There are 498 blog posts for you to enjoy.
Rio Cuarto, Argentina
November 29, 2024
Rio Cuarto, in the Córdoba, Argentina, was founded in 1786 and has a population of about 200,000. The Rio Cuarto (Cuarto River) runs through the center of the city. This part of Argentina is mostly agricultural, lots of ranching and farming, and Rio Cuarto is a hub for the slaughterhouses and food processing plants.
Before Spanish colonization, the area where Rio Cuarto now sits was inhabited by the Comechingón people. They were skilled in agriculture and livestock management, living in semi-subterranean dwellings. Traces of their culture remain in oral traditions and archaeological finds, giving an important view into the region's deeper history. Rio Cuarto's establishment in 1786 wasn't just about creating a town—it was a military and logistical necessity. The settlement functioned as a buffer against Indigenous groups during a time when Spanish colonists sought to secure trade routes and expand the empire's influence into the Pampas.
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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.
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My South America Journey
November 26, 2024
My travels are taking me from small town to small town, I'm not interested in tourist destinations, there are bazillions of photos of those online. I go into the small towns, the neighborhoods, the local restaurants, meet the people and talk to them. I explore the parks and plazas, the mercados, though in Argentina there are none, at least in the cities I have explored. I walk around the neighborhoods and see how they live. I think if you go to a city, snap photos of the tourist attractions, then run away to the next city, what was the point of traveling all that way? You learned nothing or next to nothing about the country and the people. Besides, there are bazillions of photos of the tourist attractions on the internet.
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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.
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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.
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