Titans--Buenos Aires style. . .

As is our wont, we hit a theatre in a new city to check out a movie. This time it was Clash of the Titans, 2010. . . I believe I saw the original back in the day, but since I can't be sure, it must not have been a world-beater. This edition is pretty cool. We didn't see it in 3D, but it was impressive, nonetheless.

One interesting thing we have seen here in Buenos Aires: IronMan 2 is going to start here on April 29. It is not supposed to start in the States until May 7 (which is the day we will be in Madison, Wis.) Just wish that we were still down south for the premiere, but will take along Ma and Pa Eidson to check out the movie. Hopefully it will live up to its billing. Didn't realize that it would open overseas before it does in the States. . .

One lazy day. . .

We just had a great, great day here in Buenos Aires. . . No, we didn't trek to Recoletta to see the sights or do any of the tourist things. . . We just hung low here at the condo we rented and relaxed. . . Yes, very lazy and un-touristy-like, but it was a great day. . . After we recovered, we had to actually count on our little fingers when the last time we hung out in bed to do be lazy bums, and it has been a while. While working at the hotel, we cannot plan on any free time, as there is always darleen, keneth, miguel, or a guest wanting something. Then there are the phone calls, etc., so it was really just a great time to hang out and watch tv and do nothing. . . not very exciting, to be sure, but still a great day . . .

The pinnacle of travel. . .

The other night, while heading to a fantastic restaurant here in Buenos Aires, I fell victim to great marketing.

As we passed a small hotdog stand, I noticed that Duff Beer was offered for sale. For those not in the know, Duff is Homer Simpson's favorite brand and therefore, must be a brew of mystical proportions.

I saddled up, slapped down 15 pesos and savored Duff, sweet, Duff. . . I had expected a Duff label to be slapped over a Quilmos bottle or another Argentine brand, but it was a real bottle with a real label, and the beer was not bad at all.

I have not traveled to all places yet, but this is the first city where I have found Duff (didn't even know it existed in reality until tonight).

It really does exist, and you can check it out at: www.duffargentina.com.

Woo-hoo!

A visit to the U.S. embassy. . .

That's how we spent the first few hours of our return to Buenos Aires. With the new visa fee that Argentina is imposing on U.S. visitors (see earlier post) and the fact that they slap a sticker on an entire page of your passport, that left Lucy with just three open pages on her passport. Not a good thing, as some countries won't let you in if you don't have at least one or two open pages.

When I renewed my passport back in the day, I was given 45 or so pages, as I had gone to the embassy in Kathmandu, Nepal, to get more pages added when I was traveling throughout Asia. Lucy, though, when she was issued her first passport, got just the standard 20 or so pages. With all of the travel we've been doing, she was running short. We didn't realize it until we were flying down to Argentina. Hence, a detour to the embassy, which is right across from the Argentina zoo.

We arrived around 1 p.m., but the section we needed to visit was closed until 2:30 p.m., which was not a big problem, as we were starved, so we hiked up the way and had some lunch and then wandered back. The whole process took about an hour and didn't cost anything, and things went smoothly.

For the record, I still have 16 open pages, and since my passport expires in 2012, I didn't bother getting anymore, as I should be fine until then.

Mmmmmmmm. . . cheese. . .

It won't come as a surprise to the folks that know me that I like cheese. It can come in a brick, a slice, an aerosol can, shredded, spiced up in a can: you name it, I love it.

The other day, though, may have been the top of my cheesy career. While waiting for the U.S. embassy to re-open here in Buenos Aires, we wandered down to find some lunch. We found a nice little pizzeria and ordered a medium ham, pepperoni and olive pizza. While perusing the menu, the grilled provolone with tomatoes, ham and olives caught my eye.

We didn't really know what to expect, but figured it wouldn't hurt to give it a shot. Suffice to say, that when the dish arrived, I was reduced to a quivering, drooling mass of Homer-like proportions.

It was a good-sized brick of provolone cheese, topped with thin-sliced proscuitto ham, tomatoes, olives, pimentos and another type of cheese liberally sprinkled and melted on top. It literally melted in our mouths as we chowed it down.

I have no idea if this is particular to Argentina or other places, but if anyone comes across it at some point, we highly recommend it.

Welcome to Argentina: $131 please

That was the greeting we received this morning upon landing here in Buenos Aires. We were just here back in late November and there was no visa fee. We were told that it took affect sometime in December. So, for Lucy and I to enter the country, it was $262.00 smackers. . . That put a dent into our planned spending activities.

The visa is good for 10 years, so we won't have to pay it again (hopefully) and is the same fee, or close to it, that the U.S. charges Argentine citizens to enter the U.S., so I guess we can't complain too much.

In Costa Rica, folks have to pony up $100 or $150 just to apply for a visa to visit the U.S., and there's no guarantee that they will receive a visa.

We have wanted to visit Brazil since we've been down in Costa Rica, but we need to get to a Brazilian embassy to pay the $100 or more fee to obtain a visa in advance. It is supposed to be good for 10 years as well, from what we've been told, but we'll have to see.

