Tigre

After jumping into a roof top pool at 3am (pretty much fully clothed) and getting in at 4am I was up at 10.30am on the search for tea with milk which I happily supped in the sunshine this morning for a few hours until everyone was ready to get the train. Chloe, Kenzo and I went to Tigre the river delta today to visit Felicity (the handbag designer) and her sister Chelsea's parents house and to go on a little boat trip.
Its been fabulous weather, I dutifully applied sunblock and hung out by the pool at this palacial Tigre mansion with 3dogs and 2cats and 2 zebra skins on the floor. I can't remember ever being at a house like it that someone I knew lived in. Maybe Broughton Castle. Although it wasn't as big as that.
I am progressing with understanding Spanish I think as I made out some conversation today about credit, and Mozart.
I'm not used to this type of crowd.
After hanging out by the pool, chloe, kenzo and I got on a boat (round trip) up past all the houses on the Tigre. Its a bit like Henley on thames or something. But not at all.
I loved it though. Even when I got soaked to the skin when a motor boat went past. ( After all this was the second time in 24hrs my clothes had been soaked although the first was my choice and because of some honey drink they have here here called Mariposa - having said that if you have a pool on your roof and you're having a party by it, someone - chloe and I in this instance - has to get in it! )
Anyway Tigre was amazing a really good day. I got some freckles but didn't burn - bonus.
I ate a huge hot dog, then did a degustation of different Argentine chocolate on the train back to BA. Then we went to China town on the way home.

I accosted some poor young kid in the station cause he has a tshirt of somee thrash band I'd never heard of. Hacamidos? Or something like that? He didn't speak english, and as we know I don't speak spanish - he got very embarressed and then his pregnant girlfriend came along, and I got embarressed for asking him, then Kenzo came along and translated and turns out they're an Argentinian thrash band. I will find out more I think. If I could just remember their name.

Anyway I'm exhausted!

Lots of love

Talita
X
P.s. Sorry about the bad grammar and spelling Dad I'm tapping this out on my phone.

~ I'm on the move - this was sent from my GooseBerry® ~

BBQ in BA

I arrived at Chloe's about 11pm last night and I was so glad to see her. She hasn't changed at all and seems really happy here. Its pretty chilled out and everyone eats late and hangs out and chats. And everyone smokes! :-S
So I arrived late and stinking but Chloe had friends out and had arranged for us to have dinner out. People eat very late here, like we got there at half midnight after I'd had a shower, to think amazing appartment that was so spot on, with an open courtyard full of south american flora. I was feeling bone tired and a bit weird and couldn't eat anything but it was such a crazy place with a huge picture of the virgin mary surrounded by big flowers. A girl who designs handbags and her boyfriend live there.
Anyway I left "early" at 0130 and went to bed. And I woke up feeling really pretty rough so I stayed in bed until 2pm which is 5pm UK time and then felt a lot better. I blame aeroplane food.
I'm now at Chloe's boyfriend's house with her and her friends. Its rained a bit this afternoon, but it was so hot before the rain that its actually quite pleasant.
We're going to the Tigre river delta tomorrow so we're gonna get a train then a boat to get there. Sounds like fun to me.
And we're meant to be going to someone's house then to a club tonight.

The taxi driver from Chloes to here said to me "its a beautiful place" and I said "Buenos Aires?" And he said "no, you.L
Then told me to call him.
Ha. Errr. No.

I haven't seen a lot of the city yet, ill explore more when Chloe has to work during the week. I want to get the ferry to Uraguay for the day, that's sounds like fun.

Hasta luego!
X

~ I'm on the move - this was sent from my GooseBerry® ~

Arrived safe in Buenos Aires!

I'm in the back of a taxi in hot Buenos Aires. Its breezy and night time and looks clean and fresh. Unlike me. After 14 hour flight from Frankfurt you can imagine I'm pretty stinky!
There's a sweet smell in the air from the taxi drivers window though and I'm excited to see Chloe.
Dad, you would love the stars here, they're so clear.
I got chatting to a guy called Pablo on the flight who is some kind of Argentinian diplomat and he helped me through the airport and to sort out a taxi. I owe him a drink.
The air hostess on the flight was concerned about my health, but only 2 antibiotics to go now. There's a very modern cathedral I'm going past I forgot I'm in a catholic country.

Well I'm glad to have arrived safe and sound! That plane journey is REALLY long! I watched Australia (ok), The Women (rubbish) and The Rocker (actually quite funny)
ooo! Motorbike accident up ahead!....
Oh the guys ok.
Trying to talk to my taxi driver about it. Spanish failing. What's the word for leg?

