SAFARI!

IWCRP arranged a safari in Barracas friday 13.04.07. The concept of safaris is as simple as it is pleasant; the safari group goes somewhere it has not been before, and walks untill finding a nice-looking bar. They go in, and drink one beer before moving on in a random direction untill finding a new bar, and so on all day and all night long. In the particular case of safaris organized by IWCRP, pictures of the WCs must also be taken. Here are the results, in cronological order:

1. El Restó del día;

Tacuarí 1744

Cleverly named, close to our flat and with tables outside, this was our first stop of the evening. A cold Warsteiner was enjoyed before moving on.

2. La cabaña de Barracas, Isabel la Católica / Olavarría

Another pleasant surprise. On a corner with relatively little traffic, these nice people have put several tables on the sidewalk for us to sit and drink beer. Apart from the regular beers, a rather nice one called Koala is also offered, as well as wine and german food.

3. El Progreso, Av. Montes de Oca 1702

This one is a real classic. El progreso opened its doors in 1942, the year Uruguay won Copa America, the Germans reached Stalingrad, all pinball machines were declared illegal in Bronx, Tommy Dorsey and his orchestra recorded "I'll Take Tallulah", Bing Crosby recorded "White Christmas" and "Silent Night", while Mexico changed from 3 time zones to 2 and declared war on nazi-Germany and Japan.

The first two pictures are from the men's room, the last one is from the ladies' room. In order to use the WC, ladies must ask nicely for a key in the bar, whereas gentlemen need only walk through some kind of enchanted garden, or at least a patio with a couple of plants. It´s worth the walk, though, as you can see on the pictures.

4. Blues Special, Alte Brown 102, La Boca

This appeared to be a nice place; five bands were playing blues and rock´n´roll the night we visited.

However, we came early, so the bands hadn´t started yet, and there were no other guests apart from a crazy-looking, garbage-smelling person. There were lots of people drinking beer outside, though, as the kiosk next door was open. We decided to have a gin tonic while waiting for things to happen, so the bartender went to the kiosk and bought 2 l of tonic. He then made a 90% gin + 10% tonic, hoping that this strategy would make the tonic last longer. After finishing the drink, the IWCRP delegates were seeing cuadruple, and had to get something to eat.

5. Don Ernesto, Carlos Calvo 375, San Telmo

Don Ernesto is our favourite restaurant in San Telmo. Great food, good wine and fantastic service. Good prices, too.