A Terrace, A Wedding, A Conference
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Thus Far...
I was excited.
After completing eleven years of medical school and the subsequent training in general medicine and neurology culminating in my final years at The Royal Melbourne Hospital, I had finally attained my FRACP and was a Fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Physicians. I now had two choices: (1) I could seek work as a consultant or (2) I could explore the world. I chose the latter, reason being that I desired a period of untarnished freedom; to be off the grid for a while, released from both material possessions and the unquestioned routines of normal life. I hoped that this would allow me to free my mind from the external chains that inevitably tighten their grip after so many years of training such that I could practice medicine for the right reasons. So, aside from a few pieces of clothing and a handful of personal items, I sold or donated nearly everything I owned (including my mobile phone and computer), left a single bag with a good friend, and bought a one-way ticket from Melbourne, Australia, to Buenos Aires, Argentina...this is Sojourn.
After completing eleven years of medical school and the subsequent training in general medicine and neurology culminating in my final years at The Royal Melbourne Hospital, I had finally attained my FRACP and was a Fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Physicians. I now had two choices: (1) I could seek work as a consultant or (2) I could explore the world. I chose the latter, reason being that I desired a period of untarnished freedom; to be off the grid for a while, released from both material possessions and the unquestioned routines of normal life. I hoped that this would allow me to free my mind from the external chains that inevitably tighten their grip after so many years of training such that I could practice medicine for the right reasons. So, aside from a few pieces of clothing and a handful of personal items, I sold or donated nearly everything I owned (including my mobile phone and computer), left a single bag with a good friend, and bought a one-way ticket from Melbourne, Australia, to Buenos Aires, Argentina...this is Sojourn.
Arriving In Argentina
Unfortunately, I had chosen a cheaper flight with UAE that involved going west to Argentina from Australia. This resulted in a flight time of over 30 hours, not including stop-overs, and I was quite tired upon arriving in Buenos Aires. I took a cab to a hostel called BA Stop that I had seemingly booked at random a couple of days earlier, although perhaps there are no true coincidences in life. The cab dropped me off on a Friday night in a somewhat unsavoury part of a neighbourhood called Rivadavia, and the driver directed me towards a door in a concrete wall overlooking the street. I did not expect much, based on what I had seen of the neighbourhood so far.
Pleasingly, I was greeted by relaxed music and the friendly Mauro, who was working in the hostel at the time. After unpacking my single bag (which required about two minutes), I decided to look around the hostel a bit. Mauro stated that there were a few people upstairs on the terrace discussing politics, and pointed to a sign that said "Terrace." I decided to go and meet some new people right away, rather than get some rest. It was a good decision. I met a couple of great people that night, including Vita from Taiwan, with an exciting story of her own who would join me for the next few months in many different adventures, and Tom from the US, who was travelling to the southern tip of Argentina to teach English. Buenos Aires is a huge city, with nearly thirteen million people living within the greater metropolitan area. It can be literally translated as "Good Air," a name that relates to the original founding of the city in 1536 by Pedro Mendoza. The name was chosen by the chaplain of Mendoza´s expedition, a devotee of the sanctuary of the Virgin Mary (located on top of the hill of Buen Ayre in Sardinia, Italy). It is typically known for its many theaters, European style architecture, and cultural activities, including the nightlife. Over the next week or so, Vita and I explored the city as any visitor to a new place would do: we spent most of our time seeing tourist attractions, and went out nearly every evening. As a result, we had a lot of fun. During the day, we visited most of the "must-see" neighbourhoods and buildings. Some of the more notable places included: (1) 9 de Julio Avenue - The world´s widest avenue, named after Argentina´s official day of independence on July 9, 1816. It has up to seven lanes in each direction, in addition to two-lane streets running alongside