Beeep! Beeep! Toll booth

I better finish up I'm seeing the beggining of blocks of flats and want to enjoy the view

Love

Talita
~ I'm on the move - this was sent from my GooseBerry® ~

Early morning airports

My sleepy 5am assessments of stuff from the departure lounge:

You can't get Argentinian pesos anywhere! Apart from Argentina it seems!

There is a certain type of long green felt coat that only Austrians wear.

This is the wrong 5am. I only like the 5am at the end of the night, not the beginning of the day.

I can't complain I'm going to Buenos Aires!

I'm going to stay with my friend Chloe. I haven't seen her for about 5 years. And I only just found her before Xmas on facebook. I think she works on films now. I don't really know. I guess ill find out soon enough.
I forgot to pack a comb. And my address book. And Boots isn't open at 5am.

I see weather warnings on the TV in the departure lounge here. I believe its 27degrees in BA. Hopefully the heat will clear my cough.

So I'm off to Frankfurt, and then to BA. I arrive in BA 21h00. What's new? Buneos Aires?

Talita
X

Free LTL!!

~ I'm on the move - this was sent from my GooseBerry® ~

The September/October plans

As i may have mentioned 2009 is the year of adventure. It said so in my London Paper year's horroscope. And as that is surely the bible of predictions. So i'm planning on travelling to Tibet. I've dreamt of going there for well over 10 years now. So if not now, then when?
Getting into Tibet isn't simple. You pretty much have to go with a tour operator, and you have to get 2 permits, one for Tibet, and one for travelling outside Lhasa. Which is the opposite to Heinrich Harrer who was trying to get to the forbidden city from the mountains and provinces outside of Lhasa on his flight from India (in Seven years in Tibet)
Anyway, I plan to be in Lhasa on October 9th 2009 - my birthday - and to turn 29 in the Himalayas.
I close my eyes at night and dream of seeing them, and of going there. I own about 30 books on Tibet and i need to finish reading them all before i go, but suffice to say i'm very excited.

However, my ambitious travel plans don't end there. Well, infact they kind of do, but only in that we're actually starting in Moscow. The current plan is to arrive in Moscow on 20th Sept, take the trans-siberian train on 23rd Sept 09 to Ulaanbataar, where we currently plan to meet Badmaa (merci Stephanie!) and then go off on horses into the wilds of Mongolia where we're gonna live with a family of nomads in a Yourte, before leaving Mongolia on the 4th October for Beijing, then leaving Beijing on 9th October for Lhasa, Tibet.

This is an extensive, expensive, ambitious plan.... and my good friend Birgit (of www.kerrang.com fame) and i intend to embark on this journey together. At first i thought i would have to do it alone, but then i found someone who also feels that its time to travel, and is up for this kind of adventure. Hopefully, Insh'allah, we shall do this. I realise we have a long way to go with planning and saving, and getting the time off work (surely i can get work Municipal Waste to nomads you know that market is just waiting to be tapped)
But its a dream i'm following. And why not. Why the fuck not eh?
Single, without kids, turning 29... it seems a good time for it? no?
So anyway, i need to save up (at last estimate) about £2500 by the beginning of September! Hahahaha
Also there's shit loads of planning to do.
BUT watch this space.

gong-da, I just thought i would clue you in on the plan.
ka-lee pay!


tu-jay-chay!

Preparations for BA!

I made a resolution that in 2009 - the year i turn 29 - i would get out on adventures and stay positive. The world is huge and full of such interesting stuff. Its easy to get bogged down with work and London, the music scene is kinda insular and blinkered sometimes and the truth is that there is a lot more to the world than heavy metal!!! Although every time i'm away from the rock scene i find myself impatient to jump back into the grit and the dirt sometimes you need to see the opposites in order to appreciate it truely.
Its also exciting to see what the music culture is like in different countries and different cities. In my job i'm always trying to understand what bands work in different countries and why. Why is there this demographic? why is there this interest in this certain type of music/style/politics in this particular place? Its like a puzzle where i try to put everything together and compare it with the metal scene in the UK, and generally not come to any particular conclusions - but it's fun for a while anyway!
So i'm 3 days away from my first trip out of Europe this year, where i'm going to visit my old friend Chloe in Buenos Aires. I've prepared by watching Evita. Travel insurance, check.
Unfortuately i'm on antibiotics, but that's not gonna stop the fun. I need to work out what to pack. And i've sorted out this blog so i should be able to post updates from my phone on my travels. Hopefully.
So hasta luego! South America here i come!

Attempt to post yummy Paris food from my mobile phone....

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