Day 20 – Buenos Aires

Today is the worse day of a cruise or holiday, it is the last day!! One thing that makes the day a bit better (well a lot better) is that we are in Buenos Aires, a city that I have always wanted to visit.

The silt that is transported by the various tributaries that feed the Rio de La Plata (the River Plate), the widest river in the world, over time created the Tigre River Delta the destination of our tour. Due to the rich nature of the silt there area became an agricultural area, but over the years it has become both a popular weekend destination and place to live. This was not what I expected, this was not going to be a wildlife tour, but a tour of a very unique suburb of Buenos Aires where the residents use boat, canoe, jet ski and / or ferry to get around.

 

There are also a lot wrecks laying up around the delta, which makes the area even more interesting

 

First stop was the Puerto de Frutos for a wander around the streets and shops. The market is more an artisans market, where the goods manufactured within the area are sold. It gets its name from when it was where the fruit and vegetables grown in the delta were delivered and sold, now the delta is known more for its crafts, wood and wicker furniture, which are on sale in the market. None of the smaller stalls were open, would like to return on “Market Day” when they are open and there would be a crowd.

   

As the area is an Art’s Crafts Market, there has to be at least one mural

In this case there were two

 

    

The wharves are still in use to transport the various produce to and from the Tigre Delta, including Explosivos.

The various launches used to ferry the people around

 

There was even a sculpture of a dog, Lola, made out of 44 gallon drums.

 

After the Puerto de Frutos we continued on our journey to Estacion Fluvial de Tigre, the Tigre Train Station, which is the hub where the locals change from the train network to the ferry network to get home.

At the Estacion Fluvial de Tigre we boarded our river boat to start exploring the delta. There were some very interesting homes, I think I would enjoy living here!

        

One of the most impressive buildings we passed on the river was the Tigre Club, a former hotel that also housed a Casino up until the 1930’s and then the club was closed in the 1940’s. In the 1980’s the club went through an extensive restoration and is now the Museo de Arte Tigre (Tigre Municipal Museum of Fine Art).

 

On the way back to the wharf we passed an Amusement Park, the Parque de la Costa

After the cruise around the Delta it was time to board the bus and head back to the ship.

We even passed the Estadio Monumental Antonio Vespucio Liberti which is the largest stadium in Argentina, it can seat around 68K people, it hosted the 1978 World Cup Final between Argentina and Holland (Argentina Won)

We also skirted one of the poorer suburbs of Buenos Aires, near the wharf, these areas sprung up around the city when the Argentina went through a depression in 1998 – 2002

Next stop was the ship and to get ready for the next tour.