At the mall

Today, we went to the Abasto shopping centre, where we saw a Ferris Wheel:



as well as a kosher McDonald's:



The latter was, of course, closed what with being a Saturday and all.

Right now I am examining the map to plan tomorrow's trip to the Evita museum, and - only a block away - the street where Governor Sanford's mistress lives. Good times!

Sadly, tomorrow is Paddy's last day.

At the museum

Before we return to the sore topic of the great fake banknote taxi scam, here's a pleasant memory from yesterday. Paddy and I went to MALBA, the fancy museum of American art in Palermo. In the bookstore, I found this delightful set of little books for children, for only 20 pesos (a little over 5 dollars) for the entire collection:



My favorite is definitely the one which tells the story of the invention of 'dulce de leche':



Though the story of the Buenos Aires zoo comes in a close second:

The great Argentine taxi-driver fake banknote switcheroo scam

Oh yes. We will have more to report on this, once we have regained our composure. Let's just say for now that being left with this particular collection of "banknotes" in your possession, as the taxi vanishes into the distance, is not a particularly good sign:



Can *you* figure out why? Of course you can! And, with the benefit of hindsight, so could we.

Full details of this particular scam, and advice on how YOU can avoid being similarly taken for a ride, tomorrow.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go lie down.

Que dicen los Rice Krispies?

The sounds of global Rice Krispies:

English: "Snap! Crackle! Pop!"

French: "Cric! Crac! Croc!"

Spanish: "Pim! Pum! Pam!"

German: "Knisper! Knasper! Knusper!"

Danish: "Piff! Paff! Puff!"

Finnish: "Riks! Raks! Poks!"

Dutch: "Pif! Paf! Pof!"

Afrikaans: "Knap! Knaetter! Knak!"

Because enquiring minds need to know.

National tragedy

Normally this blog steers a mile wide of all things sports-related, but it would be remiss not to report on the general sense of stupefaction that has taken hold of the Argentine capital after tonight's stunning loss of La Selección, [also known as the Albicelestes (Light blue and whites)] in the World Cup qualifier versus Paraguay. Tonight's 1-0 loss in Asuncion against the clearly superior Paraguayan team, following on Sunday night's loss to Brazil, places the Albicelestes' chances of qualifying for next year's World Cup in significant jeopardy.

In a country where soccer is something akin to the national religion, folks here in B.A. couldn't be unhappier. The name of former national idol (Diego) Maradona, who took on the role of head coach of the Albiceleste squad last year, is in grave danger of becoming a byword.

This trip's quest

Every trip needs a quest. After some discussion with Paddy at the flea market in San Telmo on Sunday, we decided that this month's theme should be matchboxes. Compact, moderately interesting, suitable for building dioramas on those slow Sunday evenings, and spanning a broad variety of themes. Here are some examples from Week 1:





Some of the matchboxes shown even double as nifty refrigerator magnets. how cool is that?

Festivities (part 1)

What bliss when one can combine a legitimate reason for celebration with an OPERATION BAKED GOODS UPDATE!







I hope that the photos, and the look of bliss on Katrin's face, capture the superior quality of these particular baked goods, known locally as 'masas finas' (fine pastries).

An anniversary

Today marks the 30th anniversary of that fateful day when I departed, tearfully, from Shannon Airport, to begin my life in the New World.

There will be festivities later on today, that I can promise.

Don't be shy

Yes. We welcome comments on this blog. Yours especially. We are a long way from home. We crave attention and affection. Even if you can't provide those, we still welcome your comments.

If we do not receive them, ultimately we become sulky, morose, and petulant. All unattractive qualities in a blogger. So you know what to do to forestall this unpleasant eventuality.

Previously undiscovered family members

As we wandered through the flea market in San Telmo earlier this afternoon, rummaging through the stalls, and through the various assortments of old photographs, I found it tempting to imagine that some of the photos in question were of a hitherto undiscovered Argentine branch of the Giltinan clan, for instance this picture of my Argentine great-aunts and their friends, taken on the night of the debutantes' ball, some time in the 1930s: