Roaming South America

Villa Mercedes, Argentina

November 27, 2024

Villa Mercedes, Argentina, population around 130,000, was founded in 1856, so it's not an old colonial town with a lot of interesting architecture.

It was in 1706 that a military fort was built on the banks of the Rio Quinto, along with a post house. Slowly more was built around it and in 1752 it was recognized as a town. Cardinal Giovanni María Mastai Ferretti - later named Pope Pius IX, was from here, and Charles Darwin also visited the town. The town had seen many attacks from the indigenous people and was abandoned and repopulated several times. The town was named "Rio Quinto" because it sat alongside the Rio Quinto river, but in 1861 it was renamed Villa Mercedes. The locals refer to it simply as Mercedes.

San Luis, Argentina

November 24, 2024

San Luis, Argentina, was founded in 1594. That original establishment was abandoned after some years but the town was reestablished in 1632 with the name San Luis de Loyola Nueva Medina de Río Seco. The city has a population of around 170,000 and about a half-dozen museums. The town church is of the NeoClassical style and was built in the 1880s, as was the Governor's Executive Building, which was built in the French renaissance style. There are some colonial homes still in use throughout the city.

San Rafael, Argentina

November 23, 2024

San Rafael, Argentina, is not a historically old city, and doesn't have any notable colonial architecture left. But it is a pleasant place to visit for a day. The town has a population of around 100,000. The city streets throughout the center and downtown areas have wide and very wide sidewalks and lots of tree lining both sides of the streets, and that goes on through most of the city. There are some nice parks and plazas and a few parks that need attention.

Mendoza, Argentina

November 22, 2024

I arrived in Mendoza, Argentina last Sunday afternoon, it was sunny and warm, and felt like an early summer day back in Seattle. As I walked from the bus terminal through the city center to the main plaza and across town to the apartment I rented for a few days, the first thing I noticed was how clean the city is. I mean the amount of litter could probably be counted on my two hands. And that was over a course of some 3-4 kilometers. Also, the city streets, downtown and in the suburbs, are lined on both sides by large mature trees, it's beautiful. This city impresses right from the get-go. The Plaza Independencia is a beautiful park, clean and well-kept, people sitting under the trees all throughout the park. I'm looking forward to spending four or five days here. The one thing that comes to mind that is a negative point for me is the climate. According to the stats it gets rather cold here in the winter. But for now, I'm going to enjoy a few days of very pleasant warmth in a pretty city.

San Salvador de Jujuy, Argentina

July 10, 2023

San Salvador de Jujuy, Argentina.

In wrapping up my visit to Paraguay, and working my way north through the towns of Yby Yaú and Concepción, I visited Filadelfia, a mostly Mennonite town. Taking the bus from Filadelfia should have been no more than 5 - 5 1/2 hours, so I figured. Boy, was I wrong.