Saturday, February 11th, 2012
Today was our first excursion to the river delta to an area
called El Tigre. We ferrocarriled then ferried for about an hour and a half to
get to our bayou-esque destination. The whole time on the ferry I felt like I was
in the south and I had that strange, but giddy feeling that any other traveler
knows: “WHERE AM I? Oh yeah, that’s right, I’m traveling”. We all
found it strange that this seemed to be a “vacation from a vacation” and that
we’d only been in Buenos Aires for a week, yet we were already dying to get
out.
We docked and within 20 minutes I was squishing around in
the brown water. Though it’s not brown from pollution (merely the fact that it’s
in a delta as well as the constant churning of the shallow water mixing with
sand) I wouldn’t say it was entirely clean, but I tried to ignore this as the
water washed over me. The “ocean” floor was very very squishy and I realized
quickly that this was because the bottom of it was mostly a clay-like material.
We dug up a big ball of it and coated ourselves in a mud bath. Maybe there were
only heavy metals in there, but I’d like to pretend that it cleansed my skin…The
perfect weather was cleansing too, and I can’t remember the last time I’d been
in such perfect weather in a perfect place. I could spend paragraphs describing
the environment and ambiance, but I think only a photo can do it justice. And
so the day unfolded as such:
Bur our time in paradise was shortlived, and by 3:30, we
were leaving, heading to Puerto de Frutos. Puerto de Frutos can best be
described as an outdoor trinkets market as they have everything ranging from
toys and jewelry to home décor. There’s a little bit of everything there. But
nothing seemed to be for me and I refrained from purchasing anything, hardly
exercising any restraint. Ok, fine, I bought a lemon popsicle. And oh how the
sweet chill tickled my tongue. And it was a good thing it was so tasty, as by
this point in the day I was so sunburned, I really considered holding the
popsicle on my red lobster-colored shoulders.
While I’d thought the day couldn’t get any better, when we
stopped for our merienda, I realized there was even more to look forward to. We
ate our snack at an adorable restaurant that looked like a perfect lodge on the
coast. We could see the ocean from where we ate, in addition to a grassy park
filled with palm trees, Argentines enjoying mate, and the soothing sounds of
people strumming on guitars. Additionally, we had a stunning (albeit hazy) view
of Buenos Aires, as we still weren’t back in the city. While it might not be as
famous or distinguishable as the New York skyline, it still inspired a lovelorn
stare and I paused to reflect upon the fact that somewhere in that collection
of buildings, my life was unfolding and would continue to unfold for the next few
months. I wish this place was closer, as I gained a piece of mind there that I haven’t
found anywhere else in this city yet.
As we rolled back into the city, tired and sunburned, all I could
think of was how strange it seemed that a perfect day was so jam packed with
activities, yet I really felt as though I did nothing at all—save for enjoy myself
and soak up some sun.
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