Sometimes to go Forward you have to go Backwards
Trip Start
Sep 20, 2007
1
8
85
Trip End
Sep 20, 2008
Buenos Aires,
Argentina
Thursday, October 25, 2007
We arrived in BA bus station and got a taxi straight to our hostel, Milhouse. This was to be our home for the next 2 weeks, give or take. The taxi drivers in BA are mad, its fair to say, they also dont know what lanes are, and seem to enjoy striking fear into the tourists.
The minute we stepped into the Milhouse hostel we knew we were on to a winner. "Anyone like any tickets to Argentina V Chile World Cup Qualifier" - we were laughing. Already a big day to look forward to the upcoming Saturday. The hostel was in prime location in BA near everything we needed...Our room 206 was solid too as we had an ensuite, not a common occurance in the hostels we had stayed in so far.
Our first night in BA we had a table quiz, where we finished a very respectable 2nd. We then headed out to a nightclub with the hostel called Rummy.
ArcticM1
Drinks were pricey in the club and as usual we all proved to be the models of sobriety. The friday night after we also went to a nightclub for another wild night, just ask to Don. It was here we first sang the chant "We all dream of a team of Gary Breens" - Oh how the English grew fond of that tune.We also saw the best film ever one day....THE INVASION
Then came the big day out. Saturday was upon us and so were massive hangovers! The day was billed as the Argentina match in the evening and then a massive night out in Pacha. Unfortunately one of us didnt make it to the match... Those of us that did deserved a pat on the back. Conor and Craigo used the magic of Paulo Nutini to give the energy that was needed to get up! Ric our travelling buddy got the whole feel of that magic as Craig pranced around with little or nothig on. Kick off was not until 17.40 or thereabouts but they took us to the stadium a good 2 hours early to beat the traffic and soak up the atmosphere. WHATS THAT - NO ALCOHOL WILL BE SERVED AT THE MATCH. This, in my humble opinion, is what lead to another victim not makin the big day out!
The match was first class. The quality of football was far superior to that of Flamengo in Rio but we will have to give the Brazillians the edge for creating a great atmosphere. It was in this game Cairns' new friend, the great Riquelme, scored 2 quality free kicks. For a gambler if you had backed the Argentines it was a very easy game to watch!! We then got a long bus back to the hotel after which we decided to have a quick siesta.
El Desnivel Steakhouse2
Conor never woke up.The night out in Pasha was Phenonminal. The sunset will always be remembered by those who attended. Plenty of new friends were made and plenty of quality tunes were played. Good old Ivan what a man!! There were many wierdos out that night accompanied with attire. And then WAM in the wee small hours...The dance off.... Craigo springs into action with the worm (where did he learn to bust that out)and Clive jumps into action with the Robot. That went down very well indeed. Their competition was very tough too! The boys then went on to another club and tried to make it out for the rugby semi final. Clive fell and had one of the greatest spells in bed of his life. Argentina got beat as we all know BUT why oh why by more than 20.5 points! or 9 for that matter! Sean Og and the man from Meath were a funny sight to behold after being out on the tear for quite some time now...
After a lot of trashtalk with then Engish boys another main highlight of the trip had to be the marathon 2 hour football game! We had a team of heroes, most notable, our GAA allstar goalie. We found himin the bar boozin before the game and as we were one player short we had to give him the call up. We never regretted it. He saved us from embarrasment on many occasion with brave saves only a GAA player could make. I think the English were afraid of him! We ended up playin out a draw in true Irish fashion. Our tatics were the same of Jack Charlton's World Cup stars of 1990...Long Ball...Put em under pressure.
It is a true crime we never got round to playin a second match to find out who the better team was........ah well.......!!!!!!!!
After giving 100% the Irish team had plenty of war wounds to show...We would prob never quite be the same again....
El Desnivel Steakhouse1
Sore arm, Sprained ankle, and aches n pains to beat the band.The English lads we played against it has to be said are a top bunch of lads and we will crossed paths again before the end of our travels.
This is where we said our short but tearfull goodbye to the Cairns.
Then there were 4.
Our loss of Cairnsy was to be picked up by the arrival of Dave "Banter" Hall and Connor "Merv" Martin. Two lads we all know well from home. They legged it down to BA early to catch up with us so we knew they be well up for the craic. And the nights out picked up a notch. How could they not with Banter now here!!!
We had 2 massive games of kings before various nights out, all in good spirits and good crack. Craigo should also get a mention here for the comeback of a lifetime in a fantastic game of killer. There is in no way a roll on that table...
We went for a day trip to Uraguay during our time in Argentina (see Uraguay - will be updated soon)
Donal and Conor then went to Pasha another Saturday to experiance the experiance. The following night was spent in a 4 star hotel (Where Conor met the laughing bearded man in Reception!!!!, WHO KNOWS!!!)after 10 days of bedlum in the Milhouse hostel. A TV in our room has never been so much appreciated. The beds were fit for a king. Who needs limehouse and the Croatian Axe murderer!
After that great sleep unfortunatly it was Craigs Last one in S.A. We had a quick sandwich and he was off. COME BACK ASAP CRAIGO ITS NOT THE SAME. 10all in the series is not a bad result...
Then there was te night of poker, where Conor beat all comers to come back from the brink and take te prize money..
We have to give a mention to the super Agentine cuisine. The steaks are unbelieveable. La Cabrera and the one with the crazy Argentine giant. Fair play to Steve giving that man an arm wrestle. We must try and get that video uploaded. We had the meal of our lives in La Cabrera. While we waited outside until a table was available, they gave us chamagne, bread and sausages! The service was great, the side portions of veg etc. were first class. They earned their tip! The wine was as tasty as any.
We went to see the Artic Monkeys in BA on our last night. It was somethig else. The crowd were crazy. Crouch, Hold, Engage, Heave!!!
"Agua, Agua sin gas por favor!!"
"LA VIDA LOCA"
"Vindaloo"
"I got a ticket to ride"
It was crazy, people were fainting by the dozen, others singing to every word, the band were class...It was a great night...!
Im sure there are probably bits left out of our story in BA so this 2 week story is certainly subject to change...
Sometimes to go forward, you must go backwards first......
Comments
The Patinir of Blogs
Alright ccd,
fair play to you, doing our stint in BA proud. Eloquent, elaborate yet efficient just like the great Patinir.
Try and get those photos up, looking forward to the Dons write up on Ur a gay, enjoy the trek, go easy on them donkeys
see yous in 20 days, shotgun!!