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Likely our last real riding day with Sparkles and El Higo was the stretch between San Pedro and Buenos Aires. Thirty miles or so out of town, Sparkles rolled over 39,999.9 miles into the golden years of 40,000.+ Thanks Sparkles for getting me this far. It's been a great ride.
Our first stop in the 3-million-strong city of Buenos Aires was a motorcycle shop. After a couple tries and lots of directions, we found a certified Kawasaki dealer. Since this country has a 100% (yes, *100%*) tax on everything (yes, *everything*) that is imported, buying a couple gaskets cost me about $100. While I was in the store, Derek guarded the bikes which were still loaded with all our belongings. A crowd quickly formed. When I returned, he'd made several new friends. Two in particular, Norm and Norma, we very friendly. Just as we were about to part ways, they asked us to join us in their home for a traditional parrilla (meaty barbeque) the following afternoon. So sweet! We happily accepted.
The trusty Horizons Unlimited website/forum had helped us locate a hostel with parking in the city. The Kilca Hostel, with a big sunny courtyard, was exactly what we needed. We successfully replaced the valve cover gasket and the o-rings on the four valve cover bolts. One or more of those gaskets had had it; with fresh ones installed, the oil fountain ceased. Over the next few days, we also replaced the rear brakes and the battery. Good old Sparkles had gotten me all the way from Seattle to B.A. with very few problems. She was a bit tired, a bit cranky and demanding some attention.
At the hostel, we met Max, a fellow motorcyclist. Max began his trip in England and drove to South Africa on a 1983 BMW650. He has been on the road for about two years. The next leg of his journey will take him northward eventually up to the states where his future bride is waiting. I won't usurp his life for our blog, but believe me when I say: this guy had some amazing stories. Safe travels, Max! I hope all your crazy plans come true! :)
Meeting with "The Norms" (as we called them) for lunch was spectacular. Though we are still having a bit of difficulty with the Argentinian accent and grammar, we managed to talk about local customs, social issues, our families, travel and a myriad of other things. Norma's home and two daughters were lovely and welcoming. We feasted on three types of sausage, and several different cuts of beef they'd carefully cooked over the coals from a wood fire (no store-bought charcoal here!). We were very fortunate to have met them!
We spent much of the remainder of the week attempting to organize the sale of the motorcycles. Sad as we are to see them go, we are quite relieved to be replenishing our bank accounts which have sunk to a measly few hundred each. Since it is not legal to sell a foreign motorcycle to an Argentinian, we were organizing a sale to fellow tourists. A couple days were spent waiting for potential buyers to inspect, test ride, and haggle over the bikes. By the end of the week, we'd shaken hands over each of the bikes. We made plans to make the swap on the ferry to Colonia, Uruguay the following Monday.
We did manage to see a bit of the city between errands and appointments. Buenos Aires is a very large city. With Seattle as my reference point, I'd look at our map, pick an interesting point 15 or so blocks away, and assume it would be a nice walk. But the 15 blocks would take over an hour to walk and was generally made more difficult by the abundance of un-scooped puppy poop! Along the route, the buildings and people generally represented a mish-mash of European ancestry. (Derek and I were asked for directions on more than one occasion. It's quite nice to be able to blend in a bit more.) The city's schedule is also a bit extreme: Many things are closed from 1-5pm for the siesta, but the average night on the town lasts until 6am. One girl in our hostel had swapped schedules with a housecat, generally waking around 5 pm, lounging around for a few hours, disappearing all night, and returning around 9am every day.
Though the weather was generally beautiful, on Saturday, Guido, the hostel owner, said, "You may want to bring your towel inside. It is going to rain." "Really?" I said, looking at the somewhat cloudy sky. "Yes," he smiled, and turn skyward. "In one hour or so." Almost to the minute, an hour later, it began to pour. In Buenos Aires, the rain is tropical. It falls in fat drops and in huge quantities. This rain has more water pressure than any shower in Latin America. Later that night, amidst this rain, with our new friend Matthew, we went for a final outing with the Norms. Shouting our goodbyes over the roar of the rain and Pink Floyd's greatest hits made us all a bit hoarse. We were deposited at our hotel and hugged our final hugs around 3am. By about 3:10 we were sound asleep. At about 4:30, I was awakened by what sounded like a river. "Boy the rain is loud," I thought to myself before I rolled over. At 4:31 I heard Derek cursing and scrambling out of bed. I hear my name. Uh-Oh. The light goes on. The roof has sprung a leak. There is a waterfall of water, pouring through the roof, directly into my open bag. Wow. Our things are thrown into the dry hallway and some onto one of the upper bunks. I ascertain that my camera was spared and my important documents seem safe inside their plastic sleeve. We crawl back into our beds and let the cascade sing us to sleep.
Though our things are soaked, no damage was done. Huzzah!
Our last Sunday in town consisted of a few more errands and a visit to the famous San Telmo market which has gobs of cool antiques, second-hand clothing, handmade bits and bobs, and all sorts of other interesting things. There were several variations of the tango band playing away on the street. We walked our feet raw, then returned to the hostel for a final repacking of our bags. It will be strange and difficult to carry all our things on our backs. We are constantly giving things away and discarding things we think we won't need.
Hopefully all goes well with the trade tomorrow!
PS: Bumps for Matthew! You really helped us out and we can't thank you enough. We look forward to seeing you (and maybe your new motorcycle) in August in Seattle!