Sounds like other countries are coming up with their fees in response to what the U.S. charges its citizens. Not easy on the pocketbook, that's for sure, but hard to whine too much considering everything.

Adios. . .

Yep, we just got back about a month ago, but we were planning on visiting our families on the way back down to Costa Rica, but various things didn't work out, so we're heading out to do so today. . . We'll be back in three weeks, and will cover some 18,500 air miles . . . The original plan was to head to Barcelona for a few days, as when you tack on a lot of stops, it really doesn't cost much more to head to a far-flung locale.

The Iceland volcano put a damper on that plan, so we're heading back to Buenos Aires for a few days, which is fine with us as it's one of our favorite cities.

We will be heading from San Jose to Miami, to Buenos Aires, back to Miami, to L.A., Fresno (to see Lucy's folks) back to L.A. for a brief stopover, then to Las Vegas to see some friends (it is on the way from California to Wisconsin) and then from Las Vegas to Chicago to Madison, Wis., and then Madison to Chicago and then to Miami and back to San Jose.

If all goes well, we'll be back here at the hotel on May 13, and will be staying put for a good few months. We're going to take the laptop with us, and may post some blog entries along the way, if we can find a reliable Internet connection. . .

Pup pIc, take II

Taking the three lasses for a walk on the trail. No one needs me to write anymore about this, just plain cute.

Puppy pictures. . .

Update: We are now puppy-less. . . Jason, who took the pup with the heart on its side, came back today and said that one of his nephews who lives nearby wanted the runt of the litter. This is a good thing, though Lucy was very sad to see the runt leave. The nephew lives next to Jason, so the two pups will be able to see each other on a regular basis. . .

Of course, this comes as we finally got some pup pictures up.

The mother, Si-Si, is still around, though she won't be feeding the little critters any longer. The runt is the one on the upper right with the black dot on it. She was adopted today.

Pups. . .

OK, we are now down to one pup and her mother, as we found good homes for the other two.

Finding a good home isn't all that simple here, as most folks regard dogs (very, very few cats here) as work animals or something like that -- but definitely not pets. . . Si-si (the mother) was abandoned along with her three pups in March as the family was moving house and didn't want to take her and the newborns. (They did come back to see if any of the pups were males--they weren't--so they were all left to fend for themselves).

One of the pups, the big, burly black one, was adopted by Rolando, our night watchman. His daughters (ages 8 and 10) have fallen in love with "Osa" (that means bear in Spanish); and Jason, a good friend of ours who works for a great tour company, adopted the other with his new bride (practice for the future family). We now have one pooch left, and she is a kick. We are leaving to visit family soon, and the pup may not be here when we get back, as we are already pushing maximum density with pooches here at the hotel. However, she will be going to a good home, courtesy of the owners, if everything works out.

We are left with the runt, shown curling up to Bejuca. Bejuca isn't sure what to make of the little thing, but is generally tolerant of her.

Un buen dia (a good day)

We had an earlier-than-normal wakeup today, as a couple of aspiring musicians from Chicago had to check out early in order to make their flight home from San Jose. The weather was cool (in the 70s) with a touch of humidity. There is a great family staying here now (two generations from New Mexico and Massachussetts) and they were so excited to come down, they showed up for breakfast 15 minutes early. No worries, as we were already up. Then the family made the hike down to the waterfall and pools. They said they would be back in an hour or so; they returned three hours later after splashing in the waterfall pools and checking out the river. After they took off for lunch, a Kiwi family checked in, and within 20 minutes, they saw two mama sloths with babies and a few howler monkeys, courtesy of Keneth and his eagle eye.

It's great to meet and talk to folks from all over the U.S. and the rest of the world (as I've probably said before, 80 percent of our guests are from the U.S. and Canada and the other 20 percent from Europe) as it's really nice to hear how things are perceived and how things work outside of the States.

Finally, Lucy made an outstanding seven-layer dip (I helped on two of the layers) and we just relaxed and listened to the cicadas chirp outside the house.

A good day, indeed.

Huevos de what?

OK, for the two of you who may have read the nature post and wondered what the sam hill the toucan was so interested in while perched in the tree, this is what I was talking about. It is called huevos de caballo. It's not for human consumption, but the birds love it, especially when they split apart and they can get at the insides. There has to be a real name for this fruit, but no one will tell us what it is. They just tell us the name and then giggle. For those still in the dark, huevos means eggs, while caballo means horse. Take a close look at the picture. Still stumped? We're sure you can figure it out.

If it's your birthday, raise your hand

Happy birthday to Ma Eidson, who is another year older today. No one is going to publish her age here today. In fact, we're taking a big chance by running this picture (it's all Lucy). This is when the folks were down here for a visit last October and we took them ziplining. Unfortunately, we only got to put on the equipment and take a ride on the test line before thunder and lightning wiped us out. However, we're all hoping for another shot when they head back down here sometime later this year. So, if you read this and talk to Ma Eidson today, give her a serenade of happy birthday, or feliz cumpleanos.

