Long day. Started last night with a connecting flight from Arequipa, Peru, to Lima, then the redeye to Buenos Aires. Even though the flight was only 4.5 hours elapsed time, we still managed to travel three time zones east, so we are now through hours later than Atlanta, six hours later than the Left Coast.
The approach into Buenos Aires was a riot of green countryside, much like landing in Georgia. We hadn't seen green like that since Panama, since the entire Pacific coast of South America is a desert. Once we were out in a taxi and driving to our downtown hotel, we knew we were back in a modern country. Nice landscaping, no trash, modern buildings, new cars and buses. It made the sad state of affairs in Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru really stand out by contrast.
Near our hotel is an extensive pedestrian shopping zone, similar to the centrum areas in European cities. There is very little Indian blood in the general population, we believe that the natives were either killed or driven out. We also traveled quite a bit south. Instead of total darkness by 6:30, there is still quite a bit of daylight at 9:00, as of this writing. And even though it's the middle of summer, the weather is sunny and balmy, with a cool breeze running through the highrise-lined streets.
Anita's feeling a bit under the weather, probably mostly beat by the long day and night. Early to bed tonight, tomorrow off to Salta.
