We May Not Know Spanish Yet, But We Won't Go Hungry

We had our first parrilla experience last night. Bife, bife, and more bife (that's beef to those of us who don't know Spanish). We went to a famous parrilla, El Trapiche, and ordered ourselves some bife al punto (medium rare), grabbed our steak knives and our Malbec, and had at it. It wasn't completely carnivorous--we also had some salad. That said, this meal was all about the meat. And what meat it was! Now we understand where the Argentine reputation for excellent beef comes from.

As for today, we ventured out of our new neighborhood to Centro and beyond, in search of the American Express office (to garner pesos) and the famous bookstore, Ateneo Grand Splendid, the largest in  South America. The store is truly grand and splendid, situated in a restored theatre. We grabbed lunch at the store's cafe, Impressa, conveniently located on the former stage. Cue the Malbec music...

What? Eating, again? Yes, we did have dinner--and it was delicious, too. We're sure there must be bad (and mediocre) meals available here, but so far, so good. Tonight we tried Sudestada, a Southeast Asian restaurant. Yummy (that's the professional term) is the only word for what we ate, with gusto of course. Okay, we left our comfort zone a little--had a bottle of Torrontes (fruity white wine) instead of the inevitable Malbec. And clean plates were had by all.

Yes, yes, we know it sounds as though all we do is eat. But really, we walked somewhere between 4 and 5 miles today, and our eyes are full of sights. That's enough to make a couple of bodies hungry.

And so to bed, with hearts and tummies full.