After leaving Porto Alegre around 2:00 pm on Wednesday, 2nd September 1981, we rode countless hours in that bus until it crossed the border with Argentina in Uruguayana-RS and kept on riding until twilight. It must have stopped again before night fall, but I can't recall it at all.
On Thursday, 3rd September 1981, early in the morning, our General Urquiza bus stopped for refreshment and we noticed the scenery was a complete different one. No more red earth from Brazil but the conspicuous dark soil of Argentina. By the car plate colour one knows we're in Argentina.
Silvio and I engaged in conversation with this smiling fellow during the bus journey. He told us his story: he had met an Argentine girl in São Paulo during Carnaval 1981, fell in love with her and now he was going to visit her and possibly get married there. I don't remember his name but he was gracious to have taken photos of Myself & Silvio occasionally.
Paraná, the capital city of the Argentine province of Entre Rios, located at the eastern shore of the Paraná River, opposite the city of Santa Fé, capital of the neighbouring Santa Fé Province. We were all happy to wake up to a new day in a brand new country: Argentina. See that tower in the back of us in the photo? It is Entre Rios Province's government house - Casa de Gobierno, Paraná, Provincia de Entre Rios.
It was twilight some time after we left Paraná, the capital city of Entre Rios province. We made ourselves comfortable in our seats for soon we'd be entering our third night on the road. After sleeping for a few hours I woke up about 3:00 am and felt restless; somehow I knew we were approaching Buenos Aires, Latin America's former largest city. And I was right...traces of a sprawling city started showing up and I knew I couldn't be wrong: we were about to get to our destination. I woke Silvio up and told him I suspected we were at the end of our long bus trip. I couldn't account for all our steps at this juncture but a little after 4:00 am on the Friday morning of 4 September 1981, we were out on the streets of Buenos Aires trying to get hold of a cheap hotel where we could stay for about 24 hours.
It may seem strange but since we arrived in Buenos Aires, I forgot about my camera altogether. I didn't take any pictures of ourselves in the big city.
I can't recall how but I guess Silvio was the one who found a hotel we could stay for one day: Hotel de las Americas, on Calle Liberdad, 1020, only a block away from the great Avenida 9 de Julio. We went into our hotel room but were too excited to try and get to sleep off the rest of the night. I don't remember how we spent those 24 hours. I only know Silvio went out by himself after the break-of-day and with an address written on a slip of paper proceeded to search for the abode of a young Argentinian man he had once met in Peru or Bolivia.
Silvio was back at the hotel after a few hours accompanied by his Argentine friend; we three went to a coffee shop but he didn't stay too long. At twilight time we went out to eat in a real Argentine restaurant. Both of us ate Argentine beef. I wasn't a vegetarian then... and I thought there was too much meat in my plate. This restaurant was on 9 de Julio concourse.
As I was worried about how to get hold of a van ('micro' in Argentina) that would take us to Ezeiza Airport in the morning, we sauntered down the great Avenue until we got to a spot where vans left to the international airport which is quite far from downtown Buenos Aires. We would have to be at Ezeiza at 7:00 am. I knew if we missed the van or the plane we'd be in dire straits or Desolation Row. After talking to one of the vans' drivers and making sure how far the Airport was and how long the trip would take we decided to go back to our hotel room.
On Saturday, 5 September 1981, I woke up really early. I slept by turns. We asked the concierge to wake us up at 4:00 in the morning but I was wide awake much earlier than that. We ended up leaving the hotel at 4:00 and walked up to where the vans started from. I was glad everything had turned out all right.
Myself boarding Aerolineas Argentinas 747, at Ezeiza, ready to take on the whole world...
Myself saying goodbye to South America. I wouldn't do it again for nothing in the world.
Silvio ready to go into the bowels of Aerolineas Argentinas huge 747 jet, on our way to Oceania.
On our way to the South Pole & New Zealand... goodbye South America!
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Serviette used at Aerolineas Argentinas trans-polar flight from Buenos Aires to Auckland.
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Hotel de las Americas on Calle Libertad 1020, corner with Calle Marcelo Torcuato de Alvear, where Silvio & I stayed for one night, Friday, 4 September 1981, is only a block away from Avenida 9 de Julio, where we would get our van to Ezeiza Airport in the early morning of 5 September 1981.
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We left Uruguaiana at twilight of 2nd September 1981, and arrived at Paraná, capital of Entre Ríos province in the morning of 3rd September 1981.
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Silvio & I covered a lot of ground inside that Argentine bus having left São Paulo on Tuesday night, stopped next to Florianópolis in the early hours of Wednesday; then stop over at Porto Alegre at Noon. Left Porto Alegre at 1:00 pm; crossed the Argentine border after dark; had a stop at Paraná (here in the map is a city opposite to Santa Fé) on Thursday morning and finally arrived in Buenos Aires at the dawn of Friday.
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the distance between Uruguaina and Paraná, the capital city of Entre Rios.
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