Roaming South America

General Güemes, Argentina

April 11, 2023

General Güemes, Argentina, population: about 31,500. Pretty much the only thing of note here are the two large plazas/parks, otherwise, this is not a town worth bothering to visit.

General Güemes was founded in 1888. Prior to that, it was a collection of farms and a Franciscan mission. The biggest of the farms eventually became the town of General Güemes. In 1890, the railroad arrived and with it, the town grew quickly. In 1907, the elementary school was opened, and in 1928, the town library was opened. In 1933, another school was opened to bring the level of grades up to 5. In 1937, the School of Technical Education was opened. The town's most important economic support is provided by a sugar cane processing plant which happens to be the first such plant opened in South America. Near the city are also two thermoelectric power plants and an industrial park.

Güemes has a warm and temperate climate. The average daytime high of 25° C (77° F), and the night average low of 15° C (59° F). The city's elevation is 295 meters (968 feet) and averages 748 mm (29 inches) of rain per year.

So, my impressions: Güemes is an agricultural town. There is nothing particularly interesting or pretty here, nothing to attract tourists, and nothing that makes me want to put this town on my list of potential new hometowns. So, on to the next town I go.

My goal is to find a new place to live. So to reach that goal I am traveling most of South America, visiting the countries of Ecuador, Perú, Bolivia, and Chile, passing through Argentina, visiting Paraguay, passing through a bit of Brazil, and finally visiting Uruguay. I have a list of towns, about 70, that meet these qualifications: Cities with average day temperatures of 22-28° C (72-83° F) and night temps of 14° C (57° F) and higher; and a population between 28,000-300,000. I analyzed climate and population data of around 700 towns in the countries mentioned above and then pulled out the ones that meet the previously mentioned criteria, which leaves about 70. My preference leans towards towns of less than 100,000 people. And, now that I have visited more than 30 towns/cities, I've decided I will probably want an inland town. I love the beach and walking in the warm water, but, getting sunburned is just too easy, even on a cloudy day. At least, here in Ecuador. I've also decided that any town with more than 100,000 population will be too big. I've decided that any small town/city (less than around 80,000 population) that meets the temp specifications and has a supermarket and ATM is one worth considering to live in.

My goal is to visit the towns and discover which one calls out to me - "Chip, Chip, make your new home here, this is your new home town". That hasn't happened yet, but the seven towns listed below are very close to giving me that feeling. At any rate, I am not visiting tourist attractions or archeological sites, etc, those will have to wait for another trip through South America.

At this point in my journey I have five towns on my Top 10 list - Tingo Maria, Moyobamba, La Merced, Perú, and Catamayo and Puyo, Ecuador. In my travels in Ecuador, I visited 32 towns/cities. In Perú, I visited 26 towns/cities, in Chile, only five towns, and now in Argentina I've visited seven towns.

Next up: San Pedro de Jujuy, Argentina.