Backpacking South America

Our date with our new friend, Stephen, finally arrived. After spending the afternoon bustling around town trying to find good deals on wine, we settled on 2 Sauvignon Blancs, 1 Carmenere, and a dessert wine. We checked into our hostel (Andes Hostel, comfortable hostel, disorganized staff) to find Stephen already in the midst of preparing a fume for the entire filet of fish he bought at the market that day.

Aside from being a three-star chef, who by the assistance of Julia Child found himself in culinary school and cooking in top restaurants and for famous people around the world, Boy George included, eventually he took the long rode to Croatia and started a catering company, but is once again on the road seeking out his next culinary adventure.  However, this is only half the story.

Carra and I prepped the rooftop patio for cocktail hour and our first two courses and while waiting for our guest Enrique to arrive, we polished off a bottle of white wine used for cooking…can’t let a good thing go to waste.

Our first course was a super fresh Waldorf Salad with substituted fresh figs for raisins. Surprisingly, for the first course, we moved to the Reserva Carmenere, which paired perfectly well with the figs.

We had such a wonderful time in Cafayate that we decided to take the 3.5 hour bus ride back to spend a few more days, which turned into more than a week.  Cafayate is a town that either wraps you up and makes you want more, or is so small that you’re ready to go after one or two days.  Obviously, we fell into the former group.

On our bus trip, we met a nice family that had made reservations at the hostel we were planning to stay at, the Rusty K Hostel.  The Rusty K is the most recommendable hostel that we have stayed at thus far.  It was well laid out, not overly cramped or large, but with lots of open space on the patio that you couldn’t resist grabbing a beer (quite cheap at this hostel) and lounging for a bit.  It was also extremely clean and well run by a super friendly and helpful family.

Our First Asado

One of the nights, we decided to try our hand at the parrilla with our new found friends.  So we grabbed meat for four people, green peppers, 3 types of cheese (soft, hard and blue), and a bag of carbon (already burnt woodchips).  With the help/guidance of Walter, the owner of the hostel, we got the fire started.

Argentina is known for its meat.  In fact, they eat more beef per capita than any other country (Wikipedia has the amount at 68kg/year – that’s 150 pounds).  So, we knew we were in for red meat, but just how much is overwhelming.

Heap of Meat – Our First Night

It was late, and we were tired and hungry.  It was our first night in Buenos Aires.  We were still adjusting to this schedule of not eating dinner until around 9:30, which is still early in most restaurants.  We had actually reached a point that first night where we were beyond hungry and just tired, but we knew we needed to eat something.  So, we walked around San Telmo, passing by restaurants, peeking in windows to see if anybody else was eating.  We had heard that most restaurants do not open for dinner before 9, however, we saw a number of places open, but no one seemed to be eating food.  So, “when in Rome…do as the Romans.”  So, we did. 

Despite our ache for food, we popped into a bar and grabbed a drink.  Here were our options:

Water: AR$6
Coca-Cola: AR$6.50
Beer: AR$10
Glass of Wine: AR$5

We ordered our first glass of wine, a very generous pour for only $1.50 US and a beer – about the same as the states.  We thought, wow, this is going to be a great journey.  After passing the time, it was about 9:45; we thought for sure people were eating dinner, but just not in our bar.  So we decided to move on and find some place serving food.  We couldn’t possibly be the only ones eating food in a restaurant.  We finally stumbled upon a place where people were eating.  We checked out the menu, couldn’t really distinguish the different cuts of beef, so we decided to give it a shot and be adventurous. 

At this point, I was not very hungry…it was almost 10:30.  I’m not use to eating this late…it’s almost bedtime.   Jared convinced me to order a steak – so I opted for a “Bifecita,” whatever cut it is…it should be small.  I also decided to order some papa fritas.  We scouted the restaurant to see if we could determine portion size, but couldn’t quite gauge what to anticipate.  Jared decided to order “Asado.”   From previous research, we knew Asado was a type of beef, similar to a roast.  (Well, please read the fine print.)  The server asked “for one?” but after the fact, we believe he said “for one!”  My Bifecita was the size of a normal steak.  So much for small.  Jared’s Asado…was actually four steaks.  And the papa fritas, were a huge portion.  We laughed so hard. 

Apparently, Asado is something that is shared amongst the table.  It can be even larger than the meal Jared received, but Jared asked for an Asado portion for one.  It’s a very popular meal choice, but it’s usually a meal that everyone takes part in.  Needless to say, there may not be enough moneda, but there is plenty of beef. 

And the meat just keeps coming…

By the end of our time in Buenos Aires, we had actually grown to love our beef dinners… and lunches.  We just became wise on what and how to order.  We know our cuts and we know when it is appropriate to share an order.  Below are two notable steak dinners we would like to share, conveniently, both restaurants offered a penguin of wine (which is about 2/3 of a bottle served in a penguin pitcher where the wine comes out the mouth) for 10-12 pesos (about $3.50).

So after a leisurely morning in the hostel, we caught the Subte (subway), which is much easier than the buses.  We exited the Subte to the bustle of Recoleta, mostly stores serving the upper middle to upper class neighborhood filled with wide boulevards and tree lined streets.  The first stop on our walking tour was Cemetario de la Recoleta.  This exclusive cemetery is the final resting place for some of Buenos Aires most famous, powerful and wealthy people. 

The cemetery looks and feels a lot like a densely populated city – broad boulevards, narrow streets and towering buildings.  The only difference is that those towering buildings are filled with dead people. 

Perhaps the most famous and beloved resident of the cemetery is Evita Peron,  who isn’t buried with her husband Juan Peron, but in the mausoleum of the Duarte family.  On the day we visited, it was the anniversary of the day she declined the nomination for Vice President of Argentina so she could continue focusing on her efforts on social programs for the people.