Camping and travel abroad have more in common than one might think.
Both involve elements of “roughing it,” although they involve distinctive sacrifices.
The cafe experience is essential to Buenos Aires nightlife.
When we camp, the sacrifices and compromises (in terms of water usage, living space, etc.) are obvious. We ration water and generator usage, and we concoct new recipes that make the most of our RV cooking equipment. But in a way, those very sacrifices are what motivate us to camp. It’s a shared experience that brings us closer to the world around us, and closer to our loved ones. The myriad compromises are — dare I say it — fun!
Similarly, there are sacrifices when traveling abroad. We take ourselves out of our usual comfort zone, and enter a different reality. Even the simplest tasks — making mundane grocery purchases, for example — are suddenly more complex. The sense of a shared adventure is heightened when neither you nor your spouse speak the local language.
People watching ... after midnight!
A few years ago, Kristy and I spent a couple of months in a small town in the Czech Republic. We were probably the only Americans in the town. We were certainly among the few who spoke any measure of English. All TV shows were in Czech and German. Talk about a bonding experience! Pretty much every day for two months, we conversed solely with one another. Kristy often refers to that adventure as our preliminary test for RVing.
There’s also a similar “buzz” of excitement that surrounds the best camping and travel experiences. For example, I’ll never forget the first time I visited Krakow, Poland. The city charmed with layer upon layer of history and culture (not to mention fabulous cheap beer!).
But the excitement I drew from that visit was not unlike what I felt during our first Airstream camping trip to Destin, Florida. I’ll never forget lying in the bedroom of our Airstream, listening to ocean waves crash upon the nearby shore. The context was completely different, but the resulting “buzz” of excitement was the same.
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This afternoon we are meeting at a local RV rental shop. I’ll be shooting video, naturally, and will give my best efforts to post a fresh one online by the middle of the week.
Once we return to the States, I’ll put our Argentinia videos through the editing ringer one more time. I’m never 100% satisfied with the fit & finish of our videos when I edit on the road. But hey, it’s only a couple of minutes of your time, right? Check back later if you want the fully approved, Grade A, product. 😀
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Oh yeah, about those sidewalk cafes. The cafe culture is a central part of Buenos Aires life. What’s particularly unique about the cafes and restaurants here is their normal operating hours. Most restaurants don’t even OPEN for dinner until 8:30PM, and they don’t get busy until a couple of hours later. It’s not uncommon to sit down for dinner well after midnight! Kristy and I are night owls, so we are loving this aspect of Argentinian culture. We could get along quite well here.