it. 9 de Julio Avenue brings a whole new meaning to the expression "crossing the street." (2) The Buenos Aires Metropolitan Cathedral - The main Catholic church in the city, this cathedral dates back to 1580 when part of a block of land facing the main square was reserved for the most important church in town. It has been rebuilt many times. The inside of the church is stunning. (3) The Obelisk of Buenos Aires - A somewhat controversial city icon, it was built in 1936 to celebrate the four hundred year anniversary of Buenos Aires (in an astonishingly short period of time, about one month). I used the obelisk often to figure out where I was on 9 de Julio Avenue. (4) The Galileo Galilei Planetarium - My personal favourite, I felt as though I was lying underneath a clear night sky at the show we went to. Although the planetarium is nearly 50 years old, it´s still got it. (5) The Floralis Generica - Built in 2002, this is a huge metal flower located in the middle of a park. It used to open its petals every morning at 8 am and close them at sunset, but the mechanism for this was disabled in 2010 so as to prevent damage to the flower as one of the petals was installed incorrectly. (6) La Recoleta Cemetery - Listed as one of the 10 most beautiful cemeteries in the world. Hauntingly magnificent, it is quite easy to lose yourself amongst the many mausoleums and statues. During the night, there was plenty to do as well: (1) Restaurants - There were many quality places to have dinner. Most of the time, there were only a few customers in any given restaurant which contributed to a relaxed atmosphere. Moreover, Argentinians usually dine at a late hour - we enjoyed going out at 10 or 11 pm to have a fine steak dinner accompanied by a decent glass of wine. (2) Regular events - Probably the most memorable of these was "La Bomba de Tiempo," a Monday night drum show at the Konex Bar (my friend Jessica in Australia actually suggested that I attend this). The drums are quite mesmerizing, although the ready supply of alcohol probably contributes to one's experience. (3) Irregular events - Wandering around the city, we often found a significant event or party, such as a night-time beauty pageant in Plaza de Mayo. (4) Bars and clubs - Pretty good, enough said. I should mention at this point that as this was my first week of travelling and everything was new, Buenos Aires was just a whole lot of fun during this initial visit. I was seeing all of the exciting and positive things, and since I was a visitor, I did not pay attention to nor have to worry about any potential negatives. More on this later. Towards the end of the week, we went to Tigre a couple of times. Tigre is a well-known tourist town just outside of Buenos Aires, named for the jaguars that used to be hunted there. There are many restaurants and a large amusement park, Parque de la Costa. Tom joined us for the first visit. We were hoping to visit the amusement park but it was closed during the week, so we ended up taking a long boat ride. Vita and I returned a couple of days later on the weekend to visit Parque de la Costa, and we went on nearly every ride in the park. We had an awesome day. The fun could not last forever, however, as I had a Brazilian wedding to attend to the following week. The day after our second visit to Parque de la Costa, I said my goodbyes to Buenos Aires and to Vita, and boarded a bus to Brazil. |
Inside my first hostel, BA Stop, in Buenos Aires, Argentina. I picked this hostel seemingly at random, but it turned out to have a profound effect on my travels.
This giant picture of Eva Peron or "Evita" is visible far down 9 de Julio Avenue, the widest avenue in the world.
Vita poses in front of the Buenos Aires Metropolitan Cathedral, overlooking Plaza de Mayo. This is the main Catholic church in the city.
The Obelisk of Buenos Aires stands at the center of the "Times Square" of Buenos Aires, at the intersection of avenues 9 de Julio and Corrientes.
The Galileo Galilei Planetarium was able to create a night sky virtually indistinguishable from the real thing.
The Floralis Generica, a large flower made of stainless steel with an aluminum skeleton and reinforced concrete, has a mechanism for opening and closing its petals.
The graves of Eva Peron as well as many presidents and Nobel Prize winners of Argentina can be found at La Recoleta Cemetery, which feels like a small city and is full of elaborate mausoleums and statues.
Vita and I at one of the first of many fine meals together in Buenos Aires.
La Bomba de Tiempo.
We often stumbled upon a significant event or party of some sorts: here we have found a beauty pageant in Plaza de Mayo.
There are plenty of nice places to go out at night in Buenos Aires.
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Shooting Off To Brazil
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The wedding I planned to attend was between two of my Brazilian friends who were now living in Melbourne, Leo and Fernanda. Leo was solid. We had done the occasional gym workout and boxing session together. In addition to Leo and Fernanda, I had several other good Brazilian friends, notably my fellow neurologist friend Jorge, who were also from Curitiba. I was therefore excited to attend the wedding, and to see Curitiba.
First, I had to get there. The bus ride was going to be long, around 30 hours in duration, so I decided to break the trip up a little bit and spend some time in the beach town of Florianopolis en route. The bus to Florianopolis was uneventful, and I was surprised at the ease of the border crossing. We crossed sometime during the night, and I did not even have to leave my seat on the bus. The driver simply took my passport, left for 30 minutes, and returned with my Brazil stamp. Easy. Florianopolis has a greater metropolitan population of about one million people, and is rated as one of the best places to live in Brazil (if not the best). It is known for its beaches and surfing, amongst other things. I stayed in a hostel called Backpacker Sunset just outside of the city. Unfortunately, it was overcast with intermittent rain the whole time I was there. For a town that is known for its beaches, rain can really put a damper on things. However, I was determined not to let a bit of rain spoil things, and so I decided to go white-water rafting the day after I arrived. This was quite a cool experience. I had never done it before, and formerly had no real interest in rafting, but since the option was there I thought I might as well check it out. A group of us went from the hostel, including Josh, a relaxed guy from the US who was taking a break from his job; Alex, a French guy who regularly and frequently enjoyed his marijuana; and Sarah, an English physiotherapist on an extended break from work. We drove to a place about an hour outside of town. After a quick lesson on how to control the raft, off we went. I was in the front left seat, with Alex to my right. As we pushed off, he turned to me and showed me a mind-altering substance of some sorts in his hand (I have no idea what it was), stated "I have never done this one before," and popped it into his mouth. I thought to myself, "this will be exciting." I hoped that the rest of us did not have to compensate too much. The rafting was exciting, as we went over (and under) several moderately large waterfalls. Alex decided to get up at one point and dive off the boat for an impromptu swim. We stopped on some large rocks mid-way during the journey and had a chance to jump off of a small ledge and swim in the river for a bit. It was a good day. The next day, I felt queasy. I recalled that I had eaten fish the night before, and hoped that I had not been food poisoned. I continued to feel worse during the day, which was unfortunate as I missed out on what was apparently a pretty good night. The following day, I felt even worse, but I had a wedding to attend to, and so I boarded a bus bound for Curitiba. By the time I arrived in Curitiba, I was feeling nauseous and dizzy (for the other neurologists out there, more presyncope than vertigo). Leo was waiting for me at the station with his Mum, but as the bus had been three hours late she had wandered off for a walk. Leo went to look for her while I sat by the side of the road and concentrated on not moving. Eventually he found her, and we drove to his house. I do not remember much about that first night, as I was at the apex of my illness. However, the following day I felt a little better, and continued to improve over the subsequent days. During my stay, Leo and his family went beyond the call of duty in their hospitality towards me. I was given a single room to myself, when there were only two other rooms to be shared by Leo, his parents, and his two sisters (one of whom had a newborn baby with her). Despite the fact that only Leo was proficient in English and I did not speak any Portuguese (and only the most basic Spanish at this point) we communicated reasonably well, although there were occasional misunderstandings. At one point while I was sitting in the living room, Leo´s Dad came in and asked me in English, "Do you like pizza?" I responded that I did indeed. He then promptly exited the room and said nothing more about it. I mentioned this to Leo a bit later and it was the source of some amusement for a while, until Leo asked his Dad why he had asked me that question. His Dad responded that he had considered ordering a pizza at the time, but later decided not to, and explaining this to me may have been a bit too complicated for his English (and of course, far too complicated for my Portuguese). Greater Curitiba consists of just over three million people and is considered the best "Brazilian Big City" in which to live. It is organized and clean. The bus service