Buenos Aires! Obama Wins!

Today is my first blog in Buenos Aires and my last full day here. I finally found the computer in the Marriott. First things first, the Malbec wine here is amazing and so many different varieties. The 10 varieties I get in a PA state liqueor store can't even compare to a single restaurant's inventory. Yesterday I headed out to a "Guacho" ranch (cowboy), where I experienced more good wine, horeback riding, and a great meat asada (BBQ). Kelly and I are definitely excited to begin the Antarctica portion of our journey tomorrow.

Couple of first impressions of Buenos Aires and I believe misconceptions. As a whole, Buenos Aires is not cheap. There are some things that are less expensive such as cheese, taxi's, and some bottles of wine. Things such as leather, food, tango shows, and bar drinking are more expensive then the tour books let you believe. Kelly was able to pickup a semi-custom leather jacket for a reasonable price, but your definitely have to shop around for the deals. We went to an awesome tango show with dinner and it was $100 /pp. I think Buenos Aires was a steal at one point, but like other destinations (like Cancun or Italy), they got smart.

Recoleta cemetary is really understated like Evita's grave. When you walk first walk into Recoleta, you immediately get the feeling of this is going to be a memorable moment in your journey. I can't really begin to describe the grandure and ornate detail of the tombs in the cemetary. The only other place that comes close is Pere Lachaise cemetary in Paris (where Jim Morrison is buried). Casa Rosada was an amazing sight. You could almost imagine seeing Eva Perone in the balcony addressing the crowd.

Today is La Bocca section, Theater Colon, and Puerto Madero for dinner. We'll see what that has to offer. It is always an adventure.

Finally, technotes for the trip. I have film background, but have been a big fan of the small compact digital camera that fits in your pants pocket. My brother gave me a Nikon D40 with some awesome lens. I've really enjoyed taking great pictures again. The 12-28mm lens was extremely useful in Recoleta cemetary to capture the graves without backing up 30 feet. The "power monkey" charged my ipod great and is recharding now via solar. The power monkey is going to become a stable part of my travel gear. The HG21 camcorder is having mixed reviews. I'll talk about it late. Chau

Antartica Eve

Finally, the day has come and tomorrow I'll be beginning my journey to Antarctica. Right now, I locked and loaded. It was particularly interesting packing since I'm spending 1/2 my time in Buenos Aires and Mendoza in Argentina, as well as Antarctica. I usually pride myself on packing light, but with two distinct climates, I'll take a pass.

Let's talk tech. My brother graciously gave me a Nikon D40, with a 18-200mm lens for this trip. I can't wait to use the camera. He also gave a 12-24mm lens (to borrow) for panoramic scenes. Then for video I have the Canon HG21 camcorder which can do 1080p at the maximum bit rate for AVCHD. It also has a built in 120GB hard drive, so I don't have any tapes. For power I have PowerMonkey which is a solar solution. What is great about solar solutions is that you can charge the battery, but it has many power tips, so instead of carrying 15 different power cords, I only need the universal tips of the PowerMonkey. I can also recharge my Ipod on the go with PowerMonkey. Finally, decided to use www.blogger.com in lieu of apple's blog tool. First all, it isn't vacation if you carry a laptop, which to update my blog via apple, you need your computer. I can update blogger via webpage or email from any computer or device. Thank you web 2.0.

I'm going to try to update my blog as much as possible during this trip, so check back periodically. See you on the other side!

#1 Introduction and disclaimer

First, welcome to my blog and I hope you'll enjoy reading about my take on life. It's interesting how life comes full circle. My first big break in corporate Americas was designing and selling websites. Once I moved technologies from web development to data storage my passion for the web dwindled. Web 2.0 has definitely brought excitement back into the web for me. This website, this blog is long over due. I have so much to share from technology, philosophy, my hobbies, the minushia of life, and most of all how I'm living my dream everyday. It's time to give back to the web that has given me so much. It's begins here. Welcome and I hope you enjoy the ride as much as I do. Welcome.

Disclaimer:

OK. I'm going to talk about a lot of different things some plain, some controversial. Read my blog at your own risk. I take absolutely no responsibility for anything that you do from reading my blog. I love America. My lawyer loves America. We are the land of free and I believe in that freedom very much. One of the greatest rights as Americans is the right to be stupid. For example if I talk about doing something, you do it too, and get hurt in anyway; don't blame me. Chalk it up as one of those "learning experiences" my teachers would call things when you failed. If I talk about anything financial and you loose money somehow, don't look for me for money. You get the idea. Reading my blog will be risky, but life is risky and risky things feel good. With that said, now I begin....