Day 104: November 26, 2007 In Salta
Trip Start
Aug 15, 2007
1
104
202
Trip End
Mar 01, 2008
Salta,
Argentina
Monday, November 26, 2007
Weatherwise it was another beautiful, clear, warm day. It was one of those days that really makes me wonder why I like computers so much. They happen about once a year. It started out by being unable to buy our bus tickets online because of a problem on the bus company website.
Then, I assembled the final portions of my proposal and got them ready to send to the Dean for his signature. I'd tried to send earlier versions on Saturday and Sunday. Brevard's email was dribbling through a few messages but it was impossible to attach my proposal to an email. Apparently the college was hit by some virus over the weekend because I got a message saying the system would be rebooted but that problems would continue until new antivirus/antispam software arrived. It will be really disappointing if I miss the deadline for this proposal because of this. Once I leave Salta, I won't be able to revise the proposal for a later submission until I return to Brevard.
Elena and I agreed to meet at the Hotel Alejandro I for dinner. It is the tallest building in the city and is reputed to be the best hotel--5 stars. She and Carlos had gone peddle boating at one of the parks on the east side of the city. We met in the plaza in front of the hotel at Balcarce and Belgrano. We had been told the restaurant was on the top floor but apparently that is not the case; it was at ground level. We decided to go to the much hipper Balcarce area 8 blocks up the street and took a cab over. We ate at a sidewalk table at the Café de Tiempo on the corner of Balcarce and Necochea. The place gradually filled to near capacity as the evening went on. It was very unArgentine. Elena ordered sushi and a smoothie. We shared a good llama steak and a salad. The meal was good but the service was very slow.
I overheard a guy speaking English at the next table say that he was a Canadian geologist to an Argentine guy who spoke good English. I sent word over, via our waiter, that I was a geologist too. Then, the woman he was with said to him, "His name is Jim Reynolds."
The woman and I had exchanged smiles earlier. It suddenly dawned on me that I had met her a couple of weeks earlier at the office. She is a volcanologist and minerals exploration type. We talked with them briefly after we got up to leave. Being a Canadian geologist, he is naturally a minerals exploration geologist.
We got a cab right across the street from the restaurant and returned to Grand Bourg. It was too late to pick up the laundry. No one was at the apartment so we both turned in early.