Nature alert. . .

Lucy has a much better eye for spotting wildlife and critters than I do. I've become used to her seeing things and then getting frustrated when I still can't see what she's all excited about. The other day, though, thanks to some serious finger pointing and a clear shot at what I was looking at, I was able to spot the toucan that was roosted up in a tree, about 50 feet or so from the front of the house. The yellow/green beak was pretty easy to spot, as the rest of the tree was a dark green with the leaves and vines growing around it. The toucan just sat there in the tree, which has a fruit that everyone calls huevos de caballos. The fruit isn't for human consumption, but the birds love it.

Just call me 'Hoss. . .

Though if the truth be told, I preferred Little Joe, but Hoss has stuck. The other night, I was sitting at the computer and happened to look out the window towards the trail that goes from our property over to our neighbors. Eight cows, Brahmas with big, gnarly, horns, were trucking right through our property. The owner of the 80 acres behind us lets some local folks run their cows back there to keep the grass down and manageable. However, the fence was built by what looks like first-year 4H flunkies with no skills whatsoever. So, the cows get out fairly regularly, but this was the first time that they've come running through the hotel grounds. I grabbed a metal pole and a machete and started following them.

Luckily, they knew where they were going, as I am no cow hand, cow poke or cowboy. Three of them managed to get through the hole in the fence that they had escaped from while the other five, including the two largest ones, kept on going back toward the waterfall. It was getting dark by this time, so I came back and Lucy and I drove up to where the fence had come down and managed to get the barbed wire back into place, so at least the other three couldn't get back out again.

Afterward, we had some fine vittles and victuals and had a hoe-down. (Not really, but how often can one sneak in vittles, victuals and hoe-down into an entry?

Hot, hotter, hottest. . .

It's hot. No getting around it. It's around 90 or so most days, and the humidity is about 90 percent as well. Makes for a lot of three-shower days. There are no tradewinds like back in Hawaii; not much of a breeze at all to cool things off. However, it's not as bad as it is on the Pacific Coast, where it can be 5 to 10 degrees warmer and higher humidity. Sometimes the dogs don't even want to move, just lying on the tiles around the house to try to cool down. They don't even object when we hose them down, so that's a good time to give them a bath. Talked to the folks the other day and they said it was 80 degrees in Wisconsin. Talked to them a few days later and they were getting ready for some snow. That's just nuts, so maybe we won't complain too much down here.

Pups vs. wildlife. . .

You spend money to come to Costa Rica where there is an abundance of wildlife, including monkeys, sloths, armadillos, jaguars, agoutis, birds, snakes, etc. . . So, why is it that everyone goes ga-ga for the pups? We had a family down for spring break soon after we returned, and there was a troop of monkeys hanging out in the trees just above our house, including one or two babies that were probably only a few weeks old. . . We were showing the guests who had arrived when one youngster chirped in: "I'm done with the monkeys, let's go play with the puppies." He and his cohorts vamoosed down the trail and went straight back to the pups. The parents, however, ooh-ed and aah-ed over the monkeys and kept taking pictures for several more minutes before retrieving their kids.

Even when we didn't have the pups here, the kids always preferred to play with Bejuca or Mini-B as to seeing a sloth or a monkey. . . And most of the families have dogs back home, so they're not pup-starved. . .

Any thoughts, input on the pooch craze?

Pooches on parade. . .

When we left to head back to the States to pack everything up, we said our goodbyes to Bejuca and Mini-B, the two Tree Houses canines. . . When we returned, we had a joyous reunion with the two. . . and four others. . . While we were gone, the owners found a mother and her three pups that had been abandoned when their owners moved to another house. . . So now there are six pooches running around, including three pups that are around 4 weeks old. . . Two of the pups have been spoken for and will be heading to their new homes in a few weeks when they are old enough to head out. . . There is still one pup and the mother that are up for grabs, so if anyone wants a cute bundle of fur, just let us know. . . We will get some pictures up on here soon, hopefully. . .

And that brings us to our question:

How many pooches?
	Eight is enough (nod to Dick Van Patten)
	Not nearly enough. . .
	Are you crazy? How many do you want?
	Two is just fine. . .
pollcode.com free polls

We're back. . .

For anyone still checking in here. . . It's been a long time since we posted, as we got busy with the Christmas season and then other events. . . To catch up those not in the know:

We have decided to move to Costa Rica and hang out here for the foreseeable future. . . We were in Honolulu for a month, selling our condo, putting stuff in storage and saying our goodbyes. We're now back in Costa Rica on a permanent basis. We will be taking off April 20 for a few weeks to go see our families and do some traveling before returning in mid-May for the real long haul. . .

Sorry for the lack of posts and for being general laggards. . . We actually have a post that we were going to put up in early January, but never got around to it. That may make a late appearance as we get back into the swing of things. . .