So... What next?

How can one man's journey from Argentina to France last 48 hours?
Simple. By taking a plane from Buenos Aires to Sao Paolo, another one from Sao Paolo to Madrid, wasting 4 hours at that airport, taking yet another plane until Barcelona, spending 7 hours exploring this electric city until just after midnight that the bus to Perpignan sets off, freezing in the cold hiding behind a stack of tables and chairs until dawn that the station opens and jumping on the train that eventually, with a 3 hour delay, will reach Limoges! [breathe in]

Ok, I'm not complaining. It was fun and besides, this kind of foolishness is what I'm traveling for! Finally there, the deserted little village that goes by the name of Glanges, where my mom lives, (a place where after 9pm it is so quiet that you can hear your own heart beat) is where we spent with E. a couple of days filled with sillyness and long chats that usually end with a hug or with hysterical laughter.
As for my mom, she gave her own cooking performance. It sure has been a while since I had last eaten so much and so well! Sure, I've always had the cooking of the likes of Roberto, Brian, my own, Sacha, Joana, all joint against the dullness of argentine cuisine, but heck, I had forgotten how well my mom can cook! Cheers mom! I bet your son taught you everything you know...

So, with a full stomach and batteries recharged, after 5 days in beautiful Glanges, I am putting my backpack back on and going back on the route. After a few trains, buses and planes more, I should be reaching Athens by tomorrow...

M.

Friggin cold...

With E. just outside Glanges

My mom and Geoff

So many memories, so many images... how many people, colors and odors do they consist by. Even if I remained idle all this time, I wouldn't have been able to avoid this influence. 17 months in Buenos Aires, the Argentine capital that never sleeps⁽¹⁾, is not a small thing.

I arrived here november 2007 and hit the ground running. Since the first time I had visited, I knew that the pace of life is not for the faint hearted and was wondering if I'd be able to keep up. The people here stay up till the early morning hours and go to work straight after. In the end, it all happened so fast that I didn't even realise I had adopted that way of life. I simply let my self go with the flow and just enjoyed the power and fresh sensation of this wave. There are various opinions heard about the argentines. The side I saw and chose to experience was full of creativity, imagination without limits, a good mood on a daily basis and a desire to live life and all it has to offer to the fullest. More than anything, it is the people here that win you over and capture your heart.

At this point though, despite the beauty I see in this city and the joy I feel when looking back in the days I spent here, I made the decision of going for pastures new. I am going to seriously miss my porteña⁽²⁾ lifestyle, but after various signs that the last few months appeared in my way, I decided to follow this partially-drawn path that I think I can make out. I have no clue where it will take me, but without a doubt it has a lot to offer, just like all previous, half-hidden in the fog paths that at times I followed in my life. I know I have a lot of new elements to gather, lots of new places to admire, many wonderful people to meet along the way and I will allow all this to change me drastically and shape me. I know everything will be fine and I just can't remove this smile off my face. This is my nature. This is what makes me happy.

Buenos Aires made me who I am. It taught me so many things, showed me much of my potential that I hadn't even realised I had, it made me a better person. And the biggest part of this I owe it to all those wonderful creatures⁽³⁾ that made my life here more beautiful than ever. Therefore, sitting at the airport waiting for my flight, I raise my cup of coffee and as a tear is about to run down my face, I drink to you guys and to this magical city. I will miss you all.

Next stop... Limoges, France.

M.


(1) Yes, we've heard this phrase for numerous other cities: London, Paris, Athens, New York. I still have not visited the latter, so I cannot comment on it. The others however, do not stand a chance. Honestly, if you have no desire to sleep during your stay in Buenos Aires, you don't have to. Always, always there is something interesting to do.

(2) Porteños are the residents of Buenos Aires and all of its products.

(3) :) An inspiration that I owe to E.