Argentina's finest, according to Simon

We loved Argentina. I would return there anytime. In fact, since we had to pay an expensive entrance fee for each of us, good for 10 years, I have a special interest in returning soon! 

Sam and I loved the steak (I don’t even like steak!). We loved the espressos, especially at Nuestra Señora del Café (you know it has to be good when they have the 10 commandments for making good coffee). We loved the Museo de Arte Latinoamericano de Buenos Aires, and our funky neighborhood in Buenos Aires, Palermo Soho. 

The 10 Commandments for making a good cup of coffee, per Nuestra Señora del Café

Even though we all did the same activities over the same period of time, Simon probably had a completely different experience than Sam or I did. Here’s my interpretation of his top 10 list, in no particular order.


1. Watching himself in the elevator and playing on the couch in our apartment in Buenos Aires.

2. Seeing animals – dogs everywhere, monkeys at Iguazú and the horses/cows/goats en route to Bodega Colomé. As soon as he saw an animal, he’d start signing that he wanted “more!”

3. Storytelling about traveling in a plane. Just like when we were packing up in Indianapolis to come to Peru, we started telling him in advance that Mama and Daddy and Simon were going to get on a plane and go to Argentina. This time, he started chanting it himself, “Mama Daddy Mama Daddy”, prompting us to tell him about our trip again. He enjoyed hearing this over… and over… and over.


4. Finding friends everywhere – from buses to airports to playgrounds to restaurants to plazas. It’s fun to see him becoming more outgoing.

Making faces with a sweet friend, coming back from Iguazu Falls. Note the cooler. 

5. Helado. It is safe to say that the days when he was ok with having a couple of bites of each of our helados are over. Simon gets his own helado now.


6. Riding… escalators and wearing his backpack.

7. Riding… the train at Iguazú. We were about to skip our last train ride and walk the 20-25 minutes to the main visitor center when Simon let us know, in no uncertain terms, that this was unacceptable. So we took the train.

8. Riding… bicycles. This was the first time he’s ridden a bike on the same level as us, which he loved, rather than in the safe, low-to-the-ground carrier back in Indianapolis, which he mostly hated.

9. He’s reversed his water bottle trend and now likes drinking water, preferably cold water, out of the tiniest receptacle possible, his current favorite being the cap to the water bottle.

10. Eating fresh grapes off of the vine in the courtyard of our hotel in Cafayate. What a cool perk that was. We could cut down as many grapes as we wanted to eat. So fresh and delicious! His capacity for grapes there was quadruple what he would normally eat.

Now that we are home, Simon asks to watch videos of the monkeys and waterfalls. He reminds us to put on our backpack if it seems like we will leave the apartment without one. And he requests that his water be served cold. What a lovely kid.