South America Blog
About this blog
Wayne Bernhardson is the author of Moon Handbooks to Buenos Aires, Chile, Argentina, and Patagonia. Here he shares his vast knowledge of South America and its people.
Recent Posts
- The Papal Cumbia
- The Uruguayan Sacraments: Tango & Mate
- Taxing the Tourist: Argentina's AFIP Aims Low
- Fortress Falklands: A Book Review
- Pope Argentinus I, The Musical: Ragtime Meets Tango
- Credit Where Credit Is Undue?
- ¿Adios Hugo?
- When "No" Is A Positive
- Chile and Its "Crazies"
- The Oscars: A Post Mortem, So to Speak
- Sacrificing the Atacama? A Chilean View of Dakar
- Chilean Oscar Faceoff? "No" v. "Kon-Tiki"
- Friday Digest: Southern Cone Nuggets
- Dancing in the Mud? The Andean Aftermath
- Floods & Mud: Summer Storms Hit the Andes
Turkey-Free Weekend: Wine & Cheese in Uruguay
More often than not, I’m away from my California home during the so-called “holiday season,” when turkey is on the table and packages accumulate beneath a wilting conifer on so many living room floors, and I’m OK with that. This year, while many if not most people in the United States are enjoying a four-day mini-holiday, I’m spending the same weekend working my way through hotels, restaurants, bars, museums and other services in the Uruguayan cities of Colonia del Sacramento (a UNESCO
World Heritage Site) and Montevideo. more >>
On Chewing Well: BA's Feria Masticar
Over the weekend, the New York Times published an error-prone account of the Buenos Aires food scene – are they skimping on proofreaders and fact-checkers? - stressing the contributions of Gastronomía Argentina Jóven (GAJO), a movement of young Argentine chefs. Coincidentally, even as they corrected some of the mistakes, GAJO played a major role in the Feria Masticar, a foodie festival whose motto is “Comer rico hace bien” (Eating well is good for you). more >>
Spelunking for Money: In the "Caves" of Buenos Aires
In the mid-1980s, when Argentine currency was truly volatile and inflation raged at figures up to 50 percent per month, my wife and I lived in a tiny Buenos Aires apartment where, on a student budget, we had to make our money stretch as far as it could. Then, as now, Argentines businesses and individuals responded to their own eroding currency by purchasing US dollars – which we were fortunate enough to have – on the black market. more >>
Afro Uruguay: Aspiring to the Screen
Some months ago, on this blog, I reviewed the novel Perla by Carolina de Robertis, an Oakland neighbor whom I’ve not yet met in person. more >>
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