is second to none, with large tunnel-shaped bus stops throughout the city that look futuristic in their design. Even Curitiba has favelas (shanty towns), however, with one being only a few blocks away from Leo´s house. Leo showed me around the city, including a fine lunch at a Brazilian churrascaria (a kind of barbecue derived from the fireside roasts of the gauchos, the South American equivalent of the cowboy, a few centuries ago). We also saw a bit of the night-life and attended an excellent beer-tasting session with several of his Brazilian buddies, all of whom were good guys. The wedding between Leo and Fernanda was, of course, fantastic. The setting consisted of a large room that was literally transformed into a giant indoor garden. The ceremony itself did not occur until 8 pm, with festivities lasting until 6 am. It was quite a party. There was no way to avoid consuming several caipirinhas, Brazil´s national cocktail, made with sugar cane hard liquor, sugar, and lime. This was certainly the latest wedding I had ever attended (although I must admit that I left early, around 4:30 am; I put it down to still not feeling 100% from the food poisoning earlier, or perhaps I just like going to bed when it is still dark). The day after the wedding, we all relaxed around the house. As my bus was leaving late that night, Leo´s Mum ensured that I was well-prepared, providing me with a bag full of food. Leo and Fernanda were heading off on their honeymoon to the US a few days later, so we said "ciao" and I prepared for an extremely long bus ride back to Santiago, Chile. |
The view from Backpackers Sunset hostel in Florianopolis; not bad even accounting for the overcast day.
White-water rafting seemed to a good thing to do with the poor weather - if you look hard, you can see our small raft about to plunge over this waterfall.
A close-up view of our raft as we approach another waterfall with poise and determination.
Action shot as we paddle.
A group shot.
A few of us jumped off this rock as we were taking a break.
Leo here with his Dad, with whom I enjoyed several good conversations despite the fact that we could not communicate in the same language.
Leo´s Mum and sister, Larissa, in the kitchen.
Leo and Fernanda getting married.
Leo with his little cousin.
Me with Leo's sister Larissa, and Bruna, another one of Leo's relatives.
A couple of caipirinhas later.
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Swinging Over To Chile
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In part, I decided to take the bus to Santiago as I wanted to travel solely by land during the next few months. On the way, I returned to Buenos Aires for a two-day stop and stayed yet again in BA Stop, where I caught up with Vita and Tom, who were still there. I also caught up with another interesting guy, Adam from Alaska, whom I had met on my first visit. He had been travelling the world for five years, funding his travels by playing the stock market. It was a good reunion, but I soon found myself on another bus to Santiago, Chile.
I had planned to attend a certain conference in Santiago for the last few months, created by an organization called Sovereign Man. Sovereign Man itself was founded by a fellow named Simon Black (an alias) who works as an international investor, entrepreneur, and permanent traveller. I had been reading material from Sovereign Man for a couple of years, so I was intrigued as to what I might find in Santiago at the conference. The bus ride to Santiago was uneventful, although the border crossing was considerably more strenuous than the Brazilian one had been. Everyone got off the bus for two hours and waited while customs officers with dogs sniffed everybody's belongings and opened and inspected all the luggage. I arrived in Santiago the day before the conference and took a cab to the W Hotel. Until arriving at the W, I had only stayed in hostels in South America. Now, I was about to stay for four nights in one of the finest hotels in Chile. I had a great view from my window, with all the bells and whistles. Later in the evening there was a conference cocktail reception. I nearly missed the elevator from my room downstairs but for a nice fellow who held the doors open for me. I asked if he was attending the conference. He said yes, in fact he was one of the speakers. I introduced myself and he responded in turn, introducing himself as Jim Rickards. I knew that I should probably know who this guy was, so I looked him up later and found out that he was the author of Currency Wars. I wished I had known at the time, but oh well. As the elevator doors to the reception opened, I was taken aback as right in front of me there was somebody that I did recognize - Peter Schiff, an investment broker and amusing financial commentator from the US. I thought to myself, "ok, this is starting to look pretty good." I met a few people there. After the cocktail reception, I had a relaxed evening at the W front bar, sampling several fine Chilean beers recommended to me by the bartender. I also had a profound