Circus in San Rafael

Erik´s entry:
We'd heard from a few locals we'd met along the way that San Rafael was a very nice place to visit. It was only a couple of hours further along the highway from Tunuyan, and our guidebook mentioned it as a town with more bikes than cars, so we thought we'd give it try. What we found wasn´t amazing (and there were plenty of cars), but we did have a nice time there. San Rafael is a bit like a smaller, rougher Mendoza. It is near to skiing and some national parks, so quite popular with national tourists. As it was still winter vacation time, the town was quite busy. Upon arrival at the bus station, the local tourist information center recommended that for economical lodging, we couldn't do better than some mini-apartments, just south of the town center. We agreed to have a look, and the owner, Ricardo, actually came and picked us up at the station. What we found was small, cramped and not-quite-clean, but it was fairly affordable, and the decor so outlandishly '70´s (velvet paintings, plush headboards and drawers, etc.), that we decided we could do worse, and it was likely only for a few days.

The following day we walked around town, looked at few other options for lodging, and generally got the lay of the land. We considered taking a tour in the national parks or a trip up to the slopes, but what we saw in the brochures wasn't amazing enough to spend a lot of money, and the trips were expensive. As for night life, all the bars we found were empty, until we again checked into the casino - jam packed full! Instead of taking a pricey tour or losing money at the tables, though, we hunkered in and did what any self-respecting, mature adults would do: we hit a chinese all-you-can-eat buffet, went to the circus and saw a hollywood blockbuster dubbed in Spanish.

The buffet was at the suggestion of Ricardo and his wife, who were very, very nice, but as we've said, with eccentric taste. The food was pretty mediocre, but not too pricey. Talor was happy to be eating anything other than steak, pasta or pizza (the Argentine staples), and I dug into the full parilla (BBQ meats of all kinds). All in all, we got our money's worth from the experience.

The circus the next day was fun. I'd seen the tent set up on the edge of town as we'd come in on the bus. With not much else to do, I borrowed one of Ricardo's bikes, which was too small for me and had no functioning brakes, and peddled trepiditiously out there to find out show times, prices, etc. Later that day we went out there to see the show. There happened to be another bodega (vineyard, not corner store) on the way, so we stopped in to take the tour and taste the offerings and get in the right mood for the circus. The show itself ended up being quite fun. Calling themselves "Circus Evolution," they seemed to be aspiring to be a sort of low-rent Cirque du Soleil, with fancy costumes, dance mixed in with circus acts, and lots of fancy lights and whimsy. It really could have been much, much worse. We did enjoy ourselves and the kids in the audience loved it. There was the typical juggling, balancing, trampolines, and a few too many flexible ladies dangling from various swinging objects (rings, curtains, ropes, etc.) There was even the "sphere of death" - the huge ball with motorcyclists driving around inside. We really had fun. So much so that on the way home, we decided not to be responsible and go to home to pack (we were leaving the next day), we decided to go eat hot dogs (called "super panchos" here), and see "Hancock" dubbed in Spanish. We understood very little of the dialogue, but with a film like that, who needs to? Again, it was fun, and the hot dogs were actually quite good, with toppings like mushroom, corn, hot sauce, etc. yum. With warmer weather we probably would have spent a bit more time to see the parks, etc., but we enjoyed our couple of days in San Rafael. Next stop - Uspallata, at the base of the Andes.

Photos from San Rafael: http://picasaweb.google.com/erikandtalor/SanRafael