After being in the B.A. city center for over two weeks and getting around by cab, bus and foot, we decided to be real Americano's and drive us some! So we rented a typical vehicle for the average Argentine - a tiny 4-door, 4-cylinder 1.8 liter, manual-shift Chevy the size of an original Civic. It had all of the modern features of manual button door-locks, crank-up windows, zero cup-holders and not an air-bag to be found!
The first night we tooled around the city, which seems to never end and just goes on and on, block after block for 10+ miles in three directions.
The second day, we went out to the country on a highway and took an hour+ drive to La Plata, the capital of the state of Buenos Aires. It was OK, but again, right on the water yet with no water access - which was another three hours down the coast.
In general, driving here seems nerve-wracking at first, but quickly becomes a blast: lot's of quick shifting and braking while crazy lane-changing and veering to avoid collisions. The lane markers are but mere suggestions as cars typically straddle them deciding which option will eventually become better, and during rush hour a 3-lane road becomes 5-across as four cars occupy the marked three stripes, and the shoulder becomes a fifth lane. Yet, there are no horns, no foul remarks and it all seems to flow pretty well.
The buzzing thunder of twenty small motorcycles rolling up to the front of every red light is pretty impressive, especially when you see them flying towards you in the rear-view mirror, looking like something out of Mad Max. Their weaving and lane changing is pure ballet.
Out in the suburbs, there are no stop signs or stop lights, but the rigid block-by-block grid of streets remains; so the rule-of-thumb is when two cars approach the intersection at the same time, the car on the right has right-of-way. This is the same as the States, but people actually observe it here and it works, especially once you get the rhythm of it (as it happens and quickly - no hesitating here - on almost every single corner).
Parking on city street is tough (like any downtown area), so they have those "parking guys" (cuidacoches), who flag you down with dirty towels and will hold a spot if you pay them $2 US ($20 Peso).
Stopping to get gas was one of the longest and strangest experiences we have had here as they have to pump your gas for you and they take a very, very, verrrry long time (which of course translates in to long lines).
Lastly, (and if your still reading this long and boring post), Suzanne got to drive down the Avenue de Julio today (in the picture above), one of the widest streets in the world: 16-lanes, eight in each direction, plus 4 bus lanes in the middle for 20-total lanes. Impossible for pedestrians to cross in one light (so there are 2-3 islands to wait upon). She drove it like a native - you go grrrrl.
I'm hoping to still try my luck on a motorcycle yet before we leave!
-Mike
The first night we tooled around the city, which seems to never end and just goes on and on, block after block for 10+ miles in three directions.
The second day, we went out to the country on a highway and took an hour+ drive to La Plata, the capital of the state of Buenos Aires. It was OK, but again, right on the water yet with no water access - which was another three hours down the coast.
In general, driving here seems nerve-wracking at first, but quickly becomes a blast: lot's of quick shifting and braking while crazy lane-changing and veering to avoid collisions. The lane markers are but mere suggestions as cars typically straddle them deciding which option will eventually become better, and during rush hour a 3-lane road becomes 5-across as four cars occupy the marked three stripes, and the shoulder becomes a fifth lane. Yet, there are no horns, no foul remarks and it all seems to flow pretty well.
The buzzing thunder of twenty small motorcycles rolling up to the front of every red light is pretty impressive, especially when you see them flying towards you in the rear-view mirror, looking like something out of Mad Max. Their weaving and lane changing is pure ballet.
Out in the suburbs, there are no stop signs or stop lights, but the rigid block-by-block grid of streets remains; so the rule-of-thumb is when two cars approach the intersection at the same time, the car on the right has right-of-way. This is the same as the States, but people actually observe it here and it works, especially once you get the rhythm of it (as it happens and quickly - no hesitating here - on almost every single corner).
Parking on city street is tough (like any downtown area), so they have those "parking guys" (cuidacoches), who flag you down with dirty towels and will hold a spot if you pay them $2 US ($20 Peso).
Stopping to get gas was one of the longest and strangest experiences we have had here as they have to pump your gas for you and they take a very, very, verrrry long time (which of course translates in to long lines).
Lastly, (and if your still reading this long and boring post), Suzanne got to drive down the Avenue de Julio today (in the picture above), one of the widest streets in the world: 16-lanes, eight in each direction, plus 4 bus lanes in the middle for 20-total lanes. Impossible for pedestrians to cross in one light (so there are 2-3 islands to wait upon). She drove it like a native - you go grrrrl.
I'm hoping to still try my luck on a motorcycle yet before we leave!
-Mike
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