and I haven´t figured out how to put pictures on this yet.