In some respects therefore we missed Buenos Aires a bit but we walked so much we would have worn out the rubber on our shoes before that of the tyres on the bike. Getting out of Buenos Aires was relatively straightforward even though we were in the centre of the city.
We knew that the roads going down the East Coast were going to be like this but it is a bit sapping - bu
t it is still our little adventure and we arrived in Mar del Plata on our first day out of Buenos Aires in blazing sun - but quite a chill breeze and walked up and down the prom asking ourselves what was beyond the horizon and how far away it would be - maybe somewhere in Africa and as far as distance was concerned we knew that London to Montevideo in a straight line was round about 6,800 miles.
We are now in budget mode as far as accommodation is concerned. If we pay cash in pesos it's not far off being a third of the cost should we use a card. But being a foreigner using a card allows us to avoid Argentinian VAT. Anyway, we paid by cash and it was the equivalent of £15 the night for a room with a sea view. So what do you get for £15? Well there were bry-nylon sheets and pillowcases with great big pink flowers. There was no curtain and the shutters were broken but there was a sort of nylon lace curtain. There was hot water in the ensuite bathroom with clean towels and a shower. There were a few missing tiles. Without going into detail the toilet flush could have been more powerful. And there was coffee and two Argentinian croissants, medialuna, for breakfast. And we even slept very well. The man gave Francoise a big hug and a kiss when we left. And then there was someone who wanted his photograph taken with us. We had kms to ride, and boring ones at that!
There was the first round of elections for the Argentinian Presidency whilst we were in Montevideo. The second round is coming up and it's down to two runners. The guy from the current government who is standing is we think the current Finance Minister - ie the guy presiding over the current 140% inflation rate. His strap line seems to be that his party has delivered 40 years of peace and democracy. The last of the country's seven periods of military dictatorship ended with the Falklands surrender. His opponent has come from nowhere and seems to be in the Boris/Trump mode and apart from being more right wing he is all about ditching the peso altogether and having the US$ as the Argentinian currency. First round had the two candidates neck and neck. If you can go by the number of roadside publicity banners between Buenos Aires and Mar del Plata it's the residing Economy Minister, Massa who is going to win and not Javier Milei. Either way we should still be in Argentina on Polling Day. One of the things we have noticed is some official blue road signs at the entrance to some of the (few) towns we come to. These are all about the Falklands belonging to Argentina. Some of the buses in Buenos Aires also had similar stickers as do a number of cars and vans. From speaking to the young Argentinian tour guide in Buenos Aires she felt that it was likely that Milei would use this as a potential vote catcher. We haven't covered up our UK sticker on the back of the bike yet but it has crossed our minds!
The roads and scenery really is boring. The roads are straight and flat. The scenery is non-existent. It is often dusty and very windy. Towns are about 100km apart at the closest. You have to be careful not to run short of petrol. People keep telling us that down south Argentina is running out if petrol - we will soon find out. Already there is no 95 octane available at some pumps, only the more expensive 98 octane. Whatever happens, we will need more than one tank full to get through Argentina !
