Buenos Aires.

We left the bolivian boarder by coach for Buenos aires, bracing ourselves for the 26 hour coach ride.  We waited an extra night to insure a bus with air con, fully riclining chairs and food, which we were so glad we did because we ended up being on the bus for 36 hours! we had heard the boarder crossing could be tough but this was unreal! we were stopped five separate times, each time every one on the bus had to get off, along with all the large luggage from underneath to be individually searched by the dryest most intimidating officers, FIVE SEPERATE TIMES!! and with the 10 hour delay there was no extra food, and all they had was chilli con carne so my veggie morals had to go out the window for the third time this trip.  But it was all worth it because Buenos Aires turned out to be quiet a shock, but a very welcome one.  We had been told it was a large and modern city but we did not expect it to be quite as european and modern as it was.  We assumed it was going to be a modern city by South American standars, after being to La Paz and Lima and were expecting something similar, busy, erratic, run down and filled with a mix of european ex pats and indiginous people, with shops and resturants to suit the needs of both.  What we found though was a city that look and felt like the capital of a rich European country.  Every one there looked European and this is because they generally were, with the vast migration of Europeans over the last 400 years came with them thier tastes in food, drink, art, design, music, culture and so on.  By the time we arrived in Buenos Aires we had been travelling through Peru and Bolivia for three and a half months, and I hate to say it we were so desperate for all the things a big modern european city could offer, and so sick of the things Peru and Bolivia had to offer we fell in love with Buenny straight away.  Buenos aires really is a rich european country, completely seperated culturally from the rest of south america. Back in the days where spain was draining all of the gold out of Peru after distroying the incan empire, in Argentina, the Spainish were making more of a perminant home.  Rather than just looting and pilaging, they massacred and pushed literally all of the indiginous people out of argentina to the point that now, thier are no true south americans there only spainish, french and italian which is obviously horrible, what happened, but for me and jess in felt so good to be in a city where we didn't stand out and get stared at!  When in Bolivia and Peru the thing is, it feels for the most part, to locals you are either another stupid rich westerner and an opportunity to extort or an object of fascination.  This means you are generally hounded, and constantly stared at where ever you go, while you hear kids laughing at you and calling you gringo (derogtory term for white people) it gets exhausting sometimes.  So being in Beunny was like being back in london or some where for a week and it felt amazing.  We spent every day going to art galleries, shows, eating and drinking in amazing resurants, cycling and all the things we love to do at home.  They had everything here, they had ale not watered down lager, they had rich cab sav not sugary ribina sold as wine, they had amazing circus shows with incredible philip glass esc music not strange turbo folk (cross between tradional music and koren electro).
The high lights of the week were : The Cemetery -This was one of the most amazing (architectuarly) and surreal place i have every been.  It is a huge cemetery with hundreds of tiny little buildings all indivdully and uniquely designed, creating an eiry little toy town.  The rich collection of so many different architectural designs and ideas made it a feast for the eyes, and quiet spooky too because you could see into where the coffins were house, knowing the were dead bodies inside some of which were over a hundred years dead, there coffins exposed within reaching distance and covered in cobwebs.
  Cycling: We cycle everywhere in london, in the summer it is one of our favorite things to do, bike from park to park in the sun.  Being able to do this for the first time in nearly four months was amazing, we biked all over the city for hours going through parks, to galleries, antiques markets the cemetery and through the beautiful old town rich with classical and Parisian architecture.  But it all ended in tears when we locked the bikes up for an hour and when we got back there was only one left, and we had to pay £150 pounds for it! That took a huge chunk out of our dwindling budget..
  Thai food:  As we had just got engaged the week before, we had decided to throw caution to the wind with our budget and live it up whilst so many amazing things were on offer. We had incredible meals almost every day but this south east asian meal was the best meal i think i have ever had...... ever! (sorry mum).  It was a closed door restaurant with just people dressed to the 9s us included, finally geting our gladrags on after wearing the same sweaty clothes everyday.  The menu was fixed with just the choice of three mains but four courses in total, so we ordered a couple of cocktails and a bottle of cabernet franc and cheersed to our engagement with the most spectacular food laid on for us (this all after the day the bike got nicked).  so half ways through the meal the tone took a sudden change when i relised that we didnt have the wallet anywhere.  I started to panic and jess could tell, because i had turn white, with the bike going and now this i though it was just the faits against us.  Our civilised facades were slipping. Jess started to panic to we both felt sick, we didnt want to let on becsuae as much as we had dressed up we still looked out of place amoungst the suits and posh dresses, in our traveling cloths.  This went on for around ten miutes untill i realised that was a small handel under the table that gave access to a small thin draw that i had put the wallet into for safe keeping an hour ago! I was so relived and jess didnt know wether to hit me, cry or laugh!
 Fuerza Bruta: We went to see a circus show with a huge budget, and it was incredible! it is had to describe here but youtube it the come to london at the round house.  The best part was a tourt sheet of clear plastic strong enough to support five people jumping around on it while being covered in a layer of water.  This was suspended above our heads with loads of amazing light behind it, I would highly recommend it when they tour in England!          - Lyndon.