Do Argentine people ever sleep? We started off the morning with a quick breakfast at our place with supplies provided the night before. We had a bit of a slow start, but met Coty and family before setting out around 10 am. Coty took us to the center of San Juan to visit some cultural items.
The first stop was the Bicentennial Theater, a performance hall where they have events ranging from orchestral concerts and operas to plays and solo musical performances. We started off on a tour in Spanish, but then we split off when an English-speaking guide joined us. Danelle and the kids understood the Spanish tour somewhat, but we all got a lot more information from the excellent translator. We visited a couple of the practice rooms and learned about the special materials and panels they use to create “dry” sounds that don’t echo.
One thing that stood out was how many items they give to the community for free. They provide everything from opportunities for local schools to the sponsorship of their most talented artists to study abroad. They also have a smaller performance theater where local artists put on events and community organizations can hold conferences and meetings – all either free or for a very small fee.
After the Bicentennial, we walked over to another concert hall about 3/4 that size featuring a giant organ with over 3,500 pipes. The lobby areas of the building were very industrial looking. San Juan is in a fairly active fault zone, so they get some relatively strong earthquakes, including one in 2021 that damaged the ceiling in the lobby so that parts of it fell down. To prevent the remaining large chandeliers from falling, they just took the rest down. Inside the performance hall itself, it smelled interesting due to the wood. The stage may look small, but it can hold a couple hundred performers. For this one, Coty translated during the visit.
On our walk back, we decided to go shopping at mall/grocery store for supplies and swim trunks for me. During this walk, Danelle and I got the idea that maybe we should see about Coty coming to Buenos Aries with us for the second part of our trip. It’s been amazing seeing her and one week just feels too short. Also, being native to the area as a guide is also a help. We chatted with everybody in the family as we could get away from Coty privately to make sure everyone was on board and it was a resounding YES! We decided to get Francisco and Daniela’s permission before asking Coty directly.
Grocery store was interesting, like a Wal-Mart but stranger. Huge variety of items in an unfamiliar layout. Small selection of fridge/stove/window units. Clothes, some tires for cars. Then food. Prices for many things seemed to be similar to USD in my opinion. At the checkout, Coty was off on a side quest with Corvin. The lady scanned the Coke bottle and started speaking Spanish to us. The gist was that we couldn’t buy it. A gentleman stepped up and helped translate that it required a bottle return to purchase. Turns out the deposit is about $1USD for this bottle. We eventually communicated that we wanted to just pay it and move on. Also interesting, when using a credit card, I’ve had to provide my passport number to pay with it (twice inside this shopping center). Good thing I brought it with me.
Also while getting food for lunch, Coty said her family was making lunch and that we should join them. Communication is hard even with a competent translator for rapid situations. We brought beer to contribute to the meal. It seems an unfair trade on their part, but the food was delicious.
Before lunch, Corvin and I were able to ask Francisco and Daniela about taking Coty with us to Buenos Aries for the week. They agreed it would be acceptable to them. There was some confusion about it, but we assured them, we wanted to pay for her way. When Coty found out the plan, she was more than excited. More time with our adopted daughter!
After the meal, we had a 20 minute break before both families getting into cars and rushing off to an appointment at a bodega (wine tasting). It was my second longish drive of the day and I’m getting better at understanding traffic here. Add to it a manual transmission on the car (last used 12 years ago) and it makes for some interesting situations.
Francisco got called into work and had a friend pick him up at the winery so the family could get back home. The rest of us enjoyed the tour. Coty did her best to translate but there was a lot of information being presented. Danelle, Corvin, and Sonora either get it in Spanish or are standing close to me for the translation to fill in the gaps. Sonora isn’t able to drink in the US, but is legally allowed here since the drinking age is 18. She doesn’t know what she might like since wine is new to her, but played along taking sips and putting her pinky up to be silly. Sonora was more interested in the cheese that was part of the tasting. We had a crazy number of laughs during that time.
We split up for the drive back, with Daniela needing to stop by a family member’s house to drop something off. Corvin rode with to get more Spanish practice. We drove mostly side roads, getting closer to the mountains for some photos, but not going all the way – Corvin would be sad if we went without him.
Back at the house, Corvin and I decided it would be a good time to swim. But it turns out that without the sun, the water was too cold so we just sat on the edge chatting. We shared a bottle of wine from our shopping earlier in the day and were just thinking about calling it a night. That is when they suggested dinner. They were making homemade pizza. I didn’t want to miss out, so we stayed up. We didn’t start eating this dinner till around 11pm. Lovely dinner conversation followed up by planning for the next day. We decided to go early morning hiking/kayaking. Around midnight, we agreed to meet up at 7:45am to leave for the hour drive to the lake.
I may finally understand why people need that siesta in order to keep going after all the things we’ve done so far. But I can’t complain as this experience is nearly unbeatable!