Journey's end - Palermo and Colonia

Back in Buenos Aires and this time we stay in Palermo, a little outside the centre, but the area I’d choose to live.  We spend a chilled morning walking the tree-shaded streets, window shopping in the local designer boutiques, admiring the grafitti – I’m sure I saw Banksy –  stopping for a coffee every now and then and checking out the best parillas for steak and malbec later that evening, when Robin chomps his way through the biggest bife de chorizo ever seen.

In the afternoon we check out the botanical gardens, Japanese Gardens and the Parque Tres de Febrero – all of which get rave reviews in the guide books.  Hmmm.  I guess they were written when the city council could afford to employ gardeners.  But at least we get out of the park and into another nice café before the heavens open.

On the last day of our holiday, we can’t resist collecting a few more stamps in our passports – including 3 at the end of the world, I net 12 stamps this trip!  We take the fast ferry across the river to Colonia del Sacramento in Uruguay.  The Rio de la Plata is 60km wide.  It’s like the sea.  Travelling from Argentina, you can’t see the other side. Coming back, on the other hand, you can see the skyscrapers of Buenos Aires, and a great sunset.  But it is definitely a river.  To start with, it doesn’t smell like the sea.  Nor does it taste salty.  Weird.

Colonia couldn’t be more different to Buenos Aires.  It’s a tiny gem untouched by time and dating back to 1680.  Since then it has been fought over by the Spanish and Portuguese and the architecture of both countries can be seen the single-storey buildings of the historic quarter.  The history lesson continues into the 20^th Century, as the streets of Colonia are full of old cars.  Not the type of old car that’s seen all over Argentina – they are from the 60s and 70s, largely held together with gaffa tape but still going strong.  No, these are pre-war models and I’m not sure if any of them still have engines.  Some have plants growing out of them. Others have tables inside them.  Or fish.  They make great roadside ads for the restaurants and museums they are parked outside.  

We are back in Palermo for supper, hanging out with the locals at a streetside table, drinking in the atmosphere and enjoying a final evening in the balmy night air.  It’s minus 2 back in London, but we’re not thinking about that.