We land in Buenos Aires, and the elegant Hotel Elevage has a nice triple room for me, my husband Chris, and my 16-year-old daughter Caitlin. Joy of joys, it’s ready, even though it’s morning. We try to nap, but only the teenager manages to sleep. And sleep. And sleep. Chris and I give up on her and go out into the pouring rain for a walk around the city center. This is – our luck! – Buenos Aires’s first rain in ages. We duck under beautiful pink flowering trees in the park, which attract scads of hummingbirds. We eat luscious pastries in a café. We admire, from under our umbrella, the architecture, which looks like Paris.
Finally, at 6:30, Caitlin wakes up hungry. Nobody eats dinner at 6:30 in Argentina, so we stroll around before heading to La Chacra, which the hotel had recommended for our first taste of Argentine beef. White tablecloths, formal waiters, and casual atmosphere. A Texan businessman at the next table hears us speaking English and tells us this is his favorite restaurant; he suggests some cuts of meat for us. Exquisite. But Caitlin, our animal lover, is so appalled by the taxidermied longhorn outside and the spread-eagled pork and lamb carcasses around the BBQ pit that she becomes a vegetarian for the rest of the trip and beyond! Her dinner: pureed apples.
The trip was not only memorable for the amount of animals we saw but also for the people and accommodations at the two camps where we stayed. Our first guide, BK, was a wealth of information about the animals, landscape and down to the plants and what they were used for. Everyday out was a learning experience with him. All the people at the camps were gracious and the food was excellent.
Our second camp in the Okavanga was just as good as the first as far as the staff, accommodations, food and animals. After our experience at the first camp we amazed that the high quality remained the same. Our guide, G, made sure we were able to enjoy every experience including a rush through the bush to witness a cheetah and an ensuing hunt that he heard over his radio.
In both camps there were enough guides out that if they saw something the other guides were informed which helped in seeing as much as possible. It was also nice that the concessions were large enough that we did not have vehicles following each other throughout the day.
Normally there is always something in a trip of this length that we think could be improved upon but this is the rare case where we cannot think of anything. From the time we left the States to when we returned it was one of the most hassle free vacations we took.
Perhaps emphasizing the use of the laundry facilities at the camps would be useful because of the luggage restrictions would be the only thing I can think of as an improvement to future clients.
Kenneth Dropek
2 days ago
Mary was so pleasant and professional. She made sure all of our questions were answered.