We arrived at the domestic airport in Buenos Aires, Argentina, at 8:45 am and checked in for our flight to Ushuaia, the southernmost city in the country. When the agent told us he didn't have our gate information, we didn't think anything of it and went through security. There, an official had to smell the loaf of banana bread I had brought from home to make sure it was safe to bring aboard the plane!
We checked the monitors only to discover that none of the earlier flights had left and watched in frustration as our 10:15 flight to Ushuaia kept getting pushed back and back.
The waiting area, as you might imagine, kept getting more and more crowded with more passengers arriving and almost no one was departing because only one airline's flights were leaving. We were lucky enough to find seats but not together as we played the waiting game hoping we'd hear some good news about our flight leaving.
We finally found out that the reason none of the Aerolineas Argentinas flights were leaving was that a strike had been called by the pilots but that they and the airline were in negotiations to settle the strike. After four hours, we got the definitive news that our flight had been cancelled and not just endlessly delayed and our only recourse was to get a refund and book with another airline.
After waiting for well over an hour to speak to an airline representative, we discovered the strike was over but there would be no flight to the southernmost tip of Argentina that day. When we were told we could get seats on the flight leaving before 5 the next morning, we said yes because at least it meant we still would be able to board the ship in two days for Antarctica which we'd first planned over 18 months ago!
Fortunately, we were able to get a room back at the same hotel we'd just checked out of that morning so that was a relief. After grabbing a taxi back to the hotel - for some reason the cost was more than double we'd paid from the hotel just hours earlier! - we checked in and changed back into warm weather clothes and took a taxi back to the Ecological Reserve as it had been closed yesterday.
Next post: Ushuaia, here we come, one step closer to touring our last continent, Antarctica.
Posted on November 29th, 2019, from just outside the spectacular Torres del Paine National Park in southern Chile.
We checked the monitors only to discover that none of the earlier flights had left and watched in frustration as our 10:15 flight to Ushuaia kept getting pushed back and back.
The waiting area, as you might imagine, kept getting more and more crowded with more passengers arriving and almost no one was departing because only one airline's flights were leaving. We were lucky enough to find seats but not together as we played the waiting game hoping we'd hear some good news about our flight leaving.
We finally found out that the reason none of the Aerolineas Argentinas flights were leaving was that a strike had been called by the pilots but that they and the airline were in negotiations to settle the strike. After four hours, we got the definitive news that our flight had been cancelled and not just endlessly delayed and our only recourse was to get a refund and book with another airline.
Fortunately, we were able to get a room back at the same hotel we'd just checked out of that morning so that was a relief. After grabbing a taxi back to the hotel - for some reason the cost was more than double we'd paid from the hotel just hours earlier! - we checked in and changed back into warm weather clothes and took a taxi back to the Ecological Reserve as it had been closed yesterday.
The day before, we had so wanted to enter the park figuring the views of the reserve would be far better than simply walking parallel to the reserve along what amounted to a boardwalk. We never figured the path in the park would be as boring as this with no views of the reserve and any animals.
On the glass-full side, though, one couldn't fault the reserve's proximity to the city center.
We both expected to see some wildlife in the reserve and didn't realize that we'd been so fortunate seeing wildlife the day before from along the 'boardwalk' next to the reserve. The flowers, however, were remarkably striking.
After walking along the dirt path for about an hour, we reached the Rio Plata or Silver River, the widest river in the world.
The sign said Buena Vista and it certainly was a pretty view!
After exiting the reserve, we began walking along the southern part of the 'boardwalk' where we were fortunate seeing some beautiful birds so that was a treat.
What a shame there was no sign indicating the birds that frequented the reserve or that we didn't know a thing about birds.
The path in the reserve was on the other side of the trees - thus the reason we couldn't see any of the animals after entering the nature park - a fact that totally escaped us the day before! I figure we had the best of both worlds over the two days experiencing the park - seeing a variety of birds up close on the first day and then, on the second, satisfying our curiosity entering the park even if it turned out to be less than what we'd expected.
Buenos Aires: A city of contrasts.
While grabbing dinner that night, local TV news had a blurb on the airline strike which had the effect of almost shutting down the whole airport. We counted ourselves among the lucky ones as at least we'd been able to snag seats leaving bright and early the next morning so we didn't have to worry about missing the Antarctica cruise.
Next post: Ushuaia, here we come, one step closer to touring our last continent, Antarctica.
Posted on November 29th, 2019, from just outside the spectacular Torres del Paine National Park in southern Chile.
Waiting for the penguins. Janina
ReplyDeleteI know, I know! Have been without internet for most of last three weeks except for a few hours here and there. Will catch up with posts as quickly as I can as long as we have internet from now on in Santiago and in Paraguay until we get home on December 18th.
ReplyDeleteThe penguins were sooo adorable - have some great pictures to share.
Hugs from just outside Torres del Paine