conversation with a Chilean businessman in his late 30s (whose name I cannot recall) who proceeded to tell me about his personal and professional life story. It was a nice evening, sipping on Chilean beer while hearing the life story of a fellow I had never met, and never would again. The next morning I attended the first day of the conference. The morning was impressive. The first speaker was Dr Ron Paul, a physician and former politician from the US (one of only a handful of politicians I respect). He was followed by Jim Rogers, an investor from the US currently living in Singapore who wrote Investment Biker and Adventure Capitalist, books about his travels around the world; Nigel Farage, a politician from Britain who gave one of his usual rousing speeches; and, of course, Jim Rickards and Peter Schiff. I had the opportunity to meet Ron Paul and his wife for a brief conversation. They were extremely genuine. The conference itself covered a range of topics relating to the economic state of the US, Europe, and the world in general, as well as how to bank overseas and achieve foreign citizenship in a number of different countries. There were representatives from different countries around the world, each of whom gave a detailed presentation and participated in a detailed interview onstage with Simon. I learned a lot over those three days. Eventually, the conference ended and I wandered down to my next accommodation venue, a hostel in the city center. I had a beautiful walk down Providencia Street on a sunny afternoon. I bought my first book in Spanish (2001 - I still have not finished it three months later). I noted a few things during my stroll. First, Santiago seemed quite clean, certainly cleaner than Buenos Aires was. Second, the people were generally very young, and I sensed that there was something different in the people here - optimism, perhaps - compared to those few I had met in Buenos Aires. Santiago has a population of five and half million people. It was founded in 1541 and sits in the center of a large valley, with impressive views of the Andes mountains from many parts of the city. This combination of valley and mountains has resulted in a considerable smog problem in Santiago as a result of a meteorological phenomenon known as a temperature inversion. I certainly saw this smog from many different vantage points with the city, although it was not as bad as I had been led to believe. After the W Hotel, returning to a hostel was a reminder that I was not here to stay in expensive hotels. As soon as I arrived in my dorm room, I was invited to a hostel party in the common room. So, I went to the common room and started meeting new people from all over the world. I struck up a really good conversation with one particular guy, Alex from Colombia, who was visiting Chile for the week. We had a lot of common interests, so we got along pretty well. The group went to a bar that night that was good, but not great. The next day, Alex and I explored Santiago. We enjoyed a spectacular lunch at the Central Market. Alex, being a sociable guy, had to meet the chef as well. In the afternoon we visited La Plaza de Armas de Santiago, a large square that forms the heart of the city, and San Cristobal Hill, rising 300m above Santiago and providing some spectacular views of the city. That night, we went out to a club where I ran into another guy from the conference, Jess, originally from the US but now living in South Africa. We spoke briefly but the conversation had substance. Eventually, it was time to leave Santiago. For my farewell, Alex made me a delicious soup in the hostel with some ingredients from the market. I hope to see him later in Colombia. |
View of Santiago from my room at the W Hotel.
The Sovereign Man conference had an impressive line-up of speakers, including Dr Ron Paul.
From left to right, Peter Schiff, Nigel Farage, Ron Paul, Jim Rogers, and Jim Rickards (sourced from www.sovereignman.com).
Sitting in the W Hotel lobby with John from Canada, who was also attending the conference.
Wandering down Providencia Street, it is apparent that many of the buildings are quite new.
There are some nice parks and fountains too.
Here with my friend Alex from Colombia, on our first day exploring the city.
Me and Alex with the creator of our fabulous lunch at the Santiago Central Market.
Police on horseback in La Plaza de Armas de Santiago, the heart of the city.
Making friends with some of the birds in La Plaza de Armas de Santiago.
View of Santiago from the top of San Cristobal Hill. Smog due to a temperature inversion obscures the distant mountains.
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Looking Beyond...
Having finished my brief sojourns to Brazil and Chile, I decided that I wanted to spend a couple of months in one place so as to gain a deeper understanding of it. I felt that I had only scratched the surface of Argentina, and this was one of the two countries I really wanted to learn more about in South America, the other being Colombia. It was time to return to Buenos Aires.
